UPPER DARBY, Pa. -- Hundreds of passengers on the cruise ship The Norwegian Dawn never dreamed that their happy times were about to be hit by a mammoth wave.

On day 5 of a seven-day trip to the Bahamas and Florida, a wall of water blasted through the ship's windows, flooded cabins and left four passengers injured.

Slideshow: Ship Hit By Seven-Story Wave
Video: Wave Ends Dream Cruise

The ship made its way back to port in New York City, but not before it had to make a stop in Charleston, S.C., for repairs.

Hundreds of passengers were so shaken they opted to fly or drive home when the ship stopped in Charleston.

One local man, Jerry Mayhart, was so shaken that he decided to drive home instead of continuing with the cruise. Three families from Upper Darby, Pa., decided to stay on the boat until it docked in New York City.

"It was sort of like after you watched 'Titanic,' you were living it. Glass was breaking, beer bottles were flying off the shelves, people were flying off the chairs, it was awful," said Lisa Krom, a passenger on the ship.

Slideshow: Cruise Ship Hit By Seven-Story Wave

"It was very scary. I thought it was the end of the world," said Kelly Krom.

Rick Krom said that windows in two cabins at the front of the ship were blown out and that hot tubs around the ship were swept into the sea.

Mayhart told NBC 10 News that he was looking out of his balcony door when he saw a waterspout or tornado develop over the sea.

"The storm just swallowed us up, in a sense -- similar to 'A Perfect Storm,'" Mayhart said.

Mayhart took pictures while the boat battled huge waves.

"Those waves were every bit of 40 to 60 feet steady waves all evening long," Mayhart said.

Norwegian Cruise Lines has offered the passengers on the ship a 50 percent discount on a future trip.