The Carnival Sunshine arrived in Charleston just before 5 p.m. May 27 after adverse weather conditions held up the cruise ship for most of the day.
The pleasure ship was due to arrive in downtown Charleston Saturday morning after a six-night sailing to Nassau, Bimini and Half Moon Cay and depart for a five-night voyage to the Bahamas by late afternoon.
An updated embarkation schedule for the May 27 sailing showed passengers traveling on the cruise leaving Charleston en route to the Bahamas were scheduled to board between 6:30 p.m. and 11 p.m.
“It’s been a long day and we know you are ready to get on board,” a note attached to the new schedule stated.
The company said it would provide a 1-day refund for pre-purchased beverage and WiFi packages. It apologized for the delay, which it partly attributed to high winds and rough seas. A storm system raked the coast with rain and gusty winds for most of the day.
The departing Memorial Day weekend sailing is sold out. The Charleston-based Sunshine can accommodate about 3,000 passengers.
The first update indicating a potential delay was sent the night of May 26, as the storm bore down on the region.
“The ship is experiencing adverse weather conditions sailing back to Charleston and may arrive later than scheduled tomorrow,” according to the text message.
“We are still waiting outside the channel leading into port,” the cruise line said in a text message sent at 11 a.m. In a 2 p.m. update, Carnival said the pleasure ship was on its way to Union Pier Terminal after weather conditions improved. It finally arrived about three hours later.
Contact John McDermott at 843-937-5572 or follow him on Twitter at @byjohnmcdermott