Norwegian Cruises Hawaii - Jones Act, Passenger Services Act, cabotage issues from early departure/debarkment?

Question

Are the NCL America cruise ships really US flagged and if so, don't they avoid all the PSA/Jones Act problems? I asked a customer service agent about early departure and was told emphatically that it was NOT allowed, referring generally to these Acts. What specifically forbids NCL America from transporting passengers from port to port and prevents early departure from being problem free?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passenger_Services_Act

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merchant_Marine_Act_of_1920

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwegian_Cruise_Lines#NCL_America

Answer 1

Not all of the NCL ships are American flagged.  I believe that it is only the ships that have the Hawaiian itineraries, Pride of Hawaii, Pride of America, and Pride of Aloha.  These ships only sail in Hawaii, and only stop at Hawaiian ports, so the Jones Act would not apply.  The rest of the fleet is not American flagged.

Answer 2

well, Ive been on the Pride of AMerica and I loved it!!

Answer 3

The Jones Act requires foreign flagged vessels to make a stop at a foreign port when sailing into or out of US. Alaska cruises will start in Vancouver, end in Vancouver so this complies, and those that start and end in Seattle, SF, etc. will make a stop at a Canadian port such as victoria for a few hours.

The NCL America ships are US flagged and therefore can sail the Hawaiian Islands where they are located without going to a foreign port where they went to Fanning Island in the S. pacific which was the closest port. 15 night r/t cruises that start in S CA for example ended in Ensenada to comply or start there if it is a one way trip ending in Hawaii (or reverse).

The remainder of the Jones Act deals with the issue of taking a cruise ship only part way as one way transportation - not allowed!

I actually had a client just yesterday that forgot their passport and/or birth certificate and was going to be denied boarding in Seattle on the NCL Pearl. They would have to get the passport sent out Fedex and pick up ship in Juneau (1st port Tue) and there would be a $300 pp fine for Jones Act violation. Fortunately, we were able to get this worked out and they had someone back home fax copies of passport and they were allowed to board the ship. I'm sure glad as they were in both A2 Deluxe Owner's suites plus 3 other cabins. They were very lucky the INS people were in a good mood yesterday after a couple of very stressful hours getting this resolved.