Currently a Category 4, Hurricane Matthew has thousands of travelers with upcoming trips to Florida scrambling to cancel flight reservations and hotel bookings. Of course, those who planned ahead by taking precautions such as purchasing travel insurance and tracking the storm are probably in the best shape as far as getting their money back, but most airlines and hotels have policies in place to assist those who are forced to cancel or reschedule trips due to inclement weather. But what about the vacationers who were already in spots like Haiti, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic when Matthew hit?
The most important thing to do when you're in a destination impacted by a hurricane is to follow the instructions of the local government. Often, this information is provided via the staff of the hotel where you're holed up. So if you're on vacation and a hurricane strikes, here are the things you need to know about your hotel and how it's going to handle the situation. It's best to get these questions answered right when you check in (or -- even better -- beforehand).
Hotels in this story
Most hotels in hurricane-prone destinations such as the Caribbean, Mexico, and Florida have hurricane policies in place; after all, they want to encourage travelers to visit during the off-season, and so are willing to offer assurance via the options of re-bookings, refunds, etc. As Jim Hutton, Chief Security Officer of , explains, “There doesn’t seem to be a steadfast yardstick that holds hotels accountable on how much they need to cater to customers’ needs in the event of such emergencies. Although, based on brand reputation, it would be safe to assume that to some extent the big name hotels will have medium to robust contingency plans in place in order to deal with any potential fallouts that result from either man-made or natural disasters.”
The vast majority of these policies address the situation of when a hurricane prevents a traveler from reaching his or her destination; for example, hotels comprising the Bahamian Hotel & Tourism Association allow travelers to either rebook their vacations or cancel their reservations at no cost if they are kept from the destination due to a hurricane.
Frequent travel Sean Brown says, “Hotels are very flexible with leaving early, especially due to hurricanes. I’ve never been charged penalties and have received refunds on prepaid stays if changes due to hurricanes… In 2012, I was in the path of Hurricane Isaac while in New Orleans. My hotel allowed me to leave early without penalties.”
