Stranded travelers in Jamaica face unexpected costs as Hurricane Mellissa disrupts flights and damages infrastructure. With hotels charging hefty fees, some may regret skipping travel insurance.

Jamaica has been left reeling after Hurricane Melissa tore across the island as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, leaving Montego Bay, a popular tourist destination, in ruins. New video from a Hotel Catalonia guest shows debris blanketing the ground, roofs ripped away and trees twisted and mangled from the storm’s winds.

Princess Hotels & Resorts has made its Jamaican debut this fall, opening two new all-inclusive resorts in Princess Senses The Mangrove and Princess Grand Jamaica just in time for the holidays. Located in the town of Green Island along Jamaica's northwest ...

As a Category 5 storm, Hurricane Melissa left a path of destruction across Jamaica. The worst hurricane to hit the island made landfall on Oct. 28, and resulted in devastating flooding, mudslides, power outages, and food shortages. And the effects are expected to last into the coming months.

From a beachtown hotel in Jamaica, the famous storm chaser watched Hurricane Melissa's inner eyewall approach.

Leilani Perez, of Hyde Park, is stuck on vacation in Jamaica as Hurricane Melissa pummels the country. "I'm definitely not prepared for it. So it's really just been an emotional rollercoaster. Thankfully, I'm with my mom," she said. She, her aunt, and her mother are celebrating her mother's birthday with a vacation in Ocean Coral Spring.

(Photo: A person walks down a street affected by Hurricane Melissa; in Santa Cruz, Jamaica, 30 October 2025. Credit: Orlando Barría/EPA/Shutterstock)

The storm has left 60 percent of Jamaica without electricity and some areas with up to 90 percent of roofs gone.