Two New York lawyers on last week's nightmare Norwegian Crown cruise are putting together a joint law suit to sue for thousands of dollars.

And attorneys Eitan Ogen and Natalie Sedaghati say if Norwegian Cruise Lines contests the claim they will seek a seven-figure sum.

Last week a stomach bug struck 33 passengers and two crew members while passengers also complained of fumes in cabins and power outages during the week-long cruise from Philadelphia to Bermuda and back.

The couple said their 17-month baby daughter had became violently ill during their trip and they are now going to sue along with more than 40 other passengers.

Asked about the size of the claim Mr. Ogen said: "Each person had a different amount of suffering.

"It's hard to say how much it is going to be, it will depend a lot on the individuals."

His wife Ms Sedaghati said: "If they settle we are talking six figures.

"If we have to go ahead and sue them in court our expenses will be much higher," as she indicated it would hit seven figures.

Mr. Ogen said: "Nicole, a previously very happy and healthy baby, who had already been on three prior cruises, without incident, became so sick she was throwing up repeatedly and had diarrhoea for over 48 hours and did not eat and was in a lot of pain for over two days."

He said the family was quarantined by the ship staff in a closed dark cabin and for several hours had no power, toilet use or water.

"Worse yet, the time we were confined to the cabin was the time when the ship was docked in Bermuda.

"My wife and I had previously cruised at least 15 prior times on six different cruise lines, without incident.

"My wife and I happen to be attorneys specialising in negligence, with our own practice in New York City, Wall Street area.

"Fellow sick passengers who discovered this and that we had also been affected, began contacting us on the ship, knocking on our cabin door and calling our cabin, requesting that we represent them.

"We are also investigating and gathering evidence documenting other horrific conditions on the ship throughout the duration of the cruise."

They include:

Noxious fumes in the cabins and hallways

Black soot, ash, and grease in the pool and Jacuzzis

Unacceptable noise levels (construction late at night)

Broken mirrors and collapsing handrails in the elevators

Fungus on the bread and cheese in the buffet

Improper staff and food service training (e.g., staff spraying chemicals on occupied tables where people were dining)

Misrepresentation (no indoor pool although promised in brochure)

Mr. Ogen claimed the ship's own staff had said passengers have become sick on prior cruises.

"Worst of all was the ship's non-responsive management who refused to respond to our various written letters and calls throughout the cruise to try to address these issues."

The couple have signed up 40 fellow passengers for the compensation claim but have yet to file documents because more keep coming.

They expect to send a letter by the end of the week. A spokeswoman for Norwegian said there had been no improvement in the compensation package offered which amounted to around $300 of shipboard credit.