Cruise Ships Race to Southampton Ahead of Storm Austen

Three cruise ships docked at Southampton a day ahead of schedule on October 22, racing to get in before Storm Austen hit southern England.

P&O Cruises' Arvia, MSC Preziosa and MSC Virtuosa had all been due in on the morning of October 23 or 24. Instead, Arvia and MSC Virtuosa were alongside by about 7 p.m. on October 22, MSC Preziosa by about 9:30 p.m., subject to weather and pilot availability.

Arvia was wrapping a 13-night Mediterranean cruise and about to begin a 14-night transatlantic crossing to Barbados from Southampton. MSC Preziosa also shifted its outbound timing: guests on the next sailing needed to be at the City Cruise Terminal by 2 p.m. on October 23, with departure at 6 p.m. rather than 8 p.m.

A fourth P&O ship, Iona, handled the storm differently. Rather than arriving early, Iona simply cancelled her October 22 port call at Getxo, the port for Bilbao in Spain's Basque Country, spending the day at sea instead. Guests were notified via onboard letter from Captain Andrew Foote the evening before. The ship sheltered in waters near Brixham and was expected back in Southampton at 6:15 a.m. on October 24.

The Met Office had issued an amber weather warning for southwest England on October 23 and a yellow warning for the Southampton area, forecasting strong winds and heavy rain. The same storm caused wider disruption along Britain's western coast: Storm Austen cancelled Irish Sea ferry services on October 23.