what if there is a hurricane?

We are leaving on the Maasdam out of Norfolk on November 5 headed for the Caribbean. With all of the tropical storm/hurricane activity this season, what happens if there is a storm in an area during the time in which a cruise is scheduled? Does the cruise happen anyway and the ship sails around it? Get cancelled? Schedules a different itinerary?

11 days on a ship rolling on high seas doesn't sound all that great:confused:

Your cruise will sail as scheduled as long as the departure port is okay. A ship's captain has safety first and foremost in his mind, and forecasts and storm tracks are reviewed minute by minute. If an intended port appears to be in the "line of fire" of a storm, that port will be bypassed. There will either be another port or an extra sea day. It all depends on where the ship is relative to the storm, and what port is available as an alternate.

The chances of 11 days at sea are exeeptionally slim. Storms, while sometimes terribly devistating, are not usually so large in area that the ship can't go somewhere else in the interim and stick reasonably close to the published itinerary.

I'm sure your cruise will be wonderful, even if you might end up missing a port of call.

Hi Bluecadet,

We are on your sailing as well. Pop over to the Roll call if you are interested. Planning a small group get together while on board. Are you from Norfolk?? Joann

And yes we too hope for happy seas!:)

11 sea days sounds like heaven to me

I agree w/ you ahoy!!

We're going in Jan on the Westerdam 7 day cruise and I could care less if I get off the boat...my very first cruise had 2 days in a row at sea and I loved it

My 11/18 transatlantic is 14 days. Eight of those are sea days (six in a row) interrupted by 6 ports where I have to get off the ship to look at a bunch of old buildings.;)

The captain will never steer a ship into a storm. They have the passengers safety to think about.

So be prepared for a change in a port or 2.

The worst case might be a complete change in itineraries. That happened either last year or the year before on an NCL cruise out of New York. The passengers had clothes for a Caribbean cruise and when they got on the ship, due to hurricanes, they ended up doing a New England cruise - didn't have the right clothes.

The captain will never steer a ship into a storm. They have the passengers safety to think about.

 

So be prepared for a change in a port or 2.

 

The worst case might be a complete change in itineraries. That happened either last year or the year before on an NCL cruise out of New York. The passengers had clothes for a Caribbean cruise and when they got on the ship, due to hurricanes, they ended up doing a New England cruise - didn't have the right clothes.

*LOL* That would not be a good thing :(

I live in New England and I am taking a Carribean cruise in two weeks. I would not want to spend 7 days in New England wearing shorts, short sleeves and bathing suits in this weather. Brrrrrrrrrrr just a little chilly this morning

Hi BlueCadet! We are also sailing on the Maasdam on 11-05-05 out of Norfolk. With 14 cruises under our belts we have never been diverted due to a storm and or hurricane. We have missed a few ports due to not being able to tender in, but as everyone said they take very good care of the passengers and we would just change our itinerary a little, though I do hope it's not New England, because, yes I've got all summer clothes packed! Like Jackfrost said, jump on over to the roll call page and join us and hope your cruise is great!

Hi Bluecadet,

We are on your sailing as well. Pop over to the Roll call if you are interested. Planning a small group get together while on board. Are you from Norfolk?? Joann

 

And yes we too hope for happy seas!:)

We are from Fredericksburg

Hi BlueCadet! We are also sailing on the Maasdam on 11-05-05 out of Norfolk. With 14 cruises under our belts we have never been diverted due to a storm and or hurricane. We have missed a few ports due to not being able to tender in, but as everyone said they take very good care of the passengers and we would just change our itinerary a little, though I do hope it's not New England, because, yes I've got all summer clothes packed! Like Jackfrost said, jump on over to the roll call page and join us and hope your cruise is great!

Would like to go to the roll call page but not sure how. Can you give me a link or some direction?

Thanks

Dennis

Dennis, I'll do my best, I'm one of these people that cannot give directions!! Go to the top of the page and click on Cruise Critic Message Boards, that takes you to the main page that shows all the different boards. When you get there scroll down until you see Roll-Calls. Click on Holland America's Roll Calls. That will take you to the roll call page for HAL, you can then scroll down until you find our thread, Maasdam 11-05-05. Looking forward to seeing you over there! Congrats on celebrating your anniversery on a cruise. Our 23rd is in November and I told DH today, maybe we can get a reservation at the Pinnacle Grill to celebrate a little while we're on the ship!

Hello bluecadet. We are also sailing next Sat. on the Maasdam. I think jbhcw's directions were great. Just under roll calls-holland america-maasdam 11-5-05. There is a group of us meeting for breakfast in the dining room Sunday, our first day at sea, 10 minutes before the dining room opens. Come join us!:)

We were on the Volendam during Wilma, We made all port except for HMC which were were disappointed as it is our favorite port. The seas for the most part were good except for our last day where they were rough. Ship rocked front to back instead of it's normal side to side. Shore ex were cancelled on 3 of our 4 but we still docked. We just went down to the beach or did some shopping so we still had a great time. Just make the best of it. On sea days (like when half moon cay was canc) they planned plenty of activities. There was one day (the last one) where it was cold. Or should I say colder than normal for this part of the world. I am glad that I brought 1 pair jeans and 1 sweatshirt with me, which I usually travel in. We fly from Calif and usually, it is warm when we leave to cruise, but cool when we get home this time of year. so just pack your normal clothes for the caribbean and then 1 sweater or sweats for daytime wear. You will be fine!!!:)

I, too, was on the Volendam during Wilma, and we followed Alpha into virtually every port. The ship often travelled a little off course to keep in the the best of seas. It was not at all unusual to tune in the "date and time" channel and see the blue line indicating our course in one place and a little white arrow indicating our actual position elsewhere. As the previous poster said we had difficult seas (and really, in the scheme of things not all that difficult) on the last day as we had no choice but to head towards Florida. Even then, we hid in the shelter of Great Abaco Island and Grand Bahama Island as long as we could, until we had to get out into the Atlantic.

Still we only missed one port completely, though many shore excursions along the way were cancelled due to the winds and seas. There was still lots to see and do on the islands besides snorkle and dive (the excursions that were cancelled), and we had a great time.

In the end we ended in Port Canaveral instead of Port Everglades -- an excellent, though I am sure not simple choice for HAL. To change arrival ports meant that HAL had to organize port personnel, customs and immigration, oodles of buses for the complimentary transfers that they provided to the Orlando airport, and lets not forget that they had to change air arrangements for incoming and outgoing guests who booked air with HAL as well as arrange for a mountain of food and provisions to arrive at the port before 11:30 pm when the Volendam sailed again.

Our cruise was not at all "ruined" -- it was in fact one of the best that I have had. No one, not even HAL can control the weather and the seas -- but I believe that HAL did an incredible job of keeping the weather and the seas away from us.

As everyone has said...the Captain will divert as he sees fit. It's just something you have to accept - for your own safety! - if you are planning a cruise vacation. I actually find that interesting...as Forest Gump says, it's like a box of chocolates, you never know what you will get!

As for those who are afraid of sailing with 'Ralph' (I guess you know who I mean LOL!!!) well, there are several and many choices to deal with that these days. Shots, pills, patches, wrist bands. I sailed with 'Ralph' on my first cruise...and had a shot. That took care of it! We had a hurricane to sail around on that cruise.

It's not just a vacation! It's an adventure!!

Karen

Was on the Veendam in Acapulco in OCT 97 when Hurricane Pauline made a sudden turn and struck Acapulco head on. Captain Jonathan Mercer did an awesome job getting us out of port (against the specific orders of the Mexican port authorities who had closed that port and who later issued an arrest warrant for the captain) and then proceeded to outrun the hurricane and went around her. We missed our next port of call, Santa Cruz Hualtulco, because of that but who cares! Captain Mercer was our hero for the rest of that Panama Canal cruise! The captain's always have the pax safety in mind as their number one priority as Krazy Kruizers and others have already said!

Have an excellent cruise on the Maasdam!