Ok, We have put in for the vacation, paid for the vacation, plane tickets paid for, now a hurricane is coming. We are supposed to leave for Anna Maria Island Saturday a.m. for a nice week of rest and relaxation - should we still try with all the weather reports? I figure if it gets bad enough our flight will be canceled anyway. Don't want to be out all that money, and definitely don't want to go back to work! I say go for it, DH is having second thoughts.

Well, if you're planning to visit a destination that might be affected by a hurricane during hurricane season...

How will your flight, if it's cancelled, affect your hotel booking?

Did you purchase trip insurance? Is a hurricane covered?

I wouldn't change my plans. Although these things are totally unpredictable, and I emphasize "totally", that area was on the eastern edge of the "cone of uncertainty" and guidance seems to be shifting Dennis a bit further to the west this morning.

Who knows--they can turn on a dime, and did last year, when Charley, aimed at Tampa Bay, ground zero in everyone's predictions, suddenly turned inland when it was about 3 hours south of us, hitting Punta Gorda instead and totally missing us.

If things change and there is any danger of the storm hitting Tampa Bay, your flight will be canceled, yes, but Anna Maria, as a barrier island is one of the first to be evacuated as well if there is imminent danger, in which case you would not be charged for your room--although your quiet time on Anna Maria is wrecked! Generally everyone from these areas is moved into the Orlando area, well inland...and if you know Charley's history, that is the route he then took, right over Orlando, so everyone who had evacuated the coast ended up in his path after all.

I say go for it too...I'm betting the west coast of FL will be spared...wouldn't feel so good about a Panhandle vacation though. Here's a good site to help you track Dennis' movement today. http://www.wunderground.com/tropical/

Oh....and while you are on Anna Maria enjoying lovely blue skies and beautiful blue green water, be sure to head over to the Sandbar for lunch...maybe try their coconut shrimp salad with mango dressing. Oh yum!!

I will go against the positive recommendations and suggest you cancel everything and stay home. Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor, or something like that. The hurricane will not strike Anna Maria directly, but there will be some strong winds and very high tides that will cause some discomfort for some visitors and some damage to some properties.

Stay home, chalk it up to Murphy's Law, and try again later. Good luck.

Id suggest getting in touch with the airline and see if there is something else you can do for your trip. The airlines sometimes will work with you especially when bad weather is on the way.

You might try for Bermuda or the Bahamas.

Have a great trip.

We had a trip scheduled last year when Ivan was in the Gulf, and his direction still up in the air. Several days out airline rules changed, and we would have been able to cancel our flights with no penalty if we needed to stay in Tampa. Fortunately he stayed well west of Tampa and our trip went off as scheduled, but it sure was nice having that option.

I would still wait and watch through the day today, then decide. Providing it passes by as anticipated, weather associated with the storm is in and out very quickly, more often than not, the following day being beautiful with LOW humidity...a real treat for FL in the summer!!