Hurricane Irma is approaching Northeastern parts of the Caribbean and after that could hit the Bahamas and even south Florida which will make cruise lines very worried indeed.
The major Hurricane has already forced Allure of the Seas and MSC Divina to change to a Western Caribbean sailing to stay away from the threat. As Irma makes her way towards the popular cruise destinations of Purto Rico, U.S Virgin Islands, UK Virgin Islands and the Bahamas many more cruise ships could be affected. We could see up to a dozen or so cruise ships making changes to keep away from Irma and that would be thousands of cruise ship passengers.
Another reason why the cruise lines are watching a close eye on the growing Hurricane Irma is South Florida. Some of the world’s biggest cruise ports are located in Florida including Port Miami, Port Everglades, Port of Tampa and the popular cruise destination of Key West. According to the National Hurricane Center, the track of Irma is favoring to possibly hit or get very near to South Florida and the Bahamas but of course, this could change.
We’re not going to go into the damage which Hurricane Irma could cause to cruise ports and destinations in the region. We’ve got the recent destruction by Hurricane Harvey in Texas which reminds us of just how dangerous Irma could be or we should really say just how dangerous she already is.
Hurricane Irma currently has maximum sustained winds of 120 MPH and is expected to gain strength through Tuesday night. Irma is a category 3 and could become a category 4 as she moves into warmer Caribbean waters. Hurricane Irma is causing major sea swells and all shipping including cruise ships are to stay away. The National Hurricane Center (NOAA) has already posted Hurricane watches for Antigua, Barbuda, Anguilla, Montserrat, St. Kitts, Nevis, Saba, St. Eustatius, and Sint Maarten, Saint Martin and Saint Barthelemy. With some major cruise destinations already under Hurricane Watches, we can expect several more cruise ships to alter itinerary very soon.
Over the coming days, Cruise Hive will monitor Hurricane Irma as she becomes more powerful and impacts the cruise industry. We’ll post any new updates and itinerary changes from the cruise lines and if you are in the path of Irma stay safe and start making preparations to protect yourself.
