Royal Caribbean Bypasses Labadee Due to Local Protests

[MrZoey]

Curious who got emails. We are leaving on Navigator Feb. 6th. I haven't gotten any notice of any changes. We love Labadee and took our kids and grandkids there in November. I'm assuming no one will be going there for awhile.

[Coralc]

They've delayed the election. The unrest will continue. And probably port stops will cease for the time being. I don't know why there is spillover to Labadee, but apparently Royal Caribbean negotiates with high level politicos.

 

Link: http://news.yahoo.com/haiti-postpones-sundays-presidential-election-violence-erupts-020109867.html

[handy4u]

It was probally a young American social worker that got the locals all fired up about "the evils of capitalism!" LOL

 

Seriously though, here's a link to an interesting historical article whose author gives a view about why Haiti is such a mess today:

 

http://historynewsnetwork.org/article/3478

[jes Scott]

Never been to Labadee and really hope the Oasis can stop there next Monday. I long to be barefoot on Barefoot Beach! ;)

 

 

Take some water shoes! When on barefoot beach last February it had tons of shells/coral near the waterline and it killed my poor feet! I will be bringing water shoes this time!

I never did understand why it was called barefoot beach!

[SamFritz]

Why do you assume that a small group of protesters speak for or represent the feelings of the entire population? The people of Haiti don't deserve to be abandoned just because a loud minority are expressing their opinions.

 

Should Royal avoid the port if there is potential danger to their passengers? Of course they should. But to say that millions of of people deserve to starve, and die is cold hearted and wrong.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Edited January 23, 2016 by SamFritz

[RJB]

RCCL has been very good to the people of Haiti. Bottom line - Haiti needs RCCL.

O.K. but we don't need Haiti. Pass it by and never go back. Then they can protest all they want and no one is affected.

[FLACRUISER99]

 

Just bought some! Check. [emoji1]

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk

Please try to find a smaller photo next time, Thanks.

[handy4u]

Please try to find a smaller photo next time, Thanks.

Just took it in the tap talk app...

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk

[OnTheJourney]

O.K. but we don't need Haiti. Pass it by and never go back. Then they can protest all they want and no one is affected.

 

RCCL is affected for one thing...especially since they spent $55,000,000 in 2009 building the new wharf that can accommodate the larger ships. Haiti is not being sensible given that RCCL provides the largest proportion of tourist revenue to them over the past 30 years. Stops at Labadee were temporarily suspended back in 2004 for political unrest as well. Given that RCCL donated a million to Haiti's relief efforts following the 2010 earthquake, the current situation really smacks of ungratefulness. I get that there is dissension over upcoming elections, etc., but why kill a significant portion of your country's income in the meantime? RCCL employs 300 locals, allows another 200 to sell their wares, AND pays Haiti $12 per tourist. Figuring the number of passengers that disembark there for any given cruise, you can do the math.

 

I hope it resolves soon. The contract between RCCL and Haiti extends to 2050, so it'll be interesting to see what happens. I, for one, love going there.

[handy4u]

Please try to find a smaller photo next time, Thanks.

 

I see the problem now that I went to my computer. This is a formatting problem with this sites forum I think. The "code" isn't taking into account the picture size uploaded and doesn't format it accordingly like is done in Facebook. Never seen this formatting problem in Facebook...

 

Anyway, I tried to edit the post and the EDIT button isn't there! I'm logged in and read the instructions which show the admin must of turned it off or has it timed for this thread. Tapatalk isn't showing anyway to edit either.

 

Sorry you have to scroll now for a page but I did try to delete that post. I'll try and do better next time! I kind of feel like David Blatt right now. You never did tell me what you think of my water shoes? LOL!

[Lionesss]

But they don't meet the barefoot beach dress code...

 

 

 

 

Surely you jest.

 

Right now with the turmoil on the island no one is enjoying Barefoot beach.

 

Hope it settles down by August.

 

Safe travels.

[RJB]

F27TW, you have a knack for being blunt. Truthful, but blunt. ;)

 

We have a pretty substantial Haitian community here in Key West. I've had a lot of contact with them and my natural curiosity has led to hours long conversations about their home and why they left. Once they warm up to you, Haitians aren't shy in voicing their opinions about the political and economic climate back home. A lot of what you said is very similar to what they say.

 

Who knows why the protestors are holding up signs that say "USA Away?" I'm inclined to think their broken government has fed them with so many lies to cover for their own greed, those poor people probably have no clue what's going on. Come to think of it, that sounds a lot like some of our own politicians lately who have mongered certain protests. ;)

They want us to stay away so lets do it and see how long it takes for them to come crawling back on their hands and knees to come back. Lets not be blackmailed.

[constantcruiser]

I would hate to think the entire U.S. population was judged by a few protesters, just because they're the ones who draw the attention. Having visiting Labadee and other parts of Haiti many times, I think it would be safe to say the same about most people there.

 

But if the Haitian government is making such a fortune from RCI, why don't they put a stop to the protests? Their government may be unstructured or corrupt...but I still don't understand why they would allow just a few of their citizens to disrupt a major flow of revenue.

[Charles4515]

I would hate to think the entire U.S. population was judged by a few protesters, just because they're the ones who draw the attention. Having visiting Labadee and other parts of Haiti many times, I think it would be safe to say the same about most people there.

 

But if the Haitian government is making such a fortune from RCI, why don't they put a stop to the protests? Their government may be unstructured or corrupt...but I still don't understand why they would allow just a few of their citizens to disrupt a major flow of revenue.

 

How come the US government does not stop protests. Like for example the one going on in Oregon?

 

It is not clear to me why the protesters sent a few boats with signs to Labadee but they thought they had a grievance. From the videos I have seen it was a peaceful protest.

[CTBabyB00mer]

Curious who got emails. We are leaving on Navigator Feb. 6th. I haven't gotten any notice of any changes. We love Labadee and took our kids and grandkids there in November. I'm assuming no one will be going there for awhile.

 

We are on the Vision right now. We received a letter today saying that until the govt. can assure that no protest will occur that RCL will not visit the Island Govt. elections are slated for Jan. 24th I guess it will be day to day after that. We will be on the Nav. on Feb. 6th also, Labadee?????

[Charles4515]

We are on the Vision right now. We received a letter today saying that until the govt. can assure that no protest will occur that RCL will not visit the Island Govt. elections are slated for Jan. 24th I guess it will be day to day after that. We will be on the Nav. on Feb. 6th also, Labadee?????

 

The elections have been postponed.

 

Don't know how the government is going to assure no protests.

Edited January 24, 2016 by Charles4515

[Coralc]

We are on the Vision right now. We received a letter today saying that until the govt. can assure that no protest will occur that RCL will not visit the Island Govt. elections are slated for Jan. 24th I guess it will be day to day after that. We will be on the Nav. on Feb. 6th also, Labadee?????

 

The elections have been called off; with no new date announced. The situation may continue for a while.

 

http://news.yahoo.com/haiti-postpones-sundays-presidential-election-violence-erupts-020109867.html

Edited January 24, 2016 by Coralc

[LMaxwell]

I would not be surprised if there is a combination of things at play here.

 

1. Haiti doesn't get as good a deal per head as other ports. This has gone on for years and some resent it, others see it as "better than nothing". Perhaps protesters want more parity.

 

2. The corrupt government of Haiti may be collecting it's proper share from RCI, but not be turning over agreed upon amounts to villagers/locals of Labadee area. The government says "No, we are on the up and up, the cruise line just isn't paying". I'm NOT saying RCI isn't paying properly. I am just saying it is possible there is govt malfeasance and the govt blames RCI for it.

 

3. RCI is screwing the govt. I tend to doubt this idea, but it is remotely possible (I think unlikely).

[BenandJerry]

 

But if the Haitian government is making such a fortune from RCI, why don't they put a stop to the protests? Their government may be unstructured or corrupt...but I still don't understand why they would allow just a few of their citizens to disrupt a major flow of revenue.

 

Well, that is exactly what they will do. They will eventually make sure that the flow of revenue continues, regardless of the grievances of their citizens. Those citizens were protesting something. I am not yet clear what it was, but the protest was organized and controlled. Those folks probably took great risk to their personal freedoms to protest in such a public and internationally visible way.

 

To the majority of us, who have the ability to discuss a situation as this on a public forum, who are complaining about the disappointment and inconvenience of having our holiday plans changed, the grievances of the Haitian people is something very removed from what we consider 'normal life'.

 

Cruise ships will return to Labadee in time, once the Haitian Government assures 'there will be no more protests' to take away from the enjoyment of RCI guests. How they will ensure this is another discussion, but it appears that this is not the issue at hand. But rest assured that tourism will continue long before the citizens of Haiti feel the benefits of the industry.

[Mjoellnir]

We are going to Labadee the 25th of February. If this continue to be a situation, what would be more likely; change of port or an extra sea day?

[TravelerThom]

We are going to Labadee the 25th of February. If this continue to be a situation, what would be more likely; change of port or an extra sea day?

It looks like you are on the 5 night Indie with scheduled stops only at Falmouth & Labadee. If Labadee is still suspended I might guess RCI would possibly stop at either Cozumel or Grand Cayman, but a sea day is possible. I am scheduled into Labadee 1 Feb, so I'm monitoring the situation.

[A&L_Ont]

I have been watching our ship's (Allure) schedule for March to see if the ports of call change with Labadee being removed or swapped for another. We have a cabana booked if we get there but it will be a wait and see. Our cruise is in 6 weeks so hopefully by then things might be back to normal.

[Tagsalong]

On Vision now and we have a sea day today instead of Labadee. We will get into San Juan tomorrow at 8:00 am instead of 2:00 pm. Staying till 9 pm.

 

The crew are very happy since this longer stay in San Juan will mean many will be able to get off the ship for a few hours, which they could not do with the original schedule.

 

Capt. Michael said they looked at three different alternative ports but weather and other factors prevented this. The seas are fairly calm on the leeward side of Cuba and Dominican Republic but very rough in the Atlantic. Two alternate ports would have put us into the Atlantic. There would not have been enough time to get to St Thomas and have a decent length of stay. Not sure why Falmouth was not possible. Personally glad that the crew will get a little R&R.

Edited January 24, 2016 by Tagsalong

[Toddcan]

Clearly this is a place full of stupid ungrateful people ... .

 

Easy, there Honcho. :cool:

 

I saw a few hundred protesters in boats. To extrapolate this into a statement like your's is a bit of a stretch.

[Shippy]

One of the reasons we got a GS instead of a JS was because I LOVE the private beach & amenities for suite guests.

Our cruise is a couple of months out.

Hope all is cleared up by then.