Among the more unusual cruise-related news stories this week? The revelation of a link between the newly-released Epstein files and a high-end cruise line.

Even more surprising was the fact that the bridge between the two was none other than a member of Britain’s royal family.

What’s the Epstein Files Cruise Connection?

According to a story first reported in The Daily Mail, former Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson hoped to land an endorsement deal with Cunard Line.

The cash-strapped royal’s apparent goal? To have the cruise company fork over $1 million in exchange for her doing four sailings over the course of the year. (It’s worth noting this was back in 2009, well before many cruise lines leaned heavily into courting influencers.)

Records make clear that Ferguson almost routinely turned to Epstein for both financial assistance and advice.

It appears that in the case of Cunard, the topic of Ferguson’s attempt to land an endorsement was discussed between Epstein and a third party, David Stern, described by the outlet as a “royal insider” who served as an intermediary.

Cunard Had “No Specific Opportunities”

The emails in question indicate that while Ferguson seemed to believe a deal would soon be inked with Cunard, no such offer was even considered.

In fact, according to an exchange reported by the BBC, when the intermediary in question approached Cunard’s then-president, Peter Shanks, he reported back that while the exec “enjoyed meeting” the Duchess, there were “no specific opportunities” available for her.

Shanks added that “the challenge is that our modus operandi is that we provide the stateroom and any travel arrangements [for our Insight Speakers], however we do not provide any form of fee.” 

He went on to say that he’d informed Ferguson that one option might be to find a third party who “could provide the necessary funding.”

Clearly, it was hoped that Epstein might fill that role. In the end, however, no such deal was brokered. Contacted by the Daily Mail, a rep for Cunard Line affirmed that Shanks “accurately reflected Cunard’s position in 2009.” 

They added that “No commercial opportunities for Sarah Ferguson were ever made, then or since.” 

For the second time in less than a year, the Celebrity Infinity has experienced technical issues, resulting in a sailing ending prematurely.

Ironically, this latest issue comes only a few weeks after the 25-year-old ship’s latest drydock.

What Happened On Celebrity Infinity?

According to passengers on board, a small fire caused the power loss.

Redditor vtgiraffe, writing from aboard the stricken vessel, said that Infinity lost power around 3 a.m. as it was approaching the coast of Piraeus. They went on to say that as a result, the ship had “no lights, no running water, no flushing toilets.” Air conditioning and elevators were also non-functional.

“Heard ‘bravo, bravo, bravo,’ over the announcements,” the redditor shared. As the situation unfolded, they continued to add updates to their initial post, indicating that several tugs had been dispatched to haul Infinity to the port.

Guests Asked to Disembark

Given that guests were encouraged to disembark a day earlier than originally planned, Celebrity offered hotel and flight-change compensation. Cruisers were also given a $100 credit for incidental expenses per guest and a prorated refund for the day of lost usage on Wi-Fi and beverage packages.

At the time of the incident, Celebrity Infinity was on the final leg of a one-way sailing from Barcelona to Athens, where it was slated to begin its Mediterranean season. There was no word at the time of publication as to how future sailings might be impacted.

About Celebrity Infinity

The Millennium-class ship joined the Celebrity fleet in 2000, following in the footsteps of sister ship Celebrity Millennium.

From the ship’s launch, there were issues, specifically regarding propulsion-related issues.

Between 2001 and 2006, Infinity underwent six separate dry docks, ultimately leading Celebrity to file a $300 million lawsuit to recover costs associated with faulty pods on Millennium-class ships.

In July 2025, the ship experienced a similar fire and power outage while docked in Turkey.

That incident resulted in the ship being out of service for several days and having to skip the remaining port calls on its scheduled “Best of Greece” itinerary. More recently, the ship completed a 9-day drydock before resuming service on January 11 of this year.