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An extensive two-month cruise through the Land Down Under has been cancelled days after the tragic passing of an elderly woman who was stranded by the cruise liner on a isolated coastal location.

The elderly woman had been hiking on the tropical location with other travelers from the cruise ship, but parted ways from the group for a rest. The liner sailed away leaving her and returned later that day after the crew realised the passenger was not present.

A large-scale search operation located her remains the next day.

Officials are looking into the tragedy, in coordination with law enforcement and the medical examiner.

Chief Executive of the voyage organizer stated that travelers and crew on the Coral Adventurer were notified that the rest of the voyage had been called off due to the "unfortunate death and earlier mechanical issues".

Through an announcement, he further stated that passengers would be issued a complete reimbursement, and said the company was working "to coordinate the return journeys of the travelers via chartered flights".

Officials also issued an updated communication, and said they had "provided a notice to the Master" preventing any additional guests from boarding the vessel.

The spokesperson said that they would attend the liner in the port city upon its coming back.

Timeline of Occurrences

The liner first departed the coastal city on 24 October, and was merely two days into the voyage at the time of the senior passenger's demise. The remote island was the opening port on the itinerary.

Passengers on board - who usually pay substantial amounts of money to participate in the expedition - were transported there for a day trip with the choice of walking or snorkeling.

Family Response

The child of the victim said that her family was "shocked and grieved that the liner left Lizard Island after an planned excursion without my mother".

Through her comments, she portrayed her mum as an "active 80-year-old" who was a member of a bushwalking organization.

"From the little details we have been provided, it looks that there was a breakdown of responsibility and ordinary reasoning," she stated.

She further stated that she wished the inquiry would be able to pinpoint what "the company should have done that might have saved Mother's existence".

"According to reports from the police that it was a extremely warm day, and she fell ill on the mountain ascent," she explained.

"Officials suggested her to head down, alone. Then the ship left, reportedly without performing a headcount.

"During some point in that sequence, or soon after, mother died, by herself."

Operator Reaction

In a statement, the CEO confirmed that the company was "cooperating fully with officials to support their examination".

He said that the company was "deeply sorry that this has happened" and had provided its complete assistance to the relatives.

Cruise Industry Standards

The liner caters for up to 120 travelers with 46 personnel, according to corporate details. It was specifically designed to access remote regions of the Australian coast and is equipped with "auxiliary vessels" - small boats used to ferry passengers on shore trips.

Incidents like this are rare, and passenger vessels have systems to document which passengers are embarking or disembarking, according to industry experts.

"Sneaking ashore or [back] onboard simply isn't an choice," an authority commented.

Cruise lines regard these methods extremely carefully and have "advanced technology in place to avoid such events from happening," the authority further stated.

"This is probably a surprising - and unfortunate - single occurrence."