Tropical Storm Rita

[Mgetta]

Was just watching Jay Leno and he was talking about how bad this year's hurricane season has been and how bad Rita could be. He said maybe it was not a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegience.

[jbarr]

just wondering if anyone has any updates on the conquest leaving galviston sunday

[AUTUMN SUN]

Was just watching Jay Leno and he was talking about how bad this year's hurricane season has been and how bad Rita could be. He said maybe it was not a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegience.

I WATCHED THAT. IT REALLY GOT A REACTION FROM THE CROWD TOO!:)

[aqalisa]

I talked w/ my friend yesterday morning in Houston, and at that point, they were saying that Galveston only had an 8% chance that the eye would come ashore there. Not sure what those odds are today. We were/are really looking forward to this cruise on the Conquest, after being bumped off the Elation, and now this :( We get married Saturday, and Carnival may not make a decision until friday :( Hopefully it will blow in another direction.

[aqalisa]

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/productview.php?pil=HGXHLSHGXNow a category 4.... Evacuations of Galveston county, also voluntary in Harris county, including Houston. This does not look good for those of us set to leave sunday :( Trying to contact my friend in Houston, works for Independent School District of Humble to see what the heck is going on down there.

 

 

 

:(

[tigermaroon2]

If Galveston is under evacuation, then Carnival NEEDS to announce SOMETHING. Obviously this is a serious storm at a Cat4 and may even strengthen more....they know it is going to hit and affect Galveston...they know air traffic in and out of Houston this weekend is going to be a mess....why would they wait til the last minute to make some sort of decision?

[GoinCruisin]

If Galveston is under evacuation, then Carnival NEEDS to announce SOMETHING. Obviously this is a serious storm at a Cat4 and may even strengthen more....they know it is going to hit and affect Galveston...they know air traffic in and out of Houston this weekend is going to be a mess....why would they wait til the last minute to make some sort of decision?

 

I'm sure they will make an announcement soon... I would think right now they are trying to figure out what to do, and how to avoid completely cancelling all the sailings... also, this storm could do any number of things in the next several days and you better believe that if they cancelled all of these sailings and the storm did not affect Galveston, we'd all hear about it here (over, and over, and over, and OVER again)... They generally do a good job of watching the situation and updating people... I'm sure they will make a decision soon.

 

My thoughts and prayers to everyone that is in the path of where this ends up going :( Stay safe and head for higher ground...

[jack278]

Was just watching Jay Leno and he was talking about how bad this year's hurricane season has been and how bad Rita could be. He said maybe it was not a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegience.

 

Right, and we had world peace for the past 50 years because of that little phrase. :rolleyes:

[yarlenna]

If Galveston is under evacuation, then Carnival NEEDS to announce SOMETHING. Obviously this is a serious storm at a Cat4 and may even strengthen more....they know it is going to hit and affect Galveston...they know air traffic in and out of Houston this weekend is going to be a mess....why would they wait til the last minute to make some sort of decision?

I just remember last year that some people went to Port Charlotte because hurricane was coming. Their homes in Tampa were fine. However, Port Charlotte had a bad storm. There are people still living in their government trailers. Hurricanes don’t let us know where they are going until they are there.

[GoinCruisin]

I just remember last year that some people went to Port Charlotte because hurricane was coming. Their homes in Tampa were fine. However, Port Charlotte had a bad storm. There are people still living in their government trailers. Hurricanes don’t let us know where they are going until they are there.

 

Exactly... and Katrina, 3 days out, had a different point of impact... these storms change, reorganize, etc. Each meteorologist seems to have their own "prediction"... BUt as it gets closer I think they will have a better idea. Galveston and surrounding areas are not taking ANY chances, which is smart! I don't think any city will take chances after Katrina... They are making sure they have plenty of time to evacuate, just in case. I'm glad to see this happening... I'm hoping everyone heeds the warnings of the evacuation orders that will be coming down over the next couple of days :(

[cruisevers]

They could say something. We are scheduled to leave on Elation on Saturday. This thing is coming ashore at 2 am (approx) Saturday morning. No matter where it hits they are not going to open the island up to the public by Sat afternoon. They will allow residents with stickers back first. They will not let possible looters in before the residents have a chance to get back to their homes. Everything is closing there including government offices, which I am sure the Port Authority is. This is a serious storm.

 

I know they may not know everything right now but I do not think any ship is going out Saturday. Their web site says

 

Based on the current forecasts for these storms, all other cruises are expected to operate their scheduled itineraries.

 

Not happening. The least they could do is tell us when they will update info and not just avoid the fact that this is getting worse. RCCL at least acknowledges there may be a problem and tells when their next update is.

[GoinCruisin]

I know they may not know everything right now but I do not think any ship is going out Saturday. Their web site says

 

 

But ships could very well go out on Saturday depending on where the track actually takes the storm. At this point, i'd say it is 50/50 that the cruises will be cancelled... I'm sure as soon as they assess the situation, they will make an announcement... but I'm sure they are going to watch this and if they can keep the ships going, they will. They still have a couple of days to make that decision. If they cancel, your travel insurance should cover your airfare. I don't know that there is a huge difference cancelling air today vs. tomorrow or Friday... Just hang in there, hopefully something will happen that turns the path a bit... there are some that say it is possible, not highly likely, but possible... it's just too early to tell. It's going to be a bad storm wherever it hits, that is for sure :(

[heyheypaula]

WHat about the folks onboard the Conquest now? HAve they altered their schedule as to the usual ports of call? I know they should be in Montego Bay today. And I suppose it is too early to know whether or not they will be able to dock in Galveston on Sunday...

[mrscintn]

I am sure you will have some kind of notice today. The executive offices here in Miami were closed yesterday due to Rita being here. The only offices that were operating were the call centers in Colorado.........

[lele100]

My cruise is out of Miami, tommorrow, and they still have not decided, they will decide this afternoon, for a cruise that leaves tommorrow, thats cutting it alittle close. We are on the Imagination that should be in Key West on Friday and Cozumel on Saturday.

[tigermaroon2]

Not worried about the airfare. Got that covered through Southwest. If I cancel or change my flight, I will not be penalized, but will have to pay the difference in fare to a new location. If I decide not to go then I get a credit balance at SWA for use within a year....and if the airport closes, then I get a refund from SWA. SWA is great to deal with...even their most expensive ticket for me was cheaper than the next carrier's cheapest ticket....and that allowed me to be able to transfer or cancel without penalty.

 

What I am worried most about is finding an alternate location for my vacation on such short notice. There are plenty of all inclusives out there that still have some rooms...but the air fare to get to them jumps way up at the last minute...but, as of now, I can still spend about the same money as I would have on the cruise since drinks and everything is included.....I wish they would make some form of announcement!

[GoinCruisin]

My cruise is out of Miami, tommorrow, and they still have not decided, they will decide this afternoon, for a cruise that leaves tommorrow, thats cutting it alittle close. We are on the Imagination that should be in Key West on Friday and Cozumel on Saturday.

 

I'd guess they may swap out Key West for a sea day, and keep the rest on schedule... they are allowing residents into KW today, but I would hope Carnival would skip this port and allow for cleanup...

[smrn]

Was just watching Jay Leno and he was talking about how bad this year's hurricane season has been and how bad Rita could be. He said maybe it was not a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegience.

 

Amen!

[lele100]

I'd guess they may swap out Key West for a sea day, and keep the rest on schedule... they are allowing residents into KW today, but I would hope Carnival would skip this port and allow for cleanup...

 

as long as they don't go to the bahamas again, I am so tired of the bahamas, I first scheduled this cruise on 8/25 and Katrina hit, and they shortened it to a two day cruise and went to the bahamas, I live in Florida and have been there dozens of times, I would rather have a day at sea and then off to cozumel, that would be great

[GoinCruisin]

as long as they don't go to the bahamas again, I am so tired of the bahamas, I first scheduled this cruise on 8/25 and Katrina hit, and they shortened it to a two day cruise and went to the bahamas, I live in Florida and have been there dozens of times, I would rather have a day at sea and then off to cozumel, that would be great

 

They will be able to make it to Coz, so hopefully they will just switch KW to a sea day for ya! Good luck!

[tigermaroon2]

Just got an email from my PVP. He says "as of right now, cancelling is NOT an option and to keep in mind as long as the port is open, the cruise is still on. He also said they have not mentioned anything about the Conquest and that I'd be first on his list to call as soon as he hears something.

 

Again, my biggest concern...even if the thing misses Galveston proper, is HUGE flight delays into Houston on Sunday because of the heavy rain that will be left and the cancellations/delays from Saturday getting caught up....

[aqalisa]

I highly doubt the pier will be open, Rita still has almost 1000 miles of water to cross, all the time gaining more strength before she makes land fall. I wouldn't be suprised if shes a 5 by that time. We've made tentative arrangements at an all-inclusive resort in Riviera Maya, about an hour south of Cancun. We'll see what happens!

[LynnA]

I think it about an 80% chance the cruise will still happen. If it comes in early Saturday morning and at least 50 to 100 miles south of Galveston it will still happen. Have to keep confidence.

[tigermaroon2]

I felt that way too LynnA...until I just now saw the radar imagery of this beast on the Weather Channel...and it is HUGE and very clearly defined. The way it looks it reminds me of Andrew and Hugo that came in years ago on the east coast. It has a much larger eye and looks more clearly defined than Katrina. Even if it's within 100 miles of Galveston, there is going to be significant flooding and damange. Carnival needs to start updating us and even giving us options NOW so that alternate plans can be made. Travel Insurance or not, if this is the only week someone has off for six months, it's getting difficult to make alternate plans not knowing anything.....

[Sterling714]

If Galveston is under evacuation, then Carnival NEEDS to announce SOMETHING. Obviously this is a serious storm at a Cat4 and may even strengthen more....they know it is going to hit and affect Galveston...they know air traffic in and out of Houston this weekend is going to be a mess....why would they wait til the last minute to make some sort of decision?

Just got off the phone with Carnival, and was advised to call back after 3 pm today for a decision. About time, you think???