Any update on cruises scheduled to leave from Puerto Rico?

I wish they would either cancel or change the embarkation port. I feel like while it sounds like the port is ok, the airport/hotels/infrastructure aren’t looking good for any of the October cruises.

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I have a cruise coming up on the Adventure (November 11th), so I too have "skin in the game". My only "ask" of Royal is that they be realistic and not leave guests hanging until a few days before the ship is supposed to leave.

 

The cruises on October 7th and on the 14th will be the ones to watch to determine what happens after that. I still don't understand how people are going to stay in hotels that are damaged and without power......? I am more than happy to stay as planned for 3 nights pre-cruise in San Juan (I know they need the $$ and I am happy to give it to them), but I will not stay if power has not been restored, nor can I imagine trying to relax in vacation mode while so many on PR are suffering :(

I can see them doing the October 7th cruise since the people that can get in the day before can stay on the ship on October 6th and won't need a hotel and RCI is supposed to be giving free shuttle service from the airport.

That same scenario can't play out the following week as the ship won't get back until Saturday.

Bill

I have been watching TV and following RC humanitarian efforts to aid Puerto Rico with the use of the AOS. I commend them. The people there should be their FIRST priority and agree that it is going to take weeks to stabilize the island and to get them back up and running. I do feel for all the people of the Caribbean islands that had to deal with mother nature.

 

 

 

What I am upset with is that RC waits 4 days before the cruise to cancel it. I would love to begin planning an alternative vacation, but unfortunately, I can't I still have a flight and cruise booked

I have the same fears and questions that you do about departures. I am on 10/14 and seriously doubt it will happen. I hope it doesn't because I believe PR needs all attention on recovery and rebuilding and not accommodating cruise ship passengers. I wish RCI would give us more than a few days notice. It is refreshing to read like minds because I was chastised by my M&M for my negativity causing me to withdraw

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I do not think any cruise ship will be embarking in Puerto Rico anytime soon. Unfortunately, I suspect The email you received related to an October 7 sailing was simply because it was sent programmatically by their system. I would be very skeptical about this.

 

While port itself may not be an issue, there will be substantial logistical issues regarding the airport, hotels and transportation.

I think RC wants to keep everyone's money as long as possible.

I think RC wants to keep everyone's money as long as possible.

Called today I need to see about switching Cruisers and was told we have to pay $900 so we are pretty much stock until they decide to cancel

Bill

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I do not think any cruise ship will be embarking in Puerto Rico anytime soon. Unfortunately, I suspect The email you received related to an October 7 sailing was simply because it was sent programmatically by their system. I would be very skeptical about this.

 

While port itself may not be an issue, there will be substantial logistical issues regarding the airport, hotels and transportation.

I did call RCI as my Updated Email from them asked me to do - to give them my flight info for pickup when I land on the 7th...I was told that YES the cruise is going as scheduled. The Adventure pulled in to port today and everything is a GO. I was also told the each day more flights both coming and going to San Juan will continue to increase.

We are on the 10/22 Oasis cruise from Port Canaveral and were emailed yesterday (9/25) that San Juan is out as a port of call and we are going to Jamaica instead.

Interesting that you're not going there as a port of call but they haven't cancelled the cruises departing from there. I know there's a difference, but it would be nice if those of us who are cruising out of there could make other arrangements. Even if they let us "jump ship" without penalty so we could book on another ship, but they won't let us do that either.

We are flying from Cleveland to San Juan and I am unsure of flights of any sort, so we called RCI today to ask if we could just transfer to the Harmony of the Seas ship since our flight lands in Fort Lauderdale. We were told the cruise is still on and we could not transfer! I am not cancelling the cruise just want to be sure to go on one and transfer it over. Our hotel on Friday is cancelled so now if our flight is cancelled and the cruise is going to happen we loose it all!! My question is that there has to be alot of people flying into Puerto Rico for this cruise, does this mean no one is showing up and we all loose our money!!

Omg good question. I was wondering the same thing...if my flight doesn’t happen then what happens?! We are traveling in on the 6th and can stay on the boat but for other cruises after, that’s a horribly stressful situation to have to worry about. I can’t imagine all of the travelers arriving in a timely manner to make the ship. We shall see....

I agree totally that making decisions 7 days in advance would be a very good decision and allow the pax to make alternate arrangements. It is the people that aren't sailing for 4 weeks or even until mid-Nov/mid-Dec that are wanting a "decision NOW" that is so frustrating to me. People that had just made final payment immediately before the hurricane that are still 60 days out that are "furious" "angry" etc with RC because they won't allow them to cancel or won't confirm what ports, etc. now...those on the ones that frustrate me.

 

I am hopeful we will get alot more info and ALL be able to make much better educated decisions/opinions after AD actually arrives in SJU today and the staff/crew/officers/corporate, etc can actually see for themselves the current situation of SJU and the pier, etc!!!!

I don't find a week a sufficient amount of time at all......knowing what we know about the infrastructure and needs of the people on PR, I don't see how the island will be ready for tourists in a month. I feel that RCCL can make an informed decision and do what's best for everyone based on what they know now. I think that the resources it will take to house and transfer passengers to a ship could best be used to help the people of PR.

Yes, we are vacationing and that is a luxury, but we have schedules and lives that may not be flexible. I don't care about what ports I'm going to at this point, I care if I'm going at all! Hotel reservations, flights, another ship, those arrangements take time and a week isn't going to cut it for me. I may be spoiled and yes, I feel for the people who have lost everything, but I only vacation once a year, so this is important to me. I think RCCL could do a better job or at least let people CHANGE their reservation without penalty.

So it appears that RC is going to look at port changes using a four week method. Not sure how far out Carnival is looking. Not sure why these two lines are waiting so long to change st Maarten as it will be months before they return if not longer. SJ and St Thomas are tougher as they could end up returning there by years end, thinking optimistically. I understand the logistics are not easy. You would think that the future cruises, oct thru Jan feb are going to be hard to sell when they continue to say it's going to st Maarten, etc. wishing them the best of luck during this difficult time of planning switching cruises.

St. Thomas is scheduled to start receiving ships Oct. 15. St. Maarten is scheduled to start receiving ships Nov. 11.

Our Sept. 30 cruise was not cancelled until Sept. 26. Our hotel was prepaid and we just heard from them today. American cancelled our flight twice. We did have trip insurance this time, so no harm to us. It would have been nice if they had just gone ahead and cancelled earlier because then we would've just gone on the Harmony. By the time they cancelled, it was sold out.

St. Thomas is scheduled to start receiving ships Oct. 15. St. Maarten is scheduled to start receiving ships Nov. 15.

Were did you see St Thomas? I saw the article on St Maarten saying the 11th they will welcome back cruise ships. Now the cruise lines need to determine if that is what they wish to do.

Were did you see St Thomas? I saw the article on St Maarten saying the 11th they will welcome back cruise ships. Now the cruise lines need to determine if that is what they wish to do.

The ports may be able to dock a ship, but what is the actual likelihood cruise ships will bring tourists there so soon?

I saw where many hotel resorts in St. Martin cancelled all reservations

we'll into 2018 due to hurricane damage.

Our Sept. 30 cruise was not cancelled until Sept. 26. Our hotel was prepaid and we just heard from them today. American cancelled our flight twice. We did have trip insurance this time, so no harm to us. It would have been nice if they had just gone ahead and cancelled earlier because then we would've just gone on the Harmony. By the time they cancelled, it was sold out.

This is what I'm afraid will happen.

I'm on the 10/28 sailing. I called my travel insurance company last night and found I can cancel and get a full refund under a natural disaster clause. Anyone looking to "jump ship" might want to call their companies and see what your options are under your policy (not all polices are the same).

After a lot of discussion my husband and I have decided to wait it out. We have four weeks before we sail and a lot can happen between now and then. We do have a couple of different Plan B options if things haven't improved closer to our sail date.

Were did you see St Thomas? I saw the article on St Maarten saying the 11th they will welcome back cruise ships. Now the cruise lines need to determine if that is what they wish to do.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/cruises/2017/09/27/cruise-ships-could-back-st-thomas-end-october/707274001/

We called our travel insurance and they said bc RCI hasn't cancelled the cruise and the airport is technically open they can't do anything for us

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Wish all of you in this situation the best of luck. What a stressful pain to be up in the air like this.

I am of the opinion that since so much is up in the air at the moment, for any cruise out of San Juan scheduled over the next 2-3 weeks, Royal should allow you to change cruises without penalty (assuming you'd be willing to pay difference if replacement cruise price is higher).

We called our travel insurance and they said bc RCI hasn't cancelled the cruise and the airport is technically open they can't do anything for us

 

 

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That's terrible. The details of insurance policies really can matter.

One tip for fellow Canadians in this predicament - the Government of Canada has issued a travel advisory that ALL travel to Puerto Rico by Canadians be avoided. Any trip cancellation insurance I've ever seen has a clause whereby it kicks in if there's a Government advisory:

https://travel.gc.ca/destinations/puerto-rico

And one more thing...again for Canadians. If you don't have trip cancellation insurance or choose not to use it and travel to Puerto Rico anyway (despite a Government Advisory not to travel) and you get injured or sick while there, your travel MEDICAL insurance may not cover you. Many policies have a clause whereby it doesn't cover you when you travel to a country subject to a DO NOT TRAVEL advisory.

I don' have time to read the entire thread. Wifi for us here in Puerto Rico is really limited. The Adventure is sailing today taking many puerto ricans to Florida. They are going to make a couple of humanitarian stops to bring help to some Caribbean Islands. Passengers won't be allowed to leave the ship during these stops. Our neighbor's daughter goes to UM, she came to San Juan after the university was closed for Irma and her flights to Fl has been cancelled a couple of times. She wrote an email to the university explaining the situation and yesterday was given the option to take the Adventure. Kudos to Royal for this effort.

Keep Puerto Rico in your thoughts and prayers. I really hope my biggest concern today was having to cancel a cruise.

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First let me say, I truly am sad and feel for all the Caribbean Islands, Houston, Florida, and Puerto Rico and the damage caused by the hurricanes. I don't want to seem insensitive.

I feel for everyone being stressed out about playing the waiting game and not knowing until the last minute about whether or not Puerto Rico will be ready for travelers.

We traveled on the Adventure of the Seas out of San Juan on September 9th, just prior to Hurricane Maria and "right" after Hurricane Irma. Had to play the last minute waiting game to see if we were going to get a flight from Dallas to San Juan on September 8th, and have a functioning hotel upon arrival for 1 night pre-cruise. It was an awful and stressful way to start a vacation.

When we arrived the evening of September 8th, the airport was heavily guarded by Police. Driving to the Sheraton in Old San Juan we saw "many" police patrolling the route from the airport to the hotel. The main entrance to the hotel was boarded up and the side entrance we used had 2 police officers standing guard. The hotel had just gotten power back, so they were open and ready for business. When we checked out the next morning to head to the ship we saw lots of police patrols again.

The police and military are now having to keep the peace in Puerto Rico, is it truly safe to add cruise ship passengers to the mix? I talked to a friend that works on the Adventure yesterday after they arrived in San Juan, and the crew is not being let off the ship for safety reasons. I don't understand why Royal doesn't cancel cruises until the infrastructure is better. I don't think a lot of people from Puerto Rico are going to be cruising on the Adventure soon, and they typically make up a good portion of the passengers. Hoping they get smart and cancel cruises thru the end of October (at least) soon.

I don' have time to read the entire thread. Wifi for us here in Puerto Rico is really limited. The Adventure is sailing today taking many puerto ricans to Florida. They are going to make a couple of humanitarian stops to bring help to some Caribbean Islands. Passengers won't be allowed to leave the ship during these stops. Our neighbor's daughter goes to UM, she came to San Juan after the university was closed for Irma and her flights to Fl has been cancelled a couple of times. She wrote an email to the university explaining the situation and yesterday was given the option to take the Adventure. Kudos to Royal for this effort.

Keep Puerto Rico in your thoughts and prayers. I really hope my biggest concern today was having to cancel a cruise.

 

 

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Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with Puerto Rico.

While it may be coming across as us just being concerned about our vacations, I think a lot of us really feel that RCCL should be thinking about the logistics of dumping 2000 +/- cruise ship passengers into an area that can't support us. With no electricity and food/water/shelter/gasoline shortages, Puerto Rico doesn't need tourists coming in and sucking up what limited resources are there. These are resources that should be used for Puerto Rico's residents. I'm sorry that's not what's coming across in our posts.

I'm hopeful that in four weeks the situation will be different. I want to come and spend my tourist dollars there. I know that a lot of people in the San Juan area rely heavily on tourists to make a living. My husband and I love to travel to Puerto Rico and find the entire situation heartbreaking on so many levels.

The logic of RCL picking up a ship full of people today who want desperately to leave the area in light of conditions on the ground, and yet not canceling more than a week's sailings is lost on me. Reading today's news, from multiple sources, it seems that relief has started arriving in San Juan but thus far, has mostly only made it to the pier, since the ability to distribute things has been hampered by the crumbling infrastructure.

We are all human beings. We are capable of having more than one thought at a time and so while we all hope that PR recovers with miraculous speed, we can also hope that we are not required to be put in the middle of what might be a very unpleasant and challenging environment.

The police and military are now having to keep the peace in Puerto Rico, is it truly safe to add cruise ship passengers to the mix? Simple answer is no.