Is the Caribbean getting oo dangerous ?

[jody75]

Last week passengers off MSC Preziosa and P&O Britannia atttacked in Antigua.

https://antiguaobserver.com/hatton-youth-charged-for-attack-on-cruise-visitors/ 

[jimzgoldfinch]

I don’t think so. You can go anywhere in the world an encounter undesirables! 

You should not worry about places you visit but you need to be aware of your surroundings.

 

 

[Gonzo70]

28 minutes ago, jody75 said:

Last week passengers off MSC Preziosa and P&O Britannia atttacked in Antigua.

https://antiguaobserver.com/hatton-youth-charged-for-attack-on-cruise-visitors/ 

 

This is like posting an article about a mugging in Miami and asking if the US is getting oo dangerous.

[tfred]

Too dangerous? No.

 

However, the island(s) have to on guard for any perception of trouble - and that doesn't just mean bury the story.  I think that St Croix had this issue a few years back and the lines went elsewhere

 

A big part of the economy is tourist related and most tourists are not looking for rugged adventure  or to be on the look out.  St John in Antigua is a pretty crummy looking city.  I travel 100 nights a year for business and even i was looking sideways in most streets.  Who needs that on vacation?

[davekathy]

IMO, no. No matter where you are visiting know your surroundings and take all precautions your comfortable with. 

Edited February 8, 2019 by davekathy

[PTC DAWG]

I would say no.  

[KuffMUp]

I Googled cruise ship passengers crime and came up with a top 10 list.  Of those, only one was in the Caribbean (Roatan) and it was mostly about the high crime on the mainland.  While it does mention that Roatan has a higher crime rate than some other ports, the major complaints were all about the mainland.  The rest of the ports were scattered throughout the world - Indonesia, Phillipines, Turkey, etc.  And there were so few news stories on cruise ship passenger crime that the first page of results showed stories about a cruise ship passenger that was robbed onboard after winning in the casino to a 2012 story about passengers robbed in Puerto Vallarta.  The other stories were all about the one OP posted about.  If you only get those results and a 2012 story makes the front page of searches, something tells me it isn't too dangerous.

 

[BOLOCRUISE]

We have never had a problem on any island.  We have been to pretty much every island except 1 or 2.  There is crime everywhere in the world and the Caribbean I have never felt unsafe.  Never.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

If you look up crime in Caribbean ports, Antigua is usually up there.  I wouldn't avoid them, but just take extra caution.  The same with St. Lucia, Jamaica, Nassau, St. Croix, Etc.

[George C]

Every major city has crime, never felt unsafe in Caribbean in my 50 cruises and many vacations just need common sense .

[phoenix_dream]

When evaluating safety one has to look at the whole and not an individual event. When I moved into my house, not a month later there was a murder on the next street. I live in one of the safest, cleanest communities in the Chicago suburbs.  We have more churches per capita than any other city in the state. My point is that crime can happen anywhere. Unless there continues to be a trend in crime there really is no reason to be fearful on these islands

[Luvcrusn]

All in all, no, however we are very careful in Antigua and St. Lucia. The venders, tour guides and taxi drivers in Antigua are so aggressive and unrelenting that they don't accept a firm no and follow you when you keep walking. In our last visit to St. Lucia (December 2018) on a shore excursion from the ship the tour guide kept repeating to us that if venders persisted in bothering us to advise him and he'd call the local police. I would advise that in any ports, Caribbean and everywhere else you should leave valuables on the ship and be aware of your surroundings and alert for pickpockets. That's not being paranoid, but just good common sense.

[Germancruiser]

Oh no- i don´t thing so either- bad luck- at the wrong place at the wrong time- not more not less I should think! One single  dove doesn´t make a summer!

Edited February 9, 2019 by Germancruiser

[DaCruiseBug]

There's an average of 4 murders per day in Texas alone...I think you're probably ok in the Caribbean.

[Stateroom_Sailor]

3 hours ago, Luvcrusn said:

All in all, no, however we are very careful in Antigua and St. Lucia. The venders, tour guides and taxi drivers in Antigua are so aggressive and unrelenting that they don't accept a firm no and follow you when you keep walking. In our last visit to St. Lucia (December 2018) on a shore excursion from the ship the tour guide kept repeating to us that if venders persisted in bothering us to advise him and he'd call the local police. I would advise that in any ports, Caribbean and everywhere else you should leave valuables on the ship and be aware of your surroundings and alert for pickpockets. That's not being paranoid, but just good common sense.

 

I got hustled in St Lucia, taking an officially licensed taxi tour, at one of the lookout sights with private venders.  A guy snuck a necklace around my neck, and demanded payment.  "Don't you take that off!  Pay me something fair!"  The other people started to back up, appearing afraid of this guy, as he pointed at me.  I initially stood my ground, confused by the situation, but was not about to reach for my wallet.  He then said, "Give me your iced water then."  He got my Carnival cup full of iced water as a tradeoff.  Still was unsettling, and we've taken higher caught ion ever since, especially in ports that higher percentages of problems.

[Edinburghgirl1]

I felt more unsafe in Miami than I ever have in the Caribbean. 

[yorky]

There are parts of Jamaica you certainly do need to be very careful in, our driverdid not even want to let us out the van at one point to take video.  We’ve been to the Caribbean though many times with only one issue in St Lucia when we took a wrong turn in the capital along with an elderly couple. Money asked for, a machete in one hand, and us moving very quickly in the opposite direction on the advice of other locals.

[Presto2]

I imagine that the Caribbean is like anywhere we cruise - we just take care as if we were in the middle of a big city.

Nowhere is 100% safe -- just the way it is sadly.

[yorky]

People sometimes go to the Caribbean and just see this idyllic island and forget, or are  not aware that many people there are living in poverty. Cruise passengers are all seen as being rich and in reality next to the average islander they are. That is always going to leave individuals open to risk and the average age of cruise passengers does increase that risk. As with anywhere else in the world there is a small percentage of people that are looking to take advantage, that starts right from the moment you disembark the ship with vendors, taxi drivers, tours, and then on to individuals as you move further inland. Sadly there are some cruisers that go into holiday mode and let their guard down. That’s what these individuals are looking for.

[PelicanLvr]

REALLY - People think the Caribbean is too dangerous?

 

That's great because that will cause cruise prices to drop for the rest of us who just know to use common sense.

 

 

[gerelmx]

The cruise ships are sailing at full capacity and prices are rising.

[evandbob]

Most USA port cities have higher crime rates than most Caribbean Islands.  It is always a shame to hear of tourists becoming victims where ever they go on vacation.