Bahamas Changes Stance on Cruise Ship Passengers

[T & R]

I'm not so sure that your statement is entirely true. Disney does not own Castaway Cay. They have a 99 year lease, and as part of that lease, possibly it is a requirement that they have a Bahamian presence on the island.

I can assure you it's not open to the public. We are all aware of the 99 yr lease thing. Mexico does the same thing for Americans who buy houses. It doesn't mean people have the right to walk into your house because you technically don't own it. The Bahamian Govt already has curfews and quarantines in place to fight Covid, wouldn't be hard to add one extra line in there about CC. We can think of solutions or keep coming up with reasons why we can't.

 

[wombat_5606]

I can assure you it's not open to the public. We are all aware of the 99 yr lease thing. Mexico does the same thing for Americans who buy houses. It doesn't mean people have the right to walk into your house because you technically don't own it. The Bahamian Govt already has curfews and quarantines in place to fight Covid, wouldn't be hard to add one extra line in there about CC. We can think of solutions or keep coming up with reasons why we can't.

I, personally, don't think anyone is going to be asking the DISboards for solutions.

 

[insureman]

Isn’t there somewhere between six and 18 employees that stay there frequently in a bunker whenever there’s a hurricane coming through? Are those straight up Disney employees and not just “a vendor”? Groundskeepers, mechanics, maintenance,....

Here is an article about the cast members on Castaway Cay from 4 years ago. Guenter is still in charge last I heard.
https://ohmy.disney.com/insider/2016/08/21/living-on-castaway-cay/

 

[DCL Repeaters]

Why do multiple people on here feel that local Bahamian vendors must be present on Castaway Cay when we port there? I've never seen this opinion before. Wouldn't it make sense for the time being for them not to be there. I'm sure they would understand given the circumstances. Simple fix, it's not rocket science.

Have you noticed who runs the trams, the shore excursions? Local Bahamians from Abaco.

 

[AquaDame]

This guy is suggesting porting in Nassau which I do not get but I've never understood why the Bahamas hasn't offered the private island only route as an alternative until a vaccine is going. A 3 night cruise porting at CC is zero risk to the Bahamian population and the Government of The Bahamas still gets to rake in the $ millions in needed port fees. Seems like a sound compromise and a win for both parties until things get back to normal. DCL already offers CC only cruises, so it's not like it's some profound idea.

Well, the point of the article is that the stance that changed is he WANTS the ships to come to Nassau and spend money... port fees are all well and good, but they want $ to flow to the businesses there directly also. It has a more immediate impact on the people who live there, without waiting for any trickle down effect that may happen. If anything based on that FORCING the ships to stop in Nassau when and only when cruising restarts would benefit them monetarily. They're holding the cards on that one...

Bringing in local Bahamian vendors is an option, not a requirement. It's a private island, there's no requirement that they bring in locals.

It's not required but the jobs the locals do cover things the ship workers cannot. They help the ship dock, keep the island tidy for each group of passengers, run the post office, the excursions, etc. If rules change to allow short cruises to private islands without also stopping in Nassau perhaps Disney would figure something out to keep the minimal number of workers coming in - cancelling everyone they can and keeping a skeleton crew. If they're stopping in Nassau already though, there is less benefit to doing all that.

Regardless they still have to figure a ton of other details out - life onboard, maximum safe capacity, bringing onboard staff back and possibly contract requirements. I don't doubt that Bahamian cruises will be one of the first if not THE first cruises to start back up from the US. I am not getting the feeling that we are any closer to cruising with his reversal on complaining that cruisers weren't spending enough money in Nassau.

 

[JM23457]

I do not understand this thought process. Why is it DCL's responsibility to support the individual locals during a pandemic? That is the job of the Bahamian Government or the individuals themselves and should not even be a factor in DCL's decision making process. DCL is not their momma.

Yuck.

DCL having Bahamians working on DCL's private island in the Bahamas serves multiple functions, including the following:

1. It provides a stable & affordable work force that is good at their job and willing to do it.

2. It allows DCL guests to interact with real Bahamians on the island, which many guests enjoy doing, as it adds local color and helps the experience to feel less manufactured.

3. It allows DCL to give just a little back to the nation (Bahamas) that helps DCL earn a lot of its money.

Your comments on this thread, particularly the comment I quoted, have been tone deaf. You need to step back, breathe, & realize that the world doesn't revolve around the resumption of cruising.

 

[Snowwhyt]

Seems like if they have 60 people working normally, would you think they have a whole lot of painting going on? What do you think they are doing? Some gone home? All there cleaning up after the last hurricane? Ready for the next?

 

[T & R]

Have you noticed who runs the trams, the shore excursions? Local Bahamians from Abaco.

I sure have. Right now it's nobody. How's that helping out the Bahamian economy?

 

[T & R]

Your comments on this thread, particularly the comment I quoted, have been tone deaf. You need to step back, breathe, & realize that the world doesn't revolve around the resumption of cruising.

Many people's world does revolve around the resumption of cruising, including those Bahamians you described. My world and your world may not revolve around the resumption of cruising but this is a cruising forum, so I will continue to advocate for the resumption of cruising. If I wasn't interested in cruising resuming then I wouldn't be here and I would be on the Nissan forum or something. But I guess then people would be in the Nissan forum claiming the world doesn't revolve around Nissans.

 

[DCLCrazy64622]

Stepping foot in Nassau once was enough. If and when we port there again, staying on ship is the best option. We are supposed to be doing this on an RC cruise next spring that hits Coco Cay twice as well. Sleep in on Nassau day and chill on the ship.

I’m with you. We always stay on the ship unless we want to get Starbucks. But it’s straight there and back. Not a fan of Nassau.