Despite the travel warnings in place for the country of Haiti, Royal Caribbean is still sending cruise ships to visit its private destination of Labadee.
Labadee is the name of a beach area reserved exclusively for the use of Royal Caribbean ships and its passengers on a peninsula in northern Haiti. It's walled off from the rest of the country and Royal Caribbean employs a private security force there.
Royal Caribbean has leased the 260-acre site since the 1980s, and it's 130 miles north of Port-au-Prince (about a six-and-a-half-hour drive) and has not been impacted by other periods of unrest in the country.
Haiti has a long history of political and civil strife, and a surge in gang violence in the around the capital of the country, Port-au-Prince, in recent months has caught a lot of worldwide attention.
For a few months in 2024, Royal Caribbean cancelled visits to Labadee "in an abundance of caution", but resumed visits later that year.
As it turned out, the problems plaguing the cities did not reach the remote peninsula Labadee occupies.
Since restarting visits, there's been no incidents with the various cruise ships stopping there.
In fact, Royal Caribbean re-routed a few ships to Labadee to avoid hurricanes.
With upcoming cruises scheduled to visit Labadee, you might be curious what to expect with your visit to this enclosed beach area in northern Haiti.
Yes, cruise ships are still going to Labadee
Haiti's issues are prevalent in the country, but Labadee has not seen any such occurrences remotely near it.
Because the beach area is far from major population centers, accessible only by rural roads, and completely walled off, Royal Caribbean feels it's safe enough for cruise ships to call on the port.
"The safety and security of our guests, crew, and communities we visit are our top priority. Our Global Security and Intelligence Team continuously monitor the situation in Haiti. Currently, there are no changes to our planned itineraries," is what the cruise line has said on the matter of safety there.
The top reason many cruisers are concerned is the fact the U.S. State Department issued a Level 4 "Do not travel" travel warning, but the warning covers primarily the capital and surrounding area, which is no where near Labadee.
Why Royal Caribbean is sailing to a place the US advises against
Royal Caribbean exercises a great deal of risk management in anywhere it sends it ships, and that's exactly what they're doing with Haiti.
In short, in all the months of Haiti's most recent issue, there hasn't been a single incident even close to where Royal Caribbean's private beach is located.
Just like in any city or country, certain areas are problem spots but not the entire region.
