The message is crystal clear: The Caribbean is open for business.
During a conference call Monday morning, Arnold Donald (Chair, CLIA and CEO, Carnival Corporation), Adam Goldstein (Chair, FCCA and President and COO, Royal Caribbean) and Michele Paige (President, FCCA) emphasized the destination is doing well and there is no need to stay away.
In fact, the opposite is true.
Paige said that "most of the region was completely unaffected," and the FCCA and regional cruise lines are, "working tirelessly on hurricane relief," to help the few areas that were. She continued to repeat with confidence: "The Caribbean remains open for business."
That is the subject of a new campaign and communication efforts.
"It is a great time to go to the Caribbean," Donald added. "There is no better way to support the Caribbean than to go to the Caribbean."
He encourages people to contact their travel agents to book a sailing accordingly.
Truth is, of the one million square miles that comprise the Caribbean, there are, "100 different itineraries to choose from," according to Donald. Only four of 50 most pertinent ports to Royal Caribbean-San Juan, St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. Martin-were significantly affected.
However, if people are waiting for a deal to be had, it might not come. Donald repeated that cruising is already a great value and that specials are not necessarily likely as a result of the hurricanes.
Further reassuring is how Carnival Corp.'s Fathom brand may still factor into all of this.
While the Caribbean is up and running, there are still volunteer opportunities remaining. Fathom as a program now expanded across all the company's cruise lines can potentially assist-as I previously suggested-beyond its primarily Dominican Republic opportunities.
"We're exploring expanding what we already offer, but we do have some offers that exist[ed] in those places before the hurricane," Donald explained. "We'll look to see if we can expand the offerings of those activities for people who may want to try to volunteer as part of their vacation to help in some way."
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