carol

Okay, here's question just to ease my mind. If we are in Bermuda in october and a hurricane comes along, are you given enough notice to fly out or are you stuck on the island while a hurricane hits? I am scared of storms, so I need some peace of mind that I'll be safe.<BR><BR>thanks!

Statia

There is plenty of "notice" when a hurricane is approaching for you to leave any island if you are in the path.<BR><BR>The only problem is that some people are not aware that a storm is approaching due to being on vacation and not keeping up with the news, which is understandable.<BR><BR>So, it all depends on whether or not you are aware of the situation and act quickly enough. I have left St. Maarten for a storm before just as other folks are arriving and talking about their planned activities for the following day....not having a clue that a category four would be hitting the island about that time.<BR><BR>

Chris

I was one of the people arriving when Statia was leaving. The following day is when we met Hurricane Luis on Saint Martin. An experience of a lidetime (both good and bad). <BR><BR>Before the vaca, I had watched the weather channel, the news, etc. I was informed. However, when I approached the idea of not going with the travel company we booked with, they said 'think it as an adventure.' The problem is that you have planned your vaca, stand to lose bucks if you cancel, so you take a chance that the sucker will take a different heading.<BR><BR>In our case - it didn't.

penny

Carol, just last October we had a tropical storm Karen form directly over us in Bermuda, I think it did form a hurricane when it left the island. Well if there is one island to be on during a bad storm I would pick Bermuda. It was very windy,rough surf, not thunder and lightening, we did lose power but it was restored by late the next day. Hotels get priority over reidential areas. Yes there was some boat damage, trees down etc. but the island fares very well. Unlike some of the caribbean islands, where they are much more exposed, Bermuda rarely gets a direct hit and it will not have the same affect as flat islands like Anguilla etc. We have been many Septembers and October, and it has never been a problem. In many cases you can leave prior to the storm, and the weather channel gives warning. So pay attention!

advice

"Me too" !<BR>We were in Bermuda last September(the 8th or so) and were not aware that a hurricane was coming until we've noticed people from our little hotels leave in a hurry ! We did try to get a flight out but by then all flights were cxl'd ! (except for the British Airways, hmmm). We were re-scheduled to fly out on the 11th of September !!!! But lucky us - after about 2 hrs. on the phone, our airline found a couple of seats on the 10th of September. If we did not fly out on the 10th, we would have had to stay in Bermuda for another 2 to 3 weeks ! - which were the circumstances different, we would have L O V E D ! Bermuda is beautiful! <BR>Don't worry too much - just pay attention to the news and you should be fine.

Sandyfeet

Hotel managers keep a very close watch on the weather during hurricane season, the last thing they want is a full house of guests during a big storm.<BR><BR>If it's going to be REALLY bad, I've known the hotel associations to organise extra flights out to a lager airport like Puerto Rico or somewhere to help visitors get home.

Statia

You still have to keep abreast of things yourself. I saw people on CNN who were stranded at Maho on SXM during Hurricane Luis (category four) and were never told a thing by management. They didn't want to lose the revenue, so most guests didn't have a clue what was coming until it was too late.<BR><BR>On the other hand, I was stranded in SJU during Hurricane Marilyn immediately after and the hotel was fantastic about assisting guests with storm necessities.<BR><BR>So, you can't always rely on management to inform you of what's going on. It's usually best to stay on top of things yourself, as well.<BR><BR>