Aruban Public Workers Protetsts Destroying their Own Economy Affecting Cruise Ship Passengers

Aruba, you do not get a second chance to make a first impression. Imagine what the lasting impression was on the cruise  passengers this weekend when you blocked the entrance to the cruise terminal and caused utter chaos. The cruise ship passengers and tourists not only did not get off the boat, do you think they ever will return? If tours are being canceled, roads blocked and tourists are being affected in such an adverse manner, what would be the reason to even book a vacation to Aruba? A vacation is supposed to be just that, a vacation …. not a chore.

Due to the actions that extended to the cruise terminal, some cruise passengers decided to spend the day on their ship, instead of going shopping or taking a tour of the island.  A number of island tours were even cancelled.  Cab drivers on the the cruise terminal were angry, because they have missed income.  

The actions of the public employee strikes are very similar in nature to the actions of law enforcement, the justice department and the Aruban government in the aftermath of the disappearance of Natalee Holloway. Making decisions in matters without the slightest idea of the consequences that would occur and  affect tourism and the economy. Not just for the present, but for years to come. 

Entrance harbour blocked (Amigoe: 4/19/2008)

Read more

Royal Caribbean reduced its annual earnings forecast, Fuel Costs & Sluggish Demand in the Caribbean

Royal Caribbean cruise lines state that profits rose; however, reduced its annual earnings forecast as the future looks like rough seas. There seem to be many contributing factors this reduction forecast including high fuel prices, canceled trips and blunt sluggish demand in the Caribbean.

The company charged more for cruises to the Mediterranean, Scandinavia and Alaska, destinations that are more profitable than the Caribbean. It has added ships and extended the sailing season in Europe to blunt sluggish demand in the Caribbean, its largest market.

Royal Caribbean operates about 35 ships under the Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Pullmantur and Azamara Cruises lines. The company bought Pullmantur SA, a Spanish cruise operator, last year to expand in Europe and reduce its dependence on the Caribbean (Miami Herald)

Tourist Passenger Welfare? 21Norwegian Cruise Line Workers Test Positive For TB

We first reported this story in June when Norwegian Cruise Lines America admitted that one of its ex-crew members aboard the Pride of America was diagnosed with tuberculosis. NCL stated that it “would continue to work closely with the state and federal health officials to ensure the health and safety of all its guests and crew members”.

 It is now being reported that 21 employees of the Hawaii-based Norwegian Cruise Line ship Pride of America tested positive for tuberculosis last month. Are cruise lines taking the welfare of passengers and crew members seriously, Carroll Cox of EnviroWatch does not seem to think so.

Read more

When Hate Crimes and Cruise Ships Collide … 18 year old David Ritcheson Jumps from Cruise Ship After Past Pipe Attack

This is a truly terrible story and one where a cruise line would seemly have no responsibility in the death of 18 year old David Ritcheson, only that they were the vehicle that he ended his life on. It would appear that David Ritcheson took his own life jumping from a cruise ship. David Ritcheson was a past victim of a hate crime who actually just 3 months ago testified in front of Congress (Statement to Congress) about his beating and near death at the hand of hate mongers. Sadly for David Ritcheson the pain, anguish and torment of the incident must have been too much to bare. Although many of his friends stated that they were shocked at his death and that he seemed to be doing well. Unfortunately, I guess he was just hiding it well. The incident and the trials must have taken their toll. Another case of man’s in-humanity to man. God bless you David and may you rest in peace.

A Spring teen who survived a brutal beating with a pipe last year apparently jumped to his death from a Cozumel-bound cruise ship on Sunday. An 18-year-old was observed by “a bunch of people” jumping over the railing of the upper deck of Carnival Cruise Lines’ Ecstasy around 7:35 a.m. Sunday, said Coast Guard spokesman Adam Eggers. Carlos said that the family confirmed it, that it was true,” Dovalina said. “The family heard from the captain of the ship. He went overboard.”

The ship’s crew pulled the body from the water and he was pronounced dead at 9:10 a.m. The ship had departed Galveston on Saturday and was a “couple of hundred” miles out, Eggers said. Ritcheson’s death comes less than three months after he testified before Congress about how two teens nearly killed him on April 23, 2006 by repeatedly kicking a patio umbrella stand into his rectum while shouting “white power!” (Houston Chronicle)

Passengers recount teen’s leap from ship

The David Ritcheson case shows us just exactly how traumatising brutal attacks can be. The scars, both physical and mental, sometimes never go away. If not properly treated, individuals feel a hopelessness that they think they can never recover from. We can only hope and pray that David Ritcheson is at peace.

By appearances, Ritcheson was regaining control over his life following a brutal, racist assault in April 2006 that almost claimed it. Most of the surgeries required to repair extensive internal injuries had been done. He had stepped forward at the cost of public embarrassment to testify before Congress in support of expanded hate crimes legislation. He had returned to school, reconnected with his friends and started to live as a regular high school student, albeit one with significant scars, physical and emotional.

On the outside, friends said, Ritcheson appeared to be his same smiling self.

And if he was upset, said Jenny Bonilla, a friend and fellow student at Klein Collins High School, “he never showed it in any way.”

Trent said he last saw Ritcheson in January. He spoke with his parents in recent weeks and heard nothing discouraging.

“But every day, David had pain he lived with, and there were things he could no longer do as a result of his injuries,” Trent said. “And there were scars that were very disfiguring. All I know is, when you’re 18 years old, it’s very hard to see beyond tomorrow or even beyond today.”

Ritcheson had rebuffed all suggestions that he get psychological counseling and wouldn’t even talk to friends about it. Mental health experts say his avoidance of professional help is common for victims of trauma — and dangerous. (Houston Chronicle)

Cruise Ship Passengers Declining in Aruba and the Caribbean … Are Reported Tourism Numbers Accurate?

Some tourism numbers were reported in Aruba indicating a treading water trend in the hotel occupancy rate; however, cruise ship passengers were down significantly. The decline of cruise ships in the Caribbean is a trend that is occurring creating a Cruise ship Blues for many in the Caribbean. However, one wonders when a country is so dependent on one industry like tourism, are the numbers reported accurately?

Available data show that the average occupancy rate of hotels for April 2007 edged up by 0.7 percentage point to 81.8 percent, after falling slightly by 0.5 percentage point to 82.0 percent for March 2007. The Aruba Tourism Authority has not yet published the data on tourist arrivals and nights spent on the island for March and April 2007.

Since February 2007, the number of cruise passengers has been declining. This number fell again in April and May 2007 by, respectively, 17.3 percent and 25.8 percent, in spite of a 3.4 percent rise in ship calls in April 2007 and a notable 75 percent hike in May 2007. A major factor for this development was the cancellation as of January 2007 of the weekly visits of the Carnival Cruise Lines to Aruba. (Central Bank Aruba)

Of course that is if we are to believe that Aruban officials are actually reporting the actual numbers and not using creating accounting. It is hard to believe from actual pictures of few tourist on the beach, people’s accounts who have visited Aruba and common sense crunching of numbers that what is being presented is 100% accurate. We posed the question to Jossy Mansur of Diario, what is tourism really like on Aruba? Its hard to believe that it is close to pre-Natalee missing numbers as we have seen then decline in large numbers since and only increase in some months by small amounts. Does Aruba really provide accurate numbers when reporting?

Tourism hasn’t fared well lately. The hotels are operating with a below normal occupancy for this time of year (we are in the off-season now). The figures published by the government are not reliable. They tend to present favorable numbers that will make them look good, but that do not reflect the reality of the industry. Numerous factors, including the Holloway case, have contributed to the noticeable drop in tourism. Lack of an integral plan, lack of funds, lack of an effective and all-encompassing publicity campaign in the traditional markets, renewed competition from some of the other more aggressive and well-funded islands in the Caribbean, are some of the contributing factors. (Jossy Mansur)

Read more