A PENSIONER was left stranded in the Philippines for four weeks after his cruise ship left without him.

Furious holidaymaker Christopher Capel, 72, splashed out on a £17,500 round-the-world trip that set off at the start of this year.

But just over halfway through the journey, he reported nausea and light-headedness to the ship's doctor.

After the ship docked on the island of Palawan in the Philippines on March 4, Christopher began feeling unwell again and was sent for an examination.

After being told he had only a minor heatstroke, he returned to the port and was shocked to discover the ship had left without him.

He said: "It's been an absolute nightmare, and terrifying at times.

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"P&O have failed in their duty of care – I would not recommend that anyone over 70 go alone on one of their cruises, because I have no one fighting my corner.

"I kept telling the nurses 'I need to get back to the ship' but they kept taking more tests and asking about my breathing difficulties and chest pains when I didn't have either of those symptoms.

"I was then stuck in a hospital bed with nothing wrong with me, it was ludicrous. I should have been allowed back on board, it wasn't a serious health issue."

He and his worried niece Karen Williams, 51, contacted the cruise organisers P&O and travel insurers Nationwide immediately.

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But Chris had a critical medical condition that made returning to his dream cruise difficult, as did his fear of flying.

Doctors deemed him unfit to fly to Manila, so he was forced to travel by boat, then a small plane while being escorted by medics.

To the relief of his family, Chris set foot on British soil for the first time in months on Good Friday – four weeks after being left behind.

Chris, a retired youth worker from Wiltshire, said: "The doctors who brought me home were lovely, I could not fault them, though they weren't sure why there were required.

"They just gave me Diazepam to calm my nerves and there wasn't anything else wrong with me.

"It seems like a comical c***-up. The person who sent me away from the ship didn't even examine me and must have known that the hospital tests would have taken longer than the ship would be at the port.

"If there is a critical medical situation, as P&O keep saying, why haven't I been told more about it or shown their medical report?"

Chris and his family have slammed P&O for failing in their duty of care by abandoning him.

Chris said the secrecy P&O has kept surrounding his health worries him, and said he plans to book a full medical check-up soon.

Despite everything, this ordeal has not put Chris off cruise trips entirely – but future voyages would be less far away, stop at destinations with train routes back to the UK, and not be with P&O Cruises.

He added: "My holiday of a lifetime was ruined, as were the holidays of my friends who remained on the ship.

"I had a call from one of the other cruise passengers, who is now in Cadiz, asking how I was since no one knew what had happened to me and everyone was worried."

Despite the chaos, Chris said he enjoyed the first part of the cruise and was able to see new parts of the world.

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He said: "In Palawan, I went to a restaurant near the hotel every day – the people there were fantastic and looked after me well.

"Now I just need to get the rest of my stuff back."

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