September and the Caribbean

[british betty]

We haven’t ....yet. 

 

Have you?  Would you ? If we could, should we ?? 🤔

[Trainer]

I have.  I would. Only you can decide if you should.  If it is hurricanes you are worried about, IF, big if, a hurricane was happening while you are cruising, ships can generally avoid worst parts.  Yes, hurricanes can happen in September (I live in Florida so I know). But they also can not happen.  I have been through a hurricane on a ship, and only one day was difficult.  I guess it comes down to :  You pay your money, you take your chances.  But I would definitely do a September Caribbean cruise, for the right price.

Sue Ann, Venice FL

[OCruisers]

Since you would be flying to Florida from the UK, do consider that it would be somewhat expensive for you to fly to take a cruise in "dicey" weather.  

[Diver2014]

I lived in south Florida for 23 years (DH has lived there 63 years).  We won't cruise the Caribbean between August and mid October.  Why set ourselves up for disappointment?  We don't have to fly but if there is a hurricane anywhere in the gulf or Caribbean, we want to be home to prepare our house.  We've had to evacuate from the South Carolina coast every year in the 3 years we've been here but at least there are places to go to inland.  There aren't many places to evacuate to in Florida.  Even if the ships avoid hurricanes, why bother chancing missing the islands or having to stay at sea extra days due to weather?  I'm sure many people will say it's not an issue with them but for us.....experience tells us it's an issue.

Edited February 1, 2019 by Diver2014

[TeeRick]

Try a southern Caribbean cruise in Aug-Oct.  Those islands rarely get hit with hurricanes.

[Orator]

You might get lucky and have great weather. You might be not so lucky and encounter a major hurricane. Are you easily stressed, or do you take things as they come? If you decide to book the Caribbean in September be certain to get insurance that will cover flight and cruise cancellations.

[mafig]

I'm with Diver on this one.  We live in Florida and have taken one cruise in September.  WE were fortunate and it was great, but I won't take the chance again.

We won't book a Caribbean   cruise from August till middle of October 

 

Remember, they close the airports before the arrival of a hurricane.

 

Also, there's the stress of wondering if and where the hurricane will hit.

 

People will tell you to book it, the ship will change itineraries, they want to keep you safe, etc.  If you book it and then are stressed wondering if you should fly in early, if your cruise will even make it to port, etc. those same people will say "what do you expect, you booked during hurricane season."  LOL

Edited February 1, 2019 by mafig

[OCruisers]

1 minute ago, TeeRick said:

Try a southern Caribbean cruise in Aug-Oct.  Those islands rarely get hit with hurricanes.

 

Problem remains because the embarkation/disembarkation port won't be in the DEEP Southern Caribbean.  

[chemmo]

It honestly depends on how flexible your itinerary is. How important is the specific cruise to you and would you still be happy if the itinerary was modified? We have frequently cruised the Caribbean late August and into September and had a few itinerary adjustments but some fantastic Cruises. Booked on Equinox September this year.

 

For us we fly from the U.K., usually spend time in Orlando first (September in Universal/Disney is quiet) so no queues and reasonably priced accommodation.

 

We have had cruise itinerary changed and hit some squalls of iffy weather but most of the time we have had great weather with an occasional afternoon downpour. If there is a destination on your cruise you would be really upset to miss then look at a different time of year but after saying that we had a real issue last year when our flights to Florida via Philadelphia were cancelled last minute (end of March) owing to unseasonable bad weather....

[kearney]

We have done it quite a bit and have another cruise scheduled for this Sept. But it is peak hurricane season. If I were coming in from another country... I would probably not do it. Too many travel plans to consider and you could get trapped anywhere along the route... before you even get to Florida. We live in Georgia....so we can change transportation plans relatively easily... although it can cost more. If there is a storm while sailing...not really much of an issue if you are flexible on itineraries. The question is how your port of departure fares.  We have had to make quite a few last minute travel adjustments to make sure we get to port, and it can be stressful. When Irma hit Florida, we were scheduled to depart Miami 4 days after the storm was to hit.... our plan was to drive and stay two days with a friend in Orlando... as the storm progressed... we decided...one day in Orlando... then we will just stay overnight and go on from there in the am... when it became clear that the storm was not going to directly hit Miami... it occurred to me that we would be traveling south with millions of Floridians returning home... and we could miss the boat due to gas shortages, traffic etc. to say nothing about finding a hotel room last minute. So a day before the storm hit... I took a gamble and booked... as surprisingly cheap flight.... even there we lucked out ... because although AA had to cancel flights due to damage in the terminal... Delta was fine... we flew in a day early.... I managed to get a hotel...before the storm hit... so ...again we lucked out.. the hotel had power..but the apartment building next door...did not and a few people hung out in the hotel lobby. Several employees said that their homes had been without power for days.... but for us it all worked out.   And I am planning another Sept cruise... so it has not discouraged me.. we have had other less stressful trips... but to be perfectly frank... I would not want to go through this is I was over seas.... I had to make last minute calls that would be trickier to to several time zones away... also you could get to say ATL and find a challenge figuring out the rest of the trip. Not sure this helps...but my point of view.

Edited February 1, 2019 by kearney

[chemmo]

4 hours ago, british betty said:

We haven’t ....yet. 

 

Have you?  Would you ? If we could, should we ?? 🤔

 

British Betty, just an add on to my above post....If you can’t fly in at least a few days early don’t risk it....

[Lastdance]

We have one booked for November...Southern Caribbean, but not until 2020 when the Equinox is revolutionalized.  This time we chose not to consider the weather, but just wanted it at a different time of travel for us, as we usually do Europe in the spring.  

 

No one can really make that definitive decision for you, but yes, it sure does help to have others share their points of view...Weather has been unbelievably crazy for the last few years...so at best it is what it is...

Edited February 1, 2019 by Lastdance

[yorky]

We have cruised a few times in September with no problems. The worst weather we have had cruising was actually in April. We are booked again for September this year.

[OceanCruise]

We have done a number of Caribbean cruises late August and September because the price is much cheaper. Most of them were perfectly fine. We also do not care if any ports get changed. Just realize it will be very hot and humid that time of year and there is usually a daily pop up rainstorm for 20-30 minutes.

[british betty]

14 hours ago, chemmo said:

 

British Betty, just an add on to my above post....If you can’t fly in at least a few days early don’t risk it....

 

Thanks chemmo and others for your advice and experiences. 

 

We’ve cruised the Caribbean a few times after flying into Miami and have always arrived at least one day before but that’s always been in December. Even risked a non direct flight once via Chicago which was in hindsight, risky due to the snow,  but we had no delays.

 

I must admit, while I know it’s the hurricane season, I’d completely overlooked the fact of the possibility of flight delays / cancellations. I was looking at the September cruise as even with the flight etc, it’s less costly and a longer cruise than anything out of Europe. 

 

As as mentioned before, we have been to the Caribbean a few times and wouldn’t be too upset if they had to change or miss ports and we’ve also sailed on some rough seas, so all in all, I think it’s all about making a decision and that my friends is a greater issue ! 😅

[chemmo]

British Betty, if you worry too much about all the ‘what ifs’ about going on holiday you would end up at Blackpool or Brighton every year! Certainly not my choice!

 

In our experience we simply do our research first (as you are) cover our backs the best we can by, for example, flying in at least two days early and having insurance then just go for it....We honestly were shocked last March when our flight was cancelled owing to bad weather in the North East of the USA. Whilst we would have considered December or January risky we thought March would be safe....However, having a two day margin, receiving some excellent advice from the folks on this board and receiving some great customer service from American Airlines we did get to and have a fantastic cruise. It did teach us than you do have to consider ‘what ifs’ but to understand most of the time you can overcome them.

 

If you are flexible with when you can cruise why not just see if the difference in cruise cost from hurricane season to out of hurricane season is enough to swing your decision. Whilst the saving for us is not inconsiderable we do like this time of year in Florida and the Caribbean...We love fewer children, quiet theme parks and even enjoy watching a real downpour, so much more interesting than our depressing drizzle! We also love to fly out and enjoy some sunshine just as the U.K. becomes cold and miserable!

[british betty]

We are now sort of almost retired, so can choose when and we also have a preference for a quieter season . In recent years we have cruised in September as it’s DPs birthday and this year it’s a ‘big one ‘ 😱.  We’ve always booked cruise only and sourced flights and transfers ourselves as we usually use Avios and companion vouchers, but I wonder if using Choice Air might be better in  this case. ( plus we’ve used our last companion voucher and there’s none on the horizon)

 

[miched]

Weather is always a problem.  Look at now.  Flights are being canceled and delayed.  We have sailed in Sept thru Oct in the Caribbean and have been in and sailed during hurricanes.  We just look at it as an adventure and experience.   

 

We had the great experience of being delayed for two days of getting beach into port because of Sandy and also been delayed boarding for two days because of Wilma.  Also been delayed getting on board and getting back to the port a few days due to mechanical and medical situations.   Also departed the home port a few hours early to avoid bad weather and had ports canceled or left there early with people missing the ship due to that.  Things will happen if you sail enough.

 

Go when you feel best time and price and don’t worry about it.  

 

happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[ipeeinthepool]

20 hours ago, Diver2014 said:

I lived in south Florida for 23 years (DH has lived there 63 years).  We won't cruise the Caribbean between August and mid October.  Why set ourselves up for disappointment?  We don't have to fly but if there is a hurricane anywhere in the gulf or Caribbean, we want to be home to prepare our house.  We've had to evacuate from the South Carolina coast every year in the 3 years we've been here but at least there are places to go to inland.  There aren't many places to evacuate to in Florida.  Even if the ships avoid hurricanes, why bother chancing missing the islands or having to stay at sea extra days due to weather?  I'm sure many people will say it's not an issue with them but for us.....experience tells us it's an issue.

 

Great advice, I agree 100%.  Most of the time it won’t be a problem, but why risk your time an money.

[Pier290]

We just booked the 10 night Southern Caribbean on Equinox Sept 13th-23rd...we got an incredible deal for 3 adults.   Flying in a day early... purchased travel protection and refundable flights 😎🍹🛳️✈️🏝️