Riding out the storm

MIAMI — Terrorist attacks. Stomach viruses. SARS. Recession. War in Iraq. After bouncing back from such ordeals, the cruise industry says the hurricanes roiling the seas this year are only a minor problem.

No. 1 Carnival Corp. and No. 2 Royal Caribbean Cruises are taking a hit to their bottom lines because of Hurricane Frances, which forced them to cancel sailings and offer refunds. But the lines — which control more than two-thirds of the $15 billion-a-year cruise industry — still expect a healthy profit.

“We’ll get through it. The nice thing about our business is it’s resilient,” said Howard Frank, vice chairman and chief operating officer of Miami-based Carnival, which operates 12 brands, including Cunard and Princess.

Hurricane Charley tore through Florida Aug. 13, Frances struck three weeks later, and Ivan is now churning a deadly path through the Caribbean.

Ships are fast enough to stay out of hurricanes’ paths, said Jack Williams, Royal Caribbean’s president and chief operating officer.

Nevertheless, the storms have prompted the cruise lines to cancel trips, change routes and keep thousands of passengers at sea several days longer than planned because Florida ports were closed. Some vacationers were offered full or partial refunds or shipboard credits.

For travelers thinking of canceling their vacations because of the hurricanes, Williams has a word of advice: “If you want to take a really nice vacation, take it during hurricane season and go behind a hurricane. You’ll have really great weather.”