Darius Nabors was in an Uber to Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport near San Juan, Puerto Rico, to catch a flight home to Atlanta on Saturday morning when the driver told him that the United States had captured the Venezuelan leader, Nicolás Maduro.
Mr. Nabors, 40, who had spent New Year’s on the island, continued on to the airport, though he figured his flight would at least be delayed. At security, he said, the officer checking his documents asked if he had seen the news. Shortly after, he received confirmation that his flight, like others across the Caribbean, had been canceled.
Back in Old San Juan, Mr. Nabors said in a phone interview that he was feeling a range of emotions.
“On the one hand, you’re like, cool, I have two extra days of vacation,” he said. “On the other hand, you’re like, is this going to be seven extra days of vacation? I only brought a backpack.”
Mr. Nabors was among the potentially thousands of travelers in the Caribbean at the tail end of the holiday travel season who have been stranded by the Trump administration’s military action in Venezuela.
As travelers across the Caribbean scrambled to rebook their itineraries, Mr. Nabors said the absence of arriving visitors in San Juan meant he could check back into the hotel he’d departed just a few hours earlier.
Here’s what travelers need to know.
Why were flights canceled?
Early on Saturday, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a notice to airmen, known as a NOTAM, banning U.S. civil aircraft from operating, as the United States captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
The F.A.A. cited “safety-of-flight risks associated with ongoing military activity” as the reason for grounding the flights.
What flights were affected?
The NOTAM applies to U.S. aircraft, but planes from other countries are not bound by it.
About 60 percent of all flights destined for three popular Caribbean airports — in San Juan; St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands; and Aruba — had been canceled by around 5:30 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday, according to the website FlightAware.
In Curaçao, a small island nation off Venezuela’s northern coast, flights from the United States were canceled on Saturday. But other flights, including some from Toronto and Panama City, had arrived on time.
Caribbean Airlines, which serves U.S. cities including New York and Orlando, Fla., said on its website that its operations continued as scheduled on Saturday.
Other parts of the Caribbean appeared to be unaffected. Flights to Punta Cana, in the Dominican Republic, were mostly operating as scheduled on Saturday afternoon.
How long will U.S. flights be grounded?
It was not clear on Saturday afternoon when airlines would be able to resume normal operations in the Caribbean.
Sean Duffy, the secretary of transportation, wrote on X that the F.A.A. had “restricted the airspace in the Caribbean and Venezuela to ensure the SAFETY of the flying public.” He added that the restrictions would be lifted “when appropriate.”
Most flights into San Juan’s main international airport were canceled through about 5 a.m. Sunday, according to Flightradar24, a live air traffic site, but it’s unclear whether airlines will resume service.
What are airlines doing for travelers?
Airlines are not required to compensate travelers for cancellations that are beyond their control. They also do not have to offer vouchers for meals or pay for hotel stays.
Major U.S. carriers including American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue and United Airlines canceled flights across the Caribbean on Saturday and were working to rebook stranded passengers. The airlines said they would waive change fees for travelers scheduled to fly in or out of more than a dozen airports in the Caribbean in the coming days.
Because of the busy travel period, many people whose flights were canceled were told it could be days before they could get on a flight.
Jay Drose sat at the gate at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey on Saturday morning and watched as his United Airlines flight to Dominica, a small Caribbean island nation, got delayed further and further until it was canceled.
Mr. Drose, 40, a film producer from Jersey City, N.J., was traveling with his wife and 1-year-old daughter for what was supposed to be their annual winter getaway to the Caribbean. Not wanting to forgo their vacation, Mr. Drose booked a flight to Grand Cayman that departs on Sunday, but he wasn’t counting on it leaving as planned.
“I’ve been working hard all year long, and just really wanted the time with my family,” he said. “That’s what bums me out. It’s not about the photos. It’s just some time with my family on the beach.”
What about cruises?
There are at least 170 cruise ship ports in the Caribbean, according to Cruise Mapper, a site that monitors live locations of cruise ships all over the world.
Passengers already on ships should be unaffected. Cruise ship itineraries were operating normally in the Caribbean, according to a statement from Justin Paige, the director of communications for the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association, an industry group. The cruise lines were in contact with “global security experts and government authorities,” he said, to monitor whether any itinerary adjustments would be needed.
For people concerned about reaching their cruises if their flights have been canceled, Mr. Paige recommended contacting airlines and travel advisers ahead of time. He also said he encouraged people to get travel insurance for unexpected situations like this.
Princess Cruises, one of many cruise lines with boats scheduled to sail from San Juan on Jan. 4, said in a statement that it would delay departure until Jan. 5. Guests could still embark on Jan. 4 and stay the night in port, the cruise line added — they would receive a prorated refund for one night of their cruise fare.
Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram and sign up for our Travel Dispatch newsletter to get expert tips on traveling smarter and inspiration for your next vacation. Dreaming up a future getaway or just armchair traveling? Check out our 52 Places to Go in 2025.
Gabe Castro-Root is a travel reporter and a member of the 2025-26 Times Fellowship class, a program for journalists early in their careers.
The post What Travelers Need to Know About Canceled Flights in the Caribbean appeared first on New York Times.
