A cruise ship carrying over 3,000 passengers was turned away from a Caribbean port after a large number of gastrointestinal illnesses were reported onboard.
Enchanted Princess wasn't able to call at Grand Turk on Thursday, May 23, after local authorities denied the ship entry due to public health concerns.
Grand Turk was the last scheduled port of call on the 145,000-gross-ton ship's 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruise from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Enchanted Princess had already visited Princess Cays, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic.
According to the local government, they decided to deny the ship entry after reviewing the Maritime Health Declaration (MHD) submitted around 4:10pm on May 21, which disclosed 50 illnesses onboard ranging from the flu to Acute Gastroenteritis, Newsline TCI reported.
The Ministry of Health deemed the risk to the local population significant, as cruise passengers would have unrestricted movement in public areas on the island, including restaurants, retail shops, beaches, and more.
One guest onboard the sailing shared on the r/PrincessCruises Reddit that they noticed the buffet areas were less crowded, and the crew had taken over the responsibility of serving food. They were also enforcing handwashing protocols.
These health and safety protocols are standard cruise industry practices when dealing with an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness onboard. It's also not unusual for crew to collect stool samples and isolate passengers to contain the outbreak.
While the decision was made out of an abundance of caution, it's understandable that a few passengers would be upset about missing out on the final port of call.
"Now, just learning that Turks and Caicos has refused to let our ship dock due to this issue, is a complete letdown! 😑🤨," commented the original poster.
"So pissed off that they canceled the best port, Turks, because of the amount of sick people!" added another user on the Reddit forum.
The next sailing's departure has been delayed
Enchanted Princess is set to return to Fort Lauderdale on Saturday, May 24. However, the next sailing has already been impacted because of the outbreak onboard.
"I received an email today saying that our departure on Saturday will be delayed and not to show up before 12 because they will be decontaminating the ship. Guess they are just being cautious," shared sleekpaprika69 on Reddit.
The 7-night cruise is slated to call at Cozumel, Mexico; Roatán, Honduras; Belize City, Belize; and Costa Maya, Mexico.
The causative agent hasn't been identified
Princess Cruises hasn't reported the causative agent of the gastrointestinal outbreak to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Although norovirus is a common culprit in cruise ship outbreaks, it hasn't been confirmed as the source of the incident aboard Enchanted Princess. Other potential causes of gastrointestinal illness are E. coli, Salmonella, Vibrio, and Rotavirus.
The last reported outbreak occurred onboard Regent Seven Seas' Seven Seas Explorer during the April 26 to May 14, 2025, voyage. The predominant symptoms were diarrhea and vomiting. However, the causative agent wasn't listed.
22 out of 666 guests — 3% of all passengers — reported being ill during the sailing. Just 2 crew members were sick.
Read more: 10 tips to make your next cruise healthier
Elizabeth Wright
Elizabeth graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with her M.A. in Journalism in May 2023. Growing up, she traveled frequently with her family and fell in love with cruising after sailing on the Oasis of the Seas during her freshman year of high school. Having sailed on over 30 cruises across different lines, including Royal Caribbean, Carnival, MSC, Margaritaville at Sea, and Princess, she loves sharing her insight and expertise on all things cruising!
