Celebrity Loses Galapagos Permit Temporarily

Celebrity’s permit has been revoked for some 45 days and the cruise line has been handed a financial fine following having “out-of-season lobster tails” onboard the ship during a routine inspection.

Oops. Someone will get their tail chewed alright.

Wow, I was ready to feel bad for Celebrity, but this is ridiculous. Regardless of how much money they bring to the region or how silly the regulation may be, Celebrity is a guest there and knows they need to abide by the local rules. We still love Celebrity’s big ships, but when we finally get to visit the Galapagos we’ll certainly look at all the options…

They had purchased lobsters from local fisherman "in season" and still had 12 kilos (about 26 lbs) of them left in the ship's freezer after the end of the season. That is why the permit was pulled for 45 days. Celebrity has had to cancel 2 sailings so far, but is appealing the action.

They had purchased lobsters from local fisherman "in season" and still had 12 kilos (about 26 lbs) of them left in the ship's freezer after the end of the season. That is why the permit was pulled for 45 days. Celebrity has had to cancel 2 sailings so far, but is appealing the action.

I wonder if the fine would have been even less severe if they'd served the remaining lobster to the crew, and not the guests? I guess we'll never know.