Half Moon Cay camera theft

[JLTO]

Just to warn everyone that my father in law had his camera stolen from his bag on HMC last week.

 

He admits he was silly to leave it unattended by the lifeguard near the water park but the beauty of the place sort of lulls you into a false sense of security.

 

HAL were pretty apathetic about it and have logged it as a loss not a theft however he will be following up because he is absolutely certain it was in his bag and then disappeared.

 

Of course we don't know whether it was one of the island's staff or a fellow passenger who took it but in case it was a member of staff you have been warned!

[cb at sea]

That's why you shouldn't bring anything of value to a beach...a disposable camera wouldn't have "lured" someone into stealing it!

No one wants your flip-flops or tee shirt, but a shiny camera.....fair game!

It's too bad when something like that happens, especially on vacation.

[JLTO]

I'm not sure theft of any sort is 'fair game'. If you live in a nice house in an expensive area it doesn't make it and more OK to be burgled than if you live in a slum.

 

If HMC was a public beach then it's more to be expected but this is a private island and then only people there were cruise guests and staff.

[texancruzer]

HOOOOO Boy......... gotta comment on this one !

 

If you don't think for one minute that there arent the kind of people who would jump at the chance to walk off with "fair game" on a cruise ship.......think again.

 

You would never leave a camera or anything else of value in a bag or otherwise on a chair near the pool...... why would the beach area be any different ????

 

I actually was leaving the ship one time and dropped my sunglasses when I took off my hat as I put in my seapass - they wanted to see my face ...... they were a fairly expensive nice pair...... some woman picked them up and ran off with them with me yelling after her..... she disappeared into the elevator and I hope every time she put them on they poke her in the eye :mad:

 

And your comment about living in a nice area versus a slum....... I guarantee you more nice homes have burgler alarms than slum homes any day......they have nicer stuff ! Doesnt make it ok......just more likely.

 

In my opinion.....it was a guest. The crew value their jobs too much to lose it over a camera.

[JLTO]

The bottom line is that we all have a responsibility to look after our possessions and in this case we were a little careless and paid the price.

 

The point here though is that HMC is a little bit of paradise for most people. It's a private island and I think that lulls you into a false sense of security.

 

Whilst I'm inclined to agree that in most cases thefts from the ship are probably by fellow passengers this is slightly different. The staff on the lsland are not from the ship. They may have more oportunity to dispose of stolen property.

 

I'm not saying it was or wasn't a member of staff but if this thread makes a few people a little less trusting than we were then we'll have removed a temptation and who knows have prevented another theft?

[texancruzer]

The staff is employed by the cruiseline. This island is fully owned by the cruiseline and is used only by Carnival and HAL cruises exclusively. Many of the ships staff do come ashore to wait on passengers while on the island.

 

I understand the message you are trying to convey and I am really sorry for the loss of your camera. I am sure it had pictures from your trip that cannot be replaced. But to say the island is PRIVATE with 2000 or 3000 other people there is not entirely true. You can get robbed anywhere, anytime by anyone....... period. As long as there are people who want what you have and they do not......

[NCTribeFan]

Sorry about the theft.

 

But I'm always amazed when people will advise others to just "ask the people on the loungers near you" to watch your stuff.

 

As though just being on the same ship makes us all one big, happy family!

 

We have no idea if our neighbors are fine, upstanding citizens or thieving lowlifes! Just because we're on a cruise together means nothing.

 

Of course, I've been known to leave things in my tote bag and go in the water. But while I'm in the water, I keep my eye on my chair (we always rent a clamshell and it's easier to tuck things away behind the chair and a bit out-of-sight).

 

My camera always manages to find it's way to the bottom of the tote bag, too, so if anyone wanted it, they'd have to spend some time rummaging around. In that time, I would hope I would notice someone going through my stuff and I'd start pointing and screaming to get the attention of others on the beach.

 

But there's no way I'd ask total strangers, "hey, will you guys keep an eye on my expensive camera and credit cards while I go for a long swim?" :eek:

 

It's unfortunate that we can't trust people, but we can't.