Harmony Forced to Cancel Roatan Today

[OCSC Mike]

Currently on Harmony.  We were supposed to dock at 10:00am ship time.  Around 8:30 the Captain announced that it was unsafe to dock at Roatan due to high winds.  My weather app shows 25-35mph on the island.

 

While I fully understand that there’s nothing to be done about it & safety comes first, we’re pretty upset to say the least.  We have never been to Roatan even after 8 Caribbean cruises & pretty much picked this itinerary b/c of it.

 

Just wanted to share & vent a little.  🤬

Edited June 20, 2019 by OCSC Mike

[not-enough-cruising]

Mother Nature is a b***h!!!

[queenfrostine22]

I feel for you. 

Have only been to Roatan once with Royal but it was right after a different cruise

 ship had hit the dock there and damaged it.

I had picked that itinerary for Roatan and was bummed that it might have been canceled.

So I sympathize. 

Bummer!!!

 

[dude_hdt]

We've had Belize cancelled because of high winds also.  So if that's your next stop and the wind persists...watch for cancellation there too.

[LINDAE3213]

We made it to Roatan in March...it was one of the reasons we booked that cruise on Allure.  Unfortunately i picked a shore excursion that was sub par  for snorkeling  ( see my review under Roatan)  and felt bummed I had made a bad choice.  I certainly can understand how you feel.

[njkruzer]

Cancellations happen.  We had to miss Stockholm because of high winds.  They also cancelled Visby but instead went to Guttenberg and Oslo.  Great ports.  Also due to weather we couldn't sail around Cape Horn, obviously a major disappointment but nothing we could do about it. When weather interferes I rely on the captain to make the right choice.  Just think what we would be saying if he tried to dock and there was an accident.  

[BigHouseFootball]

How disappointing! I’m sorry that happened and feel for you!

[ALWAYS CRUZIN]

Only once we had the same situation. However it was only there island.

[poncho1973]

I didn't think Coco Cay existed for YEARS.  We missed it repeatedly because of seas/winds.

 

You'll have to try again.  Roatan is worth at least once visit.  It's not a port we love, but it is pretty decent.

[sandebeach]

So sorry that you missed Roatan. But the good news is that you are on Harmony and there is so much to do on that ship. My husband always looks at both the itinerary and the ship. He says if we miss all the ports, if it is a ship with lots to do, then he would still be happy. 

[OCSC Mike]

1 hour ago, poncho1973 said:

You'll have to try again.  Roatan is worth at least once visit.  It's not a port we love, but it is pretty decent.

 

We will definitely try again.  My wife was so looking forward to holding a sloth.  We had a private tour booked with Rony’s & were going to make several stops including a school.  

 

My wife is a kindergarten teacher & after collecting extra supplies from her own classroom mentioned it to her colleagues.  She wound up filling an entire old large wheeled duffel with donations.  It’s bigger & heavier than either of the suitcases we used for our own stuff.  Despite her personal disappointment, she went down to guest services this morning to see what could be done about getting the donations to the school.  A guest services manager was incredibly helpful & told her if she could come back on day 7 with contact info from Rony, as long as someone was willing to pick up the bag, they would keep it in storage & drop it off during their next stop in Roatan.

 

I was impressed with that response as guest services is in the middle of dealing with upset guests complaining & asking about compensation for missing that stop.  We’re as unhappy as anyone but these things happen.

 

Off to watch the women’s World Cup before heading to the diamond lounge,  dinner, & two shows.  It’s mexican night with a chocolate buffet in the WJ.  Things can only get better from here...  Go USA!

[ryano]

Interesting!  While Im sure it has happened many times before, this may be the first time Ive read of a non tendered port cancellation for this reason.  This means Coco Cay can still be cancelled for the same reason even though a dock has been built.

[sandebeach]

18 minutes ago, ryano said:

Interesting!  While Im sure it has happened many times before, this may be the first time Ive read of a non tendered port cancellation for this reason.  This means Coco Cay can still be cancelled for the same reason even though a dock has been built.

We were on a December 2017 cruise on Independence and could not dock at Costa Maya due to high winds. 

[ValerieJo]

8 minutes ago, sandebeach said:

We were on a December 2017 cruise on Independence and could not dock at Costa Maya due to high winds. 

 

March 2015 - Our adult kids first cruise and we couldn't dock in Costa Maya due to winds.  Kind of a bummer, but things happen.

[KroozFoolz]

Our stop at Aruba was canceled due to wind conditions in April 2018 while on Navigator of the Seas. 

[Charles4515]

1 hour ago, ryano said:

Interesting!  While Im sure it has happened many times before, this may be the first time Ive read of a non tendered port cancellation for this reason.  This means Coco Cay can still be cancelled for the same reason even though a dock has been built.

 

If it is considered dangerous to dock they cancel. They don't want their the dock damaged. The "they" that decides is the local port authority or harbormaster, not Royal Caribbean.

[Ashland]

Last September our stop was cancelled for St Maarten 3 days before we were due to arrive due to a storm the captain said. Luckily we were on a B2B and it was the only port we were going to repeat. However when we got there the next week we found out from many there that there had been no storm and they had had great weather that day. 

 

I understand what goes into cancelling a port but that far in advance without any flexibility to then reverse the decision ?

Edited June 21, 2019 by Ashland

[Maverick61]

10 hours ago, ryano said:

Interesting!  While Im sure it has happened many times before, this may be the first time Ive read of a non tendered port cancellation for this reason.  This means Coco Cay can still be cancelled for the same reason even though a dock has been built.

 

Happens more often than you think

 

We missed NCL's private Island near Belize last year due to winds

Previously missed Costa Maya on a Carnival cruise due to winds

Missed either Antigua or Dominica (can't recall which) due to winds on a Princess cruise

[Merion_Mom]

14 hours ago, ryano said:

Interesting!  While Im sure it has happened many times before, this may be the first time Ive read of a non tendered port cancellation for this reason.  This means Coco Cay can still be cancelled for the same reason even though a dock has been built.

That dock is absolutely NO guarantee that you will stop there.  It is unprotected.  Strong winds will definitely cause cancellations.

[rimmit]

Can totally sympathize.  Have missed many ports over the years, including Dublin, Puerto Madryn, and half the landings on an expedition to South Georgia Island to name a few.  It totally sucks and can be highly disappointing, but sadly it’s part of travel.   

Edited June 21, 2019 by rimmit

[KmomChicago]

I'm glad to see so many who sympathize as this is obviously disappointing.  But now we can all tell you the secret - it's sort of like the hazing part of cruising. Only we "real" cruisers, the ones in the know, the ones who've suffered the harsh realities of the cruel sea, are strong enough to battle through and enjoy the amenities of perhaps the most spectacular vessel ever created by human hands in place of some hot and sandy foreign land.  If ever there's a ship you want to have an extra sea day on, it's Oasis Class.

 

I've only done 9 cruises, but have had cancelled ports on 2.  One was Disney's Castaway Cay and people were ticked off as you might expect. I was working for Mr. Mouse land-side at the time, paid a cast member rate that was so low it might have caused a riot had passengers seen the bill, and had previously sailed to said private island on a prior similar voyage, so I didn't mind too much.  I can only imagine the guff taken by the staff and crew.

 

The other was Princess Cays, January 2018 due to unsafe tender conditions. I don't want to miss a port but I also don't want to drown in a horrible accident.  Guessing the complaints about something like that are a little worse than about missing a port.  Going to Bar Harbor Maine this summer and have heard it often cancels as well. Would expect better seas in summer, but we'll be well into storm season and this year's weather is already pretty weird, so who knows?

 

[ryano]

3 hours ago, Merion_Mom said:

That dock is absolutely NO guarantee that you will stop there.  It is unprotected.  Strong winds will definitely cause cancellations.

 

Im curious to see how many times this happens now  :)     high winds and rough seas have cancelled many hundreds of stops at Coco Cay.  

[island lady]

Missed ports for us due to high winds (cancelled due to local port authority...not RCI):

 

Labadee

Coco Cay

Key West

Grand Cayman 

 

Some of which were several times.  

 

"Poop" happens...you just can't predict Mother Nature.  Now...how about those hurricanes??  😮 And the ships that have been on the news that came slamming into the piers when they actually allowed them to come in?  Crunch...crunch.  

[poncho1973]

1 hour ago, island lady said:

Missed ports for us due to high winds (cancelled due to local port authority...not RCI):

 

Labadee

 

 

 

We also missed Labadee, but not due to winds.  We were one of the infamous protest cruises where hundreds of people in tiny boats were blocking the port and banging on cooking pots at us.

[fdthird]

We missed Grand Cayman a couple of cruises ago, because Captain was afraid of the winds would stop the tender process.  Yes, it does happen. Love your attitude!