hurricane season in FL????
 

Is mid sept too late for a florida vacation? I dont want to hit rainy/hurricane season? thanks

That's normally the height of hurricane season, and usually still very much the rainy season.

Too late? It's not late enough. Hurricane season is June through November. Last year, Wilma hit in mid-October.

It is not too late and will in fact be very hot. You will be in hurricane season. It is a chance you take. Just buy travel insurance and then you have the ability to change you plans if you see fit and don't have to wait for evacuations to be posted before you can get refunded and change plans.
AlishaW

so- do we say skip florida and go somewhere else?

Yes because hurricanes will not hit anywhere else.

Right Go Travel - - Nantucket is probably safe from tropical storms!

Don't go to California, though, as it's earthquake season Jan-Dec.

LOL, keymom, Nantucket is under a tropical storm watch at this very moment:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...c&refer=us

Ooops, sorry, old link. Here's the full story:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...p;refer=canada

Huricane season is from June to November. Mid-September is right smack in the middle. I have been to Florida many times...I would not go during Huricane season, although the prices are considerably lower at that time.

dkb, I have been on the Gulf Coast of FL during September and except for enjoying visiting with family members it has been terrible weatherwise.

Another thing to remember is that even if a hurricane does not hit the part of Florida to which you are traveling, these tropical things can spin off-shore for days and give you rotten weather, even without the danger.

To find average temps and rainfall amounts go here:

http://www.weatherbase.com/

And let's try to keep some perspective on hurricane season. In reality the chances of your Florida vacation being ruined by a car accident are MUCH greater than the chances of it being ruined by a hurricane. Car crash season runs year round here (like everywhere else) and they happen every day.

Vacations are full of hazards. You could get sick. Your flight could be delayed or cancelled or your luggage lost. Your hotel room could be noisy. You could be mugged or loose your passport. Any number of things can happen on vacation and, unfortunately, the only sure way to avoid the possibility of inconvenience is to stay home.

I didn't worry about their being a hurricane, it was just that the weather was terrible and so it was not enjoyable. I always found spring time a much lovelier time to visit Florida.

I assumed keymom was being funny with that Nantucket line.

I have clients who spend 6 months a year at their home in Naples, Florida, and 6 months a year at their home on Buzzard's Bay in Mass. Over the years they have never had a bit of damage to their home in Florida due to hurricanes or tropical storms. They have had four or five incidents of some pretty significant damage to their Massachusetts home due to hurricanes and tropical storms. Kind of puts things in perspective.

Thank-you Neopolitan! That does put things perspective. And LoveItaly, you are right. September is hot and humid, with or without hurricanes. It does start to cool down a bit in north Florida toward the end of September. In fact, in my opinion, the best time to go to north FL beaches is from the end of September to the end of October. The crowds are gone, the air is cooler and the water is still warm!

I moved to a beautiful little paradise island in Florida 9 years ago, and have lived here since. Couple of tropical storms here and there but no damage. Few of the hurricanes came close but went south and north of our little island since I moved here, but never a direct hit. If our island did get a direct hit, I believe it would not exist as we are only about 5 ft. or less above sea level and it's your basic sand bar.....

Kind of puts things in REAL perspective...

The chances of a tourist and hurricane crossing the same intersection at the same time is so minute that it should not be a major consideration during vacation planning stages.

The regular weather is another story. Personally I hate the summer. July, August and September tend to be VERY HOT, humid and very stormy in the afternoons.

Siesta Key (Sarasota), Florida.

I am not singling out the OP, as these types of questions about hurricanes come up a lot. Many people just do not understand the nature and scope of a hurricane. Each year, a few hurricanes come ashore in the US, and rarely will we see one or more category 5. Most hurricanes do not create a lot of damage, <b>and most importantly</b> the real damage zone is only a <b>few dozen miles wide</b>. Key West to Jacksonville, FL is 400+ miles.

The chance of you getting a hurricane if you go to a particular place for a few days (or a week) for one time is so freaking small that you are more likely to win some jackpot at a casino, if not winning the lottery.

But of course, the chance is still there, and rain/thunderstorms unrelated to hurricanes are still very highly possible.

True, and to bring up another sore point, I sometimes wonder if these same people who worry about a hurricane avoid everywhere in the midwest all spring and summer for fear of a possible tornado -- or never go to California for fear of an earthquake. Incidentally, both of those come without warning. At least you have a few days notice if a hurricane is coming and you can pack up and move elsewhere.

Amen rkkwan.

We certainly did not live in fear and dread every hurricane season, despite my husband's hotel being in a most vulnerable, evacuation zone 1 location on the water in Tampa Bay. In 8.5 years we evacuated guests twice as the threat became too real and mandatory evacuations were called for. In neither case were we actually hit. One of those times, our guests were evacuated to Orlando, but 3 hours before the storm was to hit Tampa Bay, it turned, went inland at Punta Gorda, and ended up going right over Orlando. You just plain and simply do not let them rule your lives. The odds are SO slim of one hitting during your vacation, where YOU are!! Even if one does make a near miss, it's a day's event and no more than that. They are in and out quickly. They do not hang around for days! Normally the day following the storm is beautiful, and even the humidity drops, providing a delightful day with some impressive waves, always beautiful to see.

Beware; climbing on soapbox.

Hurricanes have been a part of my life as long as I can remember. Hurricane Hazel took out my family's home on Pawleys Island in the 1950s and we rebuilt. When Hurricane Hugo came through in 1989, it dumped a house ontop of our home. The storm came ashore 60 miles south of Pawleys.

We patched up and moved on.

Since then, I can't tell you how many evacuations, warnings, and storms I've been through.

What people don't understand is that hurricanes and typhoons can happen almost everywhere in the world. Heading off to Hawaii doesn't get you out of a hurricane zone.

Neither does heading to New York.

Another big thing is that hurricanes do more damage inland than they do on the immediate coast. When I say inland, I'm referring to hundreds of miles ashore.

Hurricane Hugo was still a Category 1 hurricane when it hit Charlotte, North Carolina which is 200 miles inland from where it came ashore in McClellanville, South Carolina.

Also, a direct hit from a slow moving tropical storm will do more damage than a direct hit from a fast moving hurricane. I'd much rather have an hour of 75 mph wind than eight hours of 50 mph wind.

Climbing off soapbox.

Hurricanes can occur anywhere along the Eastern Seaboard. I've been through them in New Jersey, Cape Cod and Pennsylvania....never Florida!

LoveItaly, what did you mean by &lt;I didn't worry about their being a hurricane&gt;

I am sure LoveItaly can speak for herself but I just took that to mean that the chances of being in a hurricane are so slim, why worry about it?

Last year ,we were suppose to go to Florida for a &quot;long weekend&quot; in September. Friends cancelled about one week before we departed due to a hurricane threat. We went anyway, the &quot;warning&quot; was cancelled and we had beautiful weather. About four weeks later Wilma came along. We went down ten days later and the weather was gorgeous once again! The good news is that the airlines are helpful if you must cancel or leave ealry if there is a strong hurrican warning.

Hi Z, first of all I wish I would learn to spell lol, obviously I meant &quot;there&quot; not &quot;their&quot;.

Sunshinesue interrupted my comment correctly. I did not worry about a hurricane. Living in N CA all of my life which is &quot;earthquake country&quot; taught me decades ago to not worry about every potential disaster.

As I believe I have already said my experience along the Gulf Shore of FL is that the weather isn't always pleasant in September.

BTW, during this last seasons hurricane a family members house on LongBoatKey did not receive any damamge but another family members house in St.Cloud did receive severe damamge.

I hope this coming hurricane season will be mild. I would sure hate to see people have to go through what they did last season. Best regards.

GoTravel: Re Hurricane Hazel 1954. It took out the dam in my hometown in CANADA.So we moved to FLORIDA!

LOL! My point exactly!

You cannot count on being safe from a hurricane anywhere.

dkb, we live in the hurricane Katrina affected area of Louisiana. We fly out of New Orleans this Sept for a vacation out west. Last year the New Orleans airport was closed the entire month of Sept. So, as you can see, we are taking the same risks as you with our travel plans. However, since hurricane Camille in 1969, Katrina was the only hurricane to substantially limit travel in/out of New Orleans. That's pretty good odds that our travel plans during hurricane season will not be affected.

BTW, we were in the San Francisco area the last week of Sept and the first week of Oct, 1989. You cannot let fear and the unknown keep you from taking fabulous vacations. Just plan the best you can and go from there.

OMG BayouGal, y'all were in San Francisco for the earthquake of 1989?

I agree with Bayougal. Just go for it. As my husband says a bad day on vacation beats a great day at work anytime!

No, GoT, we left about a week <i>before</i> the quake, but it was quite sobering, none-the-less. You just never know, huh?!