Shore excursion robbery in Nassau

[Steelermoose]

I have a friend that was robbed in Nassua on the Segway excursion. She said that when they were initially approached, they tour guide was "too" willing to "take one for the team." He was tied up, but some people got the impression that it was an inside job.

[hobbit81]

when i research my vacations, it is usually done with a lot of thought to various aspects; money, activities, and safety at the very least. In the case of cruises I pick ports as well. With that said, yes I would feel that the cruise I choose should stand behind any problems, within reason. No they can't "police" everything and i don't expect them to baby sit me either. i do expect that on an excursion that is backed by them that they are doing what they can to assure passengers safety. This would be the same as if I went to six flags or Disney World.

 

With that being stated, I don't expect them to be able to forsee every problem. but i do expect them to cancel any further excusions and do what is necessary to keep their passengers safe. From what i've read here, it sounds as if Carnival has done what needs to be done at this time. They offered a refund on the excursion and even gave discounts to those effected for future cruises. This is what any business would be expected to do. After further investigation they can decide if they will cease the excursion. it seems that they need to do more research on the port itself to determine if there is a higher risk there than other ports. The cruise industry is in a position to make a negative (or positive) "dent" in the finances of any port. It is a business people. As a business they have choices. As vacationers we have choices.

 

As one who has gone to Nassau, I can say that it is not one of my favorite places. This has simply reinforced my already negative opinion of the port. But that is my opionion which I formed all by myself thru my own experiences. I love to cruise. I avoid places i don't want to go, and go to those i do.

 

ok, that was my .02

[Koval]

I have a friend that was robbed in Nassua on the Segway excursion. She said that when they were initially approached, they tour guide was "too" willing to "take one for the team." He was tied up, but some people got the impression that it was an inside job.

It is funny( not really) that you say that, as I thought that very thing, as I was reading the post about what happened.

[ronniech]

A Royal Caribbean spokeswoman tells us that guests who were on the tour received a full refund of the shore excursion, complimentary calls to loved ones, follow up calls from guest services and a future cruise credit for 50 percent of the cruise fare paid; complimentary care in the medical facility would also have been available if necessary. A Disney spokeswoman says its shipboard and shoreside teams, too, "worked closely with affected passengers to make certain their needs were met and provided them with any additional assistance."

 

Its 50% off the fare paid on this particular cruise that the incident happened applied to the next future cruise, 1 complimentary call only to cancel the credit cards and after some explanation got other calls waived (more than 1 CC and to call loved ones too), 7am call to remind us that the credit card did not work (it was stolen...), ship would not issue any cash advance even though explanation that the whole family lost all their cash and credit card in the wallet ..

[jessemon]

Unfortunate what happened but...I see some saying drop the port until it straightens out....Guess that means we will have to start with new homeports here in the US...

Two weeks ago here in Tampa 4 people were murdered (not related) within 45 minutes. So let's see where we "can" cruise from....Miami, FLL, Tampa, Baltimore, NYC, Mobile, NOLA, Galveston,LA or San Diego ?????

All not good places. Just like Bahamas, Jamaica, San Juan, Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Roatan and so on and so on.....

Maybe the only thing to do is do cruises to nowhere and look at the ocean.

I think at times like this of what happened a few years ago here in the US and say to myself I will let absolutely nothing stop me from what I love to do. That includes going to the ports of call I love...

I personally would rather walk around in Nassau than many of the downtown areas I have been in in the US.....

[balcony bound]

Terrible yes. But I don't know where you folks live but here in the midwest we have just busted up a gang who have been viciously attacking people down down for the fun of it for more than 4 months, there was a mega drug bust a couple of weeks ago, and a couple was shot and killed over the weekend. I was approached by a panhandler when I stopped to run into ToyRUs, and there was a terrible accident about a week ago of a religious group and the 3 or 4 person just died.

 

Things happen all over the world, including in your back yard. I would avoid that trip, although my guess is that it is currently the safest on the island. Would these things keep me from traveling? Not on your life. If these robberies were really common then yes- it is possible to be smart without being paranoid.

 

Yes, I have had my fair share of incidents close by myself lately - a shooting (killing) in an office building nearby and yesterday a bomb threat in the building next to the one I work in.

 

We need to be careful at home, as well as traveling. Common sense and pay attention.

[cantwait06]

 

 

 

Boy did you jump right on that one. Why do you think Disney did not seem to do much. The spokes woman said they did anything and everything those pax needed. she just didn't spell it all out. They might have done even more that the other cruise line. Maybe it was the 50% future fare, you thought they should also get. Maybe they did maybe they didn't...

 

 

My comment was simply a reaction in surprise that RC did so much for their passengers, I was actually shocked that they would do so much, especially the 50% off, which I feel is really overboard. But good for those passengers. In comparison, Disney did not seem to do as much, but you're right, maybe its just that they didn't list it.

 

Personally I don't cruise on RC or Disney so I could honestly care less what either of them did or didn't do. I was simply commenting on my surprise, and my opinion, which I believe we are entitled to do.

[cantwait06]

I read about this incident on the RCCL board yesterday and someone had mentioned that Disney sent representatives to the scene right away to help while the RCCL passengers had to fend for themselves until they got back on the ship. .

 

 

Wow, thats incredible! I feel horrible for those passengers who were involved, how scarey!

[startraveler]

To me this is shocking for two reasons: while no place is 100 percent safe, I've always regarded Nassau as less dodgy than some of the other ports I've been at (without naming names, a recent cruise excursion we were on took us through streets with a fair amount of graffiti on the buildings, although in the interests of fairness, tourism is rather new for that country) and secondly, aren't there severe penalties for people who bring in even a single bullet into the country? How, then, do people have shotguns?

[allentownahoy]

My cruise will be visiting Nassau in a few weeks. Prior to this latest incident I decided to splurge and sign up thru the cruise line for the All-Inclusive at Breezes. Now I am doubly glad I did. Since it is already paid for and all inclusive I don't even need to bring my credit card or much cash on me.

[fourcruisin]

Not to slam Nassau but it just reinforces how I've have felt all along since my first, only and last visit there in 2001.

 

We took a taxi along with 5 other people from the pier to Atlantis. Made arrangements for the driver to pick us up for a return trip. On the way back, it was just the 4 of us, dh, me, dsis and dbil. We were driven through some very "scary" parts of town and all of us were very concerned for our safety. I really wasn't sure we were going to make it back to the ship.

 

I have since taken private tours or taxis in Panama, St. Thomas, Antiqua, etc and have never felt as uncomfortable as I did in Nassau.

 

I would never set foot off of the ship if I ever dock there again.

 

I certainly hope that the cruise lines are working with Bahamian officials in correcting the situation. I know things like this can happen anywhere, but I just had a very bad vibe in Nassau.

[Heirloom]

Maybe the only thing to do is do cruises to nowhere and look at the ocean.

I think at times like this of what happened a few years ago here in the US and say to myself I will let absolutely nothing stop me from what I love to do. That includes going to the ports of call I love...

I personally would rather walk around in Nassau than many of the downtown areas I have been in in the US.....

 

Uh, rather than think that foreign stops in Caribbean are "same as ports in U.S., etc, you may wish to check a bit further before solidifying all excursion plans:

 

http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/07/05/23/caribbean-now-the-worlds-murder-capital-why-and-which-islands-are-safest--amp-most-dangerous.htm

[ronniech]

I have done the Nassau Segway excursion twice. No one was mugged either time. And I did look dorky with the helmet and excessive elbow and knee pads. The tours tend to run a bit off the beaten path, but they seemed safe. The following bears repeating:

 

some update on the robbery that happened.. seems like the police caught a suspect.

 

Miller said while the tourists were robbed on BASH's property, the 18 visitors were on a tour with Caribbean Segway Tours — a company that has partnered with the rehabilitative center located on 170 acres.

He admitted yesterday that the suspect once underwent treatment at the rehabilitative center.

"The police are holding someone who was an employee of [Caribbean] Segway and was a former resident of BASH," said Miller, whose claim was confirmed by head of the Central Detective Unit Superintendent Elsworth Moss.

 

read more here

http://www.thenassauguardian.com/national_local/993065400789.php

[ronniech]

The cruiselines cant stop crimes happening but wouldn't someone have been sent from the shore excursion team to review the segway tour and did some research of the safety of that area for tourists. Even the locals knows not to venture inside.

[chachi]

I am impressed with the way RCI handled the situation.

I agree though that crime happens everywhere. I went to Nassau on a land vacation about 13 years ago. I didn't feel safe the entire time. I have been been on 3 cruises to Nassau and always book a ship excursion because I feel safer. I guess that is not the case.

[gottago2mexico]

4.6 million tourists to the Bahamas each year, with 2 million cruise passengers a year visiting Nassau.

 

2 million cruise passengers a year - about the entire population Houston, the 4th largest city in the United States. In Houston last year alone, there were 5,322 robberies. How many muggings of tourists in Nassau have you heard of - ever? Let's not overreact.

 

Of course it's always scary to hear of these things, and especially be part of them, no matter where you are, especially when you're supposed to be relaxing on vacation, but a little perspective goes a long way. Would be sad to see everyone flock to Atlantis for safety or to stay on the ship and miss having a good time because of this incident when soooo many people have a great time at the port and on the island safely every year.

 

They apparently caught one of the guys already and are expected to charge him with multiple counts:

 

http://www.thenassauguardian.com/national_local/60364307018433.php

[cruiseapril]

Whenever people travel, whether in the U.S. or elsewhere, they should read about the realities of their destinations and check out the Dept. of State comments on the various ports.

 

So many of the ports are working ports in cities -they are ports first and tourist destinations second- so we should be aware of the possibility of any problem which ports have had for centuries.

 

Having been to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Jamaica- we find Nassau pretty tame and have had good experiences there- but we do take lots of cautions in where we go and how we get there and know there is a criminal element, just as there is in most ports worldwide.

[heychadwick]

OK....so what can one do in Nassau? I'm going to be going with my family (10 yr old daughter and 4 yr old son) and we want to do something. We have absolutely no interest in Atlantis for a number of reasons.

 

Isn't there a fort or something in the port? Is it worth going to? What about private tours? I did a cruise in eastern/southern Caribbean. I researched all the independent tours and we had a great time. Is there anything like that for Nassau? Or is it just too crime ridden?

[jenelizab]

I was shot in the head with a marble fired from a high-powered air rifle while on a Carnival bus tour excursion in Peurto Rico. The marble went through two panes of security glass and hit me. Besides a big bump on my head (not a concussion, thank God) I was also pretty cut up from all the glass

 

My memory of the incident is pretty fuzzy (mostly I just remember looking at my husband sitting next to me and seeing blood all over his face, then realizing it was my blood. Freaky). However I'm sure Carnival had their van there within 20 minutes, I know I remember they were there right away. Two reps were there, an assistant cruise director and the guy from the excursions desk. They asked if I want to go to the Peurto Rico hospital or the ship hospital, of course I opted for the ship...

 

The cruise director called our room and my in-law's room twice, and offered anything we needed. They gave us three expensive excursions at the next two ports, which was awesome (the big joke in the family now when we cruise is I have to get shot at the first port). We did all these things we wouldn't have done otherwise, and I got engaged on that cruise, so overall I would not say it ruined my experience. I thought Carnival treated us pretty well, until I read what RCL offered...50 percent off a cruise would be sweet :)

 

And yeah, stuff can happen anywhere. I live in a pretty nice area of metro Detroit, and last summer two ladies were attacked while riding their bikes on a local path. But the sudden spike in crime in Nassau is unsettling. When my sister and I are there in March we're just going to do Atlantis. I will probably not sit next to the window on the bus ;)

[CanWeGoYet?]

OK....so what can one do in Nassau? I'm going to be going with my family (10 yr old daughter and 4 yr old son) and we want to do something. We have absolutely no interest in Atlantis for a number of reasons.

 

Isn't there a fort or something in the port? Is it worth going to? What about private tours? I did a cruise in eastern/southern Caribbean. I researched all the independent tours and we had a great time. Is there anything like that for Nassau? Or is it just too crime ridden?

 

There is, I had researched things just like you and really wanted to see the historical things - but ended up getting too scared by the reports of crime. I did a dolphin encounter instead - I enjoyed it but now wish I had just gone ahead with my plan A. It's a tough call with young children along - I have not heard of any more reports of crime against tourists. I know there are ships excursions and I'm sure independent tours as well - I had only planned to do a walking tour.