Cruise lines are hoping to return to normal operations early September, but there are holes in their itineraries to the eastern Caribbean that won't be plugged soon. Several of the busiest ports of call in that region appear to be out of service for weeks, if not months. Among them are the French/Dutch island of St. Martin/St. Maarten, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands, and St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Other destinations to the south escaped Irma but are too far to travel for a weeklong voyage.
Royal Caribbean International said it will be substituting St. Croix for St. Thomas on eastern Caribbean cruises of the Adventure of the Seas. It will substitute St. Kitts for St. Thomas and St. Maarten on Allure of the Seas voyages and St. Kitts for St. Thomas on Harmony of the Seas voyages. Norwegian Cruise Line said it will offer only western Caribbean routes through November on the Miami-based ships.
While most cruise lines visit the affected islands on itineraries that start and end in Florida, several small-ship cruise lines fly passengers to the Caribbean to begin their voyages there. SeaDream Yacht Club turns some of its cruises in Marigot, St. Martin. Windstar uses St. Maarten, San Juan and Bridgetown, Barbados. Neither line has made a decision about how to proceed with the 2017-18 Caribbean season.
If there is a silver lining, it is that September and October are the slowest months of the year in the Caribbean. In Tortola, for example, there are only five calls on the schedule for September and six in October, Tortola expanded its pier to more than 1,000 feet in 2015, attracting regular calls by Norwegian and Disney Cruise Line. In Key West, cruise arrivals in September 2016 were only about one-third attracted in the peak month of December. No one can yet forecast how long reconstruction will take in ports such as Key West or St. Thomas, where damage assessment is ongoing.
The stricken ports will be desperate to get cruise passengers back because of the revenue they provide and the sense of normalcy they offer. Therefore, cruise infrastructure will be the focus of early rebuilding efforts.
While some ports like Havana took direct hits, others to the east of Florida are already open. The Bahamas got less damage than many had feared and cruise lines scheduled shortened cruises departing to Nassau and Freeport.
There shouldn't be too much competition in the western Caribbean for ship berths through November because many ships are in Europe or elsewhere at this time of year. Should the eastern Caribbean remain offline through the winter, congestion will be an issue.
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