Charles4515

It was closed for business a couple of days because of nearby gunfire. That means no public office hours. Don’t go to apply for a visa etc. That is what closed means. That does not mean the Embassy has closed. There is still a US Embassy in Haiti.

The US Embassy has not been closed.

Is that doctor a dermatologist? It does not seem like one short use of a hot tub would cause a reaccuring rash. More likely something in her home or her immune system is the culprit.

Again if you are scared of going to Labadee don’t book a cruise that goes near there. Simple. I think some have booked cruises with Labadee as port and now regret it and are hoping RCI cancels the port. Don’t be scared. If there is a problem or potential problem RCI will divert.

Royal Caribbean has been calling at Labadee since 1986. They lease it. 36 years. My first time there was in 1995 and I have been there 9 times. One protest in 2016. It was a one off. JMHO there is nothing to worry about. Royal will cancel the stop if there is a threat real or imagined. But if you are anxious or scared about Labadee don’t book a cruise that calls there. Simple. No one is forcing anyone.

There were numerous media reports. This is from Royal Caribbean Blog ( not affiliated with RCI) which quotes the Royal Caribbean statement. Cruise Critic member Nado44 estimated there were 10 motorized and colorful island watercraft carrying about 15-20 protesters each. Several non motorized row boaters also joined in. The protests appear to be a result of protests as a result of local elections. Royal Caribbean offered this statement regarding the situation in Labadee. Today, when Freedom of the Seas arrived to Labadee, Haiti, the ship encountered a number of locals in small boats staging a protest. Although this protest was peaceful in nature, it was clear that if the protest continued, there would be a significant impact on our guests’ ability to enjoy Labadee. Therefore, Royal Caribbean cancelled Freedom of the Seas’ port call to Labadee. Instead, the ship will remain at sea and call to Falmouth, Jamaica, tomorrow, as planned. We will continue to closely monitor the situation and are in close communication with local and government officials in Haiti. At this time, we have not made any decisions regarding future port calls to Labadee. The next schedule call is Navigator of the Seas, on Thursday, January 21.

They diverted because they did not want passengers to see it and get upset not because there was any threat. A good percentage of passengers are scared of anything not comfortable middle class America. People who don't travel abroad much. This was discussed in much detail at the time on Cruise Critic.

Haiti has always been a failed state. The main reason has been foreign intervention. Foreign intervention has happened many times. Why Kenya? Because of politics. It looks better if Kenya is the proxy. US and UN interventions that happened were disasters.

One day a number of years ago some Haitans on a few small boats staged a non violent political protest and held up some signs. Hardly an incident. There was no threat to the ship or passengers. Royal Caribbean simply cancelled the stop. Which proves that Royal Caribbean is not going to take any chances but mostly they did not want passsngers to see a protest.

There are minibuses that charge $7 per person per ride to Horseshoe. The minibuses shuttle back and forth between the Dockyard and Horseshoe. There are also plenty of taxis. That would be about $32 each way. Certainly either is a better option than you were planning with the sold out transfers uness you had OBC. There are public buses. Bermuda has an extensive public bus and ferry system. The public bus service is definitly on the government website. It ia a major government service. The private minibuses that shuttle to Horseshoe or a taxi are a better way to go to Horseshoe than the public bus if you are only going to Horseshoe. Minibuses and taxis can drop off and pick up at the beach while public bus stop requires a walk down and up a steep hill.

You get what you pay for. If you cruise on cruise lines that have more public space passengers are less likely to be fighting over the chairs. That said there are chair hogs on all the mainstream cruise lines. Why was there a probem with uncouth passengers on Carnival? I have experienced that there seems to be some kind of reverse effect. Those who pay the least often demand the most.

I don't really understand you reply. A budget cruise line like Carnival that has lower fares has more passengers crowded into less public spaces. That is one of the ways they can charge lower fares. So passengers will be sharing the pool area with more people. You were the one who singled out Carnival.

September is the peak of hurricane season. Mid September is when hurricanes are most likely.

Most on Celebrity comply with the requested dress but I have seen them. I don’t stand at the host stand and watch. When people leave the tables at the end of dinner I have seen them in shorts when they stand up, They got seated somehow. If they show up in shorts and are told no they can go back to their cabin and change. I would not consider that a consequence. Not the end of the world.

There are no rules or regulations except wear shoes and a shirt. There are dress suggestions. As many people have observed there don't seem to be any consequences for not following the suggestions.

There is no reason for people to post they were docked because docking is scheduled and continues to happen. None has posted they were diverted because no cruises have been diverted but that seems to make some unhappy because it is either not what they expected or what they want to happen because they think it is unsafe. Despite what they want that Royal continues to call at Labadee without incident and never has had an incident. If the situation ever warrants it Royal will divert. They are not going to dock billion dollar ships and unload thousands of passengers if it is unsafe.

What kind of update do you expect? Ships have been calling at Labadee as usual. There is no reason for them to stop. On another thread a poster posted pictures from this morning. The fearmongers here probably check their horoscopes before getting out of bed in the morning.

How do you know they slept until noon? I have been on over 60 cruises and no one ever tried that. I do cruise on lines that have plenty of chairs. I noticed early on the Carnival and NCL had a lot of tables and chairs on the lido deck where there could have been lounge chairs, so fewer chairs. Celebrity, Royal Caribbean and Princess had more lounge chairs. Don’t know if newer Carnival and NCL ships are still the same because I stay away from budget cruise lines these days. Perhaps you need to stop cruising Carnival. Maybe it is Carnival passengers that are the problem.

If you have more than one day go to Horseshoe one day and Hamilton the other day. Shuttles or taxi to Horseshoe and ferry the other day to Hamilton. If only one day go to Horseshoe in the morning and shop at the Dockyard a couple of hours before your ship leaves. There is shopping at the Dockyard..

I have been getting a couple of offers every week. I was not getting them for a long time then they started up.I was getting a mailing every other day and now they have dropped off to a couple a week. I don't know what is in the glossy mailers as they go straight to the trash bin in our mailroom. Mailers from any cruise line are wasted on me. I think Oceania's demographic likes glossy mailers. When I am ready to book I go online to Oceanias website. I think what is probably happening is they use an algorithm. If you have not booked in a while they send a spurt of mailings.

Great info in your post. As you said you have to know how to use your phone though. But also remembering what to to do when. That is the catch and I know that from questions I get from family, friends and neighbors there is a whole range of savvy to clueless. I have one family member who never remembers to end their call.

I have been on many cruises and it has ever happened to me. Probably because I am not a chair hog….. If people with me are on a toilet run and someone asks if the chair is free they always accepted my answer. Maybe because I don’t act bothered that they asked?

And the bottle of wine will likely be better than the wine on the Celebrity happy hour list.

Thanks for posting your experience and recommendation we need more of that but you did not post how to reserve a tour with Millard.

Thanks. It has been awhile so I didn't know if she had made any changes.