Hurricane Comin'... Be Prepared

An Overview of Readiness Activities of The Bahamas Hotel Association and Recommended Planning Steps for Members

While the chance in any given year of a specific island in the stretch of The Bahamas chain getting a direct hit from a strong hurricane is small, one must always be prepared. The Bahamas Hotel Association, working in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism, plays an important role in ensuring that the tourism industry is adequately prepared to handle the impact of hurricanes and natural disasters.

The Bahamas Hotel Association primary role is to serve as a communication point for the industry. In that regard, BHA maintains an up-to-date listing of contact information for coordination purposes with the industry, overseas travel partners, Government, and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). Following is an overview of BHA´s hurricane cancellation policy, the association's program of preparation, and planning steps for members to consider.

Industry Hurricane Cancellation Policy

BHA maintains a Hurricane Cancellation Policy, which has been in place for a number of years.   The policy considers travellers who would either need to postpone or cancel their vacation in The Bahamas.

The agreed policy gives the vacationer a choice of using deposits or payments toward a future stay at the same property in The Bahamas, or in the event that the vacationer cannot travel to The Bahamas at all, it provides the vacationer with a full refund.

Although it is not mandatory that all hotels in The Bahamas should adopt the Hurricane Cancellation Policy, properties that are members of BHA have been encouraged to adopt it. The Bahamas Hotel Association also encourages hotels which are not members of the association to extend the goodwill policy to their guests.  Furthermore, the BHA encourages its members to be considerate in respect to hotel rates in cases in which guests must stay in the country beyond their original date of departure.

BHA's Hotel Cancellation Policy is designed to facilitate the comfort of guests as well as to protect the reputation of hotels and the destination of The Bahamas.

Things To Do...

Members are advised to download the following PDF file and complete the steps in the hurricane preparedness plan well in advance and annually....