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Liberty of the Seas next sail date


Steve L

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I really wonder when Liberty of the Seas will be permitted to sail out of Galveston. My family is due to take a cruise on her in mid Oct. but I'd be worried for those who have any Sept. sail dates. This could take a long while to get back to any semblance of normal after looking at the footage from that area.

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I cant see it taking that long. While I think there is lots of long term damage and repairs to be done all over Texas, I don't think Galveston took the worst of it. And its pretty amazing how quickly things can get up and running....already the oil refineries are starting back in some areas.

 

That being said, I could see the demand for cruising being down considerably in the Texas area for the next few mths for sure...but then again, most people cruising this fall on Liberty have already booked her and made plans...as well all know Royal doesn't discount or give deals for last min and most of her ships sail pretty full without having to give a deal.

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We sail mid October also.  Looking at the web cams and talking to relatives in the area it sounds like cruise port and most parking areas are ok.  Problem is you can't drive in or out right now.  Best guess is that port will be open. It looks however like they have water in the "strand" so shopping or dining before you get on the ship may be iffy.  Having been through Katrina the long lasting effects are harder to get a handle on.  Finding a pre cruise hotel or staying a few days after may not be easy to arrange.  We like to cruise out of Galveston and love the people and the area.   We are praying for them.

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1 hour ago, monctonguy said:

I cant see it taking that long. While I think there is lots of long term damage and repairs to be done all over Texas, I don't think Galveston took the worst of it. And its pretty amazing how quickly things can get up and running....already the oil refineries are starting back in some areas.

Agree completely.  I'd say this Sunday's sailing is the only one in jeopardy at this point.

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After spending 35 years in Houston/Galveston (until last year), my uneducated opinion is:

 

The island drains quickly.  After that, all will depend on

 

1 - How much if any damage was done to the terminal/pier/loading walkways.  I'm guessing very little, but thats just me.

2 - Street/electrical/water/sewer disruption.  My feeling is minimal.

3 - Port facilities such as bouys and channel markers...have they been moved/lost, etc.  

4 - Can the port service the ship with fuel and provisions, as well as offload waste.  This also is impacted by whatever they are taking onboard in Miami today.

5 - Transportation.  is the island accessible via road all the way to both airoprts.  Unknown to me.

 

Probably a thousand other things I'm not aware of, and while the port itself is considered critical infastructure, I won't think of secong guessing local officials as to where things fall into place when considering the needs of the local population.  I'd like to think odds are good for 9/3 and excellent for 9/10.

 

(your mileage may very, past performance does not guarantee future results)

 

 

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My thoughts are that folks needing housing will/should rent local hotels for an extended period of time. I cannot see hotels honoring booking.com reservations (not paid until arrival) and kick a homeless family out of the room for one night a week. We will be packed and ready to go to our September 10th cruise until told otherwise. Instead of spending Saturday night, we can drive down from Dallas early on the 10th if the ship sails.  

Or...perhaps they will sail out of New Orleans instead of Galveston to free up the port and congestion.

Edited by SusanJean
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24 minutes ago, ravenfamily said:

We are scheduled for the 3rd...do we still plan on going?

 

Until they tell you not to go, you should plan to go.  But, don't be surprised if it's cancelled.  Since the storm is again off shore, Galveston is getting storm surge from the North.  Just saw it on the Weather Channel.

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We are cruising out of Galveston on RCCL on the 10th. Just received an email from Cool Tours (We booked round trip transport from Houston Hobby to Galveston) that they were cancelling our reservation. I guess we better start looking for another mode of transport. Maybe the cruise bus will still have room; it's just a bit more pricey. 

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We are schedule to go on the liberty on the 3rd and we live in Houston area.  It is a mess here.  Good luck to those flying in the day before.  I doubt you will find a hotel.  Even if they say you have a reservation. I bet it will get cancelled once you show up.  You think they are going to kick out a flood victim or first responder for someone going on vacation??  Good luck.  Galveston did flood on Monday.  The cruise terminal area did see a lot of water.  I have not heard if cars were flooded or not.  I have a friend that has been stuck on one the RCC ships for almost two weeks now. 

We did not get flooded but it came up very close to the house and were stuck trapped in our neighborhood for a few days.  Air boat and helicopter rescues were being performed at the neighborhood just behind us.

I have called RCC and asked what are people with flooded home to do or those that can't travel in because roads and airport are closed.  They just said we plan on sailing as usual. They have not been very helpful or compassionate.  I have already missed several days at work and now I am going on "vacation" while friends have lost EVERYTHING.  It makes a person feel like shit.

For those traveling in.  I-45 is open and you can get to Galveston.  Galveston is now dry.  The airports are opening.  Rental cars, uber, taxis, and buses might be sketchy.  CALL CALL CALL If you don't get a hold of them then you need to make new plans.

RCC does have a yellow update link on their home page.  Next update is at noon today.

This was the picture from my porch.  That is clear creek.  I can usually see ZERO water from my porch.  I am NOT in a flood zone but live in Houston so you buy flood insurance to be safe.  Crazy times here.

 

 

DSC00047-copy.jpg

DSC00048.JPG

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From Port of Galveston's FB page....

Quote

Good Evening, we are more than happy to announce that the Captain of the Port has opened the Port of Galveston (Galveston Ship Channel) and surrounding area to all inbound/outbound vessels with a draft of 33ft or less in daylight only. All vessel traffic will be coordinated with the USCG and the Vessel Traffic Systems. Cruise Ships are anticipated to arrive on September 1, 2017.

 

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7 minutes ago, function12 said:

I have called RCC and asked what are people with flooded home to do or those that can't travel in because roads and airport are closed.  They just said we plan on sailing as usual. They have not been very helpful or compassionate.  I have already missed several days at work and now I am going on "vacation" while friends have lost EVERYTHING.  It makes a person feel like shit.

That's terrible, but I'm glad your safe.  Have you looked into how to handle a claim with your insurance?  Perhaps it's time to look into that.

Side note, during Superstorm Sandy we had a cruise that following Friday.  The storm hit the hardest by Tuesday.  We didn't know if we were going to get to the port or what the condition of our house would be.  Thankfully our house didn't take any damage and our power stayed on throughout.  We decided to go to the port on Friday.  The water had receded by then, but you can see the debris about 4 ft high on the hurricane fence (interesting name!) surrounding the port.  Our kids called us and told us the power went out while we were waiting to check in.  My daughter said we had to come back.  We said, no, deal.  20 minutes later the power was back on.

Our insurance wouldn't have covered the situation.  We were prepared to bite the bullet if we had to and not sail.  Thankfully we were able to.

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1 minute ago, BrianAlt said:

That's terrible, but I'm glad your safe.  Have you looked into how to handle a claim with your insurance?  Perhaps it's time to look into that.

Side note, during Superstorm Sandy we had a cruise that following Friday.  The storm hit the hardest by Tuesday.  We didn't know if we were going to get to the port or what the condition of our house would be.  Thankfully our house didn't take any damage and our power stayed on throughout.  We decided to go to the port on Friday.  The water had receded by then, but you can see the debris about 4 ft high on the hurricane fence (interesting name!) surrounding the port.  Our kids called us and told us the power went out while we were waiting to check in.  My daughter said we had to come back.  We said, no, deal.  20 minutes later the power was back on.

Our insurance wouldn't have covered the situation.  We were prepared to bite the bullet if we had to and not sail.  Thankfully we were able to.

From what I have read up on the travel insurance, you have to have sustained damage.  Which we are blessed and have not.  I just though RCCL might have a little more compassion or understanding.

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1 minute ago, function12 said:

From what I have read up on the travel insurance, you have to have sustained damage.  Which we are blessed and have not.  I just though RCCL might have a little more compassion or understanding.

There's also, "cancel for any reason," insurance.  Perhaps that's what you should get from now on?  Unfortunately, you can't rely on Royal Caribbean's compassion.

Be safe!  Hope you make it to your cruise.

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On 8/29/2017 at 0:38 PM, Steve L said:

I really wonder when Liberty of the Seas will be permitted to sail out of Galveston. My family is due to take a cruise on her in mid Oct. but I'd be worried for those who have any Sept. sail dates. This could take a long while to get back to any semblance of normal after looking at the footage from that area.

Liberty is underway now ... in the wake of Carnival Breeze moving toward the sea buoy:

http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-94.7/centery:29.2/zoom:11

pops

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  • 2 weeks later...

We sail on the Liberty of the Seas out of Galveston on September 24th -- all systems go!  I may be in the minority here, but I think it would be darn pretty cool to be stranded on the ship a few extra days waiting for a storm to blow thru.  What better excuse to get out of work and take a few extra vacation days! 

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2 hours ago, dkirksmith said:

We sail on the Liberty of the Seas out of Galveston on September 24th -- all systems go!  I may be in the minority here, but I think it would be darn pretty cool to be stranded on the ship a few extra days waiting for a storm to blow thru.  What better excuse to get out of work and take a few extra vacation days! 

 

Hey,  good luck on those extra vacation days.  Purt near impossible to run out of things to do on the Libby ... have a great time!!

pops

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