Caribbean/USA - It was supposed to be a relaxing vacation after a man won a week-long cruise . But when he caught the flu during the trip, he suddenly had to pay a medical bill of over 45,000 euros!

Mike Cameron from Minnesota (USA) won the cruise, which began on January 5, and took his girlfriend Tamra Masterman with him.

As the New York Post now reports, the dream trip quickly turned into a nightmare as Cameron came down with the flu.

He sought medical help on board and had to rest for three days. But when the trip came to an end, he was in for a shock: a medical bill of around 45,300 euros awaited him.

"Getting a bill for 47,000 dollars on the day we left - I just didn't know what to do," says Cameron.

The shock was even greater, as the doctors on board assured him that the costs would be covered by his travel insurance and that he shouldn't worry.

However, the insurance company refused to pay and referred him to his private insurer.

However, the insurance company refused to cover the costs on the grounds that the incident had occurred "abroad" and did not fall within its area of responsibility.

In addition, the cruise company maxed out two credit cards that he had deposited at the start of the trip. Despite this, he still owes them around 20,200 euros.

On a GoFundMe campaign, Cameron's daughter Krystal wrote that this wasn't the only bad thing about the situation. The trip was originally intended as a celebration, as Tamra had successfully had a lung tumor removed just a few months earlier.

Nevertheless, there was one good thing: thanks to the appeal for donations, the couple were able to find another passenger who had experienced a similar story. Together they are now fighting for justice.