Question re: hurricane season cruising

I've gathered so much info on these boards it's incredible. I know you all can help me with this question. My husband and I are scheduled to sail on Caribbean Princess 9/30 to 10/7. Should we get air from the cruise line, which is more expensive, or book our own air? My concern is if the cruise is cancelled due to a hurricane or the airport in Fort Lauderdale is closed because of the hurricane, if we bought our airline tickets through the cruise line, would we be reimbursed, versus if we bought them on our own? Also, does the cruise line reimburse you the total cost of the cruise? We do have the travel insurance through Princess.

Thanks for your help.

I've gathered so much info on these boards it's incredible. I know you all can help me with this question. My husband and I are scheduled to sail on Caribbean Princess 9/30 to 10/7. Should we get air from the cruise line, which is more expensive, or book our own air? My concern is if the cruise is cancelled due to a hurricane or the airport in Fort Lauderdale is closed because of the hurricane, if we bought our airline tickets through the cruise line, would we be reimbursed, versus if we bought them on our own? Also, does the cruise line reimburse you the total cost of the cruise? We do have the travel insurance through Princess.

 

Thanks for your help.

Put it this way....Hurricane Rita didnt stop the cruise the DW and I were on last year on this ship. A changed itinerary is more of a reality than a cancellation (ours was changed from eastern carib to western). Book your own air. I would recommend buying the transfers from Princess if youre flying the same day you sail. You may pay a few bucks less going it on your own, but transfers make it one less thing to think about. I cant help you with Princess travel insurance as we buy our ins from a separate ins company, but I do believe Princess ins offers different levels of coverage depending on what you buy.

I agree the chances of your cruise being Cancelled is very rare. But the airport being closed is possiable. If you buy cruise air they normally get you to the first port of call or hold the ship if you flight gets cancelled or is delayed due to weather.

Some people will say you can buy insurance ( which I agree with)but it gets tricky on how they pay you. It can get into he said she said if the cruise itself sailed on time. They would pay for your flight but not necessarily the cruise part.

You have to weigh out the risk, reward and make a choice.

We have only used cruise air when the price was better or close to what we could buy.

Both times for us it was Miami to San Juan

p.s. Hurricanes are a pretty short weather event for a single area (port,airport,) It just seems like a place gets closed down for a long time because they have been talking about a certian storms for weeks.

If you buy the air with the cruiseline, the insurance will cover the total price you paid Princess. If you buy the air on your own, I don't know if the Princess insurance will cover it. I may be wrong, but I think I'm correct. Ask Princess.

We always fly a day or two early to the port city. We feel safer knowing we're in the right place before sailing day. Also, we're not exhausted when we board the ship. Flying the same day you're sailing means getting up very early to get to the airport.

Hi TerryB. We have a Roll Call going over in the roll call section. You are welcome to come join us. You may be able to reach it with the link below.

We are doing a B2B with our second leg being your first. Bill

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=269510