This is our up-to-date schedule of Carnival Sensation cruises scheduled for Miami, Florida in March 2017. Additional months and other schedules are available from the links on the right side of this page.
Carnival Sensation Cruise Schedule For March 2017
Saturday March 4, 2017 - 5 Night Western Caribbean
Ports of call: Ocho Rios, Jamaica; George Town, Grand Cayman
Thursday March 9, 2017 - 4 Night Western Caribbean
Ports of call: Key West, Florida; Cozumel, Mexico
Monday March 13, 2017 - 5 Night Eastern Caribbean
Ports of call: Grand Turk Island, Turks & Caicos; Half Moon Cay, Bahamas (Cruiseline Private Island); Nassau, Bahamas
Saturday March 18, 2017 - 5 Night Western Caribbean
Breaking News and Legal Commentary Regarding Cruise Ship Passengers & Crew Members Around the World
Home > March 2017
U. S. State Department Publishes 2017 Bahamas Crime & Safety Report
Posted on March 23, 2017 by Jim Walker
The U. S. Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) recently published its 2017 Crime & Safety Report regarding the Bahamas.
The council, which was established under authority of the U. S. Secretary of State, reached the following findings and conclusions:
- The Bahamas is a major Caribbean tourist destination with major cruise ship ports of calls in Nassau and Freeport. Over six million U. S. citizens visit the Bahamas each year. Approximately 80% of tourists to the Bahamas are U. S. citizens. The Bahamas consists of more than 700 islands and cays. The Bahamas has a population of approximately 370,000. 70% of Bahamians (around 260,000) reside on the island of New Providence, where Nassau is situated. Another 15% (around 60,000) live on Grand Bahama, where Freeport is located. The rest of the population is dispersed over several dozen outer islands (commonly referred to as the “Family Islands”).
- Crime in Nassau is critical. Violent crime reportedly dropped from 2015 to 2016 by double digit percentages in every category, although some observers have questioned the legitimacy of this claim. Murders were down 24% from a record high in 2015 (111 in 2016 vs. 146 in 2015). Despite the publicized numbers, crime continues to represent the primary security threat in the Bahamas. The preponderance of reported violent crimes were perpetrated against local Bahamians and mostly occurred in areas of saturated criminality not typically visited by tourists. However, New Providence has witnessed violent crimes in locations more commonly frequented by U. S. citizen tourists. In some instances, these incidents resulted in fatalities. Criminality and violent crime has increased on Grand Bahama island, notably crimes involving the use of machetes. Many criminals carry firearms, machetes, or knives, and these weapons are commonly brandished. There were reports of firearms used in the commission of armed robberies, where the assailant assaulted the victim after the victim resisted. Many armed robberies involved snatch-and-grabs involving purses, jewelry, cell phones, and cash. Armed robberies, property crimes, purse snatchings, theft, fraud, and sexual assaults remain the most common crimes perpetrated against tourists. In 2016, numerous incidents were reported that either involved tourists or occurred in well-known tourist locations. Crimes occurred near popular tourist areas adjacent to the cruise ship port (Prince George Wharf) and the Cable Beach resort areas as well as the popular downtown area. Several armed robberies of U. S. citizens have occurred in daylight hours in heavily frequented tourist areas. The water sports rental industry is only loosely regulated, and in 2015, there were reported sexual assaults of U. S. citizens, including minors, by jet-ski operators. The majority of these sexual assaults were reported to have occurred on relatively “safe” beaches within the confines of Paradise Island, which is heavily frequented by tourists.
We recommend to anyone traveling to the Bahamas (particularly Nassau) to also read the news accounts and editorials in the local newspapers in the Bahamas, the Tribune and the Nassau Guardian.
Photo credit: Bahamas government - Public Domain, commons / wikimedia.
Passenger Overboard from Carnival Victory
Posted on March 22, 2017 by Jim Walker
Multiple news sources are reporting this morning that a Carnival cruise passenger went overboard last night / early this morning around 33 miles west / northwest of Cuba as the cruise ship was heading toward Cozumel.
A guest aboard the Carnival cruise ship told a newspaper in Texas that the ship’s PA system announced “man overboard” around 3 a. m. today. The young man reportedly went overboard from deck eight.
"The ship made a 180 degree turn and a life jacket was thrown in the vicinity of where the man was thought to be. The life jacket was found floating several hours later. The witness said the ship has been somber and quiet since the announcement."
The cruise ship reportedly departed from Miami on Monday.
There have been 289 people overboard since 2000, according to cruise expert Dr. Ross Klein.
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Norovirus on the Coral Princess
Posted on March 20, 2017 by Jim Walker
The Coral Princess arrived in Fort Lauderdale this weekend with 157 of 2,016 cruise passengers aboard the Princess Cruises' ship stricken with nausea/vomiting and diarrhea which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suspect are symptoms related to norovirus.
The noro-infected passengers comprise 7.79% of the total passenger population on the ship. 25 of 881 (2.84%) crew members are also infected.
The CDC was unable to conclude where the norovirus came from. I am not aware of a single instance when the CDC has pinpointed the cause of a cruise ship disease outbreak. Unfortunately, the public is often left with the "blame game" of wondering whether the cruise ship food or water was contaminated (which the CDC and FDA generally say are the most likely causes of gastrointestinal outbreaks), or the outbreak was caused by a sick galley worker, or was brought aboard by sick passengers, and then spread because of inadequate hygiene and poor cleaning procedures.
Several years ago, Time magazine published an article titled 13 Worst Norovirus Outbreaks on Cruise Ship s. The overall winner of Time's top 13 list was Princess Cruises which had five outbreaks on its brand alone: Crown Princess (January 2010) with 396 ill; Crown Princess (February 2012) - 363; Ruby Princess (March 2013) - 276; Coral Princess (February 2009) - 271; and Sun Princess (July 2012) - 216.
The last norovirus outbreak involving the Coral Princess was in April 2015 .
Photo credit: Roy Luck - CC BY 2.0, commons / wikimedia.
Hat tip to the popular Crew Center blog which first covered the outbreak.