As The World reTurns

1. The World entering Halifax at dusk with the tug Atlantic Willow making up astern to assist it into pier 23.

The passenger ship The World returned to Halifax this evening. This unscheduled arrival falls three weeks after its last call, and has been brought about by Hurricane Sandy. The category 1 hurricane is working its way up the US eastern seaboard and has caused numerous cruise ship reroutings and schedule changes, some of which will be noticed here.
As it now appears Norwegian Dawn and Regatta will also be returning to Halifax, although  not originally intended to do so. Seven Seas Navigator appears to be planning an overnight stay, and Emerald Princess is now scheduled for November 1 instead of October 30. The www.cruisehalifax.ca web site may have more updates tomorrow.
The World is not a typical cruise ship as I mentioned in my October 5 post, but is a sort of floating condominium, with travellers owning their suites. They can also decide where the ship goes.
I did not note in that post that the ship recently set a record as the largest passenger ship to complete a Northwest Passage. This summer it sailed from the Pacific to the Atlantic, through the arctic, without icebreaker assistance. Because the ship was not on a fixed schedule it spent some time awaiting improved conditions, but was still able to visit several northern sites and take passengers ashore by inflatable boat.
It will be spending tomorrow and Tuesday in port before sailing Tuesday evening.