The cruise ship from hell: Passengers told to stay in cabins as norovirus breaks out

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When forking out for a once-in-a-lifetime trip, passengers boarding P&O's Oriana's probably didn't expect to be stuck in their rooms vomiting.

A severe outbreak of norovirus has meant that passengers have been left quarantined in their cabins so that it won't spread any further.

Passengers paid up to £1,429 for the Baltic trip which was meant to tour Christmas markets around Europe.

Some passengers apparently claim they have been told that if they catch the virus it is their own fault for not being clean enough - although it's definitely not confirmed if this is true.

One passenger, Brian Weston, is also said to have commented:

"Feelings have been running high and people are pretty mutinous."

As the spread of the winter vomiting bug increases, more than 750,000 people could be affected by an outbreak of norovirus in the UK, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) has claimed.

A spokeswoman for P&O Cruises said that six people on board have active symptoms today, but she was not able to confirm how many people have been affected in total.

There have been 2,630 confirmed reports of norovirus so far this season, but for every reported case there are likely to be a further 288 unreported sufferers, the HPA added.

NHS advises that if you get norovirus, make sure you drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration and practise good hygiene to help prevent it from spreading.

For more information about the norovirus, see here.