Cruise passengers robbed in Bahamas

The Bahamas Tribune has reported that 18 cruise passengers, from two different ships on different excursions, were robbed at gunpoint in the Bahamas on 20th November.

The passengers were travelling with Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas and Disney Cruise Line's Disney Wonder.

Apparently two shotgun waving men tied up one group’s tour guide and ordered the passengers to the ground before taking money, passports, mobile phones and credit cards from them. The second group arrived in the area during the course of the first robbery and were treated similarly. No passengers were injured. Both cruise lines have stopped running the tours, which took place in Earth Village, an area of outstanding local beauty that is often travelled through by Segway. It’s been a popular excursion for many ships visiting the Bahamas and Carnival and NCL also offer it on their cruises – at present it’s not clear whether they will continue to run this excursion.

The U.K. Foreign & Commonwealth Office is not advising against travel to the area, although it seems 40 people have had similar experiences in the past month: eight were robbed at the Queen's Staircase, the 18 cruise passenger and the rest being tourists who were robbed while walking around the streets. It's always wise not to carry valuable items off-ship and to take advice from FCO or other bodies about the relative safety of the destinations you're planning to visit.