Hurricane Season Starting to Heat Up

Although Danielle has weakened to a Category one hurricane; Earl the fifth storm of this hurricane season is heading towards the Leeward Islands.  Hurricane Earl is quickly picking up steam and causing cruise ships to modify their itineraries.   The tropical storm which has now been upgraded to a category 1 hurricane is currently about 225 miles East of Antigua and 315 miles east of St. Martin and heading westward at a speed of 18 mph.  Forecasters expect the storm to reach Category three status which means a wind speed between 11-130 mph by Tuesday.

The eye of the storm is expected to pass over the Leeward Islands late Sunday night and a hurricane warning is currently in effect for those islands.  Also, a hurricane watch is in effect for the U.S. and British Virgin Islands as well as Puerto Rico. That region is expected to receive rainfall totals anywhere from 4 to 12 inches in some areas.  The good news for those currently in the Caribbean is, instead of turning west-northwest as forecasters expected it is starting to move on a more northern track away from the Caribbean towards the East Coast of the United States.

So far the Carnival Dream, Oasis of the Seas, Enchantment of the Seas and Norwegian Epic have all changed their itineraries.

• Carnival Dream -- Instead of sailing the Eastern Caribbean itinerary the Dream will be sailing the Western Caribbean itinerary of Cozumel, Belize, Roatan and Costa Maya.
• Oasis of the Seas -- Will visit Nassau on Sunday, Costa Maya on Wednesday and Cozumel on Friday.  The rest of the days will be spent at sea.
• Enchantment of the Seas -- The Enchantment will visit Samana on Monday, Labadee on Tuesday and then will spend the next 3 days at sea before returning to Baltimore on Saturday.
• Norwegian Epic - The Epic has swapped out St. Maarten and St. Thomas for Cozumel and Roatan.  The ship will also make an extended stop in Nassau on Friday.

Although no one really likes to have their trip altered, hurricane season can be fun if you approach it with an open mind.  There is a certain risk we all take on when booking cruises this time of year. When the announcement of an itinerary change is made, naturally you will feel a bit of anxiety.  Do yourself a favor; order another drink, realize there is nothing you can do about and embrace the added sense of adventure.  Sometimes you end up having even more fun flying by the seat of your pants.

If you are unfamiliar with the new ports of call the best thing to do is ask your waiter or a bartender for recommendations on what to do.  These guys visit these ports every other week and are more in tune with what is going on than almost any guidebook you will ever find.

Related posts:

1. Hurricane Season 2010 Predictions
2. Don’t Let Hurricane Season Rain On Your Parade
3. Don’t Let Hurricane Season Rain On Your Parade 2010
4. Hurricane Jimena Threatens the Mexican Riviera
5. How Bad Will This Hurricane Season Be?

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