Norwegian Cruise Line - Dawn Review

My mother and I were on Norwegian Dawn starting at the end of Nov 2006.  She was having some angina pains which her doctor was aware of and OK'd her to go on this cruise.  It was an 11 night cruise and my mother's first.  About 4 days into the cruise, my cousin and I were on our first excursion and my mother decided to see if Medical had any nitroglycerine pills they could give her as she ran out.  They found out we didn't have cruise insurance and they couldn't get my mother off the cruise fast enough.  They put her off in Cozumel in her pajamas with no purse and no money with a promise to let me know what happened, but of course they didn't.  If I hadn't happened across her note in the cabin (she came back to the ship and insisted to be let into her room to get clothes, etc.).  There was no note from medical on our door or a message on our phone.  Nothing to let me know my mom had been put off the ship.  We got back late to the ship and it was sailing in about 40 minutes.  They tried to put me off down in medical but I wasn't leaving until I talked to the doctor and found out what happened to my mother.  I insisted they bring her back to the ship, but they convinced me she was in the hospital and had been seen by a doctor.  I grabbed what I could in the few minutes they gave me and got off the ship (we had to be ferried back and forth to Cozumel).  When I finally got to the hospital, my mother was sitting in the lobby and had been the entire time.  This private hospital would not see her unless she paid them $1000.  She had never been seen and she was never admitted to the hospital as the ship assured me she had.  She was scared and alone and cried for joy when she saw me.  She was 73 years old and had no idea what to do.

It took us two days to get a Visa in Cozumel and to try and come up with the money to fly home because my airline did not fly out of Cozumel and we ended up spending about $1500 in order to get home.  Then my cousin who had stayed on the ship finished the cruise and all of our excursions had been cancelled.  My cousin did not have to pay for hers, but they had my mother's credit card on file and charged her $750 for our excursions that we did not take and that had been cancelled.  We lost about $1500 each for the cost of the cruise as well.  It was a horrible and scary time.

 As soon as we got home, my mothers lungs filled with fluid and I had to call 911 driving home from the airport.  The doctors said it was from the stress of the trip and what they had put her through.  We are not rich and we saved and saved for this trip.  Norwegian Cruise Line has refused to refund any of our money, even the money they took for the excursions that we never went on.  It was humiliating and they put my mother's health in grave danger.