Bahamian trap: More and more travel agents criticise the marketing practices of the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism which are incompatible with an honest information policy. It is irresponsible to deceive potential tourists or investors with false claims about the Bahamas. But many tourists I spoke to they did not catch the real caribbean experience. Official survey revealed that many travelers return home very disappointed and the would not recommend the Bahamas to their family members or friends.
I claim that cruise passengers were greeted by a band playing homemade instruments which was really cool but he bad part is that the band was pulling people in to get their pictures taken then insisting that the tourist pay the band for posing. They were also greeted by taxi and horse/buggy drivers, scooter lenders, hair braiders, and merchants who were all extremely aggressive. Not just aggressive in their sales tactics but actually grabbing people and trying to intimidate tourists into buying. Taxi drivers have to have meters in the cabs by law and should be forced to use them.
Many tourists I spoke to claim the strange contrast between rich and poor neighborhoods in Nassau. One even do not have to pass the location of the 5 star Gray Cliff Hotel at Blue Hill Road or the Police Headquarters at East Street you find already wide spread slums close to the port. Anyhow the growing number of derelict buildings along the eastern end of Bay Street are contributing to a drop in business in the area, where nearly a third of the shop spaces are vacant. Ants are the winner in Nassau´s downtown area. One can easily imagine that you will find termites and ants among others not only in a few houses, shopping arcades, restaurants, hotels and kitchens.
Travelers should not at all surprised when Bahamians might show a friendly attitude towards foreigners. But they do it mostly only as long as they can expect any advantage from them. Even worse: A trip to the Bahamas is always expensive and tourists claim you won´t get the right value for your money. Alleged advantages due to special discounts on cruise ships, cheap prices at the straw market for items produced in China or any savings on rum offers are used up very quick. Bay Street, Straw Market and Potter´s Cay are unsanitary. Complaints touched on everything concerning the straw market from excessive heat, poor lighting and flooding, to unsanitary and claustrophobic conditions. There is only one bathroom for about 3000 people a day.
After 7 pm Nassau is nothing else but death because cruise ship passengers mostly return on board where they have more fun, better food and better entertainment at reasonable prices. I even say that the Dollar has in the Bahamas a value of 50 cents only. Dinner for two is about 100$, even the local beer, Kalik, is $34 a case in a shop...more on the outer Cays. Bud is about the same....maybe a little more. I used to think the price of beer is high because of shipping and import duties but Kalik has no duties and a little shipping so what gives? Also, you can buy Kalik much cheaper in the States than it is home country.....hmmm. I would say they charge $34 simply because they can.
I guess a cruise out into the ocean is not bad, but after getting into the water and above the reef it is really not very good at all. The coral appeared to be dead and fish were nonexistent. Very disapointing for me and the other people who payed 40 dollars a head. After getting back you might visit Paradise Island where the big attraction is the Atlantis Hotel and Casino. It is nice to look at and quite impressive but if you are not staying there it cannot be too much fun. The highlight of a Bahamas trip was looking a high priced hotel?
I got the information that you will find an interesting nightlife the Bahamas. They tell you that they have ongoing events at Arawak Cay in Nassau or at the Lucayan Market place on Grand Bahama but if you ask to published a real timetable for the following week than they won´t tell you because nothing will happen for days. Ask the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism which events are realy going on. Or do you want to stay in the casinos only?
OK, where many people are living there is crime, stealing and killing too but from my point of view the Bahamas is a small country with about 300 000 inhabitants. This means to me that the crime, stealing and killing rate should absolutely not so high like in New York or Moscow. The former U.S. Ambassador in the Bahamas, J. Richard Blankenship, said that the more violent crime creeps up, the less secure they will feel, hence, the less the economy will prosper." He also claimed that a drug vessel was confiscated and brought to Prince George Dock in Nassau but some of the drugs on the way to the Coral Harbour Base disappeared. The Bahamas government was forced by the United States to investigate the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the confiscated drugs at least after 12 years.
I personally agree also that the US embassy even published not only once a travel warning at least for spring breakers. A American family lived the most terrifying moments of their lives: "When leaving the hotel room two gunmen with a local accent forced us to return to our room. We were thrown on the floor, they tied our hands and feet, covered our mouths, kicked our bodies and threatened us with their guns demanding "where is the money". After taking our personal property and inflicting on my daughter and my wife the most inhuman and cruel acts, these men left our room and entered the room across ours, where they perpetrated another attack to an American family of two adults and a small child from New York. About 15 minutes later a lady from the Island of Trinidad was also attacked by the same ruthless criminals.
The Bahamas Government should not invest so much money for false advertisements. Less tourists would return disappointed. I am also wondering that Condé Nast Traveler published recently an island report written by Adam Sachs with the headline Bahamas rising . In my opinion our judgement will be wrong if we look only at Atlantis Resort and Casino on (little) Paradise Island or at the (small) Four Season Resort on Great Exuma, which is a gated hotel, away from the real life in the Bahamas. In fact he Bahamas are quite different. If you want to read more about wide spread criminality, corrupt officials, injustice, a legal profession with anti-foreign attitudes, racism, drug trafficking as well as bad service with high prices write a email. You will find my adress at most important search engines. But I have to appologize that I cannot write in proper English.
Do you want to check my Nassau-pictures? > www.reporter.int.tc
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Harald Fuhrmann
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