Cruising to Saint Maarten , Haiti , San Juan

[Realdeal1980]

hi everyone!

This I the first time I use this and looking for opinions/advice!!... I booked a cruise with royal Caribbean oasis of the seas April 22 2018 going to saint maarten ,Haiti, San Juan ,,,,and not sure what to do cancel or not ??.... if I cancel I lose my deposit of 530$....but do you guys think these island will be rebuilt by then ?? Any advice/opinion would help!! TKS!!

[BND]

I think you should do what you want to do. Our opinion shouldn't decide what you do for your vacation.

 

That said, a lot of us cruise to cruise, not for particular ports because we all know they can change at any time. It's in the contract.

 

BTW, we're on Oasis in a few weeks and St. Maarten was on our itinerary and is being changed, but that won't stop us. San Juan is still open as is Labadee.

 

If your deposit is at risk this far out, you must not be in the US.

[uksimonusa]

hi everyone!

This I the first time I use this and looking for opinions/advice!!... I booked a cruise with royal Caribbean oasis of the seas April 22 2018 going to saint maarten ,Haiti, San Juan ,,,,and not sure what to do cancel or not ??.... if I cancel I lose my deposit of 530$....but do you guys think these island will be rebuilt by then ?? Any advice/opinion would help!! TKS!!

 

At the moment I think Haiti and San Juan are OK, although Maria is on her way, I doubt St Maarten will be ready by then but RCL will normally substitute another port

[cruisinfanatic]

hi everyone!

This I the first time I use this and looking for opinions/advice!!... I booked a cruise with royal Caribbean oasis of the seas April 22 2018 going to saint maarten ,Haiti, San Juan ,,,,and not sure what to do cancel or not ??.... if I cancel I lose my deposit of 530$....but do you guys think these island will be rebuilt by then ?? Any advice/opinion would help!! TKS!!

Why cancel?. St Maartin could easily be in the cruise business again by then. The others are fine

[pandorasboxxxy]

If it's not rebuilt they will sub a different port. So far they have subbed St Kitts or Nassau in for St Maarten, I believe. I'm on the same cruise itinerary as you in December. I don't care what ports we go to. I wouldn't cancel if they updated the itinerary to tell us we are sitting in the middle of the ocean for 7 days.

[payitforward]

As the others said, Labadee and San Juan are both fine and already accepting ships. I have a feeling St. Marteen won't be ready for a long time, but have faith they will substitute another great port. I'm on the same itinerary on April 14th, and have no intention of cancelling.

[Realdeal1980]

Tks for the comments!!

I know it's my decision at the end of the day but I want to make it right for my wife it's a surprise anniversary gift and Saint Maarten is one island that she's been talking about forever so fingers crossed it'll be ok... tks again for the comments!!

[KuffMUp]

I'm scheduled at the end of November for St. Thomas. Already had my excursion cancelled. Others still for sale. I don't expect us to make it. I'm on board for the cruise not the destination. It took me several cruises to learn to relax and go with the flow. Yup, I have less than two months to plan but will figure out something. At least it will distract me from what to do on my next cruise to Alaska! Ugh. I hate/love planning!! ;p

[ronandcarla]

We are longtime St Maarten/Martin land visitors and I can tell you from very good reports, especially along Orient Village/Beach that that area has been just about totally destroyed; almost 75% or more of the island has seen such significant damage that the clean up will be far more troublesome than rebuilding; as for the cruise business its not just the port area with Front Street that is the attraction its the whole island with all of the attractions, ie airport flights, beach bars, restaurants, Orient Beach and many more locations that made the cruise stop one of the best, if not the best. Rebuilding on an island is not like in the USA or any other civilized nation by reason that the supplies have to be shipped there and that takes time a whole lot of time, in my opinion we're talking many months possibly into years to make it the paradise it once was. Facebook has many videos and photos to see what I'm talking about.

 

So Sad, Ron M

[cb at sea]

If YOU cancel...you will lose whatever deposit is non-refundable. Your cruise will go on...you simply might go to different ports. Up to you if you want to get away anywhere, or if those particular ports are why you were cruising in the 1st place.

[BND]

If YOU cancel...you will lose whatever deposit is non-refundable. Your cruise will go on...you simply might go to different ports. Up to you if you want to get away anywhere, or if those particular ports are why you were cruising in the 1st place.

 

"If" the OP is not in the US, then their deposit is at risk. OP never responded to that. You have just repeated (as is usual for you) what others have posted.

[GiGi&DaddyJim]

I have trip insurance for a cruise to the Eastern Caribbean on Jan 7, 2018. Would I be able to cancel with that? Just not sure that I want to go to other islands.

[shadow8800]

From what I have read about travel insurance it would only pay out if the cruise line cancels your cruise unless you have a cancel for any reason policy, even then certain criteria would have to be met in order for you to get any money back.

[golfpccc]

I have trip insurance for a cruise to the Eastern Caribbean on Jan 7, 2018. Would I be able to cancel with that? Just not sure that I want to go to other islands.

I see you are from OK, so if you booked under the Refundable deposit then you can cancel and get all your money back anytime up to final payment. If booked under the new Nonrefundable Deposit program, it would cost you $100 for each person if you cancel or change ship or date before final payment.

 

Carla

[FUN33]

We used to visit St Maarten 3 times a year. I would be stunned if any cruise ship returns to St Maarten in less than 12 months for any reason other than the delivery of emergency supplies or the ongoing evacuation of survivors. There is no power, no water, no sewage, no fuel and no food. Their infrastructure is in shambles. The devastation is massive. If Hurricane Marie hits St Maarten as a Cat 3 this week it will be apocalyptic.

[SG65CB]

I have trip insurance for a cruise to the Eastern Caribbean on Jan 7, 2018. Would I be able to cancel with that? Just not sure that I want to go to other islands.

 

If you cruise in January your final payment isn't due yet, is it? If not then you can cancel and get your deposit back. If you are past your final payment date the trip insurance will not let you cancel because you are "not sure that I want to go to other islands" - unless you have "Cancel for any reason" insurance, in which case you would get back 75% of what you paid for the cruise.

[Merion_Mom]

We are longtime St Maarten/Martin land visitors and I can tell you from very good reports, especially along Orient Village/Beach that that area has been just about totally destroyed; almost 75% or more of the island has seen such significant damage that the clean up will be far more troublesome than rebuilding; as for the cruise business its not just the port area with Front Street that is the attraction its the whole island with all of the attractions, ie airport flights, beach bars, restaurants, Orient Beach and many more locations that made the cruise stop one of the best, if not the best. Rebuilding on an island is not like in the USA or any other civilized nation by reason that the supplies have to be shipped there and that takes time a whole lot of time, in my opinion we're talking many months possibly into years to make it the paradise it once was. Facebook has many videos and photos to see what I'm talking about.

 

So Sad, Ron M

 

civilized?!?!?!?

[hapster85]

"If" the OP is not in the US, then their deposit is at risk. OP never responded to that. You have just repeated (as is usual for you) what others have posted.

Even in the US, his deposit may be at risk if it was booked non-refundable, in that he won't be able to get it back in cash. He hasn't said how, when, or where he booked, though. So who knows.

 

Mostly, I think he's seeking reassurance that he doesn't have to cancel just because St Maarten is questionable. But that's also speculation on my part.

[martyap]

Our next cruise is not until 6/18 on the Allure to San Juan, Labadee and St. Maarten. I agree, St. Maarten will be a very, very, long recovery.......and.....further damage to St. Maarten and additional Caribbean islands is certainly possible. The costs to rebuild and rebuild to withstand future storms is staggering and to do it with your entire economy devastated might be impossible. San Juan is bracing for a hit from Marie and we know how Puerto Rico's economy is.

 

I am hoping that we are looking at not many more of these beautiful islands effected. I am just afraid that cruising the Eastern Caribbean as we know it might be changed for many years with more and larger ships in service and less ports to visit.

 

I personally am not a huge fan of the ship ALONE being the destination as I do enjoy visiting ports.....shopping, local cuisine, beaches, nature.......might have to consider alternate choices

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Edited September 18, 2017 by martyap

[Philly Steve]

Started checking damage assessments at the port destinations for our April cruise then sadly realized we are not finished with hurricane season yet.

 

Let's hope Maria will spin off into the ocean and spare the areas hard hit by Irma.

[Sprasa03]

If the main reason you booked the cruise is to go to St. Martin, then maybe canceling till a future date is better because it's sounding like it won't be rebuilt by April 2018. It may never be the same again but I did hear that they may bring ships back to St. Martin by May 2018. It's too early to tell.

 

I know it's a surprise for your wife but maybe you want to give some hints to feel out if she wants to cruise earlier in the year without St. Martin or wait for St. Martin to open up and cruise later in the year...

[davy jones]

hi everyone!

This I the first time I use this and looking for opinions/advice!!... I booked a cruise with royal Caribbean oasis of the seas April 22 2018 going to saint maarten ,Haiti, San Juan ,,,,and not sure what to do cancel or not ??.... if I cancel I lose my deposit of 530$....but do you guys think these island will be rebuilt by then ?? Any advice/opinion would help!! TKS!!

As others have said, Labadee and San Juan were spared the worst and should be receiving ships months before April. If St. Maarten is not ready, an alternate port will be substituted.

[ronandcarla]

civilized?!?!?!?

 

Civilized means just what it means, since I'm from the USA (also quite near to Merion, Pa) I stated the USA and if I had to list al of the other Countries that are civilized their wouldn't be enough room to list them all, but on the other hand the Countries that have nothing but turmoil they wouldn't care about the tragedies of this current storm or any other events.

[skoolbusdrvr]

better check the weather san juan is fixing to get slamed

with a cat 5 in 1 or 2 days. bad

news

[Jenjer]

Every cruise runs the risk of having a port change so many factors, weather being number 1. So if the only reason you are cruising is to go to St Martin...don't until things are much closer. Then book a trip directly to St Martin.

 

If you want to experience cruising keep your reservation and see what happens. Who knows with this next storm..... no one can tell you when any cruise will back to St Martin. All they can say is not for the foreseeable future.