Costa Maya port closed until September 2008

When Hurricane Dean landed in Mexico, it severely damaged the Port of Costa Maya. According to USAToday.com, the port won’t reopen until September 2008. At that time, only two of its three cruise berths will be operational—the third won’t be completed until 2009.

How will this affect cruises to this part of Mexico? According to an AP report, Carnival is eliminating the port from its itineraries through spring 2009. Royal Caribbean is avoiding the port through April, and rerouting its six ships scheduled to call at Costa Maya. For a comprehensive list of port substitutions, visit CruiseCritic’s News section.

If your upcoming cruise was supposed to visit Costa Maya, you can expect to visit an alternate port in Central America instead. Common substitutions include Cozumel, Progreso, Playa del Carmen, and Roatan.