The Caribbean needs tourists. A guide to traveling there after the …

In late August and into September, there was no avoiding the images of driving rains and bowing palm trees as Hurricane Irma, and then Maria, tore through the Caribbean and made their way toward the United States. In some cases these historically powerful storms wiped out entire islands.

Aside from the heartbreaking updates from Puerto Rico, where nearly half of the population is still without electricity, there has been just a trickle of new information about recovery efforts on the other Caribbean islands, leaving vacationers wondering what to do about their winter escapes. Finding updates can be frustrating because many countries haven’t kept their websites current.

“I know it’s bad in the US Virgin Islands and St. Martin,’’ said Paul Adams, an Allston-based Web developer who was in the process of planning a trip to Havana before the storms hit. “But there are some places where you just don’t know what’s going on.’’