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Caribbean ports changed due to storm damage?

kingstonKouple72

By kingstonKouple72,
in Celebrity Cruises

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richnorto

richnorto

Posted
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I hate that our Oct. cruise will not stop at some of my favorite ports! St Maarten and Tortola. I hope Antigua will be open, but that is up in the air as well. If we miss St Thomas, I will be fine. Been there/done that many times. I just want to stop somewhere! We are doing a back to back, but don't want to repeat either! I totally understand the cruise lines issues and know they are trying to make it work. It might be fun to tender into some new islands they don't use much... St Croix, St Barts... etc.

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riclop

riclop

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We are scheduled to go to St. Maarten in January on the Equinox.

 

I understand the island is pretty much leveled. What is the likelihood Celebrity will choose another island?

 

Has this happened before to anyone?

Jesus with everything that is happening now you are worried about Jan 2018. REALLY !!!

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Cruiser Nonna

Cruiser Nonna

Posted
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First St Thomas and Tortola were eliminated (pre hurricane) and we headed south to Curaçao which was added.

 

Then St. Martin is cancelled and Martinique added as its substitute.

 

I fully expect Antigua to be cancelled but that is just my opinion as it hasn't happened yet.

 

Thank you so much for the update - I had seen your revised itinerary on Celebrity website and knew that it had changed before you sailed - but then looking at what the replacements were knew it would change as well.

 

I had hoped that someone on this sailing would be doing a review as they sailed to update everyone on how you are all doing and if hearing anything of future cruises - but bottom line - whether we sail or not is no longer the priority - the priority is all the people on the islands and Florida and other states that they are okay. Thank you again so appreciate your help

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miched

miched

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Those islands like St Maarten and St Thomas I am sure will try to get cruise ships back ASAP.

 

They will need the cash flow to help rebuild and the residents will need some income. Within a month or so I am sure that the ships will be docking there. There are still the beaches and people may want to go there out of curiosity just to see the damage and what survive.

 

 

We have been to St Maarten many times and use the beach next to the town, always stop in the Catholic Church, and patronize a few bars. It would be interesting to see what survived. Once the ships start docking there I am sure that there will be many makeshift bars, restaurants with outside grills and if people have anything to sell they will be open or have booths and stands. Most of the places to begin with weren't more that a roof, one wall, and cheap outdoor patio tables and chairs.

 

 

The big chain stores probably survived because they had structures that were more solid. The big issue will be power.

 

They may recover the tourist area faster than you think because that is one of their biggest sources of revenue.

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞😠

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ECCruise

ECCruise

Posted
Posted

Those that are saying "one month" have you seen the graphics of the destruction? This is not a one month recovery. I lived on a tourist island that is virtually 100% dependent on tourist income. Matthew was only a Category 1 but there was a good bit of damage. That was 11 months ago and there still some vestiges of the damage. I really think (and hope( that residents of the islands will be focused on rebuilding residences (St. Martin has 60-70% uninhabitable) before they concentrate on bars and restaurants that bring income. Plus, the villas and hotels there bring WAY more $$$ than cruise ships.

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boscobeans

boscobeans

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Those that are saying "one month" have you seen the graphics of the destruction? This is not a one month recovery. I lived on a tourist island that is virtually 100% dependent on tourist income. Matthew was only a Category 1 but there was a good bit of damage. That was 11 months ago and there still some vestiges of the damage. I really think (and hope( that residents of the islands will be focused on rebuilding residences (St. Martin has 60-70% uninhabitable) before they concentrate on bars and restaurants that bring income. Plus, the villas and hotels there bring WAY more $$$ than cruise ships.

 

Like you say it will be an enormous job. The streets are clogged with rubble, downed lines, smashed cars and other equipment. Many if not most of the houses and buildings will have to be gutted or even demolished and that must be carted away. Power and utilities have to be restored and all the supplies for all of this will have to be brought in by ship once the ports are cleared of wrecked ships, boats and the depths are checked to insure safety. They will need trucks and from the looks of the photos many of those have been destroyed.

 

A massive undertaking.

God help them in their efforts.

bosco

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dandee2

dandee2

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Their respective govt will do more than the docking fees for the cruise ship can bring. No way they can recover by selling beer, tanzanite or t-shirt. We are talking billions of $. Besides, who says that the destroyed hotels will be rebuilt?. They will be back in business in late 2018.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

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caribill

caribill

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It is much too early to know when ports affected by Irma will be functional again. It may take a week or two to get accurate official estimates.

 

But even if a port is open, there are still questions to be answered about what tourist sites will be functional at that time. I'm sure Diamonds International will get back in business ASAP, but it is too soon to know whether attractions such as the Butterfly Farm, the America's Cup regatta, the St. Maarten Zoo, Orient Beach, the town of Marigot, etc. will be available.

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Mynki

Mynki

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Like one of the posts said some hotels and attractions may simply never get rebuilt. I have often stayed in Grand Case st Martin and it is total rubble. How many of those outstanding restaurants will come back? I remember when a Hurricane hit Bermuda. One large oceanfront and a few other small hotels never rebuilt.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I know of accommodations in Florida that have still not been rebuilt since hurricane Wilma! Sadly I agree with you, some places will now be gone forever.

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jules815

jules815

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We'll be on Reflection in early December and we're supposed to over-night in St. Maarten. One of our favorite islands that we've been to many times; feel so bad for the people there.

 

We have no plans to cancel this cruise. If we don't make it to St. Maarten, not a big deal. If we do, we'll be sure to patronize the shops and bars/restaurants.

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Texed Holiday Sharing Rare

Texed

Posted
Posted
We'll be on Reflection in early December

We have no plans to cancel this cruise. If we don't make it to St. Maarten, not a big deal. If we do, we'll be sure to patronize the shops and bars/restaurants.

 

A very nice, sensible response. Thanks for posting. :)

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kingstonKouple72

kingstonKouple72

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Jesus with everything that is happening now you are worried about Jan 2018. REALLY !!!

 

With due respect, I am not "worried" about anything. I was asking for the opinions of more seasoned cruisers who may have experienced something similar to this in the past.

 

Not exactly sure when you plan your excursions, if you are a last minute sort of person, but I am not. I enjoy the planning and researching aspect. I was simply asking so I am aware of what can be expected and what I might need to research.

 

But thanks for your sarcasm and angst. It is refreshing to know that people will still be rude when hiding behind a keyboard. (yes, that was sarcasm of my own.)

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Dawg74

Dawg74

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With due respect, I am not "worried" about anything. I was asking for the opinions of more seasoned cruisers who may have experienced something similar to this in the past.

 

Not exactly sure when you plan your excursions, if you are a last minute sort of person, but I am not. I enjoy the planning and researching aspect. I was simply asking so I am aware of what can be expected and what I might need to research.

 

But thanks for your sarcasm and angst. It is refreshing to know that people will still be rude when hiding behind a keyboard. (yes, that was sarcasm of my own.)

 

We are also concerned and wondering what will happen with our cruise, we visit St. Maarten as well in December. We have had a couple changes to cruises in the past although never for this reason, the cruise line just sent us an email when it happened to us advising of a change. Once we got a sea day and once we got sent to a different island. It sounds bad for St. Maarten, so perhaps we will hear of the proposed changes in the coming days.

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seapointer

seapointer

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Seems like St Maarten will not be ready as a viable stop in the near future. They have to focus on food, housing, water, sewage, medical facilities , electric supply, roads, tons of debris and security first...

 

Agreed, but as much as the island economy needs tourists, it would be a mistake to resume port calls before the tourism infrastructure has been restored to an adequate level.

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bouhunter

bouhunter

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We're scheduled to visit both St Martin and St Thomas on December and January cruises. There is no way to know when ships will be calling again. Most important - hoping they get all the help they need to rebuild their lives, and know they will also work on getting visitors back because the tourism income is so important. We'll be on the ships regardless, not interested in cancelling or changing.

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