A week after it ran aground midway between Dockyard and Spanish Point the Norwegian Crown cruise ship is back in Bermuda and early this morning was due to attempt a repeat of her ill-fated journey last Wednesday.

The 34,000 ton passenger ship set sail from Philadelphia at the weekend and arrived in St. George's Harbour yesterday morning. She is due to arrive in Hamilton at 8.30 a.m. providing there is no repeat of the drama that saw the ship and its 1,700 passengers and crew stranded after striking a reef next to Dundonald Channel on June 7.

Operators Norwegian Cruise Lines have clarified their earlier statement that a special cocktail party was held for passengers on the way back to the US after the grounding incident last week.

The company said this week that short drinks were offered free to passengers for two hours during the return journey to Philadelphia after the Norwegian Crown departed the Island.

One of the passengers, Maryland resident George Sunderland, has written a letter of complaint to the company about the way the ship's crew handled the incident and what he claims was a lack of information given to passengers after the ship hit the bottom.

He said many were left wondering if the ship was so seriously damaged it might not be fit to sail back to the US as a hole was clearly seen in the metal at the front of the ship.

Mr. Sunderland said it was only at 10 p.m. the following day that an official update was given by the captain through a letter delivered to all cabins stating the ship had been inspected and was fit to sail back to the US.

A cruise ship regular, Mr. Sunderland said he would not sail on the Norwegian Crown again following the experience. He said: "We were not so upset about the grounding as we were about the lack of information.

"I was disappointed. I really favoured NCL before this. The whole thing with the tenders taking passengers ashore was horrible. People were lining up and then a crew member came along and said we were wasting our time because we would need a ticket to get on the tender but then said he didn't know where we could get a ticket. Some of the crew were yelling at people and then when we got to the tender there was no need for a ticket."

Mr. Sunderland said on the return trip to the US the ship's crew appeared to pretend nothing adverse had happened during the voyage.

Despite efforts by three tugboats to free her the Norwegian Crown was left stuck on the reef for almost 12 hours until high tide re-floated her. As a consequence passengers were only able to enjoy a curtailed trip to Hamilton for a few hours after being ferried ashore by tender boats. The hull of the ship was checked out by a team of local divers and a team from Miami trained and authorised by the Norwegian authorities before being given the all clear to set sail again

Responding to the passenger's criticism a spokeswoman for NCL said: "The ship's officers did make regular announcements when information was available. A letter from the captain was given on Thursday night as well as letting passengers know the integrity of the ship had not been affected and we would sail as scheduled and apologising for any inconvenience they might have experienced."

The reef that was hit by the ship has suffered "substantial" damage, according to reports from an initial inspection. A fuller assessment of the impact of the incident is currently being conducted by the Department of Maritime Administration.