(MOBILE, Ala.) A lot of people weren't willing to deal will Carnival's accommodations anymore Thursday night.
Hundreds of family members drove to Mobile to pick up their loved ones after the Triumph docked.
And those folks were more than happy to book hotel rooms here in Mobile instead of staying in the rooms Carnival paid for in New Orleans.
"It was kind of weird waking up in the hotel room, it was surreal it really was," said Triumph passenger Bethany Nutt.
Nutt and three other friends from Texas are finally going home after what was supposed to be a fun girlfriends vacation, turned into what felt like an episode of Survivor.
"The first two nights were a little scary because of the uncertainty of what was going on. With the boat leaning as much as it was, we were panicked," she said. "Like, first time they came on the intercom and said OK we need you to pee in the shower and poop in the red bag. Then when the boat was leaning, if it leaned the wrong way your urine where you'd been peeing in the shower would come in your room."
Thursday night, Carnival offered to drive them to New Orleans to stay in a hotel.
But this group opted for a good night's rest in Mobile at the Renaissance Riverview Plaza Hotel.
"When we got back to this hotel I was like, I'm taking a hot shower. I want to shave my legs," said Chrystal Roderick.
There was one drawback though.
"I hated looking out the window and seeing that boat," Roderick laughed.
The city reports that 2,900 hotel rooms were booked Wednesday and Thursday nights as a result of the Triumph docking here.
"We've been sold out the last two nights mostly because of the cruise ship," said the hotel's General Manager Kent Blackinton. He says his staff is exhausted after a long week of Mardi Gras crowds and carnival passengers and staff. But his team was happy to welcome the exhausted guests.
"We kept the restaurants and room services open for them. Typically we close at 10 and I think our last ticket in the kitchen was at 1:45," said Blackinton.
Their sister hotel, the Battle House, was also sold out with last minute reservations.
Thursday Carnival cruise lines officials told Local 15 that folks who chose to stay in Mobile instead of New Orleans will be reimbursed.
