5 Things to Know about Cruising During Hurricane Season
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If you've neglected to pre-book insurance, your cruise departs in a week and the weatherman is suddenly reporting on an upcoming storm, don't bother calling up an insurance broker. That's because you're committed to going on the cruise and can't back out without penalty, but it's early enough that you'll still be covered by the insurance for unforeseen events that crop up at the last minute. Cruise ships can typically "outrun" a hurricane -- storms tend to move about 8 to 10 knots, while ships can attain speeds of up to 22 knots and beyond. Passengers might experience rough seas as their ship skirts the edges of a storm. A good attitude is also important, as frustrations can run high when a Caribbean cruise turns into a Bahamas and Florida (or even a Canada and New England) cruise.
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The biggest challenge if a hurricane disrupts a cruise is finding alternate places to dock or anchor when ships' scheduled ports of call are threatened. Passenger Sharon Tutrone, a professor at Coastal Carolina University, tweeted Friday that the ship was rocking. She said that the only time passengers heard from the captain was in the afternoon, when he told them he had an experienced crew and would do everything he could to minimize discomfort as the ship encountered the storm. A storm off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina, battered a Carnival cruise ship for hours late Friday night before it docked, leaving passengers terrified.
Cruise ships are designed to avoid and withstand storms
Virgin Islands, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands and Nassau in the Bahamas. Reid Overcash said the crew did not communicate with passengers as the ship was stopped in the ocean during the storm. Several of them shared videos on social media showing the damage to the Carnival Sunshine as it encountered severe weather on Saturday while returning to Charleston, South Carolina, from The Bahamas at the weekend. A day at port became a day at sea, but Disney conjured a bit of its famous "Disney magic" and added more activities throughout the day, according to Roseboom.
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Millions of cruisers are in the Caribbean on dozens of ships during the hurricane season, which roughly runs from the start of June until the end of November. In addition to the Caribbean, storms can impact the Atlantic coast of the United States and Canada and along the Mexican Riviera on cruises out of California that sail to such ports as Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas. Also, remember that you likely will have to pay any airline change fees, which might not be covered by the cruise line.
Will a cruise be canceled because of a hurricane?
If a hurricane or even a severe tropical storm looks like it will affect any of your cruise ports, the most likely thing to happen is that the cruise line will make a decision to change the itinerary. Cruise lines can do things do keep away from the storms and hurricanes, such as change itineraries or even shorten, lengthen or even cancel a cruise altogether (which rarely happens). If a storm is threatening one area of Queensland, Northern Territory or the South Pacific, cruise lines will simply reroute their ships to a different destination. Whether you get travel insurance from Royal Caribbean when booking or from a third-party provider, you will want to ensure the policy covers disruption in case of weather-related events.
When is hurricane season for cruises?
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The risk of the above is one reason you will generally get a cruise during hurricane season at a lower price than you would during other seasons. You can cancel your cruise, but standard cruise line policy does not permit passengers to refunds if they cancel for this reason. However, if you've purchased insurance that allows for weather-related cancellations, you'll likely be able to recover your losses. You should always fly in at least one day prior to your ship's departure.
Trying to predict where tropical storms will hit in any given year is a fool's game. But if you're playing the odds, one area that is known for seeing fewer storms on average is the southern part of the Caribbean. The southerly islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao (common stops on Southern Caribbean itineraries), in particular, are far south of the typical hurricane track and experience few fall storms. There are definitely things you can and in preparation (just in case), if you’re cruising during hurricane season. Cruise ships may also simply replace one cruise port stop, or they may even switch up the order of the cruise port days.
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However, when booking a cruise during hurricane season, it’s especially important to be flexible. For the aforementioned reasons, cruise lines will simply deviate itineraries. The only time a cruise will be cancelled outright is when a storm is aiming for its major port of embarkation. Departure is, more often, delayed by a day or so, and passengers are generally compensated accordingly. You can certainly diminish your chances of encountering a tropical storm by sailing outside peak cyclone times.
These plans include a lot of fine print that limits the circumstances where they are valid, and they vary widely in what they offer. When researching ports and even booking excursions, just remember that it may change up. If booking with the cruise line, they’ll refund any charges for excursions you don’t take if you don’t make it to that port. However, if booking private excursions, do make sure that they have that in their policy as well. Cruise ships will not be knowingly taken into the path of a hurricane and cruise lines monitor closely to make changes ahead of time, as much as possible. In this article, we go through 5 things that are important to know if you are planning a cruise during hurricane season, so you can be prepared and know what to expect.
The most important thing for anyone to consider during a hurricane is, undoubtedly, safety. Many people wonder if a cruise ship can withstand being hit by a hurricane. If you're booking a cruise to the Caribbean or Bahamas to see a specific destination — St. Kitts, for instance, or the British Virgin Islands — a hurricane-season cruise may not be for you. However, if you're flexible and want a fun and inexpensive getaway at sea, there's no reason to fear a fall sailing. Some book excursions through alternative tour companies such as Viator or PortSide Tours. If you go this route for a hurricane-season cruise, be sure to check cancellation policies before prepaying for excursions.
For instance, Norwegian Pearl’s itinerary calls for it to visit Bermuda, which will likely feel the effects of Hurricane Franklin. Scarlet Lady is scheduled to sail from Miami to Costa Maya, which would put in in the path of Idalia. Disney Fantasy is scheduled to visit Cozumel tomorrow morning according to CruiseMapper.com. If, however, they have to make the difficult decision to completely cancel the cruise, you will be issued a full refund. If you elect not to sail at the last minute, you will lose the money that you paid for the vacation.
All tour operators have different policies, so be sure to check the fine print or ask about cancellation policies before you put down a deposit or prepay your excursion. In general, larger tour operators that cater to cruise travelers or shore excursion reservations agencies will provide a full refund if your ship misses a port of call. Smaller operators or private guides might ask for nonrefundable deposits.
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