Nassau Blue Lagoon Excursion Safety Warning

[TravelBluebird]

6 hours ago, Cap_D said:

No doubt many will want to scrub this info from the Web so as to preserve the economic engine that this excursion has been, and avoid doubt about ferries operated at ports of call.  Very tragic. 

 

Won’t be scrubbed; nearly every cruise YouTube channel (including mine) had done a video on the accident.

 

Its important information—will it get excursion operators in the Bahamas and Caribbean overall to pay more attention to safety?  Will it get the Cruise Lines to vet their excursion operators better? I don’t know, but its a start letting as many cruisers know about this tragedy as possible.

[Cap_D]

1 hour ago, TravelBluebird said:

 

Won’t be scrubbed; nearly every cruise YouTube channel (including mine) had done a video on the accident.

 

Its important information—will it get excursion operators in the Bahamas and Caribbean overall to pay more attention to safety?  Will it get the Cruise Lines to vet their excursion operators better? I don’t know, but its a start letting as many cruisers know about this tragedy as possible.

Actually my post with links to YT and a news site that is a lot like "bee"  hive was taken down about 21 minutes ago. I wonder if Blue Lagoon has a PR firm helping them?  In any event, my post without links was:

 

The reports speak for themselves.  Every board should have info about this tragedy, safety issues with excursions and especially Blue Lagoon. Some reports are this was a Royal Caribbean sold trip, though it's well known Blue Lagoon is sold by many cruise lines, does a big influencer push, and is sold by Celebrity.  No doubt many will want to scrub this info from the Web so as to preserve the economic engine that this excursion has been, and avoid doubt about ferries operated at ports of call.  Very tragic. 

[SusieAV8R]

6 hours ago, Cap_D said:

Just noting that at least my posts and a few others were moved from the Celebrity board.  Hopefully these are found by anyone considering Nassau excursions or ferry/tender operators and resellers generally.  

Yes, I clicked on the "moved to Bahamas" link and am now reading all the postings on this thread.

[vacationlover_mn]

I went in this morning, and none of the Blue Lagoon Excursions are showing for my Feb Mariner cruise.  It’s still showing my excursion as booked, but I think I’ll cancel.

[Scottdalfonso]

11 hours ago, Cap_D said:

Actually my post with links to YT and a news site that is a lot like "bee"  hive was taken down about 21 minutes ago. I wonder if Blue Lagoon has a PR firm helping them?  In any event, my post without links was:

 

The reports speak for themselves.  Every board should have info about this tragedy, safety issues with excursions and especially Blue Lagoon. Some reports are this was a Royal Caribbean sold trip, though it's well known Blue Lagoon is sold by many cruise lines, does a big influencer push, and is sold by Celebrity.  No doubt many will want to scrub this info from the Web so as to preserve the economic engine that this excursion has been, and avoid doubt about ferries operated at ports of call.  Very tragic. 

It made my local news here in Philadelphia, as I'm sure it did all over the country

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

5 hours ago, vacationlover_mn said:

I went in this morning, and none of the Blue Lagoon Excursions are showing for my Feb Mariner cruise.  It’s still showing my excursion as booked, but I think I’ll cancel.

Yeah, I'd been eyeing one for my Feb Anthem cruise, but even if they come back on-line, it's a hard pass for me.

[vacationlover_mn]

On a related note- I am cruising with my mom next month, and she can’t swim in deep water (she panics if she thinks it’s over her head).  On our 2 excursions that are boat rides, I’m going to make sure she has a life jacket within easy reach.  

[mom22frogs]

13 hours ago, vacationlover_mn said:

On a related note- I am cruising with my mom next month, and she can’t swim in deep water (she panics if she thinks it’s over her head).  On our 2 excursions that are boat rides, I’m going to make sure she has a life jacket within easy reach.  

If she can't swim, put it on her and don't be bashful about it! We were doing a small boat tour in the Caribbean this year and the boat hit the bottom of a swell, resulting in a MASSIVE wall of water rushing over us. Everyone was fine, but you don't necessarily always have time or warning. 

[Joebucks]

On 11/15/2023 at 3:49 AM, samiam0403 said:

Just saw this on another site - people are making jokes about how it's no big deal since it's shallow warm water in the middle of the day, and ignoring the fact that a woman died. People are awful. 

 

I get it. In the moment, you have no idea what is going on. That is scary. You're here to enjoy yourself, and suddenly this happens. Also, different people have different physical capabilities for such a thing.

 

Overall, as is with typical with the internet, I believe this was overblown. There are hundreds and thousands of boats that go out each day. 99.9% of the time without incident. The amount of people absolutely losing their mind, cancelling excursions, etc. because of one incident is an overreaction. The crew got everyone life jackets, it was light out, closer to shore, they were scooped up relatively quickly. 

 

The biggest "fact" that gets lost on the woman who died, is that it had nothing to do with a drowning, as the insinuations would make you believe. It was a cardiac event. We can split hairs as to what the cause of that was.

[vacationlover_mn]

On 11/15/2023 at 2:49 AM, samiam0403 said:

Just saw this on another site - people are making jokes about how it's no big deal since it's shallow warm water in the middle of the day, and ignoring the fact that a woman died. People are awful. 

My MIL can’t swim at all.  If this happened to her, she would be terrified, even if the water wasn’t that deep 😞

[jean87510]

9 hours ago, Joebucks said:

 

I get it. In the moment, you have no idea what is going on. That is scary. You're here to enjoy yourself, and suddenly this happens. Also, different people have different physical capabilities for such a thing.

 

Overall, as is with typical with the internet, I believe this was overblown. There are hundreds and thousands of boats that go out each day. 99.9% of the time without incident. The amount of people absolutely losing their mind, cancelling excursions, etc. because of one incident is an overreaction. The crew got everyone life jackets, it was light out, closer to shore, they were scooped up relatively quickly. 

 

The biggest "fact" that gets lost on the woman who died, is that it had nothing to do with a drowning, as the insinuations would make you believe. It was a cardiac event. We can split hairs as to what the cause of that was.

It wasn't exactly that simple.  And I've seen how they stuff those boats purely out of greed.  And look up causes of a cardiac arrest.  

[Denversail]

11 minutes ago, jean87510 said:

It wasn't exactly that simple.  And I've seen how they stuff those boats purely out of greed.  And look up causes of a cardiac arrest.  

I think the point was probability. You are more likely to lose your life in a taxi on your way to the cruise than in a boat on a cruise offered excursion. It is overreacting because folks are cancelling things they have previously scheduled due to a story that is being reported on a rare event. 

[jean87510]

9 hours ago, Denversail said:

I think the point was probability. You are more likely to lose your life in a taxi on your way to the cruise than in a boat on a cruise offered excursion. It is overreacting because folks are cancelling things they have previously scheduled due to a story that is being reported on 

I think some people are watching some of the videos which I'd post but they would be deleted as some are from a banned social media site.  And after watching the chaos online and witnessing the stuffing of these tour boats, I truthfully can't blame them.  After reading your comments, I get that you don't find it a big deal and a rare occurrence.  I don't like 3000 rules myself on tours.  But this was just using tourists and a disregard for safety.  The operator didn't care about their passengers.  I saw videos of the crew tossing randomly life jackets nowhere near passengers in the water.  I wouldn't book with these jerks ever again after seeing thaf.  People have to do what's best for their families.

[Joebucks]

15 hours ago, jean87510 said:

It wasn't exactly that simple.  And I've seen how they stuff those boats purely out of greed.  And look up causes of a cardiac arrest.  

 

6 hours ago, jean87510 said:

I think some people are watching some of the videos which I'd post but they would be deleted as some are from a banned social media site.  And after watching the chaos online and witnessing the stuffing of these tour boats, I truthfully can't blame them.  After reading your comments, I get that you don't find it a big deal and a rare occurrence.  I don't like 3000 rules myself on tours.  But this was just using tourists and a disregard for safety.  The operator didn't care about their passengers.  I saw videos of the crew tossing randomly life jackets nowhere near passengers in the water.  I wouldn't book with these jerks ever again after seeing thaf.  People have to do what's best for their families.

 

Case in point about the untrue hysteria. 

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/11/15/bahamas-blue-lagoon-ferry-sinks-one-dead/71592890007/#:~:text="The vessel experienced rough seas,Chrislyn Skippings told the outlet.

 

[quote]"The vessel experienced rough seas in the area, which resulted in the boat taking on water and becoming submerged in waters just outside of Blue Lagoon," police chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings told the outlet.[/quote]

 

If I was a betting man, I'd wager that still doesn't change your opinion. There needs to be some magical reduction in occupancy that no one can quantify in any form. 

 

Your attitude towards the crew is shameful. I'd like to see you do better than them. I don't know what video you were watching. Everyone got a life jacket before the ship "went down." They threw rings in the water that people could grab onto. All while people are panicking and screaming. Typical spoiled people clutching their pearls, judging everything, while never experiencing a hardship in their life. 

Edited November 21, 2023 by Joebucks

[blueslily]

It's sad to hear about what happened. I think I might be one in the minority here, but I enjoyed this excursion and would like to go again on a cruise thats coming up. 

 

This might not be a productive request given some of the posts above, but I'm posting to ask if anyone has heard any updates about the investigation and when Blue Lagoon might be reopening. Im not posting to be insensitive. Just a genuine question so I can work on my cruise planning. I've looked online without much luck finding up to date information.

 

Thanks

[jean87510]

On 11/21/2023 at 11:24 AM, Joebucks said:

 

 

Case in point about the untrue hysteria. 

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2023/11/15/bahamas-blue-lagoon-ferry-sinks-one-dead/71592890007/#:~:text="The vessel experienced rough seas,Chrislyn Skippings told the outlet.

 

[quote]"The vessel experienced rough seas in the area, which resulted in the boat taking on water and becoming submerged in waters just outside of Blue Lagoon," police chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings told the outlet.[/quote]

 

If I was a betting man, I'd wager that still doesn't change your opinion. There needs to be some magical reduction in occupancy that no one can quantify in any form. 

 

Your attitude towards the crew is shameful. I'd like to see you do better than them. I don't know what video you were watching. Everyone got a life jacket before the ship "went down." They threw rings in the water that people could grab onto. All while people are panicking and screaming. Typical spoiled people clutching their pearls, judging everything, while never experiencing a hardship in their life. 

Let me guess.  You were part of the crew throwing life jackets, correct?  Taking care of spoiled privileged passengers.  SMH

[blueslily]

Blue Lagoon has reopened. I'm looking forward to booking for my February cruise on the Ascent. I will most likely book privately since I'm not sure when the cruise lines will start offering the excursions again. I'm OK with going. I've enjoyed my day there when I've gone in the past. 

[blueslily]

Anyone have an update on Blue Lagoon excursions on Royal and Celebrity? It's still not showing up for my Celebrity cruise on Feb 4. I called Blue Lagoon directly and they recommended that all cruisers book through cruise line versus them. The last I read Royal had extended their hiatus until mid- January. We are at Jan 15. Thanks 

[Cruiser1976]

I'm wondering the same. I have a group excursion to Blue Lagoon for Feb 11th on Celebrity and was told there was a very high chance that it would be cancelled and to look for alternate options, however no one is confirming any dates and haven't see anything confirmed past Jan 15th which is strange since that's today. I would think if they already knew Feb was going to be cancelled, they would have already cancelled the rest of Jan. Not sure what's going on.

[blueslily]

On 1/15/2024 at 4:54 PM, Cruiser1976 said:

I'm wondering the same. I have a group excursion to Blue Lagoon for Feb 11th on Celebrity and was told there was a very high chance that it would be cancelled and to look for alternate options, however no one is confirming any dates and haven't see anything confirmed past Jan 15th which is strange since that's today. I would think if they already knew Feb was going to be cancelled, they would have already cancelled the rest of Jan. Not sure what's going on.

 

I wonder why they project that Feb will be cancelled. Yes, I totally get that what happened in Nov was tragic. But, the investigation is over in the Bahamas. I guess maybe there is something going on separately with the outcome. Maybe something more legal. Idk. I just know that I do want to go to Blue Lagoon in 2.5 weeks on my cruise. 

[blueslily]

Has anyone on any cruise line received any updates? I called Celebrity and they had nothing to report for an update.