Pod Cast 202 Re: Hurricanes

[Kansas Cruiser]

I listened to this podcast last night which eased my mind considerably! Thank you Matt!

SOOOOOOOO Tropical Depression # NINE has me worried for my trip next week on Liberty of the Seas August 20-27.  If it does in fact develop-  all three of our scheduled ports are in its path.
When do the powers-that-be typically make the decision on a change of itinerary?   We are going on this trip more to "get away" then to visit any specific port.  However, I am curious and a little nervous about potentially rough seas!

[NS8VN]

Odds are the final decision won't be made until you are underway, and it will be at the discretion of the captain.  Generally speaking they are less concerned with whether they can dock as they are whether they can leave once docked.  Rough seas can push the ship against the dock and cause damage, and getting stuck and not returning on time to disembark (and more importantly embark on the next trip) is far worse than missing a port of call.  Also if tendering is required rough seas are going to nix just about any chance of visiting.

(Don't think I heard that podcast, so apologies if I repeat anything Matt said) Someone was taking a Disney cruise last week and concerned on another board I follow.  I reminded her that cruising is the best way to visit the Caribbean during hurricane season.  She was worried about missing Cozumel, but I told her if she does she will either get a different port or an extra sea day.  On the other hand, if you plan to fly in to Cozumel and a hurricane hits then you either cancel the trip or you get stuck on an island experiencing a hurricane.  As it happened, they did miss it, and while she was unhappy about that she did have a great cruise.  She did get a bit seasick due to rougher seas, her recommendation is to pack a couple seasick remedies just in case.  Ginger, dimenhydrinate , meclizine, whatever you think might help.  Trust that the captain and crew are going to do what they can to avoid the worst of the rough seas, will take care of you the best they can if they do hit some rough patches, and go in to it with the "I'm going to enjoy this no matter what" mindset.

Enjoy your trip and best of luck that Nine doesn't affect you too much!

[Matt]

Royal Caribbean has a Chief Meteorologist and he does a great job of informing guests about storms. You can follow him on Twitter (and even ask him questions): https://twitter.com/JamesVanFleet

[shady]

21 hours ago, Kansas Cruiser said:

I listened to this podcast last night which eased my mind considerably! Thank you Matt!

SOOOOOOOO Tropical Depression # NINE has me worried for my trip next week on Liberty of the Seas August 20-27.  If it does in fact develop-  all three of our scheduled ports are in its path.
When do the powers-that-be typically make the decision on a change of itinerary?   We are going on this trip more to "get away" then to visit any specific port.  However, I am curious and a little nervous about potentially rough seas!

Is Tropical Depression 9 the one that became Tropical Storm Harvey? I lost track of the names.

I still have to listen to that podcast. Maybe while I finish packing.

Although we're on the same sailing, I'm not worried about it yet. Newbie mistake? Maybe. Instead, I am going to try to make the best of whatever happens and am bringing basically a pharmacy's worth of scopalamine to ensure I can do that.

@Kansas Cruiser, I hope to meet you on board! 

[Jason.H.]

Wife and I are on Oasis sept 3-10 western caribbean and we too are starting to worry about these tropical storms. Good thing we have the drink package incase the port stops get canceled!