A dream voyage across the Atlantic came with an unexpected detour for passengers aboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Star on Saturday, after a technical issue forced the ship to return to New York City just hours after setting sail.
The 14-night cruise had departed from Manhattan Cruise Terminal at 4:00 p.m. on July 12, bound for Halifax, Nova Scotia, with final destination of Reykjavik, Iceland. But instead of smooth sailing, the 2,348-passenger vessel found itself dead in the water in the Hudson River, having suffered a propulsion system failure that left it temporarily without power, air conditioning or running water.
“It’s been stuck in the same spot for hours,” reported NYC resident Anne Davis, who observed the ship from shore as it drifted mid-river. Cruise tracking data and eyewitness reports confirmed that the Norwegian Star was later guided back to port by two tugboats, finally returning to Pier 88 on Manhattan’s west side Saturday evening.
Passengers and their family members took to social media to share real-time updates from onboard. One person wrote, “They’ve had multiple engine failures, power and air conditioning go out intermittently, and are currently being towed back to the dock,” according to Cruise Hive. Another post described “no water or AC currently,” with lights flickering on and off as the crew worked to diagnose the issue.
While temperatures in New York hovered in the mid-to-high 80s, those onboard endured growing discomfort as basic systems failed. Fortunately, no serious incidents such as fires were reported.
Norwegian Cruise Line confirmed the incident in a statement to W42ST: “On July 12, 2025, the ship departed New York City at its scheduled departure time of 4:00 p.m. As a result of a technical propulsion issue, the captain made the decision to return to the port with the assistance from two tugboats. After further inspection, the issue was quickly resolved by the time the ship returned to port. Following clearance from the United States Coast Guard, the ship departed New York City at 12:30 a.m. and is scheduled for a sea day on Sunday, July 13 before the expected arrival into Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on Monday, July 14.”
This isn’t the first time the Norwegian Star, which debuted in 2001, has dealt with mechanical trouble. The vessel has a documented history of propulsion issues, particularly involving its Azipod propulsion system—a component tied to a $159 million lawsuit the cruise line won in 2022 against its manufacturer. Although, the company has not specified if the Azipod system was responsible for this weekend’s glitch.
Despite the rocky start, the ship’s itinerary remains intact for now. The ship is scheduled to arrive in Halifax on Monday, July 14, as initially planned. This will be followed by stops in Sydney and Prince Edward Island, Canada; Nuuk and Paamiut, Greenland; and Isafjordur, Akureyri and Grundarfjordur, Iceland, before the voyage concludes in Reykjavik on July 26.
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