Brave the hurricanes for cheap cruises this month!

by Grant Martin on

If you’re willing to risk choppy water, September is actually a decent time to snag some great prices on cruises in the Caribbean. Demand drops off pretty steeply in the fall because many people are concerned about the weather — and as a result many cruise companies drop their prices.

One of the more outstanding prices that I’ve seen lately comes from Royal Caribbean for one of their four-night Bahamas cruises. For under $150 per person, you can depart from Port Canaveral, Florida for a brief stay in the island nation then jet back to East Florida in time for the weekend in Orlando.

Check out Royal Caribbean’s promo website to get in on some of the specials going on.

Incidentally (or maybe for the same reason), plane tickets into Florida have been remarkably competitive lately. So if you’re considering taking one of these cruises from one of the other 49 states you might be able to get a deal on airfare too.

In case you’re worried about hurricanes, you have little to fear about running into a storm. Ships are often rerouted in the case of inclement weather and can easily get around any inbound trouble. Granted, you might get wet and it might be choppy — but you did pay $150 per person for a four night cruise, right?

Caribbean vacations: Trying to reason with hurricane season

by Jeffrey White on

This is a tense time of year for all those cruise and Caribbean enthusiasts out there, as scientists finalize their predictions about what kind of hurricane season the year will have.

For 2008, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting a “normal or slightly busier” year for hurricanes in the Atlantic Ocean. What’s normal? NOAA says most years see 11 named storms, with six developing into hurricanes (and usually around two that are real whoppers).

This year? NOAA is predicting 12 to 16 named storms, with two to five becoming genuine hurricanes.

So, depending on how you look at it, that’s either good news (they’re predicting less full on hurricanes) or bad news (they’re predicting more tropical storms and depressions).

Hurricane season officially runs June 1 till the end of November.

What does this mean for your cruise plans? Hard to predict. As with every year, thousands take to the seas — or forget the seas, they just head for their Caribbean vacations — hoping for the best. Since forecasters are not calling for a significantly worse year, there seems no reason to cancel or alter plans.

Typically, trips to the eastern Caribbean are more affected by hurricanes and tropical storms than trips deeper into the western or southern Caribbean.

NOAA is quick to point out that they are right only about 65 percent of the time. The busiest hurricane season on record was in 2005, which saw 28 named storms; NOAA had predicted 12 to 15.

There were 15 named storms in 2007, six hurricanes, to of which were classified as “major.”

A scientist at Colorado State University, however, is predicting 15 named storms this year, with eight hurricanes, four of which will be major.

Try to reason with any of these predictions.

Holland America bars young married couple from sailing, then reconsiders

by Jeffrey White on

There are two very happy people out there tonight: Austin and Kelly.

The two had booked their honeymoon cruise on Holland America Lines and were set to sail on a long Mediterranean cruise May 29, seven days after their wedding. But there was a problem: Kelly is only 20, and Austin is 25.

The couple fell victim to HAL’s rule that passengers under 21 must be accompanied by an adult older than 25. While a lot of other cruise lines make an exception for married couples, HAL does not. The cruise line initially contacted the couple and told them that they could not board the cruise. To add insult to injury, it also appeared that the couple was going to lose most of what they paid for the trip, since HAL was not going to wave cancellation fees in this case.

What happened? It appears Austin and Kelly managed to get the company to change its mind, given their marriage status. A plucky travel agent liaised with HAL, and the company has agreed to allow Austin and Kelly to sail.

The question is whether this reversal is a one time exception from HAL or a permanent change in the cruise line’s policy about allowing passengers under 21 sail if they are married, regardless of the age of their spouse.

More U.S. passport regulations coming soon

by Justin Glow on

Are you one of the many Americans that still don’t have a passport? Shame on you. But being shamed by some random travel blog on the Internets is the least of your worries, especially if you plan on re-entering the U.S. by land, ferry, or small boat.

According to USA Today, those re-entering after January 30th “must carry either a passport or a government-issued photo ID plus proof of citizenship such as a birth or naturalization certificate.”

I’m surprised this is just now happening. You’d think having the correct documentation is common sense, but I’m sure they’ve had people show up with things like a Macy’s card and a picture of their uncle in front of the Statue of Liberty trying to get across. What? This doesn’t prove anything?

Turnaround time for passports ranges from four to six weeks, so get a move on it.

Yet another terribly depressing airline tale

by Jerry Guo on

I just came across an almost-unbelievable story of how downright mean US airlines have gotten. Customer service stateside simply can’t compare to the elegance of Singapore Air or even the straightforwardness of EasyJet and Ryanair. The front-page Washington Post story tells the sad tale of a 78-year-old woman who was forced to take a 3-leg flight on three separate airlines to catch a cruise she spent 10 years saving for.

Of course, one of the connecting flights was delayed. Her subsequent flight was full, as was the next one, and the next one. At this point, a passenger who had gotten a seat offered it up for her, but Northwest Airlines refused. The kicker: they also refused to let her use a corporate phone to call home.

More fiascos ensued. The cruiseline, Princess Cruises, was also to blame for keeping her $2,500 and when one of the airlines, United, finally refunded her money, it went to Princess! Even the government thinks this is all too much. “Princess is adding insult to injury,” a FTC spokesman was quoted saying.

What has the travel industry come to when everyone’s squeezing a 78-year-old woman for all she’s worth?