In a terrifying twist straight out of a disaster movie, dozens of American cruise passengers were left stranded on the Big Island of Hawaii on July 29 when Norwegian Cruise Line’s Pride of America abruptly pulled anchor and fled port — just hours after a massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake near Russia sparked tsunami warnings across the Pacific.
“It’s crazy. It’s chaos. Nobody knows what’s going on,” said TikTok user @mandythecruiseplanner, one of several furious guests left behind as the ship unexpectedly sailed out of Hilo two hours ahead of schedule. “Our bus driver had no idea what was happening. People on the ship — we have family on the ship — they’re terrified for us. We’re terrified for us.”
Videos began flooding TikTok within hours, showing bewildered passengers scrambling along the dock as the cruise liner disappeared over the horizon.
"POV: tsunami in Hawaii and your cruise is leaving without people,” wrote @danifreeman alongside footage of panicked tourists. “Actually insane. We are going to be in the middle of the tsunami in the ocean.”
In a statement to Newsweek, Norwegian Cruise Line insisted that the decision was made for safety reasons and that all guests were notified ahead of time.
“Guests participating in NCL shore excursions were brought to a local high school — a designated safe location — where refreshments were provided,” the company stated. “All guests were advised to seek higher ground and follow local emergency procedures if unable to return in time.”
The cruise line added that the ship remained offshore overnight as a precaution, awaiting clearance to return once local and Coast Guard officials deemed the port safe.
But that wasn’t enough to calm the backlash.
Though guests were eventually bused to shelter, many shared their shock and fear online. Some were tourists unfamiliar with the island, confused about where to go or what to do.
“We didn’t plan to go to Hawaii and live out a tsunami,” Mandy said in a follow-up video from the high school shelter. “That was not the plan. I’ll tell you what: I sure wouldn’t have booked that excursion.”
Cruise experts say situations like this — though rare — highlight the risks of island travel during natural disasters. In recent years, extreme weather events have increasingly disrupted major travel routes.
“This was a high-stakes situation,” said travel analyst Doug Winters. “But what passengers are angry about is the lack of communication. You can’t just pull away and expect people to be fine with it — especially when their lives may be at risk.”
As of the morning of July 30, Hilo Harbor remains closed pending a safety inspection. Once cleared, Norwegian Cruise Line says the ship will return to port to pick up the stranded guests — assuming they’re still willing to get back on board.
Meanwhile, videos of the ordeal continue to rack up millions of views online, sparking debates about whether the cruise line acted responsibly — or abandoned its passengers in their time of need.
“I’ll never cruise with them again,” one user commented. “This isn’t how you treat people.”
Norwegian Cruise Line says it is “monitoring the situation closely” and will offer support to guests who were affected. But for those caught in the chaos, the damage is already done.
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This takes our family back 65-years to May 23, 1960 when a 35-foot tsunami hit Hilo and our home resulting in 282 injuries and 61 deaths impacting hundreds of businesses and homes.
Ship needs to be at sea for the tsunami, the farther from land the better.
Those 3 foot ‘Tsunami waves’ didn’t amount to much… this time…
This takes our family back 65-years to May 23, 1960 when a 35-foot tsunami hit Hilo and our home resulting in 282 injuries and 61 deaths impacting hundreds of businesses and homes.