In September 2017, Shawn and Joelle, along with eight of their friends and family members, were getting packed and ready to head to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic<\/a><\/span>, for a six-night vacation in an Inspirato luxury vacation home<\/span><\/a>. At the same time, a tropical storm was starting to brew in the eastern Caribbean \u2014 and was strengthening by the day.<\/p>\n Knowing that the storm could impact the Hodges\u2019 vacation, their Member Care team at Inspirato headquarters and their on-site concierge, Lourdes in Punta Cana, offered some guidance prior to the Hodges\u2019 arrival. The storm was still in early stages, its path and power still unknown.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was too early to make a call, so the team kind of left it up to us,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cThey did a great job of risk analysis and telling us what our options are: we could cancel and reschedule for another time, or go ahead and move forward. Based on the information we had, we thought we could go ahead with the trip.\u201d<\/p>\n The Hodges and their guests arrived in Punta Cana as planned on Friday, September 15, and enjoyed a weekend of activities and relaxation. But while the group was enjoying their time in paradise, the budding storm continued to intensify, becoming Tropical Storm Maria on Saturday, September 16. Though Maria was still hundreds of miles from the Hodges, its sheer size and strength was beginning to post a threat to the Dominican Republic.<\/p>\n \u201cEverything was going just unbelievably well, and then on Monday, I get a text from my Member Care team, advising about the storm,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cIt had gotten more serious, and we needed to start seriously considering our options.\u201d’<\/p>\n The group researched options for leaving early, just in case Maria made its way toward the Dominican Republic (at this point it was a Category 5 hurricane, the strongest storm classification possible, and had made landfall on the island nation of Dominica). The on-site team had already begun preparing the residence \u2014 boarding up windows and moving patio furniture inside \u2014 but they also made sure the Hodges\u2019 and their guests were prepared, too.<\/p>\n\n\n \u201cThis is where Inspirato really just did an awesome job,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cThey went to the grocery store and got extra food and candles, with the assumption that we wouldn\u2019t have power. Our chef prepared extra meals thinking we might be out of food for two or three days\u2026 and they got us certain additional libations to help calm our nerves,\u201d Shawn added with a laugh.<\/p>\n By Tuesday, with Maria moving ever closer to Punta Cana, the Hodges\u2019 Member Care team started sending hourly updates on the storm\u2019s progress and began searching for flights off the island; they even booked one on behalf of the Hodges only to have it cancelled by the airline at the last minute.<\/p>\n \u201cThe support our concierge and the team provided was all fantastic,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cThey were ready to hire a shuttle service to take us to another part of the island which was not directly in the storm\u2019s path, where there was another airport. They were even looking for a private charter flight that could come down to pick us up. The fact that they were giving us real-time updates on everything really put our minds at ease.\u201d<\/p>\n With no immediate way to get off the island, the Hodges\u2019 on-site concierge team rescheduled their activities and reservations, in case they would be in Punta Cana for an extended period of time. \u201cOn top of everything they were doing, they wanted to be sure we were still having a good time. It was all seamless,\u201d Shawn said.<\/p>\n Hurricane Maria continued on its path toward the Dominican Republic, bringing heavy rain and powerful wind that knocked down trees throughout the community. Even so, the team\u2019s commitment to the Hodges endured. \u201cDuring the middle of the hurricane, we had the housekeeping service at three in the morning squeegeeing the water out of the courtyard so it didn\u2019t get in the house,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cThey were still checking in on us and doing turndown service while all of our windows were boarded up.\u201d<\/p>\n The Hodges\u2019 residence briefly lost power, but rather than a headache, that night became one of the group\u2019s favorite memories. \u201cThe 10 of us were sitting around the kitchen without power playing board games by candlelight. We truly enjoyed it,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cFor me personally, it was the best part of the trip.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n By late Wednesday afternoon, conditions were still preventing flights from leaving the island. The Hodges\u2019 original plan had been to leave early, but all told, they ended up staying in Punta Cana an additional night to wait out the weather. \u201cInspirato was awesome about it. They said, safety first, don\u2019t worry about paying for another night, just stay there,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cWe were able to stay one more night. Inspirato was just so classy about it.\u201d<\/p>\n On Friday, September 22, the Hodges and their guests departed Punta Cana and made it home. Looking back, Shawn says the support that Inspirato was able to provide turned what could have been an epic nightmare into one of their most memorable vacations. In fact, Shawn and Joelle are planning to return to the Caribbean \u2014 to Grand Cayman<\/a><\/span> \u2014 with Inspirato next year (with a ski trip sometime before then).<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve never experienced something like this before. It ended up being a cool bucket list thing now that we know the outcome, but going into it we had a little trepidation,\u201d Shawn said. \u201c When we were taken care of as well as we were taken of, being supported by Inspirato, it really put our mind at ease.\u201d<\/p>\n That peace of mind<\/span> was one of the main reasons the Hodges were attracted to Inspirato in the first place.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are extremely busy and like to take vacations,\u201d Shawn said. \u201cI think having the experience of a true vacation is much more memorable than planning it. Inspirato comes to the table having already vetted the homes and the quality, and you know you\u2019re going to get great service. We\u2019ve been on five Inspirato trips and every one of them has exceeded expectations, when we book travel we know that we can do it around wherever Inspirato is located.\u201d<\/p>\n We are happy to report that no Inspirato Members, on-site teammates, or their families were harmed during any of 2017\u2019s hurricanes, but some of the club\u2019s most beloved destinations suffered major damage. To contribute to relief efforts, visit the Red Cross<\/a><\/span>, and to learn more about traveling with certainty and personalized care with Inspirato, read why Inspirato members value the Club<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":587,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"hero_unit_image_id":514,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[52,165,100],"class_list":["post-580","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-people","tag-inspirato","tag-inspirato-care","tag-service"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/inspirato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hurricane_map.jpg\")
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<\/p>\nThe team had a really calming presence about them and were making sure everyone was okay.<\/blockquote>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/inspirato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hurricane_residence.jpg\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/inspirato.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hurricane_group1.jpg\")
<\/p>\nInspirato went above and beyond for me as a member as well as the friends who came along with us.<\/blockquote>
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