Minimal Damage Reported by Islands in Dean's Wake

Tourism officials in Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and Mexico's Caribbean coast are offering reassurances to visitors now that powerful Hurricane Dean has passed out of the region without scoring a direct hit on any major islands. "The hotel sector on the few islands that were impacted had withstood the storm and were planning a quick return to normal operations," said Alec Sanguinetti, director general & CEO of the Caribbean Hotel Association.

In Jamaica, resorts like Half Moon Bay suffered some fallen trees but no structural damage as a result of the storm. (Still, the resort is offering rebookings between now and Dec. 15 for any guest who did not honor their reservations between Aug. 20-25. The SuperClubs chain of resorts also offered to rebook guests without penalty.) Montego Bay's Tryall Club also reported only minor damage. Despite some flooding and a state of emergency briefly declared to prevent looting during the storm, cruise passengers were arriving in Ocho Rios within 24 hours of Dean's passage.

On Dominica, "hotels have suffered minimal to no damage, are operational and are ready to welcome guests. Infrastructure at all hotels remains fully intact with only a handful of properties reporting minor damage and the need for clean-up from instances of fallen trees, downed fences, shingles blown away, water damage or broken windows or light bulbs," according to the Dominica Tourist Board. "Electricity and running water have been restored to most hotels with service to the rest to be restored shortly. No tourist evacuations were necessary."

Antigua and Barbuda officials said Dean caused only minor damage there, as well.

On Guadeloupe and Martinique, Hurricane Dean triggered landslides and tore the roofs off some houses. The banana crop on both islands was devastated by the storm. However, tourism officials on Martinique reported that "the island’s hotel infrastructure emerged virtually unscathed with only minor cosmetic damages reported to buildings."

The Cayman Islands lifted a ban on visitor travel on Aug. 21 and reported that hotels and restaurants that closed during the storm have mostly reopened.

Airports across the region have reopened and are operating normally after spending the better part of the last week evacuating tourists ahead of the storm.