A COUPLE who splashed out nearly £2,500 for the holiday of a lifetime, had their dreams shattered when they were told the cruise they booked to go on had been cancelled - just 48 hours before they were due to set sail!

And to make matters worse, Frank and Joan Harrison who booked the trip - taking in Portugal, Madeira, Canary Islands, Casablanca and Gibraltar - to celebrate their ruby wedding anniversary, heard the news 'second-hand' from their neighbours.

The couple from Haresfinch had been set to sail out from Liverpool on 28,000-tonne SS Apollo. And although they did eventually receive a letter about the cancellation on the very day that they were due to leave, they were left fuming about the way they had been treated.

Frank (62) told the Star: "We were finishing off our packing when one of our neighbours came to say how sorry she was for us because the cruise had been cancelled. At first we thought she was winding us up, but when we put the television on for the lunch time news we found out that she was telling us the truth, which just couldn't take it in.

"The holiday company that we had booked through, Direct Holidays, hadn't even contacted us. It's disgraceful - we should have been told before anyone else. If it hadn't been for our neighbour, we could have turned up at the dock on Saturday morning raring to go only to find out that the whole thing had been cancelled."

Bosses at Direct Holidays said the cruise was cancelled because the ship was not ready for the two-week cruise due to a mixture of bad weather and sea sickness among the ship's workmen.

John Boyle, chairman of Direct Holidays, said: "This has been a very hard decision for us to make, but I truly believe it is in the best interests of our clients who have booked on this cruise. We are not prepared, under any circumstances, to compromise our high standards." And marketing director Robin Parry added: "We were very mindful of the problems experienced by others cruises and some of the cabins and public areas were just not 100 per cent ready. The workmen on board also suffered problems with sea sickness and were unable to work as the ship was sailing back. It was a terrible decision to have to make and we really feel for our clients."

As compensation for the decision, the Harrisons were given options of discounts on other cruises by Direct Holidays but opted for a full refund and £100 each.

Frank, said: "We decided to get the full refund and the compensation and we may use the money for a holiday later in the year."

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