Coronavirus: Peterborough pub landlord rocked by cruise lockdown and government call for boycott

He may not have suffered from sea sickness but his time aboard a cruise ship in Europe left him feeling queasy at best - and fearful at worst - after it went into lockdown almost immediately after he got on board.

And after a rough week on the water things did not get better on Monday evening when the Prime Minister told the nation that they should start avoiding the country’s watering holes due to the coronavirus

Both episodes have left Andy frustrated and out of pocket, although he is adamant The Ploughman in the Werrington Centre will remain open for as long as possible during the pandemic.

“It’s pretty naughty what the Government’s doing. For me to come home and the Prime Minister to say ‘avoid pubs but send your kids to school or we will fine you’. That’s outrageous,” said Andy.
“We’re running our business as normal but taking extra precautions such as with the cleaning. I’ve been in touch with vulnerable people who use the pub and if I’m out and about I’ll get them something if they need it.
“A pub is part of the community and I’m not going to turn people away. I’ve just got to carry on as a business and hope for the best.”

Andy flew to Barcelona and boarded the Costa Smeralda, run by Costa Cruises, on Monday last week and reached his first destination when things soon took a turn for the worse.

“I got on board the ship, we set sail for our first port of call which was Menorca. We got there, I walked off the ship and they said we’re on shutdown.

“We had to sail to France which was then on lockdown. No one was allowed on the ship. We went to the port, disembarked some of the guests, then we sailed again. We weren’t in port much longer than two hours.

“The announcement came on Saturday that we’d have to pack our stuff as we’d be disembarking on Sunday. But they booked me on the wrong flight, so when I got to the airport I had to book my own one. And what should have been a £60-70 flight was instead £300.

“I got on a flight from Marseille to Stansted and there were around 50 people on there. I was just glad to get home.

“I count myself lucky. There was one American woman who they’d booked a flight to Venezuela!”

Andy, who paid £800 for the cruise, said he has not received any refund, despite leaving the trip before it was due to finish.

He said the 600 passengers were made to pay for their internet despite being on lockdown, with nobody allowed to get off at any of the ports unless they were catching a flight home.

This was despite none of the guests showing any symptoms of illness, he claimed.

“It was pretty scary for me. I was so relieved to get home,” he said. “But I’m a bit peeved about how we were thrown off the ship. I was fortunate I had enough money to book a flight and train.

“When we first started on the cruise there was no sense of panic. But when we started seeing it on the television - we all started noticing the seriousness of it. Then when they said nobody can get off the ship people became concerned about getting home and what was going to happen.

“When we got off nobody knew where we were flying to. Then they booked me to the wrong airport.

“They wouldn’t put internet out for free so we could contact people. Everybody was just glad to get off. I feel sorry for the staff.

“I can’t see myself getting my money back.”

But despite an unpleasant last 10 days, there was one silver lining for Andy when he got home.

“It’s nice that BT Sport has stepped in and stopped my payments. That would have been £900,” he said.

“I hope pubs and small businesses can survive. I fear for them, those not backed by breweries or big consortiums.”

The Peterborough Telegraph has attempted to contact Costa Cruises for comment.

Leisure hit by coronavirus

. St George’s Fayre, which was due to be held in March on Sunday, April 26, has been cancelled.

. Club ‘73, a not-for profit community organisation in Peterborough, which offers social and leisure opportunities for adults with learning and/or social disabilities, has closed all groups, activities and parties for at least 12 weeks.

. Vivacity is providing updates on its services at: https://vivacity.org/faqs-covid-19/.