Problems with the plumbing system on a luxury cruise ship left some passengers without toilets for three days, according to people on board.

A series of blockages were said to have led to "mayhem" on board Thomson's Destiny cruise ship, which is touring the Canary Islands.

The tour operator admitted there had been problems with the plumbing but said extra technicians had been called in and the toilets have now been unblocked.

Speaking from the ship yesterday, Derek and Lorraine Twigg, from West Yorkshire, said they had been distressed at the plumbing problems. Mrs Twigg, 51, said they had been left without toilets for three days and without hot water for at least 24 hours.

She said there was "mayhem" on board the ship, which has 1,450 passengers during its seven-day voyage. Mr Twigg's 60th birthday had been ruined by the plumbing faults, she added.

Destiny is the largest ship in the Thomson fleet, with two swimming pools, two restaurants and three bars.

A spokeswoman for Thomson said last night the cause of the problem had been fixed. She said: "The Thomson Destiny has had some problems with its plumbing system which as a result has affected some of the passenger cabins.

"In an effort to resolve the problems the ship owners have had extra technicians on board. We believe the cause of the problem has now been fixed, and Monday was spent unblocking those toilets that were affected whilst the system was out of action.

"The ship was delayed in Madeira by six hours for this work to be carried out and at 10pm yesterday there were only two remaining cabins left to fix. The ship will arrive in its next schedule port as planned. Thomson apologise to any of its customers that have been affected by this."

A Thomson spokeswoman said today that Destiny had set sail from Funchal in Madeira at 6am today. She added: "The technicians who came on board are happy that all the systems are working well.

"The passengers we have spoken to are happy and do not share the view that there was 'mayhem' on board."

Thomson said there were no plans to offer any compensation to passengers.