Projected losses from Tropical Storm Hanna in cruise ship taxes and tourist spending are estimated at just under $761,000 for the period Sunday, August 31 to Thursday, September 4, the Ministry of Tourism reported yesterday.This is based on estimations of head tax and spending per passenger

There have been a number of cancellations to The Bahamas of ships operated by Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Regal Empress and Discovery Cruises over the past several days, since the then slow-moving and erratic Hanna began affecting the island chain.

"For the most part, the cruise lines have attempted to reroute the vessels between Nassau and Grand Bahama, which has reduced possible cancellations," the ministry said in a statement released yesterday afternoon.


"The cruise lines have sought to make every effort to bring the vessels to either Nassau, Grand Bahama or the private islands, given the fact that Tropical Storm Hanna has been somewhat disorganized."

The ministry noted that requests to berth were changing constantly.

The Ministry of Tourism also reported that while hotels have indicated that some guests have made early departures, there has not been an overwhelming exodus.

"For guests who choose to remain in The Bahamas, the Ministry of Tourism and Aviation fully expects that hotels will execute their respective safety and security procedures to the benefit of their guests, as they have always done," according to the statement from the ministry.

Some travelers have opted not to visit The Bahamas until the storms have passed, but these travelers will not be adversely affected due to The Bahamas Hotel Association's hurricane cancellation policy, which allows them to cancel or postpone their visit without penalty.

"From the perspective of The Bahamas tourism industry, Tropical Storm Hanna and (Hurricane) Ike should result in minimal direct tourism losses due to the timing of the storms," said the release. "As September signals the start of Bahamian tourism's traditional 'slow' period, many smaller properties have already been closed or are preparing to close, and would not have been seeking to accommodate guests."

Meanwhile, the national flag carrier, Bahamasair, will resume normal flight schedules today following several days of cancellations to several Family Islands brought about by Tropical Storm Hanna.

And, it is expected that the airline may see even more cancellations as it prepares to put in place a plan to deal with Hurricane Ike, which is projected to hit The Bahamas as a Category 3 storm by Sunday.

The Nassau Guardian was unable to ascertain the number of flights canceled by Bahamasair or the financial impact. Bahamasair's public relations officer, Phyllis Johnson, said that information would not be available until sometime next week, as the airline was making plans for the possible onslaught of Hurricane Ike.

In the meantime, Bahamasair, announced that flights would resume today. (See Box on this page)

And, as Tropical Storm Hanna continued to affect The Bahamas yesterday, air traffic services maintained normal operations. The Nassau Airport Development Company (NAD) said that the Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) remained opened for business, even though it represented a virtual ghost town.

At the domestic terminal, many of the employees for the local charters stayed at home and flights were canceled as the storm made its erratic movements.

However, the Western Air desk was fully operational and all of their flights were scheduled to take place, but not many people were showing up because of the uncertainty of the weather.

Over on the international side, things were pretty much the same, with minimal activity in the terminal; however, the international carriers were operating on schedule.

The handful of visitors at the airport wanted to get a head start on the coming weather.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection will operate a modified Pre-Clearance schedule today, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. All flights operating prior to 8 a.m. and after 5 p.m. will post-clear at their U.S. destination port.

And both NAD and Air Traffic Services continue to monitor the progress of Hurricane Ike.

On Wednesday, Hurricane Ike exploded from a Tropical Storm to a major Category 4 hurricane which continued to intensify overnight. At 11 am Thursday, it was a Category 4 storm with winds near 145 mph, but those winds decreased by 10 miles per hour to 135 at 5 p.m. It was still a Category 4 storm last evening but was projected to weaken to a Category 3 later during the night. Ike is the fifth named hurricane of the 2008 Atlantic Hurricane season.

By KEVA LIGHTBOURNE