Caution needed at Labadee's Barefoot Beach

We just returned from a 10 day cruise on Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas. The first stop was Labadee, Haiti where my wife injured her foot on sea urchins in the shallow water of Barefoot Beach. It ruined the holiday for her - our first cruise. There were no ropes marking off the area in which rocks and sea urchins were located, no staff were at the beach warning people to be cautious and nothing was mentioned about this in the daily news sheet. Staff at the beach who first treated her said she was the sixth or seventh individual who had had encountered similar problems that morning. So be VERY CAUTIOUS if entering the water there. Never go barefoot into the waters of Barefoot Beach. :(

So sorry to hear about your wife's injury. I hope she is feeling better.

You never know what is in or under the sand, so beach shoes are a must.

I always try to remember to wear water shoes on the beach. You just never know what you will step on.

You sure you are talking about Barefoot Beach....that is the new SUITE ONLY area....I was there is Dec and it was soft sand all over...no rocks that I remember.

yup...soft sand.....been there done that....

:eek::rolleyes::D

It's nature........not a pool that one can control............I have gotten stung by jellyfish at CocoCay and didnt blame RCCL for not posting warnings........You go in the ocean and there are all sorts of critters in there........sorry it ruined your trip

I don't think the OP is blaming RCI. He's warning others to be careful in that area. If his wife was the 6th or 7th person injured, then the area should have been roped off or a staff member should have been in the area warning others.

not a cheerleader for any cruise line......however, you are going into the ocean....expect some kind of wildlife. To expect an area to be roped off, a sign, warnings on the compass is a little much.....like expecting written warnings that coffee is hot. We have tons of urchins down here...they are easy to see, and don't look like anything that you would want to put your bare foot down on. Sorry it ruined your trip....however if you want guarantees about the local wild life.....maybe it would be best to stick with the pools? Hoping the pictures you took will bring fond memories of the other parts of your cruise.

We were at Labadee last week and after reading posts thank goodness I took our water shoes. We were at the beach where the zip line is and I can tell you the shoes were a god send. Alot of people just gave up and stayed on the beach. There was alot of rock and coral as you enter the water. We ended up having a wonderful time!:)

I'm stunned at most of the responses. The OP provides a warning of a serious situation and it seems that all most people can do is suggest that the OP was somehow negligent.

To the OP, I hope your wife is better now, I know that some sea urchin stings can be quite bad. I'm surprised the there were no warnings but sea urchin infestations can come about overnight.

On a snorkeling excursion last year in Antigua we were warned several times not to touch or even approach the black sea urchins. Apparently the sting is quite poisonous. Sadly they are destroying the reefs there.

It is unfortunate that you were not aware of the potential dangers on Caribbean beaches. Sea urchins are the least of these and water shoes are a must unless you know for a fact that the beach is entirely safe.

Gosh, I can remember warnings to wear water shoes at Labadee for as long as I've been on these boards. Wouldn't think of going without them. To the OP - sorry this happened to your wife - hope she's doing much better now.

I've always had such good luck with Barefoot Beach, I never think of using the water shoes. Learn something new everyday. I'm sorry your wife was hurt.

I've always had such good luck with Barefoot Beach, I never think of using the water shoes. Learn something new everyday. I'm sorry your wife was hurt.

We were at Labadee last week and after reading posts thank goodness I took our water shoes. We were at the beach where the zip line is and I can tell you the shoes were a god send. Alot of people just gave up and stayed on the beach. There was alot of rock and coral as you enter the water. We ended up having a wonderful time!:)

This is exactly why I think the OP is confused.....Barefoot is not rocky...however thats NOT the case for Dragon Tail Beach where the zip-line is.

I agree with you Pirate Steve about Dragon's Tail Beach, I think Doc Martin's would be better than even water shoes on that beach.

Thanks OP for spreading the word. I read on CC about the urchins before my first trip to Labadee. We brought tevas to wear in the water, watched 3 people that stepped on them that day. This was Hideaway beach quite a few years ago. Sorry it dampered your wife's vacation.

Wow, thanks for the warning, I never knew, and I'm pretty thorough about planning.

The sarcastic responses are completely uncalled for especially in view of the fact that tons of posters who come on here have no clue what they are even going to do in port, never mind 'research the wildlife'. You gotta be kidding me.

Wow, thanks for the warning, I never knew, and I'm pretty thorough about planning.

 

The sarcastic responses are completely uncalled for especially in view of the fact that tons of posters who come on here have no clue what they are even going to do in port, never mind 'research the wildlife'. You gotta be kidding me.

I agree completely...anything can happen. The original poster was just trying to help. Water shoes are out # packing item. Hubby has bad feet and if he would even step on a rock the wrong way it could ruin his vacation.

I never go in the water without my water shoes after being stung be a sea urchin on NCL's private island. It was over a month before I was able to put full weight on my foot again.

Encounters with sea urchins can be very painful and worsen as the days go along making it almost impossible to walk. I know.

When it happened to us, a scuba diver told us of a little trick to remove the barb. WARNING: trick is a little disgusting. If somebody pees on it, it'll back out far enough that you can grab it and pull it out. Now, that sounds pretty straight forward...but the pee-er has to focus so as to not spray the pee-ee. If he or she is laughing while they are performing this necessary function, you can end up with a soaked leg, a wet bathroom floor, and a deflated dignity. But the dang barb does come out.

Lesson? Wear water shoes or travel with a very, VERY serious person who does not see the humor in such a situation.

Encounters with sea urchins can be very painful and worsen as the days go along making it almost impossible to walk. I know.

 

When it happened to us, a scuba diver told us of a little trick to remove the barb. WARNING: trick is a little disgusting. If somebody pees on it, it'll back out far enough that you can grab it and pull it out. Now, that sounds pretty straight forward...but the pee-er has to focus so as to not spray the pee-ee. If he or she is laughing while they are performing this necessary function, you can end up with a soaked leg, a wet bathroom floor, and a deflated dignity. But the dang barb does come out.

 

Lesson? Wear water shoes or travel with a very, VERY serious person who does not see the humor in such a situation.

Thank you for my early morning laugh!:) The images in my mind are priceless. First time I heard of this was on Survivor!!!

We just returned from a 10 day cruise on Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas. The first stop was Labadee, Haiti where my wife injured her foot on sea urchins in the shallow water of Barefoot Beach. It ruined the holiday for her - our first cruise. There were no ropes marking off the area in which rocks and sea urchins were located, no staff were at the beach warning people to be cautious and nothing was mentioned about this in the daily news sheet. Staff at the beach who first treated her said she was the sixth or seventh individual who had had encountered similar problems that morning. So be VERY CAUTIOUS if entering the water there. Never go barefoot into the waters of Barefoot Beach. :(

I have been to Labadee twice and have seen signs at all the beaches warning guests to enter the water at their own risk. Signs say that sea urchins, jelly fish and barracuda inhabit the waters. Maybe those signs have been removed now?

do I wnat to know what "urchins" and "barracuda" are?

Is it safe to google it or will some crazy creepy pictures show up?

Oh, and are Tevas good as water shoes?

I don't have water shoes, and don't have Tevas, but those I could wear outside the water too...

do I wnat to know what "urchins" and "barracuda" are?

Is it safe to google it or will some crazy creepy pictures show up?

 

 

Oh, and are Tevas good as water shoes?

I don't have water shoes, and don't have Tevas, but those I could wear outside the water too...

Barracuda are large fish with teeth that bite. Sea Urchins are small spiney animals that people most commonly step on. Because of their spines they can be very painful if stepped on.

We actually saw a barracuda in the water at Labadee last week. It was about 12 inches long but didn't want a thing to do with us.:)

i don't think that people were calling the OP negligent....but honestly.....it wasn't the urchin's fault that someone stepped on it. I find it odd that people come here to research the cruise, from does anyone have pictures of my cabin, to the menus, and if it is really worth it to dine at Portofino, not do the same research on their destinations. There have been many threads on here about including shore/water shoes....check out the shoe thread! What I commented on was the implication that the cruise line SHOULD have warned the OP in someway. Is it terrible that the OP stepped on the urchin???? Yes for them and the poor urchin.....i'm sure that ruined there stay at barefoot bay as well. It is one thing to post a warning about a bad experience....it is another to suggest that the cruise line did not do their job by alerting passengers about the evil urchins, or what ever may be in the water. By the way....barracuda will not bite unless provoked. There have been rare occasions of a barracuda biting a person after seeing a flash of light off of a watch or other jewelry. They think it is a fish. If you are uncomfy at the thought.....leave the jewelry in the safe.