Cruise ships are making all sorts of changes to avoid the path of Hurricane Helene, including cruises from Tampa.Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas will be delayed returning to port by two days because of the storm.The ship’s Captain made an announcement on Wednesday while the ship was docked in Freeport, Bahamas.A user on Cruise Critic posted, “The Captain announced a few minutes ago that our cruise will be extended two extra days and will not arrive back in Tampa until Sunday. “The 90,090 gross-ton, Radiance Class cruise ship is homeported in Tampa, Florida and departed on her current sailing September 22 on a 5-night Western Caribbean cruise that was originally supposed to visit Cozumel and Puerto Costa Maya, Mexico.On Tuesday, Royal Caribbean re-routed the ship to The Bahamas to avoid the worst of Hurricane Helene. However, the storm’s impact on the Port of Tampa Bay has necessitated Royal Caribbean hold the ship’s return back.Helene is a Category 1 hurricane and strengthening as it moves toward the U.S. Gulf Coast. It is expected to hit Florida’s Big Bend late tomorrow.Experts believe Helene will rapidly intensify and become a Category 3 or 4 storm before it makes landfall.As of 5 p.m. ET today, Hurricane Helene had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph. It was about 460 miles southwest of Tampa, Florida, moving north at 12 mph.Serenade is not the only ship being held at sea due to the storm.MSC Seashore won’t be able to return to Port Canaveral on Thursday as originally scheduled because of the storm.That ship will have an extra day added onto their cruise before it can return.Guests react to the changeNews of Serenade’s change spread quickly among cruisers, who took to social media to post their thoughts.Most were not surprised, but emotions ranged between frustration and understanding.”This is exactly why I schedule cruises during hurricane season. Sometimes you get extra days. Sometimes it’s reduced with refunds and cruise credits etc. when you live in Florida and have flexibility it’s worth the risk,” wrote Judy Desrosiers.Irene Grackin wrote, “Cruising during peak hurricane season has an inherent risk. Safety first!”Christa Leonard was upset at the news, because it could impact the itinerary of the next sailing, “the reason we chose this cruise is we honeymooned on St. Thomas 38 years ago and we were so thrilled to celebrate our anniversary there.”Royal Caribbean’s newest cruise ship will delay boardingAnother change announced late on Wednesday was the delay of Utopia of the Seas.Guests booked on the weekend cruise will have a delayed boarding on Friday due to the storm. The issue is not just the storm, but Port Canaveral closing temporarily.Screenshot by Stephanie Bushong“Due to Port Canaveral’s planned closure, our previous sailing will be delayed in returning and as a result, our boarding on September 27th will also be adjusted,” the email reads to guests booked on the cruise.”Kindly note that the terminal will be closed until 2:30pm.”Utopia of the Seas is scheduled to sail a 3-night cruise to The Bahamas that visits Nassau and Perfect Day at CocoCay.
Source: Royalcaribbeanblog.com
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