French regional authorities ordered passengers and crew members aboard the Ambition, a British cruise ship operated by Ambassador Cruise Line, to remain on the vessel after an outbreak of gastrointestinal illness was reported. The ship, which was midway through a 14-night voyage departing from Belfast and Liverpool with stops planned in northern Spain and along France’s Atlantic coast, arrived in Bordeaux on Tuesday evening. Regional officials suspended disembarkation and restricted the vessel’s port interactions based on recommendations from local health authorities.
Up to 50 passengers exhibited symptoms consistent with acute digestive infection after the ship’s captain notified French authorities. Those affected were isolated in their cabins and treated by the ship’s medical staff. A medical team was deployed to conduct investigations, with samples being analyzed at a Bordeaux hospital to determine the causative agent. The cruise operator reported that 48 passengers and one crew member were displaying gastrointestinal symptoms as of late Wednesday morning, with the outbreak appearing to intensify after passengers boarded in Liverpool.
French authorities explicitly stated there was no connection between the gastroenteritis cases and a separate hantavirus outbreak detected on another vessel, the MV Hondius, which had prompted a broader European health response in the preceding weeks. The cruise line canceled all shore excursions at Bordeaux and offered full refunds to affected passengers. The company also reported the death of a 92-year-old male passenger on Sunday, though he had not displayed symptoms consistent with the gastrointestinal illness, with the cause of death pending coroner determination.
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