Michigan couple make most of cancelled cruise in Vancouver

Christie Gransden and her husband Don were supposed to leave Vancouver last week on an Alaskan cruise, but the voyage got cancelled at the last minute due to mechanical issues. 

Gransden, a nurse from Michigan, spent a year-and-a-half planning what was supposed to be a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

“I was picking up extra shifts in this hospital to make sure that I could pay for the cruise that we really wanted. I tried to make it an upgraded experience for both of us,” Gransden told CityNews.

She says they spent big on first-class plane tickets, a suite, and excursions for their cruise. 

Two days before the voyage, the couple was told there were issues with the propulsion system on board the Royal Caribbean vessel, but they were assured the cruise would go ahead as planned. They flew into Vancouver, only for the cruise to be cancelled one day after it was supposed to leave.

But the couple decided they would make the most of their time in Vancouver before heading home. Gransden says they had an abundance of options for how to spend their days in Vancouver.

“Vancouver has a lot of things to do! It was really tough to decide what we were going to do that day,” she said. 

They visited the Vancouver Aquarium, had lunch in Chinatown, and stayed the night in a hotel. 

While the couple will get a full refund and a free cruise from the Royal Caribbean, the company isn’t likely to cover out-of-pocket expenses.

Gransden paid $3,500 for flights, hotels, transportation, food, and airport parking.

But Gransden and her husband kept their spirits high, saying Vancouver offered the true Canadian experience. 

“Everybody in Vancouver really just tried to make the most [of it], even for us when we explained when they say, ‘Whatcha doin’ in Vancouver?’ We would explain to them what happened, and they were really wonderful. So, my overall experience of Vancouver has been really wonderful.”