No updates for HAL on the Florida situation on their home page? Is this normal?

[bbodb1]

As I mentioned elsewhere, we will be taking our first cruise on HAL (2nd cruise overall) soon so I was wanting to see the latest news and status on / from HAL at the south Florida ports.  On looking at their main web page, one would not even know that a major hurricane had passed through the area.  Is this the norm for HAL?  Or does HAL post the status on situations similar to this somewhere else?  

 

I’ve seen efforts at updates from Carnival about the latest in south Florida right on their home page and given that Carnival owns HAL, I would expect the HAL webpage to be similarly updated.  Am I just overlooking something?  

[Cruise Suzy]

There are no HAL cruises that involve Port Everglades/Ft. Lauderdale at the present time.

[FOPMan]

  Carnival is based in Miami and currently has ships sailing from various Florida ports. HAL hasn’t yet begun sailing out of Florida for the season. There’s no impact on HAL’s customers that requires immediate attention. 
 

The area is still very much assessing any impacts of the storm. If there’s relevant damage at hotels used by HAL, I am sure guests will be notified of any necessary changes in due time. 

Edited October 10 by FOPMan

[Blackduck59]

I would suggest that the storm is barely over and everyone on the ground in Florida has better things to worry about than anyone's future cruise. Perhaps give the powers that be time to sort out the Accurate information. Being that there has been a wave of deliberate disinformation swirling around the real catastrophe these huricanes have wrought.

[Wehwalt]

14 minutes ago, Blackduck59 said:

I would suggest that the storm is barely over and everyone on the ground in Florida has better things to worry about than anyone's future cruise. Perhaps give the powers that be time to sort out the Accurate information. Being that there has been a wave of deliberate disinformation swirling around the real catastrophe these huricanes have wrought.

I'm on the ground in Florida. Well. Sitting at the kitchen table with DW, who is sending texts to people who have the same misapprehension that all of Florida got hit. We had no damage and we're 40 miles closer to the action than Fort Lauderdale is.  

[Homosassa]

6 minutes ago, Wehwalt said:

I'm on the ground in Florida. Well. Sitting at the kitchen table with DW, who is sending texts to people who have the same misapprehension that all of Florida got hit. We had no damage and we're 40 miles closer to the action than Fort Lauderdale is.  

Yeah, I am dealing with the same  misunderstanding of hurricanes in Florida.

 

We live seventy miles north of Tampa on the coast. As I expected from experience interpreting the projected storm track, we have no damage, flooding, loss of power, cable or communications.

[Blackduck59]

So we have 2 members in Florida who are fortunate enough to be high and dry, they are among the fortunate. Meanwhile many citizens of and visitors to their state have not been so fortunate. I'm thinking maybe many of the fortunate ones have been busy trying to figure out what they can do to help their neighbours.

Back to the original topic, there may be nothing on the website because it is more important to give accurate information as to what or how any future voyages will be affected...or not.

[Wehwalt]

42 minutes ago, Blackduck59 said:

So we have 2 members in Florida who are fortunate enough to be high and dry, they are among the fortunate. Meanwhile many citizens of and visitors to their state have not been so fortunate. I'm thinking maybe many of the fortunate ones have been busy trying to figure out what they can do to help their neighbours.

Back to the original topic, there may be nothing on the website because it is more important to give accurate information as to what or how any future voyages will be affected...or not.

Our neighbors are doing fine. Thank you very much for your concern. Those who are less fortunate are three counties away from here. Milton did not affect Fort Lauderdale and the HAL ships that are next arriving (Volendam arriving October 19 but going into dry dock), Nieuw Amsterdam October 20) are not in this hurricane zone nor likely to be. Therefore, I don't see what they could announce. Milton is having no effect on HAL's schedule.

[Blackduck59]

8 minutes ago, Wehwalt said:

Our neighbors are doing fine. Thank you very much for your concern. Those who are less fortunate are three counties away from here. Milton did not affect Fort Lauderdale and the HAL ships that are next arriving (Volendam arriving October 19 but going into dry dock), Nieuw Amsterdam October 20) are not in this hurricane zone nor likely to be. Therefore, I don't see what they could announce. Milton is having no effect on HAL's schedule.

I think you missed my point. It is excellent news that much of Florida is safe. When I referred to "Neighbours" I wasn't referring to the folks on your block or even your town. In a disaster like this everyone in Florida is your "Neighbour".

Edited October 10 by Blackduck59

[albingirl]

Be patient.  There is enormous flooding going on now.  The storm is not over for some folks.

[bbodb1]

2 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

I would suggest that the storm is barely over and everyone on the ground in Florida has better things to worry about than anyone's future cruise. Perhaps give the powers that be time to sort out the Accurate information. Being that there has been a wave of deliberate disinformation swirling around the real catastrophe these huricanes have wrought.

 

Perhaps you should read posts much more carefully before you show your backside, Richard.  

Cruise Suzy's post is helpful if you need an example. 

 

There are upcoming cruises for HAL in the near term and I am surprised there is no statement from HAL on their website about this situation at all - even a fairly generic statement along the lines of we are monitoring the situation at the respective ports at this time and will post updates as developments warrant would give the customer base a bit of ease - especially the newer cruisers.  After all, not everyone is a seasoned cruiser.  

[1025cruise]

24 minutes ago, bbodb1 said:

 

Perhaps you should read posts much more carefully before you show your backside, Richard.  

Cruise Suzy's post is helpful if you need an example. 

 

There are upcoming cruises for HAL in the near term and I am surprised there is no statement from HAL on their website about this situation at all - even a fairly generic statement along the lines of we are monitoring the situation at the respective ports at this time and will post updates as developments warrant would give the customer base a bit of ease - especially the newer cruisers.  After all, not everyone is a seasoned cruiser.  

Unless the cruises are this weekend, there is nothing for HAL to discuss at this point.

[Wehwalt]

1 hour ago, Blackduck59 said:

I think you missed my point. It is excellent news that much of Florida is safe. When I referred to "Neighbours" I wasn't referring to the folks on your block or even your town. In a disaster like this everyone in Florida is your "Neighbour".

Of course I got it, you were not subtle. I did not answer your point because I felt it was made in not quite the most, er, neighborly way, and I did not want to escalate by replying in kind. Now can we go back to discussing whether HAL need post about Fort Lauderdale, from which it next departs in ten days?

[bbodb1]

12 minutes ago, 1025cruise said:

Unless the cruises are this weekend, there is nothing for HAL to discuss at this point.

 

I respectfully disagree with this @1025cruise - but I will again note this is only our 2nd cruise ever so I am new to all of this.  In the midst of what has been a very active storm season (not just in Florida but throughout the Caribbean), both potential and confirmed cruisers are at various points of preparation for upcoming cruises.  I understand HAL may not be active out of the Florida ports at this time, but they will be soon and they do have the private island in the Caribbean (albeit through Carnival).  If all is well at these locations, a brief update on the website would be confidence building for the customer base.  If not, then how can the customer can make an informed decision to book the cruise (or not), or travel to the departure port (or not). 

 

[Homosassa]

2 hours ago, Blackduck59 said:

So we have 2 members in Florida who are fortunate enough to be high and dry, they are among the fortunate. Meanwhile many citizens of and visitors to their state have not been so fortunate. I'm thinking maybe many of the fortunate ones have been busy trying to figure out what they can do to help their neighbours.

 

Unlike those who do not have the knowledge and experience of hurricanes (in Florida or elsewhere), we know that being "fortunate" has nothing to do with being "high and dry."

 

That knowledge and experience made it simple to determine if we were at risk based on the  storm projection path, our  location, elevation and building construction .

 

In Milton's case (and Helene's) there was no worry about being adversely impacted by the storm.  There may be a time when we are high tailing it out of the area based upon various factors.

 

Also, because of knowledge and experience, we do know what needs to be done locally and elsewhere and we are doing it.

 

Part of what we do is educate those who have no knowledge  that they know conditions during and after a  hurricane but still "Ass-U- Me" that their advise is needed.

 

 

 

 

[CruiserBruce]

If HAL isn't going to be there for 7 or 10 days, or more, I don't see a need for a statement from HAL less than 12 hours after Milton passes through. Within a day or two would be fine. No HAL ship has been affected by Milton. No word that Port Everglades or FLL were other than indirectly affected. I would bet both will be open by tomorrow, if not already.

 

HAL doesn't have a private island though Carnival. HAL has owned and operated HMC on its own before Carnival acquired HAL.

[Wehwalt]

5 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

If HAL isn't going to be there for 7 or 10 days, or more, I don't see a need for a statement from HAL less than 12 hours after Milton passes through. Within a day or two would be fine. No HAL ship has been affected by Milton. No word that Port Everglades or FLL were other than indirectly affected. I would bet both will be open by tomorrow, if not already.

The websites for both show normal operations. The usual non-passenger ships are moving in and out of PEV and three cruise ships are due in before sunrise including the first arrival of the new Sun Princess.

[srsurman]

My father-in-law and his wife live in St. Petersburg, and they had their fence partially fall and they don't have internet still.  I'm telling you this because I just booked a HAL cruise in 2026.

 

Now, if you're thinking, what the heck does this story have anything to with HAL...well, you just answered your own question.

[Dancing Shoes]

5 hours ago, bbodb1 said:

 

I respectfully disagree with this @1025cruise - but I will again note this is only our 2nd cruise ever so I am new to all of this.  In the midst of what has been a very active storm season (not just in Florida but throughout the Caribbean), both potential and confirmed cruisers are at various points of preparation for upcoming cruises.  I understand HAL may not be active out of the Florida ports at this time, but they will be soon and they do have the private island in the Caribbean (albeit through Carnival).  If all is well at these locations, a brief update on the website would be confidence building for the customer base.  If not, then how can the customer can make an informed decision to book the cruise (or not), or travel to the departure port (or not). 

 

I understand not seeing anything and feeling like you may be in the dark.  CC can be a rough crowd sometimes.  As a cruiser and frequent traveler, I learn more on this forum and Trip Advisor than the HAL website.  If there is a major hiccup, you would get an email pertaining to your sailing.  As for future cruises, again CC under ports of call or your roll call can have good information.  

Edited October 11 by Dancing Shoes

[Mary229]

13 hours ago, bbodb1 said:

 

I respectfully disagree with this @1025cruise - but I will again note this is only our 2nd cruise ever so I am new to all of this.  In the midst of what has been a very active storm season (not just in Florida but throughout the Caribbean), both potential and confirmed cruisers are at various points of preparation for upcoming cruises.  I understand HAL may not be active out of the Florida ports at this time, but they will be soon and they do have the private island in the Caribbean (albeit through Carnival).  If all is well at these locations, a brief update on the website would be confidence building for the customer base.  If not, then how can the customer can make an informed decision to book the cruise (or not), or travel to the departure port (or not). 

 

HAL is not going to report on ports they are not active at.  There is always a situation the world and they report on those where they are active.  And they report by direct communication with the passengers 
 

NOW as to your dilemma you would do better to visit  FLL airport website and the Port Everglades website.   The port  is the one ultimately with authority 

Edited October 11 by Mary229

[Tampa Girl]

21 hours ago, Homosassa said:

Yeah, I am dealing with the same  misunderstanding of hurricanes in Florida.

 

We live seventy miles north of Tampa on the coast. As I expected from experience interpreting the projected storm track, we have no damage, flooding, loss of power, cable or communications.

 

We have lived in Tampa for almost 40 years.  The one thing about hurricanes that you can predict is  that you cannot be sure where the target or area of impact will be until the storm is actually on land.  Your "projected storm track" could have been widely changed by a 60-mile change to the north, which would have impacted you.  Look at the present damage to Pinellas County and to Tampa.  Sixty-mile changes, either direction, are a normal deviation per the meterologists.  

 

In response to the OP's concern, attempting to plan a cruise or means of transportation to/from port is simply not realistic because hurricanes are unpredictable and prone to 11th hour changes of direction.  There is no point in HAL attempting to issue warnings of a storm "that might be."  Note Milton, which last Sunday was merely a low pressure area.  In a few hours on Monday, the hurricane developed into a raging 180 mph storm.  I would have expected, however, that HAL would have produced cautionary warnings as early as Sunday or Monday.  The cone at that time covered most of Florida.

[Himself]

The storm missed Ft. Lauderdale.

[Petronillus]

19 hours ago, Wehwalt said:

Of course I got it, you were not subtle. I did not answer your point because I felt it was made in not quite the most, er, neighborly way, and I did not want to escalate by replying in kind. Now can we go back to discussing whether HAL need post about Fort Lauderdale, from which it next departs in ten days?

Some people, I've found, have very thin skins and revel in escalation; every molehill is a mountain.

To be clear, I am not referring to those suffering storm damage in Florida and other places in the southeastern US. I am referring, as did @Wehwalt, to the back-and-forth discourse here on CC.

Edited October 11 by Petronillus
clarification

[1025cruise]

Unless it's really bad, the ports tend to open very quickly after the storm. But again, as HAL is not yet sailing from Florida, there is nothing for them to report. And if there was something that would be causing issues with an upcoming cruise, they would notify the cruisers involved directly (or via their TA).

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

I just heard from a friend that her friend has been on a ship held at sea due to hurricane was given permission to dock at Ft. Lauderdale today.  Since she has a 5pm flight out of FLL I assume the ship is there now.