Caribbean Tourism Remains Unscathed by Hurricane Earl

Despite causing minor structural damage throughout the region, most Caribbean islands are reporting no significant impact on its tourism infrastructure from Hurricane Earl.

Tourism boards for St. Kitts, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands and St. Maarten have all issued releases reporting no fatalities, no hotel damage nor major disruption of flights.

In St. Kitts, the storm brought the usual downed trees and road side debris, all of which is being cleared. Beaches remain in good condition. There has been no significant damage to hotels and all remain open for business. One of St. Kitts’ leading restaurants, Marshall’s, experienced both wind and water damage and is expected to be closed for repairs temporarily. The owner told the Tourism Authority that he will take the opportunity to make significant improvements to the venue for the winter season.

The same goes for the U.S. Virgin Islands where clean up efforts are currently underway to remove road debris and trees that have fallen due to the storm’s sustained winds. Currently, all roads have been cleared on St. Croix, all roads on St. Thomas and St. John are passable. Airports across the territory have reopened and air service to/from the territory has resumed. The territory’s seaports have reopened following completion of a U.S. Coast Guard assessment and authorization to reopen.

The storm did not hit the British Virgin Islands directly but every precaution was taken by the Tourist Board’s Emergency Coordinating Committee (ECC) to ensure that all holidaymakers and visitors were safe prior to the storms arrival. The Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport was opened for normal operations Tuesday morning. Much of the damage sustained was to vegetation, with no reports of structural damage to any resorts. There were also no reports of loss of life.

No damage has been reported at the Princess Juliana International Airport in St. Maarten either and many resort guests on the island haven’t left.

Hopefully, the good news remains and Hurricane Earl, like most storms this season, doesn’t do any major damage to the Caribbean.

Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for more updates.