Safety in rum country?

[stockdoct]

I'd like a reasonable discussion and in no way want to post an inflammatory statement. I just want to understand the issues of a very difficult problem, and maybe a discussion among others who have visited the caribbean islands could shed some light on the issues that trouble me.

I want to go to St. Croix. I want to stay on the beach, tour Cruzan (and maybe Diageo), snorkel and explore the sites and the tropical landscape. But I don't think I will, when I read that the 51st murder of the year was just committed in July (51 murders, in 6 months, in a total population of only 100,000????) stab wounds to a 17 y/o girl, with 5 others wounded with stab wounds to their chest during "Jump Up" celebration in July.

I looked up a place I've been before, Negril Jamaica, and even my most recent tourist destination Bermuda (home of Goslings Rum) and found their violent crime rate is pretty darn high, occasionally against tourists, although I came through my vacation with nothing but the fondest feelings for Bermuda (other than the bleeding my wallet felt with their high prices!)

In touring the Caribbean (Sandals, resorts, and day-trips sponsored by the resorts) I've had nothing but good luck, but the newspapers report a very discrete danger there for white tourists. I'm wondering what you guys felt about the incredibly high violent crime rate, the safety of guests, the animosity against tourists and the recent deaths.

[jrl915]

I went to St. Croix about 2 years ago, and the taxi driver spoke of crime----he blamed most of the problems on gangs. At a beach bar, I spoke with a middle aged cable employee who had picked up and moved to St. Croix, and he believed it was like any other place. You just have to stay away from some places, especially at night.

Not long ago, there was a report of a teenaged tourist caught in gang-related cross fire in St. Thomas. Apparently, this was not a dangerous area normally, but it was that day.

Without a doubt, there is danger on the islands, just as there is in any major city. On the whole, if you are wise, I think your odds of avoiding any problems are very high.

[Edward Hamilton]

In the more than 20 years that I lived in the islands I saw an increase in reported violence. Certainly drug abuse, poverty and racism have increased on some islands while it has actually decreased on other islands.

Islands are microcosms of society. Certainly there are places, not far from where I live in Chicago, that I don't walk the streets at night and avoid during the day. As a friend recently told me in Bogota, Colombia, this isn't much different from the problems you have in any city of 6 million people.

In the Caribbean islands, the populations are much smaller and though there certainly have been crimes directed at tourists the best way to avoid becoming a statistic is to try not to stick out as the richest person of opportunity.

For years I only rode public buses in the islands and never once had any problem. On the other hand, I have seen tourists ambushed while walking back to the cruise ship dock as they took a short cut through some dicey territory that was fenced off, for good reason.

I find that I am treated very differently when I arrive from the states wearing new clothes and am with a woman wearing jewelry than when I am traveling with a woman who isn't wearing jewelry and carrying a new purse she bought for the trip.

Use good sense, ask your hotel where you should and shouldn't go while you are on the island. I try to get back within walking distance of my hotel before I start drinking. There is nothing like having had too much to drink and then trying to find your way back to your hotel.

[Mikeycanuk]

I've been to Barbados twice this year and never once felt unsafe. Sure there are reports of violence but you'll get that anywhere. Like Ed said, don't make yourself a target and don't get into situations that you wouldn't do at home. Just be smart and keep your guard up.

[Berbician]

The crime rate in Jamaica has fallen dramatically since the extradition of Christopher Coke to the USA.

[Churchill103]

We go to Negril 2-3 times a year...we stay at small locally owned places...have local friends, visit non tourist restaurants and mingle with locals....we have no issues. We do not flash money or wear jewelry. Use common sense as you would visiting any large city in the US...don't go off with people you don't know, don't go to places you do not know, don't over drink, don't use illegal substances, have a well known driver, do as you would in the US and you will be fine....we are booked for our 21st visit in 10 years....need any info about Negril, please PM me....oh yeah...we have several great Rum bars to visit.....

[Ellis34]

I too have traveled in the islands. I am 6'4", 280, and have a tendency to stick out in a crowd. Not that I am flashing a wad of bills, or laden with gold, it just happens. I can go to Jamaica and the sellers on the beaches or streets will walk past my friends to ask if I want drugs. Just my luck I guess but sometimes comical. However, because of this, I am super sensitive to "gut reactions" in travel situations.
As Mr. Hamilton said, use comon sense. If you don't have any, travel with someone who does.

Good rule of thumb on vacation anywhere (and I was told this in Negril); drink at the bars, and get drunk at your resort, not the other way around. You're less likely to get into trouble that way.

[dreliason]

I too have traveled the Caribbean, buy yacht and by cruise boat. My first hint is to look for fences. In Jamacia the cruise port place was finced off with barbed wire along the top of the fence. Big hint ... be very careful.

It is my experience that people find what they are looking for. Some people seem to want to hang a fifty dollar bill on their butts and carry a sign that says "victim." Me? I keep a low profile, dress and act humble, travel around the islands by taxi, be polite, smile, and tip the taxi drivers well when I get back to where I started. No problem, mon. Next time I go, I try to seek out the taxi driver I had before and get extremely good service (again with a good tip).

In my quest for unusual rums I have gone into places that my wife refused to enter; it was in just such a place that I found my bottle of Coecoei. I got what I wanted and paid for it is small bills from a nearly empty wallet. I think the locals mistook me for a passing yachty and not some four hour tourist. In another questionable looking place, the taxi driver (who I had hired before) volunteered to come with me and everything went very well.

One last hint ... look to the cruise ships. There is a reason why they do not go to St.Croix. If they don't go, neither do I. Most islanders are fully aware that their islands are very much dependant of the tourist trade ... and so tend to be very nice.

My two cents worth.