beau

I am thinking of taking a Princess cruise from New York to the Caribbean in July. I have a few questions.

What happens if there is a hurricane? I have heard that the cruise lines will change course and go to New England/Canada instead. Is this possible?

Where should I park my car? We will be spending a few days in the city before the cruise, so we will have a car.

Dondiega

I have never taken Princess out of NY but have Royal Carribbean out of NJ. Even though July is hurricane season there rarely are hurricanes in July, mostly last week in August is when it starts.

If there is a hurricane and you haven't left NY yet and the hurricane is coming up the east coast of the US then I would suspect the Captain will decide not to take that route and I have read of them going north instead. If you are already in the Carribbean then he may navigate around it and go to a safer island. If you haven't left NY yet and there is a hurricane in the Carribbean then he still might go south and navigate around the hurricane. But I think July is safe.

The cruise line will have parking near the ship.

doug_stallings

I believe that Princess currently sails out of Red Hook, and there is an open-air parking lot there where you can park your car (not a garage). If you are leaving from Manhattan, there is also parking at the pier, but it's rather expensive (about $30 per day).

Ships have been known to change course dramatically to avoid hurricanes, but as Dondiega points out, a hurricane in July is not that likely, though it can certainly happen. Ships have been known to divert to either Bermuda or to New England if there is a major storm, and the cruise line has the right to do that to protect your safety. If that happens, you'll probably get some sort of onboard credit, but you won't be able to cancel unless you have purchased a "cancel for any reason" insurance plan.

Why will you have a car with you if you plan to spend a few days in NYC? I'd strongly urge you to take some kind of public transportation into NYC if you can. It's a particularly bad idea to have a car in Manhattan, and you won't have an opportunity to use it if you are staying in the city. Instead, you'll end up paying at least $20 per day to park (and probably quite a bit more). Given the cost of parking at the cruise piers, it's usually cheaper to pay to take public transportation into Manhattan.

bonniejns

I agree with Doug! If you do take your car into NY chances are VERY good you won't find a parking space, you'll have to find a garage, which charges a lot, just for a day. When in The City, taking a cab, bus or subway is the way to get around. Consider finding a garage or hotel in NJ,CT or north of The City to leave your car. Then take a bus or train into the city. Taking a car into The City for anything other than driving through is not worth it at all! (My husband was born & brought up in The City - very, very few people who live there have a car.)

beau

Thank you for the responses. The reason we will have a car is that we will drive from Michigan and spend a few days in the city before the cruise. I know that the hotel parking is expensive, but it is cheaper than air fare.