The ship, said NCL, developed a fault on Monday (1 July) during a 13-day re-positioning cruise from Amsterdam to the Mediterranean, forcing the ship to travel at a reduced speed.
As a result, Pearl did not call in Palma as scheduled and sailed directly to Barcelona instead for “further assessments”.
Following a review, the ship was held Barcelona for an extra evening (2 July) and was due to depart for Livorno in Italy on Wednesday (3 July), skipping a planned call in Monte Carlo, Monaco.
The voyage is due conclude in Rome but NCL has already said that due to “necessary repairs”, Pearl’s upcoming Greek Isles and Italy sailing - due to depart on Friday (5 July) - has been cancelled.
Built in 2006, Norwegian Pearl was refurbished in 2017 and has capacity for just shy of 2,400 guests, some of whom have like Hughes taken to social media to seek assurances they will arrive in Rome in time for return flights or onward connections.
The ship has European sailings scheduled throughout July and August.