How safe are cruise stops? Travel advisories are only one marker for destinations

[Cover Stories]

The two white broads were fucking around with black men and someone who
knew them saw it when they streamed bits live facetiming. They got
busted. Screaming "rape" is how liberal whores try and evade
responsibility for their poor decisions.

After two Carnival Cruise Line passengers were allegedly sexually
assaulted in the Bahamas amid travel warnings, some travelers may be
wondering whether they should visit ports with active advisories.

The guests, two women from Kentucky, said they were drugged and raped
while ashore on the island of Grand Bahama. Bahamas police arrested two
men last week on sexual assault charges.

The U.S. Embassy in the Bahamas issued a security alert in late January
warning of recent murders in Nassau, and the State Department has had a
Level 2 advisory in place for the popular island nation since 2018, urging
travelers to “exercise increased caution” due to crime. But those kinds of
warnings don’t necessarily mean it’s unsafe to visit.

“It all comes down to personal risk assessment,” said Jared Feldman, owner
of travel agency Jafeldma Travel. “It's not intended for you to abandon
your travel altogether, either. It's just what it is: It's an advisory. Be
aware.”

Is it safe to go on cruises to places with travel advisories?
Cruise operators monitor for potential safety issues well before
departure. “Security is top of mind for cruise lines, and they're
constantly looking at areas of concern,” whether due to terrorism or other
threats, Feldman said.

Feldman said cruise lines also generally distribute warnings about safety
matters to guests through onboard announcements, for example, or in notes
in the daily planners they distribute to passenger cabins.

Nicholas Gerson, an attorney for the Carnival guests Amber Shearer and
Dongayla Dobson, told USA TODAY last week that his clients did not know
about the Bahamas warning at the time and were "not aware of any warnings
given by Carnival."

Carnival spokesperson Matt Lupoli said in an email on Tuesday that the
line’s “shipboard team routinely shares guidance with guests on keeping
safe while ashore,” though he did not comment specifically on Gerson’s
statement.

That’s not just a voluntary move, according to John H. (Jack) Hickey, a
maritime trial attorney in Miami. Cruise lines are legally obligated to
warn guests of dangers “about which the cruise line knew or should have
known.

“They have a duty to their passengers under the maritime common law to
advise the passengers of these risks,” he said. That includes any hazards
during port stops, which Hickey said are “part and parcel” of a cruise.

However, travel advisories are “fluid.” They may change depending on
geopolitical developments, the environment and other factors, according to
Carrie Pasquarello, CEO and co-founder of Global Secure Resources Inc., a
company focused on risk mitigation and threat assessment planning. They
may also be more nuanced than a single number can show.

Mexico, for example, has varied warning levels for different states.
“There's a lot of different risks in Mexico, and yet, so many people are
traveling to Mexico and having excellent, successful excursions and
vacations,” Pasquarello said.

The Bahamas, for its part, has also pushed back on the crime alert shared
by the U.S. Embassy, with the Office of the Prime Minister noting that its
Level 2 rating did not change. The Bahamas has been listed at Level 2
since the start of the travel advisory system in 2018 (though it was
temporarily raised to Level 3 in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

The office said in a statement that the incidents described in the crime
alert – warning of nearly murders in Nassau since the beginning of the
year – “do not reflect general safety in the Bahamas, a country of 16
tourism destinations, and many more islands.”

“Our law enforcement agencies are taking rigorous steps to maintain our
well-earned reputation, including an enhanced police presence and
additional police resources (including facial recognition CCTV
surveillance technology) and training,” the statement continued.

Do cruise lines cancel stops because of travel advisories?
Feldman said cruise lines “try not to disrupt the passenger experience as
much as possible” and are unlikely to alter course because of advisories
like those currently in place for the Bahamas and Jamaica.

“They will only change the itinerary if there's a real significant,
sincere threat to passenger safety, or it's just not safe for the guests
to disembark from the ship, or it's not safe to sail in certain waters,”
he said. Many cruise lines have recently canceled or rerouted sailings
away from the Red Sea amid continued attacks on commercial and naval
vessels.

“The safety of our guests and crew is our priority and as part of our
regular security procedures, we routinely monitor the local destinations
our ships visit and keep in close communication with government and law
enforcement officials,” Lupoli, the Carnival spokesperson, said. If
changes are needed, he added, the line “will react quickly.”

The contracts passengers agree to when they book a cruise allow operators
to change ports as necessary without owing them compensation (though they
may offer it as a goodwill gesture).

Tips for staying safe in port on cruises
There are ways cruise passengers can help protect themselves during their
trip.

Pasquarello recommended researching destinations before booking. “We want
to make sure that our travelers are being proactive, prepared, looking at
those risk indicators along with those level advisories,” she said.

Pasquarello also likes to review advisories from other countries, such as
Canada or Australia, for a given destination to get greater context. “Each
of these countries have their own risk rating levels and look at things
differently, and so I want to see the full view of the location that I'm
going to,” she added.

Cruise ship crime: What to know if you're sexually assaulted on a cruise

Travelers can also sign up for the State Department’s Smart Traveler
Enrollment Program, which can give them safety information about their
destination, help the U.S. Embassy reach them in case of emergency and
more.

Many health insurance plans don’t cover travelers while they are abroad.
Pasquarello urged travelers to call their provider to check and look into
travel insurance if their coverage is lacking.

When going ashore, Feldman recommended booking an organized shore
excursion. “Try to travel with other people, and not necessarily be on
your own,” he said, and recommended following other general safety
practices, like exploring during the day when possible and being mindful
of your surroundings. Cruise passengers also always have the option of
staying on board during a stop.

Pasquarello noted that there are risks and crime in the U.S. and on board
cruise ships as well, and travelers should make their assessments about
their well-being. “We have to be our best safety advocate,” she said.

Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in
Nashville. You can reach him at ndi...@usatoday.com.

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/travel/2024/02/15/is-it-safe-cruise-
during-travel-advisory/72611075007/