Alternate Route due to Weather?

[Lady_Gamecock]

The family and I will be on the 28 JUL 2013 sailing of Freedom.

 

Tropical Storm Dorian seems to refuse to breakup. When does Royal make announcements if they choose to deviate from the original itinerary? It's not a big deal to me; however, we have family that is prone to sea sickness and they're a bit worried. :)

 

Thanks!

 

 

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[orville99]

The last time we were rerouted due to a storm, the decision was announced as we were boarding.

[BillB48]

Since Dorian won't be off Hispaniola until early Tuesday morn they may not make a decision until after you have sailed. Are doing Eastern or Western?

[papaflamingo]

We were re routed (actually skipped the Bahamas) and didn't find out until we sailed. We were on Mariner which is a bit smaller than Freedom. Although we had some rough seas and 80 mph winds, I had to "test" the speed by opening the balcony door....yup... 80 mph., the ride was excellent. No real sickness problems that we noticed or heard about. So take Dramamine and enjoy. Freedom is a great ship and rides very well.

[masonpips]

We switched from Eastern to Western on a sea day a few years ago due to a hurricane that came out of no where. They made the decision before it got bad at all and the only thing we noticed is that after the captain's update at noon, we made a slow right hand turn and headed west! It was still a great cruise!

[shipshape sam]

They tend to make decisions to change routes as late as possible and still be able to avoid the bad weather. At least that is how it seems. They could have already changed course, while at sea, and most passengers would not notice. I never did.

 

We have been on 2 cruises where bad weather required major course changes. We were disappointed, but understood the safety reasons. We as passengers found out the day before in both our cases. Both were for storms.

 

We have diverted for other reasons also. Specifically high seas and the inability to tender, thus missing ports of call and in 2009 on our Celebrity Infinity Panama Canal cruise, we were 2 or 3 days into our 15 day cruise and were told we would miss all Mexico ports of call due to H1N1 virus. We substituted San Diego and Catalina Island, which is off Los Angeles plus we arrived a day early in San Francisco. Got to visit SF and get back on board before disembarking the next morning. Did't arrive till about 1:00pm in SF, but got great views of Golden Gate bridge from Heliport deck on a sunny day.

[Mark_K]

The family and I will be on the 28 JUL 2013 sailing of Freedom.

 

Tropical Storm Dorian seems to refuse to breakup. When does Royal make announcements if they choose to deviate from the original itinerary? It's not a big deal to me; however, we have family that is prone to sea sickness and they're a bit worried. :)

 

Thanks!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

It's currently not predicted to even be a tropical storm by the time you might encounter it. Most likely it's only effect on you will be some rough seas and maybe a roundabout path to St Thomas.

 

 

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[dorisis]

Dorian seems to be petering out in the Atlantic.

We were once on a caribbean cruise in September when we changed fron Eastern to Westen Caribbean. So you could miss all the ports you planned on.

[cruisePAC]

In the event that RC changes the itinerary, how do they handle RC-sponsored shore excursions? Are you refunded for the excursion you booked for the ports that you are no longer going to? How do you sign up for excursions at the new ports? I'm sure that this is not a problem for RC, as they probably have done it a number of times, but I'm just curious about the process. Thanks!

[DonnaK]

In the event that RC changes the itinerary, how do they handle RC-sponsored shore excursions? Are you refunded for the excursion you booked for the ports that you are no longer going to? How do you sign up for excursions at the new ports? I'm sure that this is not a problem for RC, as they probably have done it a number of times, but I'm just curious about the process. Thanks!

Yes, you get refunded for the excursions you've booked for ports that you are no longer visiting, and new excursions will open up for the new ports. You can book them through the stateroom TV on most ships, or by visiting the excursion desk.

[TEXASMUNK]

Simple, just like we all watch TV to see where a stomr is going, and they are unpredictable...RCI does the exact same thing!

So, worry not, safety is the number 1 priority and providing you with a quality experience goes right along with that!

Bon Voyage!

[FLACRUISER99]

I posted this on another thread

Just remember the Captain will take the ship where the storm isn't!

 

And got this for a reply

 

In most cases anyway :D

 

[nyllrap]

We were on the Enchantment of the Seas out of Baltimore supposedly heading to Bermuda when Hurricane Sandy was acting up. The ship delayed its departure a couple of hours, and because bad weather was expected, they said they would not be able to make it to Bermada, the only port. They allowed passengers to leave the ship and get a full refund. Some did, but most decided to remain on the ship for a "cruise to no where." We still had a great time, even though we didn't make it to Bermuda. Plus, they gave everyone shipboard credit - I forget how much but it seems it was $200-$300 per cabin.

[Eng23]

As of this evening Dorian is losing it's strength and wind shear is cutting the top off the storm. It most likely will not be a tropical storm by tomorrow morning. Dorian's remnants will of course cause quite a bit of rain and some wind along it's path but should not be too much of a problem that the cruise ship cannot handle.

[Eng23]

This was the last update from the National Hurricane Center: