My wife, 78, died suddenly while we were on a cruise — and I don’t have $20,000 to get her body home. What do I do?

Kenneth can’t afford to cover that, but fortunately, experts say he may have some options.

What happens to a body when someone dies on a cruise ship?

First things first. It’s helpful to understand exactly what happens when someone dies at sea.

“The body is typically held in the ship’s morgue until the vessel reaches port, where local authorities and a funeral home assist with next steps and transportation,” Adam Deitz, a maritime lawyer with Mariner Law, PLLC, who represents passengers and maritime workers in injury and wrongful death cases, told Moneywise. “Modern ships can usually even keep the body long enough to get back to the country of origin as long as the death wasn’t suspicious or traumatic. Those types of deaths often result in government investigations.”

But don’t worry, the morgues are usually kept far from where passengers are enjoying themselves.

“Morgues are normally kept on a lower deck, away from food storage areas or passenger areas,” Jason R. Margulies, a maritime attorney and partner at Lipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A., told Moneywise. “The standard morgue on a cruise ship can accommodate between three and six bodies in refrigerated storage areas.”

The ships also have personnel who are trained to handle deceased persons with dignity, Margulies added.

“However, it is important that families ensure that they are covered by insurance, as this is not covered by the cruise line, which can be very costly,” he warned.

Covering the cost of returning the body

Unfortunately, even if the body remains in the ship’s morgue until it returns to port, family members still have to get the body to their final destination. This process, called repatriation, typically costs between $5,000 and $25,000, depending on where the body is offloaded from the ship and where it needs to go.