Ships will not be visiting St. Maarten, St. Thomas, or Key West while they rebuild

[KLA]

From the Irma update on the RCCL homepage - 

"Given Hurricane Irma's impact to St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Key West, we will be working on alternative ports for future sailings until these islands have fully recovered. All itinerary changes will be communicated with these guests directly."

Source

[tiny260]

Thanks Kayla.

[WAAAYTOOO]

I noticed that Key West is not expecting to reopen the airport until October.  Yikes !

[tiny260]

I think I either read or heard that the docks at St. Maarten were destroyed during the hurricane, is that true?

It has to be a catch 22 situation for the islands, they need tourist for income but they won't be able to support any for a while.

[KLA]

10 minutes ago, tiny260 said:

I think I either read or heard that the docks at St. Maarten were destroyed during the hurricane, is that true?

It has to be a catch 22 situation for the islands, they need tourist for income but they won't be able to support any for a while.

I think that's part of what makes it so sad - they rely so much on tourism.

[FManke]

1 hour ago, KLAconQueso said:

From the Irma update on the RCCL homepage - 

"Given Hurricane Irma's impact to St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Key West, we will be working on alternative ports for future sailings until these islands have fully recovered. All itinerary changes will be communicated with these guests directly."

Source

With some of those destinations out of service for awhile. It should make for some crowded ports in the rest of the Caribbean.

[KLA]

16 minutes ago, FManke said:

With some of those destinations out of service for awhile. It should make for some crowded ports in the rest of the Caribbean.

It appears that a lot of stops at SXM are being replaced with St. Kitts. I'll post again when I get the update notification for my 10/15 sailing on Allure. I was thinking that might not be viable due to the propulsion issues with the ship but that seems still to be the case.

[WAAAYTOOO]

1 hour ago, tiny260 said:

I think I either read or heard that the docks at St. Maarten were destroyed during the hurricane, is that true?

It has to be a catch 22 situation for the islands, they need tourist for income but they won't be able to support any for a while.

I had heard this also but I think it's not true.  I've seen pix today of people being evacuated and it looks like the docks are actually in pretty good shape.  Nothing AROUND the docks are standing but the docks themselves look to be intact.

[DocLC]

2 hours ago, tiny260 said:

I think I either read or heard that the docks at St. Maarten were destroyed during the hurricane, is that true?

It has to be a catch 22 situation for the islands, they need tourist for income but they won't be able to support any for a while.

According to an update on the Cruise Radio podcast, on which @Matt was a guest, the dock was in relatively good shape. It's the rest of the island, the roads, beaches, hotels, and airport the took most of the damage. In fact, cruise lines are headed to to the island to render aid, which I'm not sure would be possible without working docks/piers.

[rjac]

52 minutes ago, KLAconQueso said:

It appears that a lot of stops at SXM are being replaced with St. Kitts. I'll post again when I get the update notification for my 10/15 sailing on Allure. I was thinking that might not be viable due to the propulsion issues with the ship but that seems still to be the case.

KLA,

The Allure is going into dry dock on January 21, 2018 to have the propulsion issue taken fixed. 

[KLA]

7 minutes ago, rjac said:

KLA,

The Allure is going into dry dock on January 21, 2018 to have the propulsion issue taken fixed. 

Yes I know. My comment was in reference to Allure's ability to get to St. Kitts given the current problem with propulsion prior to that dry dock, since this is happening in October 2017.

[rjac]

1 hour ago, KLAconQueso said:

Yes I know. My comment was in reference to Allure's ability to get to St. Kitts given the current problem with propulsion prior to that dry dock, since this is happening in October 2017.

Ok, I understand. Hope that will work out for you and your husband, if not, you will have one hell of a cruise ship to spend a lot of time on.

[JLMoran]

So St. Kitts was not impacted at all by Irma? I'd have thought, given how relatively close those islands are to each other vs the size of Irma, that St. Kitts would have been as wrecked as St. Thomas and St. Maarten.

It's six months away, so I'm really hoping that by then St. Maarten will have been (mostly) rebuilt / restored; but if it's not, I wonder if my eastern Caribbean itinerary in March / April would change to do an overnight at St. Kitts, since that's already on the itinerary as the first port before St. Maarten. I'm also hoping that Puerto Rico manages to recover by then, since that's our third port and they were saying that the area that was hit the worst by Irma will be without power for up to six months.

[Skid]

29 minutes ago, JLMoran said:

So St. Kitts was not impacted at all by Irma? I'd have thought, given how relatively close those islands are to each other vs the size of Irma, that St. Kitts would have been as wrecked as St. Thomas and St. Maarten.

St Kitts/Nevis, although not unaffected, is providing an amazing amount of help to their neighboring islands. Here is an article from their newspaper:

http://www.thestkittsnevisobserver.com/local-news/hurricane-affected-st-kitts-nevis-assists-neighbouring-islands/

 

[monctonguy]

It will be interesting to see how long it takes these places to rebuild back to the point where they are able to start accepting cruiselines/tourists back. it really is a catch 22 as they need the $$ from tourists to repair/rebuild but ....

 

I am guessing its going to be a 3-6 month process at least. I wouldn't expect these places to be back up and running at full capacity before that. I hope they rebuild back Maho beach, but I am sure that's not high on the list...maybe one day. It will stay on my bucket list till then.

 

And to think I was changing my next cruise so it would stop in St. Maarten...will leave things they way they are for now I think!

[jticarruthers]

IIRC Maho was hard hit failry recently in another hurricane ... I don't think it was the one last year, thinking about 3-4 years back but I could be imagining it. I just remember seeing lots of pictures of the beach stripped back to rock before they replenished the sand. Its early yet but I would imagine if they rebuilt it once they will do it again.

[RCVoyager]

I just read an article of how bad things are on St. Maarten.  Destruction is everywhere.  Looting and crime are rampant.  100 prisoners escaped from a prison.  Relief supplies being stolen upon arrival.  There will have to be some law and order before anything else.  Scary stuff.

[JLMoran]

My wife sent me this link this morning. Good overview of how all the various islands in the eastern Caribbean have been affected. 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/caribbean/articles/hurricane-irma-hotels-open-island-damage/

[azfish]

Upcoming Oasis cruise on Oct 8 2017 still says:

Date Port Arrive  Depart  Activity 08-Oct Orlando (Port Canaveral)    4:30 PM   09-Oct Cruising     Cruising 10-Oct Cruising     Cruising 11-Oct Philipsburg, St. Maarten  8:00 AM  5:00 PM Docked 12-Oct San Juan, Puerto Rico  7:00 AM  2:00 PM Docked 13-Oct Labadee, Haiti  9:30 AM  5:00 PM Docked 14-Oct Cruising     Cruising 15-Oct Orlando (Port Canaveral)  6:00 AM

 

What will happen to this cruise?  We're booked for this and are wondering what the future holds.  Will we just stay at sea or go somewhere else?  Is it just St. Maarten that's in complete crisis, or will all of the port locations be in jeopardy?  Its such a shame, because like tiny260 said, they need the tourism $ to rebuild. I feel bad even going on this cruise - these people are in crisis and we're showing up as tourists.  On the other hand, they need the tourism $ now more than ever.

[NS8VN]

No way to know for sure what they will decide, and you may not know until much closer to sailing, but odds are they will just drop St. Maarten for another sea day and still call on San Juan and Labadee.  Ports available to reroute to are going to be very busy and Oasis ships can only dock at certain ports.  Luckily that also makes the ship perfect for a 4 sea-day itinerary.

[KLA]

42 minutes ago, azfish said:

Upcoming Oasis cruise on Oct 8 2017 still says:

Date Port Arrive  Depart  Activity 08-Oct Orlando (Port Canaveral)    4:30 PM   09-Oct Cruising     Cruising 10-Oct Cruising     Cruising 11-Oct Philipsburg, St. Maarten  8:00 AM  5:00 PM Docked 12-Oct San Juan, Puerto Rico  7:00 AM  2:00 PM Docked 13-Oct Labadee, Haiti  9:30 AM  5:00 PM Docked 14-Oct Cruising     Cruising 15-Oct Orlando (Port Canaveral)  6:00 AM

 

What will happen to this cruise?  We're booked for this and are wondering what the future holds.  Will we just stay at sea or go somewhere else?  Is it just St. Maarten that's in complete crisis, or will all of the port locations be in jeopardy?  Its such a shame, because like tiny260 said, they need the tourism $ to rebuild. I feel bad even going on this cruise - these people are in crisis and we're showing up as tourists.  On the other hand, they need the tourism $ now more than ever.

In this case, it seems like the common solution is to swap the port stop in SXM to St. Kitts. At this point, I'd assume this is a sailing-by-sailing basis. I just received an (unofficial) notification today that this is what is happening with the 10/15 Allure sailing.

I agree - these islands need the tourism $$ while they rebuild, but if they aren't ready to take on the passengers then it's hard to pass that on. Royal is helping to gather donations to contribute to the rebuilding efforts - https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/09/11/royal-caribbean-pledges-1-million-hurricane-irma-relief-efforts

[azfish]

1 hour ago, NS8VN said:

No way to know for sure what they will decide, and you may not know until much closer to sailing, but odds are they will just drop St. Maarten for another sea day and still call on San Juan and Labadee.  Ports available to reroute to are going to be very busy and Oasis ships can only dock at certain ports.  Luckily that also makes the ship perfect for a 4 sea-day itinerary.

What's great about a 4 sea-day itinerary? Lots of booze?  I don't like to drink much the day before shore excursions - gotta get up early and don't want to be hung over.

[NS8VN]

Well I might have been referring to the fact that it is a giant ship with a lot of things to do so if you are stuck for 4 out of 6 days then there will be activities.  I might have been inferring that a smaller ship would have much less to do during that time and thus the loss of a port would be something they would work harder to find an alternative for.  I could even have been saying there is nothing great about this situation for anybody but getting stuck with an extra sea day on the Oasis is not exactly painful.

But you're right, I'm just thinking of getting drunk.  Pro tip: drink lots of water and you won't have a hangover.

[KLA]

9 hours ago, azfish said:

What's great about a 4 sea-day itinerary? Lots of booze?  I don't like to drink much the day before shore excursions - gotta get up early and don't want to be hung over.

Something I really like about Sea Days is knowing you really don't have anywhere you have to be. A good chance to relax and just be - do as much or as little as you want.

[KLA]

Just now, NS8VN said:

But you're right, I'm just thinking of getting drunk.  Pro tip: drink lots of water and you won't have a hangover.

Order a bottled water with each drink - then you build up a supply in your stateroom to have on hand! :) 

[azfish]

8 minutes ago, KLAconQueso said:

Order a bottled water with each drink - then you build up a supply in your stateroom to have on hand! :) 

I paid $160 for 2 cases of 1-liter bottles delivered to my stateroom (4 of us). Seemed like a good idea to have lots and lots of water, even tho the upcharge on water is large at $3.33 per liter, but I wouldn't be surprised if smaller 16oz bottles cost $5 once on the ship.  Of course we can drink as much water and juice as we like in the dining halls and stay hydrated without buying bottled water, but I just like the idea of lots of bottled water in stateroom.  Good idea on building up a supply in stateroom, tho.  I might try that next time, instead of pre-buying cases.

Oh yeah - another good idea for having bottled water in stateroom - take with you on shore excursions, stay hydrated off the ship too!

[KLA]

49 minutes ago, azfish said:

Oh yeah - another good idea for having bottled water in stateroom - take with you on shore excursions, stay hydrated off the ship too!

Exactly - and no standing in lines with everyone else at the water stations! 

[monctonguy]

$5 water on the ship..never saw that before..I think the bottles are around $2.50 maybe....(well the rip off water in the room or the mini-bar maybe $5 but if you pay that, that's on you..lol)

 

That being said...I drank all the bottled water I wanted and didn't pay a penny for it... its free with the drink package...I have a hard time getting why people buy bottled water on land or at sea. And you can get it on the way off the ship as well..and lets be honest, if there is a line up to get off...its not cause people are buying water so you might as well get some while your standing there anyways

[dkirksmith]

Wow, this is terrible.  Hoping they get rebuilt soon.  Those are ports I would love to visit.  God bless them.

[KLA]

Just had my 10/15 Allure of the Seas updated to have us call on Labadee in place of St. Maarten. So, our new itinerary after all of the changes away from the azipod issue is Nassau, San Juan, and Labadee! We are on the 10/8 sailing as well, so Labadee will be our first and last port stop of the whole trip. No complaints here! 

[Matt]

 

[rjac]

Mr. Van Fleet is definitely being kept busy this hurricane season! 

[bobroo]

Just getting off Adventure, here is a pic of the port at St Marteen as we could see it from the ship last Monday.

Ill start another thread with our experience and some more pics when I have some sit down time in front of my computer at home.

Zooming in, frequent cruisers might recognize a couple familiar landmarks.

 

 

[RCVoyager]

1 hour ago, bobroo said:

Just getting off Adventure, here is a pic of the port at St Marteen as we could see it from the ship last Monday.

Ill start another thread with our experience and some more pics when I have some sit down time in front of my computer at home.

Zooming in, frequent cruisers might recognize a couple familiar landmarks.

 

 

Most buildings are gone.  The beach is gone.  Not sure how those poor people will recover.

[RestingBird]

23 hours ago, bobroo said:

Just getting off Adventure, here is a pic of the port at St Marteen as we could see it from the ship last Monday.

Ill start another thread with our experience and some more pics when I have some sit down time in front of my computer at home.

Zooming in, frequent cruisers might recognize a couple familiar landmarks.

 

 

Why did Adventure even go there that quickly after the Hurricane?  Did they let you all off?

[twangster]

14 minutes ago, RestingBirds said:

Why did Adventure even go there that quickly after the Hurricane?  Did they let you all off?

Part of RCI's humanitarian relief effort.  They dropped off supplies and picked up some stranded travelers (non cruisers) who couldn't get off the island when the airport closed.   

[Paul&Karen]

I rang RC late last week from Melbourne Australia and ask what is still going to be available for shore excursions as we need o start looking to book.

Was told no changes as yet, put me on hold to ask his supervisor, came back and there was no changes as yet to the itineraries. It is very sad to IRT the destruction of many islands within the group of island effected.

I remember a few years ago when Labadee was hit and we cruised 8mths later and they were still trying to rebuild.

This will be our 4th cruise with RC, 2 prior to the Caribbean and the other out of NY to Canada.

Not cheap coming over but bang for buck very pretty.

Take care fellow cruises.

Regards 

Paul&Karen.

[JLMoran]

I'm also wondering what will happen for our Eastern Caribbean cruise, especially now that Maria is on a track that will not only hit St. Maarten and the other Virgin Islands for a second round of devastation, but is also on target to give Puerto Rico a far more devastating blow than the relative "glance" it took from Irma. At first I was thinking that only the St. Maarten stop on our trip would be impacted, but now it could potentially be St. Maarten, Puerto Rico, and Labadee.

Granted, our cruise isn't until March 31 next year, and a lot can happen in six months. But I'm seriously starting to wonder if our 8-night Eastern Caribbean out of FLL on Freedom could end up becoming an 8-night Western instead, or even somehow be shifted to a Southern Caribbean itinerary of some sort.

And in the end it really doesn't matter, because it doesn't change the fact there are a ton of souls out on those islands who are maybe only just now starting to feel some hope of recovery from this, and now find themselves with another massive storm coming their way. 

[rjac]

Gots to think positive, Joe. 

[twangster]

James Van Fleet (RCI Chief Meteorologist) tweeted that Key West officials claim to be opening the port on Oct. 20.  Islanders are pretty resourceful and as soon as power is back some things come back pretty quickly.  They'll take longer to repair homes and all the damage, but the islands will come back relatively quickly.  Some faster than others based on damage but it will happen.  (purposely avoiding timelines)

Labadee lost some cabanas in Irma and Maria's track doesn't look too back for Labadee at the moment.  At least they are on the "better" side of the storm at the moment.