What to learn about Hurricane Melissa’s impression on journey

Hurricane Melissa is predicted to make landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday morning as a Category 5 storm with 175 mph winds, making it essentially the most highly effective storm within the Atlantic Ocean this yr.

The storm’s churning path is predicted to hit the island at St. Elizabeth parish, a coastal space about 75 miles west of Kingston, the island’s capital. Weather providers say there’s a excessive danger of “catastrophic” injury and lack of life.

And it isn’t simply Jamaica that can be affected by Melissa. Current forecasts predict practically 30 inches of rain to fall on the island and close by in Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, the Bahamas, and Turks and Caicos. And it is potential that extra islands could really feel the brunt of the huge storm, too, with storm surges that would create vital waves all through the week.

Here’s what it’s good to know in case you have plans to journey to Jamaica or the Caribbean this week — and what you are able to do to assist in the storm’s aftermath.

Related: Top journey errors to keep away from throughout hurricane season

Where is Hurricane Melissa?

Hurricane Melissa is at present a Category 5 hurricane sitting simply southwest of Jamaica and touring on a northeast trajectory that brings it instantly over Jamaica and principally impacts the northeastern a part of the Caribbean Sea within the Greater Antilles. As of Tuesday morning, winds have been reported at 175 mph; a storm is taken into account a Category 5 as soon as winds hit 157 mph. For any landmass in Melissa’s path, there may be anticipated to be wide-ranging, sustained injury.

“The core of Melissa is expected to make landfall on Jamaica during the next several hours, move across southeastern Cuba Wednesday morning, and move across the southeastern or central Bahamas later on Wednesday,” the National Hurricane Center stated Tuesday morning.

Last yr, Hurricane Beryl took an identical path over Jamaica as a Category 4 storm and triggered widespread electrical and communications infrastructure injury. That storm headed northwest to the Gulf of Mexico.

Is it secure to journey to the Caribbean?

Since the Caribbean is likely one of the largest seas on earth, sprawling throughout over 1 million sq. miles, many areas won’t really feel a lot of Melissa’s wrath. For instance, islands like Aruba which can be nearer to South America noticed some rain final week because the storm made its method west, nevertheless it sustained no injury.

However, if you are planning travel to Jamaica, know that the island is expected to take a direct hit from a Category 5 hurricane and that expectations are that electricity and other infrastructure will be offline as a result for anywhere from weeks to months.

“The Government of Jamaica issued a Hurricane Warning for the island on October 24, 2025. All persons are urged to take the necessary precautions to ensure safety during this time,” according to the Jamaica Tourism Board’s website. Visit its Travel Alerts page for info on emergency providers, flight cancellations and shelter places.

The National Hurricane Center has a number of watches and warnings in impact that reach to the encircling space.

Forecasters predict a storm surge of 9 to 13 ft, and the slow-moving storm is predicted to dump practically 3 ft of rain on the island. In addition to Haiti and Cuba, that are additionally instantly within the hurricane’s path, close by islands that will additionally really feel this storm surge embody the southeastern Bahamas and Turks and Caicos. Wave swells that may trigger life-threatening surf and rip present situations are anticipated to succeed in the Cayman Islands within the subsequent few days, and the Bahamas, Turks and Caicos, and Bermuda later this week.

If you have got a visit to the Caribbean scheduled, you may wish to keep abreast of the developments in your particular vacation spot.

Airport closures and airline waivers

Both of Jamaica’s primary airports closed this previous weekend forward of the storm. Norman Manley International Airport (KIN) in Kingston closed after its closing flight Saturday, Oct. 25, and Sangster International Airport (MBJ) in Montego Bay closed noon Sunday, Oct. 26. Neither has posted a predicted reopening date.

Flights are nonetheless working out of Turks and Caicos, which is underneath a hurricane watch. According to Experience Turks and Caicos, the nation’s vacation spot advertising group, each American Airlines and JetBlue are at present working bigger plane to accommodate individuals who want to depart the islands forward of the storm.

Airlines that service Jamaica and different Caribbean islands are providing numerous journey waivers. The particulars of every waiver differ, however they typically apply to flights to, from or by way of numerous airports in Jamaica and different islands. With the waivers, vacationers can change their flights with out having to pay a fare distinction.

Here are a number of airline waiver examples:

• Delta Air Lines: For the Oct. 25-30 journey schedule to/from/by way of Jamaica and Turks and Caicos, journey should be rebooked by Nov. 2. There isn’t any change price, however passengers might want to pay the distinction in ticketed worth for journey after Nov. 2.
• United Airlines: For journey scheduled to/from Jamaica and Turks and Caicos from Oct. 25-29 and Bermuda from Oct. 30-Nov. 2, there isn’t any change price or worth distinction charged for flights till Nov. 5 (for Jamaica and Turks and Caicos) and Nov. 9 (for Bermuda). (Note there aren’t any change charges on United at any time.)
• American Airlines: This is a wider waiver that extends to Turks and Caicos; Jamaica; Cuba; and George Town, Bahamas. The change price can be waived for scheduled journey Oct. 25-29, and adjustments should be booked by Nov. 2.
• JetBlue: Change/cancel charges and fare variations are waived for journey to/from Jamaica from Oct. 25-31; prospects could rebook their flights by way of Nov. 8. For flights to/from Turks and Caicos, charges and fare variations are waived for journey from Oct. 28-30, and could be rebooked by way of Nov. 5.

Check along with your airline for extra particulars in case you have journey developing this week.

What to do in case you have a visit booked to Jamaica or the Caribbean

If you reserved instantly with a resort, first test its web site and see if it has posted any updates. You may also name the resort instantly or the principle reservations quantity. Keep in thoughts that many properties are probably managing the disaster, so calling the property instantly ought to be a final choice.

If you booked by way of a third-party on-line journey company or aggregator like Expedia or Travelocity, it is vital to grasp the cancellation coverage. The OTA still owns your reservation prior to your travel; if you contact the hotel directly, it will likely refer you back to the OTA or travel portal for assistance.

If you have a cruise planned to the Caribbean, check with your cruise line about updated sailing plans.

Related: Cruising during hurricane season: What to know

If you have already purchased travel insurance, then you should be able to recoup all of your trip expenses if you are traveling to an area directly affected by Hurricane Melissa. As we’ve reported previously, the time to buy insurance is before a storm is named. Once it’s already been identified, it’s a “known event,” and you can no longer purchase coverage for that storm.

How to help

If you’d like to help those in the storm’s path, there are several options to explore:

Bottom line

Hurricane Melissa is expected to make landfall in Jamaica on Tuesday morning as an incredibly forceful Category 5 hurricane. It will then head northeast in the Caribbean over Cuba and Haiti and affect areas of the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos.

If you have plans to travel to an area affected by the hurricane, it would be prudent to cancel or delay your plans until later.

For more helpful tips on navigating travel during hurricane season, read: