Update (Thursday, September 7 at 3:00pm EST): Cruise Industry News has learned this voyage will not be taking place due to embarkation limits with an early port closure.
Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line is offering a unique opportunity to avoid Hurricane Irma as the cruise line has made a quick decision to offer a four-night cruise aboard the Grand Celebration.
The cruise will depart Palm Beach on Friday morning at 10 a.m., and is set to return on Tuesday.
Oneil Khosa, CEO of Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, told Cruise Industry News discussions started on Wednesday afternoon among employees as to whether they could board the ship, which was scheduled to sail from Palm Beach on Friday to avoid the storm.
“A lot of us live locally, and we figured the ship may be the safest place to be in calm waters,” he said. “Then we decided to open it up. We put it on our website, and it’s a minimal charge.”
No port calls are scheduled and pricing is modest, at $50 per person per day.
The ship will dock at Palm Beach on Friday morning, disembarking passengers from a previous cruise before sailing south.
Khosa said it would be a quick turarnound, with the port excepted to close at noon.
Discussions have already taken place with U.S. Customs and Board Protection for an early morning disembarkation process.
At this point the plan is to sail the ship south, and most likely stay close to the Southwest corner of Cuba, Khosa said.
The cruise line is taking bookings on www.cruisebp.com and via phone, 800-995-3201.