Is Nassau really that bad?

[3dog]

IMO, it isn't that the town is bad or unsafe (or at least any worse than any other town you will likely visit in that region), but the town isn't very large doesn't offer much unique excitement. If there are lots of ships in port, the town can get quite crowded.

 

Add to this that the return access to the ship is not very efficient, the crowds can quickly overwhelm the port authorities, and the time it takes to get back to the ship can be as long as the time it takes to visit the town.

[impatientlywaiting]

Been to Nassau one time and in the camp where I wouldn't get off the ship again, unless I had a scheduled tour/activity. We took one of those self-guided walking tours and abandoned it halfway through due to it taking us too far from the tourist area and feeling unsafe. The tourist area was miserable as well, so many pushy vendors, people were chasing me down the street and trying physically put their hands on us to get us to stop.

 

We didn't take a self-guided tour, just got off the ship long enough to buy a piece of jewelry we wanted and had a coupon for. There were 6 other ships in port that day and it was so crowded you could hardly walk. The streets were so packed with cars they couldn't even drive an inch forward. It was ridiculous. We got our jewelry as quickly as we could and got back on the ship fast. Then we enjoyed the quiet and empty ship for the rest of the day! :D

[Gopherpharm]

I agree. To us, I don't think Nassau is that bad as much as it's just not that good.

 

Exactly.

I'd rather spend a day in Nassau than a day at work :) but- it is a port people get tired of since so many cruises go there, and the activity options are limited compared to many other ports. The water is pretty, but the other scenery is not extra special.

Edited April 28, 2015 by Gopherpharm

[m*u*g*]

To answer your question----Yes.

[TBone2K]

Everyone seems somewhat supportive of Nassau, but I'd like to give the other viewpoint.

 

DW and I don't like pushy vendors. We are very leery of our personal space. In the last times we actually got off the ship in Nassau we found you couldn't get outside the port without people getting in your face. Made us feel unsafe. We avoided going outside the port in Falmouth for the same reason.

 

The last excursions we tried were very poor and again we felt we were getting dumped off in the middle of a bunch of pushy vendors. That and every stop had a different "tour guide" who had their hand out for tips at the end, and we could barely understand what some of them were saying.

 

Not being beach people, the only thing I've ever found that was interesting was the flamingo parade at Adastra Gardens.

 

Not that we have seen a lot of ports, but we have very much enjoyed every other place we have been, including exploring on our own.

 

Next stop in Nassau is this August on Oasis, so we'll put off exploring the ship until everyone is off and maybe see if there are any port day specials we can enjoy.

[bluegirlum]

Exactly.

I'd rather spend a day in Nassau than a day at work :) but- it is a port people get tired of since so many cruises go there, and the activity options are limited compared to many other ports. The water is pretty, but the other scenery is not extra special.

 

Agreed.

 

I've stopped in Nassau at least 6 times. I've stopped there a few times as a solo (female) traveler and have never felt unsafe walking around the port area. I just kept my head down and walked by the vendors and had no problems. My friend and I went to Senor Frogs and had a blast. I also did a land-based vacation there for a week with some friends and it was fine. Kind of boring, but relaxing.

 

My favorite ship happens to be Majesty, and all its cruises go through Nassau. It is what it is. You can certainly find something fun to do there.

[OCruisers]

The time of year is a big factor to us.

Nassau can be somewhat chilly in the winter month with downright cold water temperatures.

No matter what time of year, we don't go roaming around alone after dust.

LuLu

[grandgeezer]

We avoid Nassau. We find it dirty and run down and some of the street peddlers are rude. We've been there three times and on all three trips people have approached us on the street trying to sell us illegal drugs. Dominica is a little shady otherwise we like all the other ports in the Caribbean.

[Editrix]

We really enjoyed our time in Nassau last month on the Serenade. We took a tour with Tru Bahamian Food Tours, and thought it was excellent. See posts 24 and 25: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2190166

 

Same here. My husband and I loved the Tru Bahamian Food Tour.

[Dead-metal]

It's grotty and the locals try and pressure you into buying their tat.

[Jenhem31]

We've given Nassau 2 chances and one of them was at Atlantis. I think it's a dump. (Both) Pushy, rude vendors and just an overall sketchy feeling. We will stay on the ship from now on.

[LuCruise]

I'm looking forward to Nassau but I wish the ship was in port for longer as it's only there from 7am - 2pm (and we won't be getting off at 7am, nor would beaches be warm at that hour.

[LMaxwell]

We don't find it bad at all. We've been there many times, go to some nice places to eat, and still find some interesting touring to do. Recently did the John Watling's rum distillery tour.

That's a nice little free tour and good walk. Far enough to work off cruise food but not too far.

 

I used to really dislike Nassau and it still isn't my top choice but as I end up there more and more I find something to do and avoid high pressure tourist traps. It's an "ok" port.

[cougfan]

We went on our first Caribbean cruise in March. We had a good time in Nassau. We walked from the ship to Ardastra Gardens and saw the Marching Flamingos, toured the zoo/gardens and then walked back to see the Pirate Museum. We did a little shopping, not by the port and then went back to the ship. There were four other ships in port so it was a little crowded right by the port but we had no problem with pushy vendors, we just kept our heads down and walked fast. Our ship (Serenade) was there from 1PM to midnight, we were back on the ship by 6PM and didn't go out after dark.

[John&LaLa]

Do not make eye contact

Don't let them see fear

[mjnelson]

If you want to find out about Nassau, go to the us government transportation site and you will find it there. There have been many shootings, rapes, robberies there. We have been many times before with no problems.

[jojokay]

Following

[TBone2K]

Following

 

No need to do this. Just go to the Thread Tools box at the top of the messages and choose "subscribe".

[fuddhist1]

My wife and I booked a cigar tour at the Graycliff while we're their in October. Anyone else done this? If so, How is it?

[pbxtech]

We enjoyed our Bahamian Food Tour we took 2 weeks ago. Got a tour of the City and also very good food.

[MSseawind]

I have been to Nassau on several cruises. I think it is just like everywhere else ... just pay attention to your surroundings. We've done excursions, we've gone off on our own, we've even used the public transportation. It is one of my favorite ports, and we've been treated with nothing but respect and kindness by the residents.

[MSseawind]

My wife and I booked a cigar tour at the Graycliff while we're their in October. Anyone else done this? If so, How is it?

 

My husband and I did this last year. It was very nice, we both enjoyed it.

[Chillidog]

We are back from the fantasy out of charleston and had a great time in nassau. Took our 9 year old grandson to cable beach and rode the city bus out. Did the beach for free. On our way back to the ship had lunch at scans in town. Really nice.

[bigboffs]

This is an article written by Jim Walker, an attorney who specializes in cruise law issues

 

> Crime > 8th Violent Crime Warning for the Bahamas in 16 Months

 

8th Violent Crime Warning for the Bahamas in 16 Months

 

Posted on May 15, 2015 by Jim Walker jwalker@cruiselaw.com

Comments

 

Nassau Bahamas The U.K.'s Foreign and Commonwealth Office has issued "foreign travel advice" for travelers to the Bahamas. The U.K. crime warning says:

 

"There have been incidents of violent crime including robbery, which is often armed and sometimes fatal, in residential and tourist areas of New Providence, Grand Bahamas and Freeport. The number of break-ins and robbery incidents reported to the High Commission has increased. There are police patrols in the main tourist areas.

 

Be vigilant at all times and don’t walk alone away from the main hotels, tourist areas, beaches and downtown Nassau, particularly after dark. Take care if travelling on local bus services after dusk on routes away from the main tourist areas. Do not carry large amounts of cash or jewellery. Robbers may be armed."

 

I [Jim Walker] first learned of the crime warning from Travel Weekly.

 

Incredibly, this is the eighth crime warning for the Bahamas in the last 16 months.

 

In 2014, Bahamas was the subject of four critical crime warnings to U.S. citizens (one from the U.S. State Department and three from the U.S. Embassy) and one warning from Canada. There have been 2 prior crime warnings from the U.S. for the Bahamas this year. With this latest U.K. warning, that's a total of 8 warnings.

 

I [Jim Walker] have never heard any country being the recipient of 8 crime warnings in such a short time period. The U.S. warnings are much more specific, mentioning that U.S. tourists have been raped and robbed at gunpoint.

 

We [Jim Walker] last wrote about the sorry state of affairs in the Bahamas earlier this month. We [Jim Walker] received a number of interesting comments to the article. Many people avoid a cruise itinerary which includes the Bahamas, or they stay on the cruise ship when it reaches Nassau.

 

I [Jim Walker] picked Nassau as the most dangerous cruise destination in the world last year.

 

Photo Credit: Bahamas B2B

[DKane]

Try reading their local newspaper before you go and look for any tourist targeted crimes.