It's That Time Again - Hurricane Season

As Tropical Storm Arthur peters out with rain over the Yucatan Peninsula, hurricane season always brings questions about cruising from June to November. Here's a bit of a hurricane primer for cruisers.

First of all, cruising is one of the safest vacations you can take during hurricane season. Because of advanced hurricane tracking information available to ship captains, ships are able to move out of the way of a hurricane to keep passengers and ship safe. Many times this means altering an itinerary from Eastern to Western Caribbean for example, or the reverse, or changing the order of the ports. It almost never entails the entire cancellation of a cruise, with the rare exception of a shorter 3- or 4- nighter. Usually the itinerary which has the most significant changes in the event of a hurricane is a Bermuda itinerary. In the case of an Atlantic hurricane near Bermuda, you may find your cruise changed to a Canada/New England itinerary or even sailing down to the Bahamas.

This is a huge difference from land-based vacations. If you were to plan a trip to Playa del Carmen, for example, and a hurricane set its sights on that part of Mexico, your choices would be to ride it out or if you were lucky, catch an evacuation flight out before it hit. Either way, you wouldn't have anything close to the vacation you expected.

When exactly is hurricane season? Technically it runs from June 1 through November 30. While a hurricane can hit outside these dates, traditionally this is the most likely time frame. The peak of the season, the week with the highest average hurricane activity, is the second week of September. As you get farther from that date, earlier or later, the less likely you are to experience hurricane activity. An early storm like Arthur is quite unusual for example, and actually formed a day before the official start of the season.

What happens if you're on a cruise and a storm comes through? Well, many times you can get a bit longer cruise at no charge (and sometimes even an open bar). For those scheduled to board on the day a storm comes through, they will have a shorter cruise than expected, but are usually compensated for that by the cruise line, either by direct refund and onboard credit if they choose to sail, or by being allowed to cancel with no penalty, and having 100% of their fare refunded. This type of compensation arrangement is fairly typical, though each line varies slightly in how they handle it, not just in general, but also storm-by-storm depending on how it affects their passengers.

But what if you're on a ship delayed by a hurricane? What about your flights home? That's when trip insurance is your best friend. Many times in this situation, a ship will allow you to make phone calls at a reduced (or no) fee so you can make other arrangements. My first call would be to my trip insurer to have them change my flights for me. A good insurer, such as the ones I recommend, has an emergency trip assistance line you can call 24 hours a day to help you in this type of circumstance. I used it when I became ill in Beijing and needed to find an English-speaking clinic open on a Sunday.

As your agent, I'm also here to help you with any plan changes. I stay on top of storms, and am in fairly constant contact with the cruise lines in these circumstances so I can answer my clients' questions and help you make necessary arrangements.

Hurricane season, particularly September, often brings tremendous value for cruisers. Experienced cruisers know that if they take precautions, like arriving in port a day early, purchasing trip insurance, and being flexible because they may end up at different ports than they originally anticipated, they can have a wonderful vacation at a fraction of the price they'd pay in July for example. Generally, if there's not a hurricane in the immediate vicinity, this time of year brings calm seas, warm water and good weather. I really like sailing in October for example, and you'll almost always find me on a ship sometime during hurricane season.

I have one non-cruise trip (shhh, I didn't say that! Such heresy from me!) scheduled in September/October, and I have to tell you I'm a lot more worried about hurricanes with that than I'd be if I were on a ship at the same time. Each person has to judge for themselves if they're comfortable with the flexibility which is sometimes necessary in hurricane season. However, by reading this newsletter, you've already proven you are someone who appreciates good value. So you might want to take advantage of the savings available. And if the worst happens, a "hurricane party" onboard a ship can be a lot of fun!

If you're interested in a cruise during hurricane season, definitely call to talk with me about it. We'll determine if it's a good choice for you.