Two Dutch nationals were left behind by their cruise ship at the Puerto Princesa port after they failed to return before the scheduled boarding time on Monday afternoon, December 30.
Mich Meneses, supervising tourism operations officer of the Promotion and Marketing Division of the City Tourism Department (CTD) said that the two cruise ship passengers took a do-it-yourself (DIY) tour to the Puerto Princesa Underground River using a rented motorcycle.
“Kanina sa pag-alis ng cruise ship dalawang pasahero ng barko ang sinadyang iwanan dahil sa bigo ang mga itong dumating ng sakto sa oras ng dapat ay pagbalik sa barko. Hindi naman ito ang kauna-unahang nangyari na may iniiwan talaga ang barko,” she posted.
Based on their account, she said they became confident after being told by fellow passengers that boarding time was 5:30 p.m., when the official return time was actually 5 p.m.
“Kaya, eto ang resulta naiwanan sila (Base sa experience namin marami na talagang nag-D-DIY na mga passengers ng cruise. Kanina nga lang out of 2,000 plus na passengers more than 500 lang ang kumuha ng tour sa barko),” she added.
When the two arrived at the port, the cruise ship was already about five meters away from the pier. The vessel was no longer allowed to dock back again due to safety concerns, the Port Operations Manager said.
Despite the incident, the two foreign nationals took the situation calmly. Instead of showing distress, they even posed for photos and documented the moment they were left behind, saying they wanted to “capture the wonderful experience.”
Meneses said the CTD, together with the port police and the port agent, immediately responded to assist the two Dutch cruise passengers.
They were presented with alternative options, including catching up with the cruise ship at its next destination in Boracay, which is still within the country.
She added that the two passengers flew to Manila on the night of December 29 and took a connecting flight to Caticlan.
“As per Port agent: Kagabi rin December 29, 2025, nakalipad na sila patungong Manila at connecting flight to Caticlan. So, today inaasahan na makakabalik na sila sa cruise ship,” she stated.
Before leaving, the two foreign nationals said they remained positive about what happened, saying, “At least we got more hours to enjoy the city.”
