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11/14/2024

From the popular Crew Center: "After Suing for Fair Labor Treatment, Brazilian Crew Face Hiring Bans from Major Cruise Lines."

Imagine if cruise ship crew members enjoyed the same labor protections as workers on land: overtime pay for Sundays and holidays, night shift bonuses, and an annual bonus. Well, this became a reality for hundreds of Brazilian crew members after they sued major cruise lines—and won. However, all of...

11/13/2024

A flight attendant was struck by gunfire from haiti as the U.S. based airplane was approaching the airport and suffered what the airline called “minor injuries,” according to an Associated Press report. The plane was diverted to the Dominican Republic.

Questions arise whether it's safe to cruise to Labadee as this article in the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel discusses.

My though is that it’s potentially dangerous travelling to Labadee. by airplane or a cruise ship

The U.S. State Department’s Level 4 “Do Not Travel to Haiti” does not contain an exception for arriving by cruise ship to Labadee.

If a Haitian can take a pot shot at a U.S. air carrie, it’s presumptuous to think that a huge lumbering cruise ship from Miami slowly porting in Labadee is somehow immune from the same threat. It’s too easy for a rifle to be shot from the mountainside when a Royal Caribbean ship calls on Labadee. It’s impossible to prevent this danger if the motivation is there.

Remember that there were also protests in January 2016 leading Royal Caribbean to briefly suspend cruising there.

As I have written before:

Labadee® is a major money maker for the cruise line. Royal Caribbean pays no actual rent of any kind for the 260 acres of lush waterfront property, but its passengers pay a $12 head tax. There are to independent shore excursions run by locals which can siphon off money from the captive market. Few people will argue that this money ever reaches the local villagers in Haiti (a small group of Haitian artisans sell trinkets at the beach but nothing significant), which some local people contend is the real source of the prior local protests. Passengers pay hundreds of dollars to Royal Caribbean to ride on the "Dragon’s Breath Flight Line" (a zip line which towers over the beach), or to rent jet-skis, or to lounge in a private cabana. A "Labadoozie" frozen rum drink costs a whopping $14 (plus 18% gratuity). Needless to say, Haitians on the other side of the barbwire do not receive any of this money and are mired in abject poverty.

The only reason Royal Caribbean sails to Labadee is money to take back to Miami. The “safety and security,” of its guests, a mantra I hear often from this company, is an afterthought in my opinion. Odds are that Royal Caribbean might get away without a guest or two being killed or injured. But playing Russian roulette is not my idea of a fun cruise vacation with my family.

What do you think about Royal Caribbean sailing to Labadee?

A day after two passenger planes were shot outside Port-au-Prince’s main airport, Royal Caribbean isn’t planning to stop ports of call at the private day resort it operates on Haiti& #82…

11/12/2024

Despite criticism over its size and potential to harm the environment, Ion of the Seas "has been a hit among cruise-goers"

"Business is up across all major cruise lines, and many of them, like Carnival, Norwegian and MSC, are expanding their fleets. Last year, 31.7 million passengers took cruises, an increase from 29.7 million in 2019. This year, that number is expected to reach 34.7 million, according to the Cruise Lines International Association, the industry’s trade group. As of June 2024, there are 430 oceangoing cruise ships in operation and 76 ships on order through 2036, the group reported."

"In response to the demand, the company has started construction on the third Icon Class ship, which will be completed in 2026, and plans to order a fourth for 2027, with options for a fifth and a sixth."

"The Icon Class also runs on liquefied natural gas, or L.N.G., a fossil fuel that the cruise industry says is a clean alternative to heavy fuel oil because it cuts carbon dioxide emissions. However, environmental groups are concerned by how quickly cruise operators are adopting the fuel, arguing that the methane emitted from L.N.G. is more potent and can trap more heat in the atmosphere over time than carbon dioxide.

Royal Caribbean says L.N.G. was the most viable alternative fuel available at scale when the ship was designed seven years ago, and future Icon Class ships will all have L.N.G.-powered engines."

"Environmental groups have welcomed some of the energy-efficient features on the Icon Class ships, but they argue that building such large megaships undermines the industry’s long-term sustainability goals."

In a Finnish shipyard, the 250,800-ton sister of Icon of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise ship, is in the final stages of construction. We got an inside look.

11/09/2024

Last week, Miami-Dade Police arrested Nicholas Gardener, age 24, of Brampton, Ontario who was initially held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a $50,000 bond for five felony charges related to the possession of child sexual abuse materials.

According to Local News 10 in Miami, the arrest report indicates that a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer searched Gardner’s phone and found three illicit videos and two illicit images which depicted girls between the ages of 5 and 8 being victimized.

The Cruise Vessel Security & Safety Act does not require the cruise lines to disclose when a crew member or cruise guest is arrested on charges of child po*******hy. The public is dependant on random reports of local news organization reporting these types of crimes.

The name of the ship🚢was not disclosed . . . apparently not to embarrass the cruise line . . .

The Miami-Dade Police Department arrested a passenger who disembarked from an unidentified cruise ship at PortMiami last weekend on charges of "purchasing

11/01/2024

An interesting article by the popular Cruise Radio about two new security-related roles: an RSA (Responsible Service of Alcohol) supervisor and a youth security officer.

As a Reddit user mentioned, “Not sure how someone can prevent people being intoxicated if you make it easy (drink package) to consume a lot of alcohol?”

Cruisers recently noticed Carnival Cruise Line's job advertisements for two new security-related roles: an RSA (Responsible Service of Alcohol) supervisor and a youth security officer. (Screenshot from Carnival) These jobs come with some pretty unique responsibilities on cruise ships like Carnival,....

10/30/2024

Two reporters with the University of California, Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism's Investigative Reporting Program are looking into all recent crew member deaths and how they are handled by cruise lines, investigators, government authorities, and the legal system. "If you have been on a ship where a seafarer has died, or have any information about an incident involving a crew member's death, we would like to hear from you. We promise to maintain your confidentiality.."

Here’s why we’re interested:
• Two Holland America crew members died in an explosion while their ship was in Half Moon Cay in March.
• A crew member on the Celebrity Infinity was found dead in his cabin as the ship traveled between Greek ports in June.
• In October, a crew member died after an emergency drill on the Margaritaville Islander in Cozumel, Mexico.

Crew member suicides are also an unfortunate occurrence on cruise ships. The reporters are interested in this issue as well.

When crew members lose their lives on cruise ships, the local authorities and the cruise lines often say they’re "investigating." Meanwhile, many questions about what happened go unanswered.

I've included a link to my article on the explosion of Holland America Line's Nieuw Amsterdam in March of this year. I also share in the interest in in learning more about the unfortunate death of a a crew member during an emergency drill on the Margaritaville Islander earlier this month. Of course, I have covered ship employee suicides for years.

If you are a crew member or cruise line employee and interested in sharing your information with these reporters, please contact [email protected]

They promise to maintain your confidentiality. Thank you.

On Friday, March 22, 2024, an explosion in the engine room of Holland America Line's (HAL) cruise ship resulted in the release of steam which led to the

10/23/2024

A passenger, reported to be sixty-six (66) years-old, went overboard from the Allure of the Seas cruise ship 🚢 north of Nassau, Bahamas last night.

Around 9:40 p.m. last night, passengers reported hearing an “Oscar-Oscar-Oscar” announcement. A rescue craft was reportedly deployed to search for the missing woman. The Allure used search lights on the dark waters to aid in the search. Another Royal Caribbean cruise ship, the Utopia of the Seas (mistakenly referred to on Twitter as the Icon of the Seas on Twitter by one passenger), aided in the search.

There is no indication whether this ship had an automatic man overboard (MOB) system installed. Automatic MOB systems detect when a person has gone overboard using advanced motion-detection sensors which instantly send a signal to the bridge when a person goes over the rails and then tracks the person in the water (even at night) using infrared and radar technology. Without such a system, the chances of a successful rescue are slim given the dark waters and wind and current patterns, even if someone happened to notice the person going overboard.

A passenger, reported to be sixty-six (66) years-old, went overboard from the Allure of the Seas cruise ship north of Nassau, Bahamas last night. Around

10/22/2024

Another lawsuit filed against Royal Caribbean on behalf of a guest who was secretly filmed via a spy camera placed by the cabin attendant. on the Symphony of the Seas . . . There will be dozens of more cases to be filed . . .

Passengers are suing a Miami-based cruise line over the actions of one of the company’s cabin attendants.

10/21/2024

From Miami New Times from nearly 20 years ago! One of many reasons I'll never take a cruise . . .

Doran McDonald's decision to stay in the U.S. and receive quality medical care prompted Royal Caribbean to set in motion the federal government's immigration policy machinery.

10/21/2024

This is a story that is not going away anytime soon. Since this latest story was aired last week, we began representing four additional guests whose images were captured by spy cams installed by this crew member.

Arvin Mirasol was sentenced to 30 years for filming children in stages of undress on a Royal Caribbean cruise – a new lawsuit alleges as many as 960 passengers could have been filmed.

10/21/2024

"Villa Vie Odyssey🚢was dubbed the 'SS Clusterf---'🤡after a series of problems even after it finally set sail from Belfast following a four-month delay. Issues with the plumbing meant there was 'the faint smell of s--- wafting through the corridors,' said one passenger."

In a post on Substack, resident Joe Rhodes wrote: “Nothing about this trip, except for the fact that I’ve been drunk a great deal of the time, has gone like it was supposed to go. Every single thing, from the food to the furnishings, the TV channels to the swimming pools (neither of which are yet operational), has turned out to be something less than advertised."

Problems have continued to dog Villa Vie Odyssey, including empty swimming pools, a lack of TV and malfunctioning loos

10/18/2024

Cruise pollution: The usual suspects 🚢🤡: NCL, Princess, RCL, MSC and a newcomer to the cruise pollution list - Disney Cruise (disappointed to read)!

Disney Cruise Line, Norwegian and Princess Cruises were among the worst polluters

10/17/2024

Hidden spy cam have led to child p**n exploding on cruise ships, as the Miami Herald points out,

“There are scores of people out there who were affected.”

10/15/2024

Woman & son accused of assaulting victim (over age 65) on MSC cruise ship . . .

A 49-year-old woman was arrested over the weekend after the cruise she was on docked at PortMiami, authorities said.

Kelli Lyn Ryan, of Huntsville, Alabama, was onboard MSC’s Seascape cruise ship🚢when she slapped a victim, who is 65 or older, during a dispute in the ship’s theater.

Ryan’s son, Dylan Ryan, was also seen on video striking the victim multiple times and was kicked off the ship at the Port of Jamaica due to his “excessive behavior.”

Wow, how "excessively" violent do you have to act for MSC security actually kick you off the cruise ship in a foreign port?

But the real question is: was the punk arrested when he fled back to the U.S. from Jamaica?

A 49-year-old woman was arrested over the weekend after the cruise she was on docked at PortMiami, authorities said.

10/13/2024

Sad news from the popular Crew Center:

Indonesian crew member on the Margaritaville Islander dies during an unspecified crew drill. Few facts about what happened. Apparently a well liked employee in the deck department. if you have more information, please contact us via direct message.

We are deeply saddened to report the passing of a crew member aboard the Margaritaville Islander. The tragic event occurred during a general emergency crew drill while the ship was docked in Cozumel, Mexico. The crew member, from Indonesia and part of the AB Deck Department, was found unresponsive o...

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We updated our article regarding the catastrophic explosion and high temperature release in the engine room on HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam cruise ship (owned by Carnival Corporation) resulting in the death of two crew members. Our condolences to the family, friends and co-employees of HAL employees Joseph Terrado and Wawan Gusnawan.

From an anonymous guest who recently sailed on the Quantum of the Seas. Comments anyone?

Protest by concerned citizens in Key West yesterday morning when NCL's Norwegian Dawn arrived in Key West. My summary on YouTube: "Yesterday, citizens of Key West gathered on Mallory Square in Key West, Florida to protest the arrival of the Norwegian Dawn cruise ship, operated by Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings. Key Westerners Arlo Haskell and his brother Evan Haskell spoke briekly to the crowd on behalf of their non-profit organization Protect Key West. Ealier this summer, the city of Key West passed three city charter amendments by more than 60% of voters prohibiting the entry of cruise ships of a certain size and capacity. Key West residents voted to protect yheir fragile reefs, sea grass, and wildlife by banning large cruise ships. In Key West, size of the ships is the primary concern. Governor DeSantis and Republican legislators supported legilature to overturn the will of the Key West voters. Several cruise lines have respected the local decision to limit the size of cruise ship, but some lines, like NCL which sailed the Norwegian Dawn into the little port yesterday, refuse to take Key West off of their itineraries. The city has a shallow channel seven miles long. Big ships basically come close to dragging the sea floor from reef to harbor leaving a visible trail of damage. Small ships don’t. The gigantic cruise ships created a whirlwind of displaced silt which settles on coral reefs and kills the reefs and sea grass which have been making a receovery since the monster ships stopped sailing last year. Supporters of the cruise lines claim that banning cruise ships hurts business owners, but the fact is that cruise tourists contribute little to the city and local businesses. Cruise guests spend little time and money off of the ships, buying a few t-shirts and cheap trinkets before they scamper back to the over-sized, gigantic ships. They obviously don't stay overnight in the city's hotels or spend money in nice restauarants, chosing instead