Tourists Weigh Options as Hurricane Irene Approaches

Tourists Weigh Options as Hurricane Irene Approaches
By Laura Bly

As a strengthening Hurricane Irene is now battering parts of The Bahamas and takes aim at the East Coast, millions of vacationers are changing plans - or crossing fingers that they won't have to.

Several cruise lines have altered their Caribbean itineraries and evacuated private islands in the region, and most airlines are waiving change fees for travelers flying into or out of affected areas.

On Tuesday, the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism issued an advisory recommending that travelers "voluntarily evacuate" and delay their trips for the next five days.

As the Category 3 storm churned through parts of The Bahamas today on a still-uncertain track toward the East Coast, officials ordered mandatory visitor evacuations on Ocracoke Island and the rest of Hyde County on North Carolina's Outer Banks.

But while Ocracoke tourists were packing up, most others were watching and waiting. According to Lee Nettles, director of the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, about 80% of the area's tourists stay in vacation rentals, and refunds are typically issued only when a mandatory evacuation is ordered.

Because no other areas on the Outer Banks have issued such orders, it's still business as usual - though since Saturday (when Irene is forecast to hit or skirt the coast) is the biggest "change over" day for rentals, Nettles expects some visitors to leave a day early or arrive a day late.

"Short of mandatory evacuations, I expect some will come out, or stick around, to check out the storm," adds Nettles. "This is a string of barrier islands, and you get a shot at nature that is pretty spectacular."

Meanwhile, National Park Service officials are "closely monitoring" the progress of Irene, and the storm could delay Sunday's planned dedication of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.