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 Travel & Outdoors | September 2007 
After Hurricane Dean, Travelers Scramble
 Carol Sottili & Elissa Leibowitz Poma - Washington Post
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| | Tourists wait to depart from Cancun's international airport in Cancun, southeastern Mexico, Monday, Aug. 20, 2007. Hurricane Dean spared the Cayman Islands the worst of its fury on Monday as it headed for a collision course with Mexico's resort-dotted Caribbean coast, sending tourists fleeing for the airports and locals searching for higher ground. (AP/Eduardo Verdugo) |
Thousands of travelers were inconvenienced when Hurricane Dean barreled through the Caribbean before hitting Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, but the long-term impact appears to be minimal.
The Category 5 storm, with winds of about 160 mph, passed between St. Lucia and Martinique, then skirted Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. Airports on both islands have reopened, and most resorts were back in business by the end of the week.
In Mexico, the popular tourism areas of Cancun, Cozumel and the Riviera Maya, about 200 miles north of where the hurricane landed, also fared well. Airports there are open, and "no infrastructure has been affected," said Eduardo Chaillo, regional director for the Mexican Tourism Board. The Yucatan's archaeological sites, including Tulum, were unharmed.
The Mexican cruise port of Costa Maya, however, sustained serious damage, leaving cruise lines scrambling. It could take six to eight months to reconstruct the port, and ships might not return until mid-2008. More than 20 ships from 10 lines use the port; Carnival has six ships scheduled to dock there within the next month. A spokeswoman said the company is reviewing its options. Our prediction: Expect more "fun days at sea" for the foreseeable future.
Here's how the industry was responding at press time:
Airlines offered some flexibility for those with tickets to hurricane-affected areas. American, for example, allowed those scheduled to travel Aug. 20-27 to fly as late as Aug. 31 without incurring a penalty, while US Airways permitted travelers scheduled to fly Aug. 17-22 to depart seven days earlier or later, or to apply the value to another destination within seven days of their travel dates.
Most resorts offered flexible rebooking policies. Sandals has one of the most generous policies: As part of its "blue chip hurricane guarantee," guests who were scheduled to stay in any of three resorts in St. Lucia or 10 resorts in Jamaica will get replacement vacations that can be used within the next year. Chaillo said hotels in Mexico were also offering flexible rebooking policies.
Some travel insurance policies will reimburse for evacuations and cancellations. To cover damages, policies had to be purchased before Dean was named. You can compare travel insurance policies at sites such as www.insuremytrip.com, www.squaremouth.com and www.quotewright.com.
Passengers stranded in the Caribbean when their Windjammer Barefoot Cruise ships did not sail as scheduled still don't know whether they're getting reimbursed for cruises that never happened. Local authorities ordered the ships seized in Panama, Costa Rica and Aruba because of alleged labor disputes with the crews, including claims that workers' pay was withheld.
An investment firm poised to assume controlling interest in the family-run cruise company told the Wall Street Journal that customers would be compensated. But the private equity firm, TAG Virgin Islands, didn't reveal when or how. Nor did Windjammer. Neither responded to several requests for comment, but a posting on the Windjammer aficionado Web site Jammerbabe.com, apparently written by Windjammer spokeswoman Shannon Manno, confirmed that the company is being sold and said the new owner plans to "pump in the necessary cash to pay off all outstanding debts." The posting said Windjammer "intends to honor [its] commitments" to customers but provided no further details.
Windjammer has a loyal following of passengers who, even during its current troubles, swear by its cruises, which are known for their laid-back, freewheeling atmosphere. Windjammer has had its share of financial woes in recent years, ever since a hurricane in 1998 destroyed its largest ship. This week, crew members in Panama told stranded passengers that vendors, including food delivery companies, haven't been paid in months.
Our advice to all potential cruise passengers:
• Pay by credit card. The credit card company can reimburse you if services aren't delivered, as Discover did for Maxine Lunn of Arlington, Va., who said she recovered $3,600 after her family's Windjammer cruise in Panama didn't sail.
• Buy cruise insurance. But consider buying from an unaffiliated agency, such as Travel Guard or Access America, both of which post "will not insure" lists of sketchy companies (although as of press time, Windjammer wasn't included).
• Scour cruise message boards such as those on the independent Web site CruiseCritic.com. Just be sure to weed through rumors. |
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