Tropical Storm Isaac, the 9th storm of the 2012 Hurricane Season is threatening many cruise ships sailing out of Florida and around the Caribbean this week. Nine ships, all part of major cruise lines, have changed their itineraries in some way.
Tropical Storm Isaac, is not yet a hurricane but it has potential to become one as it currently has maximum sustained winds of 60 mph. As on Friday morning, Isaac was 165-miles south-southwest of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and it is moving at 14 mph in the west-northwest direction.
The storm will soon be dropping heavy rains on Haiti and the Dominican Republic, which could cause flash flooding and mudslides. By the time it reaches the islands, it could become a Category 1 Hurricane with winds over 74 mph.
Cruise companies are preparing for the wrath of Isaac by changing some cruise itineraries in order to avoid the storm. Nine cruise ships have been affected by Isaac already.
Royal Caribbean is making changes to two ships this weekend. The 2,350-passenger Majesty of the Seas and the 2,390-passenger Monarch of the Seas will both set sail on Friday from different ports in Floirda, but they will not be making a previously scheduled stop at the line's private island in the Bahamas, CocoCay.
Norwegian Cruise Line is also making some changes. The Norwegian Sky will depart Miami on Friday for a three-day cruise to the Bahamas, but it will not stop at Great Stirrup Cay on Saturday. The ship will head to Nassau instead and will spend Sunday at sea. The ship could have a delayed arrival to Miami on Monday depending on where the storm goes.
The Norwegian Dawn, leaving Boston on Friday arrive at Bermuda at 8am on Sunday, three hours earlier than scheduled to give guests more time as the ship may need to leave the island earlier than scheduled because of the storm.
The Norwegian Gem, departing from New York on Saturday, is changing around the order of it's ports in the Bahamas and Florida. It will head to Stirrup Cay on Tuesday, Nassau on Wednesday and Port Canaveral on Thursday.
Carnival, which changed the itinerary of two other ships earlier this week, is changing another ship's plans. The 2,052-passenger Carnival Ecstasy, based out of Florida's Port Canaveral, will not make a stop at Carnival's private island Half Moon Cay. Instead, the Ecstasy will head to Freeport in the Bahamas on Saturday.
Earlier this week, the 2,974-passenger Carnival Valor skipped its planned stop of Curacao on Thursday in order to stay ahead of the storm. The ship will be heading to Nassau in the Bahamas on Saturday. Carnival Liberty skipped the port of Grand Turk on Thursday to beat the storm. It will also make a stop in Nassau on Friday.
Royal Caribbean's massive Allure of the Seas, which set sail from Fort Lauderdale last Sunday sailed to the Western Caribbean instead of the originally planned Eastern Caribbean. It is making stops at Falmouth, Jamaica and Cozumel, Mexico instead of St. Thomas and St. Maarten.
It is rare for a cruise to be cancelled due to a storm, but some cruise ships may have to make an unplanned stop at a different port or have an unscheduled sea day to avoid a storm.
After passing over Haiti, Isaac is expected to make its way to Cuba and possibly Florida. Here is a map, provided by the National Hurricane Center, showing Isaac's path.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader
