Quest SY- Captain Goeran.

Question

We had the most terrible experience on board Quest SY and the owner/Captain Goeran Persson.  He is rude, makes you feel uncomfortable and  will drop you off at an isolated island without warning, water, food, and keep your money. He did this to my husband 45, and me 43 on Feb 17, 2024.  We had plan this trip for my husband’s 46th birthday. It’s such a shame that such a bitter arrogant men is associated with such beautiful islands and beautiful people as the Gunas. Captain told us to leave the boat after 12 hours of sailing stating that my husband was drunk and was putting him the the other passengers at risk. Such allegation arose from an argument by husband who WAS NOT drunk had with the captain less than 2 hours into the trip. There were 2 other people on deck getting sick from the rough seas. My husband was laying on a bench and Captain said: Move,  this is my bench to take naps. My husband then moved to the other one, Captain said he could not lay down there. Captain said my husband could only lay down in the cabin. My husband explained that being in the suffocating cabin with no air is what made him sick. My husband asked why the captain was laying where there was fresh air and he, as a paying passenger, couldn’t - to which the captain stated that was his boat and we all must obey which we did .  After this discussion, we continued to sail until 5am when captain anchored to sleep. At 7 we proceeded to the first San Blass island. Captain made us and the other 7 passengers disembark to get our passports stamped. Once we were close to the Guna office, he handed our passports to my husband and stated that he was leaving us there and keeping our money. He gave me 10 minutes to go ALONE back to the boat with his and his girlfriend to pack our 2 backpacks. When I asked him how we would get out of the island he stated: not my problem. I asked for a refund and he gave me $40 which was the Gunas entry fee that he had already pocketed it. Once back on the island to meet the other passangers, we were greeted by the Panama Military who told me that Captain Goeran had done the same thing to 4 other passengers 2 weeks prior. The Military, Guna Minister of Tourism, Guna Attorney, and secretaries all interviewed the other passengers and confirmed my husband was not aggressive nor did he put anyone in danger. The military then asked the captain why he didn’t turn around if he was fearing for his and the other passengers safety instead of sailing for 9 hours and going to bed 2 of these hours, and the captain had no reply other than “no COMPRENDO.” The military then told the Captain that his boat was being detained at the island until he either returned our money or took us to Cartagena as planned. TheCaptain refused to comply for 8 whole hours… 8 hours leaving the other passangers stuck in the island with no water, food, or shade or unable to enjoy their vacation. 8 hours of nightmare watching disrespect the Gunas, the military, us, and the other passengers. The Gunas told him several times that he ca not drop people off at their island and leave them there as trash. After 8 hours, the military officers became aggravated and he  finally gave up and realized that he had no option, so he refunded our money minus one night and minus the deposit. It was a horrible experience. Please read the other reviews on tripadvisor and Google and stay away from him. There are plenty of other boat and Captain options. Don’t ruin your San Blas experience by going with him. We are seeking legal action and have several ongoing complaints with officials in Panama and Colombia. If any past guest wants to reach out to me please contact me at saynotoquestsy@gmail.com

goeranp2020 · Accepted Answer

I have been doing these routes since 2012, and transported more than 3000 passengers between Panama and Cartagena. Two times in 12 years have I disembarked passengers, your husband, and one more prior to this trip. Some issues and disagreements can be solved in a civilised manner, but vocal assaults and aggression are totally unacceptable. The passenger I disembarked two weeks prior to this trip, had a very similar behaviour like your husband. Under heavy influence of alcohol, this passenger was switching on and off switches on the DC panel in the wheelhouse, amongst other things, bilge alarms, navigation computer etc. I told him not to touch any equipment, and that it is time to quit drinking after twelve hours of non-stop alcohol intake, he replied “F**k you I drink as much as I want whenever I want”. In addition, he also displayed aggressive behaviour.

At 18.30 you boarded Quest. The arguments took place at midnight (not 2 hours into the trip), after your husband had been drinking all evening and night.

Let us put things into perspective. If you were on an airplane, and you were not happy with the seat you were assigned, and decided to find a better place to sleep, and you laid down were the captain rests when the first officer is flying – the captain will obviously tell you to move. If you instead of moving, starts to verbally abuse the captain under heavy influence of alcohol – what do you think would be the result of that discussion?

That seat where your husband decided to sleep is the place for the crew during night time navigation. Me and the first mate, works in shifts, when I am “off duty” I rest, but I still have to be on call at all times.

I informed your husband kindly at first that this is the seat for the crew during night time sailing, giving him clear instructions, and his response was extremely aggressive with a lot of shouting and verbal abuse to the point that there was no way of knowing if he would be physically aggressive as well. When I told him that he is drunk, and that we will discuss this in the morning when it is not pitch black, in the middle of the sea and high waves, he replied that he drinks all the time but never gets drunk. He then laid down on the windward side, and I informed him that it is not safe for him to lie there because when we get a big wave he could fall off and injure himself. The other reason why he could not lay down on that side is because the cockpit is a public area and when other passengers come up to get some fresh air, they need somewhere to sit.

The behaviour of your husband in response to my instructions was totally out of control, in addition to being heavily influenced by alcohol. I made a decision that I would not do the 36-hour passage in rough sea conditions to Cartagena with a passenger that does not follow instructions and has severe drinking problems. Your husband was a danger, both to himself and the other passengers.

This is not a private charter. This is a commercial vessel that you were a passenger on, and maritime law applies – The Captain always has the power to remove anyone jeopardizing the safety of the vessel or disobeying the instructions of the captain or the crew. That is set for in ICAO law for aircraft and IMO and other legislation for ships. As you were in breach of maritime law it is basically a criminal act to not follow instructions. Not only are you not entitled to any refund, but also liable for any additional costs and/or damages as a result of your actions, for example fines, extra fuel, port and docking costs etc.

The 40 dollar you received was the return of the Guna fee that I had not yet paid the Guna officials.

There were three people on deck during the incident – me, and the German couple. They confirmed to the tourist minister exactly what I stated above. The first mate was on duty in the wheelhouse, which is situated right next to the cockpit, and she heard the loud verbal abuse from your husband.

seekingj2024 · Answer

Here we go

seekingj2024 · Answer

Every story has two sides. You have elaborated your reply with incorrect facts in an attempt to justify your unjustifiable actions. The Military Police grounded your boat based on facts. They did not take any sides. They interviewed every passenger including the couple who witnessed the discussion and assessed the situation based on their due diligence and collection of information. They determined you were acting in bad faith, detained your boat and gave you 2 options: to either take us or give our money back. You refuse to comply with either optionfor 8 hours leaving us and the other passengers in complete distress.

seekingj2024 · Answer

How can you preach respect if you don’t respect the orders of the Panamanian Military nor the locals of the water you sail on??

Perhaps you would like to see videos that I took to refresh your memory… it looks like you may need a reminder of what the Minister of Tourism told you. Or perhaps you forgot that Teniente Oscar Pinilla told you multiple times you were “ robbing us.” He also stated that your action “did not match your story. If a pilot of a plane feels in danger, he/she finds the nearest airport and drops the passenger off. If you want to use a plan as an analogy, use it correctly please. Why did you not drop us off in puerto lindo?!!! We boarded your boat at 6:47 ( I have photos and videos of the dinghy ride). A You briefed us, collected our money, then went to bed with your girlfriend from 7-10:00PM- during which time the boat was anchored in port. We did not started sailing until 10:38PM. The discussion with my husband lasted less then 5 minutes and took place at 12:00AM which means that It would have been easier to turn around and leave us at port of origin, but You chose to sail for 9 hours, anchor for 2, take naps to then determine that was time to dump us and keep our money alleging safety concerns ?!!That makes no sense. Does it? As a bragger seasoned Captain you should know the basic of maritime law. That’s why we hired an attorney. Hopefully he you educate you on that. There are many things you could have done ( returned to port of origin, or reported my husband to the police through your radio, etc.) But what you can not do is to

Drop passengers in whatever remote island YOU find appropriate, with no water, goods, or means of departing. How can you possibly say that is okay or justifiable?

seekingj2024 · Answer

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seekingj2024 · Answer

Now let’s talk about a very important detail you chose to omit from your response. My

husband I want to make it VERY clear that our outrage is with the fact that you dumped us in the middle of nowhere and refused to give our money back for 8 hours, and only complied because the military grounded your boat and gave you no other option. If you care for any of your passengers, you would have complied with the authorities on hour 1. Instead, you chose to argue, fight, disrespect the locals and authorities and ruin and harm 7 other passengers who were held hostage there until you finally agreed to comply on hour 8. You should be so ashamed of that. There are absolutely no excuses for that.

Also, who do you think you are to write that a 46 year old professional enjoying a few beers on his birthday celebratory trip has a drinking problem? Shame on you Captain Goeran. Shame on you!

Lastly, what orders my husband did not follow? You ordered him to move seats, he obeyed. You then order him to not lay down, he obeyed and sat up. What exactly orders he did not follow? There was a short argument in response to your tone, and lack of care to us passengers who were sick but not orders you gave went unfollowed. Correct? If he was so drunk as you allege, how do you think he was able to hose off your deck afterwards to clean the vomit off from us 4 passengers who got sea sick? You failed to mentioned that on your response. Correct? As a side note… prior to the argument while all 4 people ( including me) were vomiting, I was shocked that you kept chain smoking, drinking your coffee, or laying down, and completely ignoring us as if nothing was happening. Not once you or your first matte girlfriend asked if we needed anything or showed any concerns. What a captain!!! You choose to worry about the safety of your passengers when it’s convenient. You never worried that we would fall overboard while vomiting, but you worry about my husband laying down on a bench next to you?!!! Nothing about you makes sense.

seekingj2024 · Answer

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seekingj2024 · Answer

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Fearless802748 · Answer

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Quest SY- Captain Goeran. - San Blas Islands Forum

Quest SY- Captain Goeran.

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