Many islands unaffected by storm, others rebounding
Hurricanes Irma and Maria have done catastrophic damage to parts of the Caribbean — but if you have a vacation planned there, or are considering one, many islands and resorts want you to know they’re still open for business.
Here’s some advice from travel experts on what to do if you’re dealing with a canceled trip, debating if you should still go, or planning travel to the region in the next few months.
STAY AWAY FROM…
The hardest hit areas include Puerto Rico, St. Martin and the U.S. Virgin Islands of St. Croix, St. John and St. Thomas, says Alyssa Scheppach, director of CheapCaribbean.com’s call center operations, who receives daily updates from the islands.
Scheppach says the U.S. Virgin Islands are expecting to be able to host guests in October or November (for updates, visit usviupdate.com). Properties in St. Martin don’t expect to be able to have visitors until April of 2018. The small islands of Barbuda and Dominica also sustained crippling damage with the majority of populations on both affected, according to United Nations disaster assessment officials.
Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is operating on a limited schedule because of safety concerns due to radar operation and many people stranded there trying to get flights out. Some hotels are completely closed, while others are open, but not taking new or existing reservations until late October. Some, like El Conquistador, a Waldorf Astoria resort in the region of Fajardo, have already stated they won’t accept reservations until 2018. For updated details on Puerto Rico’s airports, ports and hotels, visit puertoriconow. seepuertorico.com.
WHAT TO DO IF YOU ALREADY BOOKED A TRIP…
Call your airline and explain the situation. Scheppach says many airlines waived change fees during the actual storm, but haven’t implemented clear policies about how they’re handling tickets down the road to locations that can’t yet accept guests.
Airline customer service can be difficult to predict, so you might have to be persistent, says travel expert Valerie Joy Wilson (trustedtravelgirl.com), who leads group trips.
“You can get 10 different responses from 10 different people,” Wilson says. “It just depends on who picks up the phone. If you don’t like the answer you are getting, I strongly suggest hanging up and calling again.