Lizard Island is about 250km (155 miles) north of Cairns ============================================================= I think it was a ship sponsored shore excursion.............It’s a sad story, but you get back to a cruise ship late and they’ll leave you behind, without much hesitation. I don’t know about Lizard Island, but most ports will impose a fine well into five figures if a ship leaves port late. Lizard Island is an Aussie Island and this is an Aussie cruise ship, so I don’t know if such a fine would apply.
The only exception is to take a co-sponsored shore excursion from the boat. That way, the boat will know that an entire busload of pax are stuck in traffic, or whatever the reason is. They’ll wait. Otherwise, you can try to retrieve your passport from local port management and you can, if you are able, catch up to the ship via your own means and rejoin your cruise.
Lizard Island is about 250km (155 miles) north of Cairns ============================================================= I think it was a ship sponsored shore excursion.............Generally, if you are on a cruise-affiliated tour, they will wait for the group, even if late. It is strange that they would leave her on a relatively deserted island, as opposed to leaving someone in a city from which they could find other transportation and perhaps meet up with the ship at a later port. A ship affiliated tour usually ranks tours in terms of strenuousness, so she probably overestimated her fitness level.