Any news what happens if your ports are closed?

[furf_n_slo]

I've been searching and watching forums for awhile but haven't seen any info lately.  Has  Carnival said what happens if your destination ports are closed to sea travelers? We have an upcoming cruise and currently two of our three ports are closed.  The cruise is still being offered on the website.  Our biggest concern is that we will be forced to switch ports or end up on a portless cruise without a way to cancel and not loose our money. Thanks!

[dbrucern]

On our Alaskan cruise we are staying in Ketchikan longer since Victoria port is closed to cruise ships

[firefly333]

If the port is closed ahead of times I'd expect carnival to reroute the ship. If its last minute the port is just skipped and the port fees refunded as obc.

[Joe817]

We sail on the Visa Aug.21. One of our port stops is Grand Cayman, and according to a link posted yesterday(giving a rundown of all Caribbean ports of call) the Cayman's are still closed to U.S. tourists...if I read that correctly. We are hoping that the ship will be diverted to either Costa Maya, or Roatan. But who knows for sure? We are still 3 months away(almost) from cruising. A LOT can happen between now & then.

[furf_n_slo]

2 hours ago, Joe817 said:

We sail on the Visa Aug.21. One of our port stops is Grand Cayman, and according to a link posted yesterday(giving a rundown of all Caribbean ports of call) the Cayman's are still closed to U.S. tourists...if I read that correctly. We are hoping that the ship will be diverted to either Costa Maya, or Roatan. But who knows for sure? We are still 3 months away(almost) from cruising. A LOT can happen between now & then.

This is about where we're at.  The only reason we booked this itinerary is Belize, which is currently closed.  We don't want to miss out on the Port and not have cancelation options.  Fingers crossed there are some changes ahead! 

[Host Carolyn]

Doubt Roatan will be open for cruise ships by then. Things are getting better there but still being very careful with tourists coming to the island

[Mallow]

How about looking at trip insurance that has significant reimbursement for changes of itinerary? It may make it sting a little less if a port is changed.  Also, what is the link to the list of ports that are open/closed?

[lobster1313]

9 minutes ago, Mallow said:

How about looking at trip insurance that has significant reimbursement for changes of itinerary? It may make it sting a little less if a port is changed.  Also, what is the link to the list of ports that are open/closed?

Travel insurance covers missed ports not change of itinerary prior to sailing.

Edited May 30, 2021 by regoodwinjr

[Mallow]

7 minutes ago, regoodwinjr said:

Travel insurance covers missed ports not change of itinerary prior to sailing.

Nationwide covers port change prior to departure.  Up to $500 for their luxury cruise plan.

[lobster1313]

4 minutes ago, Mallow said:

Nationwide covers port change prior to departure.  Up to $500 for their luxury cruise plan.

Says after departure date.

 

Luxury Cruise

ITINERARY CHANGE

In the event a Cruise/Travel Supplier makes a change in Your Trip itinerary after Your actual departure date that prevents You from participating in an event/activity pre-paid prior to departure and scheduled on Your Trip itinerary, nonrefundable pre-paid event/activity expenses will be reimbursed up to the Maximum Benefit shown on the Confirmation of Coverage.

Benefits will not be paid if the event/activity is rescheduled during the course of the Trip.

Verification by the Cruise/Travel Supplier of the change in the scheduled Trip itinerary will be necessary for claim payment.

[Joe817]

55 minutes ago, Mallow said:

How about looking at trip insurance that has significant reimbursement for changes of itinerary? It may make it sting a little less if a port is changed.  Also, what is the link to the list of ports that are open/closed?

It took me forever to find it but I did. Note: This article was dated May 26....5 days ago. Take it with a grain of salt as things are changing on a daily basis:

 

https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-news/caribbean-islands-opening-travel-coronavirus

[Mallow]

Ports of call changed prior to departure (not available to residents of FL, MN, MO, NH, NY, OR, PA, VA, WA)

 

https://travel.nationwide.com/plans/cruise

[sanger727]

1. If you are cruising to go to a specific port, cruising is the worst way to visit that place

 

2. I think that when cruises restart they will just be happy to be running and making money again. Ports will get missed if they are closed to cruises. I don’t think the cruise line will sweat that given the fact that their contracts with you don’t guarNtee any stops

 

3. again, if there is a specific place you want to go, a cruise ship is the WORST way to visit it.

[firefly333]

23 minutes ago, sanger727 said:

1. If you are cruising to go to a specific port, cruising is the worst way to visit that place

 

2. I think that when cruises restart they will just be happy to be running and making money again. Ports will get missed if they are closed to cruises. I don’t think the cruise line will sweat that given the fact that their contracts with you don’t guarNtee any stops

 

3. again, if there is a specific place you want to go, a cruise ship is the WORST way to visit it.

I'm booked early sept. It's like people forgot all about hurricanes and missed ports due to dodging storms. .. shhh not saying a word on my roll call and hoping for the best. We already got folks booking private excursions. ..and dont even yet know if we can. Everyone is so focused on covid they seem to have forgotten hurricane season. 

[sanger727]

6 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

I'm booked early sept. It's like people forgot all about hurricanes and missed ports due to dodging storms. .. shhh not saying a word on my roll call and hoping for the best. We already got folks booking private excursions. ..and dont even yet know if we can. Everyone is so focused on covid they seem to have forgotten hurricane season. 

yep. Saw someone complaining about a ship charter. Was very offended that their sailing was cancelled but ‘not for Covid’. Eventually all of the old complains will

return.

[Joe817]

4 hours ago, sanger727 said:

1. If you are cruising to go to a specific port, cruising is the worst way to visit that place

 

2. I think that when cruises restart they will just be happy to be running and making money again. Ports will get missed if they are closed to cruises. I don’t think the cruise line will sweat that given the fact that their contracts with you don’t guarNtee any stops

 

3. again, if there is a specific place you want to go, a cruise ship is the WORST way to visit it.

Your point is well taken sanger...but....If I want to go to a specific port only to become acquainted with it, and not spend several day there,  then cruising there provides the most appropriate means to visit the destination, while not spending more time there than I am willing to spend. 

[ontheweb]

10 hours ago, sanger727 said:

1. If you are cruising to go to a specific port, cruising is the worst way to visit that place

 

2. I think that when cruises restart they will just be happy to be running and making money again. Ports will get missed if they are closed to cruises. I don’t think the cruise line will sweat that given the fact that their contracts with you don’t guarNtee any stops

 

3. again, if there is a specific place you want to go, a cruise ship is the WORST way to visit it.

And all of this is especially true when booking a Caribbean cruise during hurricane season.

[firefly333]

1 hour ago, ontheweb said:

And all of this is especially true when booking a Caribbean cruise during hurricane season.

I mentioned hurricanes as we are heading into hurricane season. We actually had a uprising on my carnival ship where we missed TWO ports. They had meetings filled with red and blue carded pax. They marched around. Security had to clear them from the customer service area where they gathered to protest, they even were calling tv stations back in texas. The leader said he was a lawyer and wearing his blue first timer card.

 

Ha they did give the ship a free happy hour, though I only managed to snag one drink. The tv stations didnt show up when we docked in Galveston hahahaha. My word of advise is if you want to make a statement, maybe dont show everyone your blue card ... or even your red one. Stick it in your pocket. Just shows others why you dont know what you signed and agreed to before you printed out your boarding pass. I had a group dining table and a young couple planned a wedding in jamaica I think it was. She was caught up in the protests for their rights. 

[Honolulu Blue]

19 hours ago, Joe817 said:

We sail on the Visa Aug.21. One of our port stops is Grand Cayman, and according to a link posted yesterday(giving a rundown of all Caribbean ports of call) the Cayman's are still closed to U.S. tourists...if I read that correctly. We are hoping that the ship will be diverted to either Costa Maya, or Roatan. But who knows for sure? We are still 3 months away(almost) from cruising. A LOT can happen between now & then.

 

16 hours ago, furf_n_slo said:

This is about where we're at.  The only reason we booked this itinerary is Belize, which is currently closed.  We don't want to miss out on the Port and not have cancelation options.  Fingers crossed there are some changes ahead! 

 

Belize was planned to be a stop for the Norwegian Joy when it was planning to run in the Caribbean this summer. Granted, that was to their private island Harvest Cay, and granted that was for a fully vaccinated ship, but there does seem to be hope that the rest of Belize will open for more of us by the time the ship's start again.

 

14 hours ago, Host Carolyn said:

Doubt Roatan will be open for cruise ships by then. Things are getting better there but still being very careful with tourists coming to the island

 

Thanks for sharing.

[Circlt]

If you book an excursion and the port is not open due to Covid do they refund you?

[Earthworm Jim]

1 hour ago, Circlt said:

If you book an excursion and the port is not open due to Covid do they refund you?

 

A ship tour, yes. A private company tour, probably but read the fine print.

[firefly333]

2 hours ago, Circlt said:

If you book an excursion and the port is not open due to Covid do they refund you?

We dont even know if we have to do carnival only excursions.

 

If you book a private excursion, I'd for sure only book refundable. Even if you can book private excursions it's best to book refundable. My last vista cruise, early Nov, hit a offseason cold blast. It was 62 degrees in belize. Those who booked thru carnival were trying to cancel ... those who booked privately were miserable in the water I heard. Sometimes saving $5 to book privately isnt all its cracked up to be. We didnt miss the port, but it was sure cold for water excursions. 

 

Carnivals policy if a port is missed is to refund your port fees.... nothing else. I've missed a lot of ports. You click to agree to these terms. 

[furf_n_slo]

Missing a port due to unforseen circumstances (weather, dock issues etc...) is totally understandable and we know it happens. 

 

My issue would be if carnival knows ahead of time that the ship won't be stopping in planned ports, or even the small possibility of a cruise to no where, and they don't provide any rebooking or canceling options. Most ports aren't going to decide to open then start taking ships the next day. 

 

Thanks for all your responses so far. 

[amyjoy202697]

I am hoping our Grand Cayman stop is changed to Half Moon Cay!

[crewsweeper]

16 hours ago, Joe817 said:

It took me forever to find it but I did. Note: This article was dated May 26....5 days ago. Take it with a grain of salt as things are changing on a daily basis:

 

https://www.travelandleisure.com/travel-news/caribbean-islands-opening-travel-coronavirus

This applies to land/resort type vacationers.  Nothing in the article on cruise ships.  But I would venture that if any island is requiring  quarantine or special permits to visit, a cruise ship won't be stopping there.  Some of the voyages out of the Bahamas are going to private islands and Cozumel. But no where else.  We'll have to wait and see when cruises start later this summer.