any of these ports possibly unsafe?

[Sports Dr]

Dominica, St Lucia, Barbados? I know Jamaica requires some care... any others?

[leaveitallbehind]

No. They are all safe.

[FLACRUISER99]

Dominica, St Lucia, Barbados? I know Jamaica requires some care... any others?

All ports require some care.

[Karma5]

I would be real careful in St Lucia…………..

[Grandma Dazzles]

Dominica, St Lucia, Barbados? I know Jamaica requires some care... any others?

 

All ports require common sense. You are in a foreign country and an unfamiliar environment. Example - I love Barbados, but Bridgetown is a city - one of the biggest population wise in the Caribbean. I am sure it has the same problems as any city. You are going to find petty crime anywhere. Be smart!

[3CatsInMA]

Use care and be aware of your surroundings, just as you would in any unfamiliar area, and you'll be fine.

All of the ports you list are at least as safe as Cincinnati after a Bengals playoff game...;):)

Edited January 11, 2016 by 3CatsInMA

[SuiteTraveler]

When there have been incidents against tourists in the Caribbean, it is always on land. If you go on say, a snorkel, scuba or sailing boat tour, there is pretty much no chance whatsoever that anything will happen. Most people doing these types of tours have very little money on them as they know they will be in the water most of the day, so no real point in thieves attempting to rob them - not if the thieves want to get any reasonable amount of money.

 

Barbados is well know for snorkeling with sea turtles. There is great snorkeling at Anse Chastenet on St. Lucia (accessible only by boat) that usually includes a ride to see the Pitons and possibly a cave. Jamaica is a great place to go tubing on the White River which is very safe and enjoyable - there are not the crowds of vendors in the area - just one or two and if you are simply polite and say "No thank you," they will not bother you as in other areas such as Dunn's Falls where you run the gauntlet of aggressive vendors. Dominic is great for kayaking.

 

Now get out there and have some fun and stop worrying about danger!

[moniquet]

They are as safe as any other tourist port in the world. Just take the same precautions you would anywhere.

 

Barcelona is one of the worse for pickpockets etc.

[capriccio]

Visited all three this October (3rd trip to St. Lucia, 2nd to Barbados, 1st to Dominica) and enjoyed them all and never felt concerned about safety. A little common sense goes a long way.

[OCruisers]

I would be real careful in St Lucia…………..

 

Agree! Be careful there -- very careful!

[Krazy Kruizers]

We are always aware of our surroundings in all ports.

St Lucia -- just be a little more careful -- especially if you dock at the freight dock and decide to wonder out onto the streets.

[hancogran]

As others have said, it's all about common sense and being aware of your surroundings. We've been to all three ports and to be honest, the only place I've felt uncomfortable was Dominica... likely because we didn't book any type of excursion and simply walked around the port area.

 

We've been in St. Lucia twice and booked excursions both times and I never felt unsafe. We've taken a taxi twice to the Boatyard in Barbados and the same applies there. We use the same caution when we are in Europe as we do in the Caribbean!;)

[Hlitner]

We really agree with the "common sense" or travel sense recommendation. We have often watched travelers who seem to have left their brains at home. You can move around any of the islands without fear if you just keep your brain in gear and use some basic travel sense. St Lucia does have some very remote areas (we have rented cars to explore the entire island) and those are best avoided by inexperienced travelers. Jamaica does have "issues" once you leave the safer popular tourist areas (we would particularly recommend avoiding Kingston) but this is not normally a problem with cruisers since the ships dock in tourist parts of the island. And we should mention that for snorkelers, Dominica offers a unique experience with snorkeling around Champagne Reef. Although many take tours (often overpriced) this place can also be accessed from land (they even rent equipment) without using a tour.

 

Hank

[OfTheSeasCruiser]

I would be real careful in St Lucia…………..

 

Agree! Be careful there -- very careful!

 

I did not feel unsafe in St. Lucia. I guess it depends...

[ronandannette]

I did not feel unsafe in St. Lucia. I guess it depends...

Practically everything that's said here is anecdotal or opinion-based.

 

St. Lucia was - bar none - the worst port-stop I've ever had. We went to Reduit Beach on our own. DH rented a jet-ski (was ripped-off on the time too, but I digress) and while I was alone on the beach I was accosted by both male and female hawkers using everything from flattery to intimidation. I'm no shrinking violet, but the beach wasn't very busy that day (only one ship in port) and as I waited there for DH I totally felt like fresh meat being circled by buzzards. And no, telling them I wasn't interested didn't make them go away, neither did saying I had no cash - they told me to go to a nearby hotel and get some! This actually turned out to be a great idea; the Royal Resort was right behind us and I did go in, and ended up booking massages at the beach cabanas so I could retreat. The massage was fine and it was a nice respite but the masseuse ended up talking the whole time about how much he wanted to leave St. Lucia and pestering me for contact information to try and get immigration sponsorship in to Canada.

 

All in all, I HATED St. Lucia. YMMV.

Edited January 11, 2016 by ronandannette

[wwcruisers]

I agree about packing your common sense, no matter where you travel. Learn where it's generally safe to go, and when. Some tourist areas are safe in daylight hours, but not so much, after dark. Even a notoriously clean and safe island like Bermuda has a few neighborhoods that you'd want to stay out of. Do your homework, before you go! :cool:

[OCruisers]

We are always aware of our surroundings in all ports.

St Lucia -- just be a little more careful -- especially if you dock at the freight dock and decide to wonder out onto the streets.

 

Agree with KK!

Wandering around in that area is absolutely scary! :eek:

 

LuLu

Edited January 11, 2016 by OCruisers

[Langley Cruisers]

This is completely subjective. I mean, I live near Vancouver... would I - would anyone be careful if they came here? Of course. Same goes for New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Paris... I could go on and on. You use common sense and keep your wits about you no matter where you are. One person's awful experience in one of the ports could be another's favorite port.

 

OP, try not to scare yourself and simply proceed with caution and good sense. :)

[cb at sea]

You will be as "safe" anywhere as you are at home. Most mall parking lots have more crime than tourists experience.

 

Listen...NO PLACE is 100% safe. You are not 100% safe..ever...anywhere.

 

Just to put things in perspective for you.

[cbr663]

The Canadian Gov't has a travel advisory website where it posts information on travel destinations for Canadians. You can access it here: http://travel.gc.ca

 

For Dominica and Barbados, normal precautions are advised. For St. Lucia, exercise a high degree of caution is advised.

 

I am sure that the US Gov't has a similar website.

[OCruisers]

The Canadian Gov't has a travel advisory website where it posts information on travel destinations for Canadians. You can access it here: http://travel.gc.ca

For Dominica and Barbados, normal precautions are advised. For St. Lucia, exercise a high degree of caution is advised.

I am sure that the US Gov't has a similar website.

 

Certainly can understand why a high degree of caution is advised for St. Lucia!

It's absolutely not a place you want to go wandering around alone!

 

LuLu

[moniquet]

We have been on several land based holidays to St. Lucia and wandered around Castries. Never had a problem just the vendors are a bit pushy, like most places.

[GUT2407]

Any place is potentially unsafe, if you run into the wrong people.

[cruiseapril]

We have always booked excursions in those ports and are glad we did.

There are many excursion reviews on the ports forums.

[Hlitner]

We have always booked excursions in those ports and are glad we did.

There are many excursion reviews on the ports forums.

 

Funny thing about excursions....they are usually large groups of tourists. And when you are in a large group these days, it is almost like having a target on one's back. Personally we have always felt more comfortable being off on our own just blending in to the population. This morning there was a suicide bomber in Istanbul and initial reports were many dead and injured were a "group" of German tourists. We live in Puerto Vallarta Mexico, and the only major criminal act (in recent years) against tourists was an armed robbery (nobody was injured) against a "tour group of cruisers" who were in a remote jungle area. In Tunis, during last year's terrorist attack a majority of those killed injured were part of a cruise ship tour "group." And then there is our own State Department that also included language in their various warnings about avoiding large groups.

 

So for those who are comfy in a large group of obvious tourists...that is fine. But some of us prefer to stay a bit under the radar.

 

Hank