The search is on for a Florida woman who went on a cruise, but never came back.

The FBI has yet to comment publicly about the missing 47 year old woman whose name has not been released.  The US Coast Guard is doing its part to try and find her.

Ted White reports from Port of Palm Beach

How could a cruise ship passenger vanish without a trace?  The FBI is trying to answer that difficult question, as US Coast Guard crews actively search 900 square miles  for the missing woman.

Wednesday morning, a male passenger aboard the celebration cruise ship reported his girlfriend missing after the vessel arrived at the Port of Palm Beach.   He told investigators he last saw her at the gift shop late Tuesday night while the ship was still near the Bahamas.       

He said he went to the casino, then to his cabin and fell asleep.  When he woke up in the morning he said she was nowhere in sight.  

President of Celebration Cruise Charles Kinnear said, "It's unfortunate that he waited that long but once he informed us we notified the coast guard."  

Crews searched for the woman onboard but couldn't find her.   The big questions: did she fall or jump off the ship, or was there foul play?

The Coast Guard is using boats, a plane and a helicopter to search for the woman.   

US Coast Guard Chief Warrant Officer John Gatti said, "When there is a large area to cover of course it makes it more difficult to determine where in that search  area something may be." 

Gatti is the commanding officer for coast guard station Lake Worth Inlet.   He can't talk specifically about the search effort since it's being handled out of Miami.

But he says these type of missions require a lot of manpower, time and patience.  Gatti said, "We're going to be assessing the weather, the wind seas and how that comes into play for how a search object may be moving.  is it drifting in any particular direction."

The missing woman is reportedly from Canada.  It is unclear if her boyfriend is still in Florida.  The cruise ship is back in the Bahamas with new passengers.