Guests sailing on upcoming Royal Caribbean cruises that visit Grand Bahama Island had their shore excursions cancelled, which comes right after news of two American passengers that were attacked there earlier this month.

Two American passengers disclosed that they were drugged and raped while visiting the Pirate's Cove Resort. Since then two people have been arrested on sexual assault charges.

"Due to a recent incident in Grand Bahama Island, we've made the decision to temporarily suspend select tours. Unfortunately, this includes your Beach Getaway and Lunch" the email to passengers reads. 

"As a result, we've issued a full refund to your original form of payment, which you should see within 14 business days. Some banking institutions may take longer."

"In the meantime, please feel free to visit My Royal Cruise or the Shore Excursions Deck once onboard to review options for your time in port." 

Amber Shearer and Dongayla Dobson, two 31-year-old mothers from Kentucky, were supposedly on the girl's trip of a lifetime. They had saved for months for a Carnival cruise from Jacksonville, Florida, and were enjoying time together on the beach when they were offered a two-for-one drink deal from a resort employee. 

According to a USA TODAY article, Nicholas Gerson, the women's Miami-based attorney, said, "They became inebriated and were both taken away and raped." Both women were unaware of the recently imposed travel warning by the U.S. Department of State and "not aware of any warnings given by Carnival." 

Two individuals, a 54- and 40-year-old man, were arrested on Sunday in relation to the attacks. 

On January 26, the U.S. Department of State issued a level 2 advisory warning in The Bahamas due to crime 

According to the country summary, the majority of the crime in The Bahamas occurs in the capital of New Providence, which is where Nassau is located, as well as Grand Bahama Island. 

"In Nassau, practice increased vigilance in the “Over the Hill” area (south of Shirley Street) where gang-on-gang violence has resulted in a high homicide rate primarily affecting the local population. Violent crime, such as burglaries, armed robberies, and sexual assaults, occur in both tourist and non-tourist areas."

"Be vigilant when staying at short-term vacation rental properties where private security companies do not have a presence."

The U.S. Embassy issued a security alert a few days prior to the Department of State. They advised that all U.S. citizens should be aware that 18 murders have occurred in Nassau at all hours of the day since the beginning of 2024. 

They claim that the primary motive has been retaliatory gang violence. 

Additionally, the warning states that activities involving commercial recreational watercraft aren't consistently regulated

In November 2023, a ferry filled with passengers en route to Blue Lagoon Island off the coast of Nassau encountered rough seas and began to take on water before capsizing and killing one woman from the United States. Since the boat was near shallow waters, it didn't completely submerge. Independence of the Seas was the only Royal Caribbean ship docked on the day of the incident. 

Royal Caribbean used to offer a variety of excursions to Blue Lagoon, including beach breaks, snorkeling, and dolphin encounters. Since the accident, however, the cruise line has decided to cancel all tours through March 2024 as they continue their investigation. 

Guests with booked tours will automatically receive a full refund back to their original form of payment. Like tours in Grand Bahama Island, these refunds will be processed within 14 business days. 

How to stay safe when visiting The Bahamas (or any port of call)

Whenever you travel, it's imperative that you keep your guard up at all times. While the likelihood of a crime being committed against you is low, it's never impossible. 

When going ashore, you should aim to keep a low profile and be aware of your surroundings at all times. If you happen to be the victim of a robbery, don't physically resist it. 

It is also smart to closely monitor your drinks. If you're able to, you should watch the bartender make it, and if anything seems off, ask someone else to remake it. 

Rather than venturing off with a random tour operator that you find on the streets, consider booking a tour through Royal Caribbean. 

They work with reputable local operators to ensure that safety is at the forefront of every tour. Even then, however, you should always monitor your surroundings, as was proved during the Blue Lagoon Island incident. 

The rumor mill is swirling with the possibility of Royal Caribbean eyeing a new resort in Freeport, Bahamas as part of a bigger plan to revamp the harbor.

Prior to the cruise industry shutting down in 2020, Royal Caribbean announced plans for redeveloping Freeport's harbor and create a combination new port and resort.  Those plans fell through during the shutdown.

There's now word of a potential purchase of the Xanadu Beach Hotel in Freeport as part of plans to develop a resort and water park destination, according to The Tribune report.

According to "multiple well-placed sources", Royal Caribbean is in talks with the property owner to buy the line, and that negotiations towards an offer being made by the cruise line.

Royal Caribbean has made no announcement, nor have they confirmed or denied the original report. 

The deal could cover an area of 40-50 acres, which would be tied to redeveloping Freeport's harbor.

One source indicated that the project could be used by sister brand Celebrity Cruises as well.

The Xanadu Beach Hotel was built in 1968 and then purchased by Howard Hughes in 1972. Mr. Hughes lived at the hotel until just before his death in 1976.

It was an escape for Hollywood stars, and included 215 rooms and an 80 slip marina. Stars such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Lucille Ball visited there.

It closed in 2011.

The original Freeport plan

The original plan for the cruise giant was to purchase the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport, and tie that to a harbor deal.

Royal Caribbean had about 20 projects on the drawing board prior to the global health crisis, including the Freeport project.

Under the deal announced in 2020, there were to be two locations that included a port terminal and the Grand Lucayan hotel.

The first phase of the Lucaya Property would have been a beachfront destination with a 526-room hotel, shopping village, spa and wellness center, water-based family entertainment including a massive water and adventure theme park, a 40,000-square-foot convention center, adventure activities such as zip lines and off-roading, restaurants and bars, entertainment and lively nightlife. 

The enhancement and expansion of the port terminal, to be called Harbour Village, would have been nine miles west of the Lucaya Property, at the cruise terminal in Freeport Harbor. Here, visitors would have been able to enjoy numerous spaces with multiple shopping and dining venues, beach areas, shore excursions and more. 

The plan was for it to be finished in winter 2022.

Freeport still an option

It remains to be seen if a deal to purchase the Xanadu property will happen, or if a Freeport project in general will continue, but it seemed like the cruise line is still eyeing the possibility.

In March 2023, Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley told Bahamian media that he was "increasingly optimistic" that its Freeport port project will finally happen.

"I would say we are increasingly optimistic about the timing of that. In the coming months hopefully we will be in a position to make some positive announcement on Freeport."

"Our intent is to bring more capacity into Freeport. The first step, which will be in conjunction with others, is investing in improving the port."

Mr. Bayley said development of a water-based adventure theme park for passengers in close proximity to the port area was still the plan.

Royal Caribbean’s plans to purchase the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport are off, but the company plans to participate in a new bid process.

The sale agreement of the Grand Lucayan was canceled this week after the new administration in The Bahamas determined that the way the sale was structured was ‘not in the best interests of the Bahamian people’. Concerns of clarity on how quickly the project would be advanced were mentioned.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments, and Aviation Chester Cooper stated that “The government was frankly not satisfied with what was proposed or that the project would be advanced in the short or medium term. We were not willing to continue on without clear timeline for completion and were of the view that many of the terms were not in the best interest of the Bahamian people.”

In early March 2020, Royal Caribbean announced plans to purchase the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport, Bahamas. Bahamas Ports Investments Limited (BPI), the joint venture of ITM Group and Royal Caribbean Group, spent months negotiating the sale of the resort, which is owned by the Bahamian government, to transform it into a popular port destination.

Plans included a transformation of the Lucaya Property into a beachfront destination, which would include a 526-room hotel, shopping village, spa and wellness center, water and adventure park, convention center, adventure activities (such as ziplining), restaurants and bars, and entertainment. The resort would be a popular attraction for both land and cruise guests.

There were also plans for a major enhancement project at Harbour Village, the cruise ship terminal in Freeport. Enhancements would include shopping and dining venues and a transportation hub. However, BPI was unable to finalize a deal with Freeport Harbour Company. As the purchase of the resort was contingent upon reaching an agreement with the port, efforts were delayed.

The Bahamian government still plans to sell the property, noting that new investors of the Grand Lucayan will more than likely not depend on development of the port. Mr. Cooper mentioned that coupling the port and resort together was a bad idea, as it led to significant economic delay as Royal Caribbean and ITM Group struggled to reach an agreement with Freeport Harbour Company.

Royal Caribbean still plans to participate in the new bid process for the resort, though. After ITM Group’s withdrew from the acquisition, Royal Caribbean began searching for a new partner in the land-based hospitality industry.

“We look forward to participating in the new public bid process for the purchase of the Grand Lucayan once a bid is issued by the government of The Bahamas. The transformation of the Grand Lucayan into a premier entertainment resort will complement our plans for the development of a world-class cruise ship port facility in Freeport to re-establish Grand Bahama as one of the world’s most popular cruise destinations.”

Royal Caribbean will also be investing in the $450 million transformation of the Grand Bahama Shipyard, where it holds a 40% stake. They have stated that they remain committed to supporting the government’s vision for transformation of tourism offerings in Grand Bahama.

Royal Caribbean may have been shut down for 15 months, but that does not mean work stopped behind the scenes on new innovations and ideas that were announced in the months leading up to the stoppage.

While there may not have been many public updates on what was happening, Royal Caribbean prioritized certain initiatives and expansions so that when cruise ships could return, the company would be ready with exciting new announcements.

Overseeing these initiatives is Royal Caribbean Group Chief Product Innovation Officer, Jay Schneider, whose job it is to blend product development and experience, and he manages Royal Caribbean's technology and private destination innovations.

So what has Royal Caribbean been up to all these months, and what changes, additions, and new offerings can we expect with cruise ships starting to restart operations? I asked Mr. Schneider what is behind Royal Caribbean's proverbial curtain.

Continual investment

First and foremost, Mr. Schneider pointed to the fact his team invested in creating a new tech foundation to support initiatives that would prove to be critical to success during the shutdown, "Had we not made that investment, getting back into service now would be very difficult and very expensive."

This includes things like reducing friction at check-in, emuster, or being able to review your folio were good ideas pre-shutdown, and are now critical for social distancing and reducing touch points.

More importantly, Royal Caribbean not stopping work on its digital projects is a lesson learned from the days of the last smartphone app, Royal iQ.

"I think one of the mistakes we made, if you remember our Royal iQ app," Schneider admitted.

"We stopped investing in it and it just became stagnant. And so you'll see us continue to make improvements and additions and edits to the Royal Caribbean app and build the product out."

Chat feature

Schneider says the chat feature was ready to be rolled out right before the pandemic hit, but it is ready for all the ships in the fleet now.

Mr. Schneider confirmed the chat feature is ready for use fleet wide, "As we bring every ship back, every ship, will have chat."

Royal Beach Club

In March 2020, Royal Caribbean announced a Royal Beach Club in Nassau, which is an enhancement of an area that Royal Caribbean's cruise ships sail to, with the option for guests to go there, or do something else in that destination.

Mr. Schneider confirmed the first Royal Beach Club will be in Nassau, known as the Royal Beach Club in Paradise Island. After that, the Perfect Day projects will continue, "We're going to continue to go and build out Royal Beach clubs. The first one will be here in Nassau. It will be the Royal Beach Club in Paradise Island. And then we're going to continue to expand our Perfect Day portfolio."

"We have gotten to the point where we've announced that we've executed our lease with the government. So the total space is 20 acres, 13 of which we own privately, and then it's seven acres of government land that we've leased."

"We are going to continue to move forward to that program."

The daily occupancy for the Royal Beach Club in Paradise Island will be 3,500 guests.

Also in the Bahamas is another project in Freeport on Grand Bahama Island. 

According to Schneider, that project is still moving forward, "It continues to move forward. We're still working through the legal agreements, so that's just been an elongated process that we hope will conclude sometime soon."

So which projects are a go with the way things stand now? Mr. Schneider would only say some things have changed over the last 15 months that may or may not alter Royal Caribbean's plans.

"Number one, the destinations are evolving, meaning they're coming out of a pandemic themselves. So their situations are different."

"Second, our guests are evolving and we're constantly updating our slate of where we want to go. And so those factors and formulas together help us think about where we want to go."

Read more: Royal Caribbean's plans to build a cruise resort in Bahamas are still alive

Amplifications will return

One of the many projects that had to be sidelined were ship upgrades under the Royal Amplified program, and it looks like those updates are delayed, but not denied.

"We're going to pick up Amplification again. We're going to keep making sure that the Amplification we have is working."

Moreover, new ship construction is not stopping either, "Our new build portfolio isn't isn't stopping. We're going to continue to build amazing ships."

"You're going to see new concepts come out on future ships and you're going to see us experiment with new fun ways to, again, get people to have an amazing vacation."

Read more: What was added to each Royal Caribbean ship during its Royal Amplified refurbishment

The new port project in Freeport, Bahamas is still in negotiations, but a closing this summer is the goal.

Royal Caribbean Group Vice President Government Relations, Americas, Russell Benford, provided an updated that the purchase of the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport is "close" to being a done deal.

For months, the joint venture of ITM Group and Royal Caribbean Group has been negotiating the sale of the government owned resort so that the land can be turned into a new port destination.

If completed, the joint venture would transform the Grand Lucayan hotel and surrounding area into a new cruise port area, with new berths for ships at Freeport Harbour as well as the creation of a water-based adventure theme park for the thousands of passengers that the cruise line plans to bring to Freeport on an annual basis.

Mr. Benford  told Tribune Business that while the discussions have taken a while to discuss, things are still moving forward, "I think we’re close."

"I’m hopeful that we close this summer, and I think we’re down to a handful of documents that need to be reviewed and a couple of financial instruments that have to go through the legal process, but we’re getting there and are hopeful of a summer closing."

The timeline for the project's construction may also change due to the cruise industry shutdown, and Mr. Benford said a phased approach to construction may be likely to better accommodate cash flow.

"I think the timelines have shifted a little bit,” Mr Benford said. "We are not able to be as aggressive as we’d like with reconstructing the project at once. We have to do it in phases and explore what we can do. It’s taken us a bit longer to negotiate with Hutchison... Covid-19 was a tough time for all of us and to do business."

In addition to buying the hotel, Royal Caribbean is negotiating with the owner of Freeport Harbor, which Mr. Benford also said are moving along.

"We’re close," he said. "Everything is moving in parallel to each other. The harbor is moving along with the hotel, and we’re trying to close at the same time for both those properties."

In early March 2020, Royal Caribbean announced its subsidiary joint venture, Holistica Destinations, would purchase the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport so that it could transform the resort and surrounding area into a world-class beachfront destination with a 526-room hotel, shopping village, spa and wellness center, water-based family entertainment including a massive water and adventure theme park, a 40,000-square-foot convention center, adventure activities such as zip lines and off-roading, restaurants and bars, entertainment and lively nightlife. 

Shortly thereafter, the cruise industry shutdown and capital spending disappeared with it, and the cruise line has made no public comments about this project.

More than a year after plans were announced, it looks like Royal Caribbean's joint venture is close to purchasing the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport, Bahamas.

For months, the joint venture of ITM Group and Royal Caribbean Group has been negotiating the sale of the government owned resort so that the land can be turned into a new port destination.

The cruise industry shutdown coupled with the global health crisis complicated the deal since the buyers wanted to renegotiate the terms to find a more affordable price.

With both the Bahamas and Royal Caribbean Group incurring billion dollar loses, conditions rapidly changed and closing the sale had to go through a few rounds of new negotiations.

The Bahamas Tribune is reporting Bahamian Minister of Tourism Dionisio D'Aguilar has said the sale is "nearing the end of the journey."

Mr. D'Aguilar claims that commercial terms for the sale have now largely been agreed but did not disclose them.

Part of the deal includes an separate agreement with Hutchison Whampoa, controlling 50 percent owner of Freeport Harbour Company, for the redevelopment of Freeport Harbour via the addition of two new cruise berths.

"The terms have been essentially agreed and, having the sale of the hotel tied to Royal Caribbean and ITM first striking a deal with Hutchison Ports has made this transaction that much more complex. But I think all of the ducks have been lined up and we are nearing completion. I remain hopeful."

No estimated timeline was given for the Grand Lucayan sale's completion.

The Freeport project is one of two projects Royal Caribbean short listed to be completed since the cruise industry shutdown. The other project being the new cruise terminal in Galveston, Texas.

In March 2020, Royal Caribbean announced it would revitalize and expand the Grand Lucayan resort so that it could be transformed into Harbour Village.

It is unclear if or how those plans have changed under the new deal apparently struck to purchase the resort, but the original plans called for a a world-class beachfront destination.

Two phases of the project were announced that focused on the Grand Lucayan resort first, and then the surrounding area after.

Phase One of the Lucaya Property will consist of a beachfront destination – including a 526 room hotel, shopping village, spa and wellness center, water based family entertainment (including water and adventure theme park), a 40,000-square-foot convention center, adventure activities (such as zip lines and off-roading), restaurants and bars, entertainment and nightlife.

Phase Two – Harbour Village – will be at the cruise terminal in Freeport Harbor. The expected enhancements will allow visitors to enjoy numerous spaces with multiple shopping and dining venues, beach areas, shore excursions and more.

Additional plans for Freeport included a new transportation hub providing infrastructure for water ferries and ground transportation, including buses, vans, and jeeps. Holistica Destinations will partner with local business owners and entrepreneurs providing opportunities for guests to experience additional shore excursions in Grand Bahama.

Before the entire cruise industry shutdown, Royal Caribbean had lots of plans for the next few years, but those have since been curtailed for economic reasons.

Nonetheless, Royal Caribbean will push ahead with at least two projects based on comments from the Port of Galveston Port Director.

Rodger Rees talked at a webinar about the short term future of the Port of Galveston, and he said Royal Caribbean outlined the top two port project priorities for the cruise line.

Royal Caribbean was forced to delay construction of a brand new terminal by a year.  Despite the major setbacks financially, Royal Caribbean remains committed to the Port of Galveston cruise terminal project, as well as the Freeport, Bahamas port expansion.

Mr. Rees said he was told by "the President of Royal Caribbean" that the cruise line had about 20 projects on the drawing board prior to the global health crisis, and they have whittled it down to two projects.

"One of them is us, here in Galveston. And then the other one is actually a a development over Freeport, Bahamas."

The project in Freeport that Mr. Rees alluded to in his conversation is the presumed purchase of the Grand Lucayan resort and Freeport Harbour project.

"The one hundred million dollar contract with Royal Caribbean is still on the table. We're having conversations with them right now to start construction in April."

"April 1, we're slated for construction to begin on the new cruise terminal."

Mr. Rees' comments echo that of previous statements where Royal Caribbean has indicated to him that they are onboard to begin construction.

At a meeting in December 2020, Mr. Rees said Cruise Terminal 3 is still scheduled to begin construction in April 2021 so that it can be ready to open in October 2022. 

"They revealed to me that they had, in fact, set aside some equity on their balance sheet, encumbered some equity on their balance sheet for the cruise terminal, construction and other work."

The new Terminal 3 in Galveston will be built on 10 acres of land at Pier 10, and will be used exclusively by Royal Caribbean.

Vaccine is the key factor

Mr. Rees also talked about the role of the COVID-19 vaccine, and he believes it will be the major factor to move things forward.

"I think the biggest I think the biggest thing that's going to help the cruising start back up again is obviously going to be the vaccine."

"The cruise lines are starting to lean towards that as the as the key factor to starting up."

Mr. Rees said the cruise lines and the ports are working on a series of agreements to ensure medical care is adequate to meet the needs.

"Covid's here. vaccine's not going to eradicate it 100 percent."

"Every now and then you're probably going to get one or two, three cases on these cruise ships. The important thing is not to get 50 to 500 cases on them."

"They're doing the same thing on the cruise lines that we'll be doing here in airports and what we do in our daily life, distancing and masking."

Right before the entire cruise industry shutdown due to the global health crisis, Royal Caribbean announced plans to purchase the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport, Bahamas, but that deal is still on the fence.

The Tribune reports Bahamian officials are still trying to decide if they want to go ahead with an amended deal by the cruise line to purchase the property.

In early March 2020, a ITM Group/Royal Caribbean joint venture announced plans to purchase the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport so that it could be transformed into a new destination area that would cater to cruise ship guests.

Since then, the original deal between Royal Caribbean and the Bahamas was changed because of the radically different financial situation the cruise line is under.

“It is not the same deal it was before,” State Minister for Finance Kwasi Thompson said. “It is a post-COVID deal and the terms are not as favourable as it was before.”

Royal Caribbean and the ITM Group have proposed a revised deal/plan to purchase the Grand Lucayan Resort and redevelopment of Freeport Harbour.

As a result, the Bahamas is required to do a full assessment of the plans. Once that is complete, the next step would be to discuss the proposal further with Royal Caribbean and ITM.

"We are confident that this is the right direction for us to go into and continue to do our best to get the right deal for the Bahamian people. It is a situation that is hugely important for us. The hotel development and cruise port development are needed now more than ever before post COVID. We believe it would play an important role in the continuing rebuilding of Grand Bahama,” Mr. Thompson said.

The Grand Lucayan’s board has been contemplating a February 2021 reopening as an option while it awaits the results of the KPMG probe into the merits of the revised ITM Group/Royal Caribbean deal, according to Tribune Business.

Essentially, the revised deal is not as lucrative as the original proposal, and the government is concerned the selling of the property would not be in the best interest of Freeport.

"One of the challenges right now is the hotel is in a state where it is not moving forward, not being developed. Our cruise port is not being developed. And so, we have to look at where you are now and ensuring that whatever it is you do, it is better than where you are now. And that is one of the things we have been focused on."

"That really is why it has taken the amount of time it has taken because we want to ensure that whatever decision is made it is in the best interest of the people of Grand Bahama, and that it provides as much economic activity as much as possible. And it is one of those things we have to continually press and continue to be focused on."

The other issue facing the Bahamas is if they decide to forgo the deal with Royal Caribbean, where would it leave them.

The Bahamas purchased the property from Hutchison Whampoa’s real estate arm in 2018 in 2018 for $65 million, and have already spent over $100 million (including the purchase price) into the property thus far.

There are fears that simply re-opening the resort, in the absence of airlift, a marketing plan and operator, will simply inflict more losses.

The Bahamas thought the Royal Caribbean/ITM joint venture was the perfect solution to salvage the resort and boost Freeport's tourism and economy.  However, with the cruise industry suffering greatly, the terms of the deal had to be altered to be less lucrative for the Bahamas.

Tribune reports other observers have argued that the Government has little choice but to stay the course with RoyalCaribbean/ITM as the pool of alternative buyers willing to offer a reasonable price and terms will have shrunk considerably due to COVID-19.

Before the global health crisis started and the cruise industry voluntarily shutdown, Royal Caribbean had plans to build a major cruise destination in Freeport, Bahamas, and surprisingly that could still happen.

In early March 2020, Royal Caribbean announced its subsidiary joint venture, Holistica Destinations, would purchase the Grand Lucayan resort in Freeport so that it could transform the resort and surrounding area into a world-class beachfront destination with a 526-room hotel, shopping village, spa and wellness center, water-based family entertainment including a massive water and adventure theme park, a 40,000-square-foot convention center, adventure activities such as zip lines and off-roading, restaurants and bars, entertainment and lively nightlife. 

Shortly thereafter, the cruise industry shutdown and capital spending disappeared with it, and the cruise line has made no public comments about this project (or any of the other port projects it had planned).

The Bahamas newspaper Tribune Business has been keeping tabs on the project, and it looks like the terms are in the process of being renegotiated, but the deal is not dead.

One Bahamas cabinet minister told Tribune Business last week that the Grand Lucayan will be "fully turned over" to the ITM Group/Royal Caribbean joint venture before year-end 2020.

Holistica has told Bahamian officials it remains "committed" to transforming the Harbour Village project, but there are details surrounding agreements with the Freeport Harbour Company that need to be sorted out.

Essentially, the issue is Holistica wants control of the harbor before it commits to a project that could be blocked by the company that has owns the waterways.

According to The Bahamas Minister of Tourism, the final ITM/Royal Caribbean deal will likely look different to the one agreed to before the cruise industry shutdown.

Earlier this week, Tribune Business confirmed that the scale of the changes to the Grand Lucayan hotel has been scaled down due to spending concerns. 

Senator Kwasi Thompson, minister of state for Grand Bahama in his national address said the project’s start will be delayed due to the global health crisis.

When the project was originally announced, it was slated to be finished in winter 2022.

Original plans

It is clear the scope of the port project has changed, but here is what was originally proposed as part of this ambitious development.

Two phases of the project were announced that focused on the Grand Lucayan resort first, and then the surrounding area after.

Phase One of the Lucaya Property will consist of a beachfront destination – including a 526 room hotel, shopping village, spa and wellness center, water based family entertainment (including water and adventure theme park), a 40,000-square-foot convention center, adventure activities (such as zip lines and off-roading), restaurants and bars, entertainment and nightlife.

Phase Two – Harbour Village – will be at the cruise terminal in Freeport Harbor. The expected enhancements will allow visitors to enjoy numerous spaces with multiple shopping and dining venues, beach areas, shore excursions and more.

Additional plans for Freeport included a new transportation hub providing infrastructure for water ferries and ground transportation, including buses, vans, and jeeps. Holistica Destinations will partner with local business owners and entrepreneurs providing opportunities for guests to experience additional shore excursions in Grand Bahama.

Other projects still in limbo

In addition to the Freeport project, Royal Caribbean also had other developments in various stages of work before the cruise industry shutdown but has not provided any updates on these endeavors either.

At one point, Royal Caribbean had announced a new Perfect Day island in the South Pacific and planned upgrades for Labadee.

In addition, there were announced new port projects in Antigua and Nassau.

Royal Caribbean has not said much about these projects since announcing it could cut capital spending projects this year in order to reduce spending.

The plan for a $300 million cruise destination in Freeport, Bahamas may need to be adjusted given the major changes in the cruise industry.

The Bahamas tourism and aviation minister told Tribune Business that the sale of the Grand Lucayan resort and redevelopment of Freeport is still a go, but the deal will need to be adjusted from what was originally planned.

Dionisio D’Aguilar said the Royal Caribbean joint venture, Holistica, "still seem to be interested" in the redevelopment, but need to restructure the terms of the deal because of the major blow to the cruise industry COVID-19 and associated shutdown have had on the cruise industry.

Holistica is a new company formed between Royal Caribbean and ITM Group that seeks to develop cruise ports around the world.

“It may not be the deal we had prior to March 3, but to say it’s not going anywhere would be an incorrect conclusion. They [the Holistica partners] still seem very interested, and you have a wiling seller and a willing buyer negotiating terms. The willingness is still there.”

Mr. D’Aguilar did not disclose details on the ongoing negotiations between the government and Holistica.

In early March, Royal Caribbean announced a multi-phase project that will redevelop the Freeport cruise ship terminal to bring a new world-class destination with a one-of-a-kind hotel, convention center, water adventure park and more.

He did say that Royal Caribbean and ITM may be adjusting their valuation and projections given COVID-19’s continued devastating impact on the cruise business and tourism in general.

"Obviously August 2020 is not the same as February 2020, so obviously you are going to change some terms to take into consideration the facts have changed. It’s very unfortunate, but it is what it is."

Mr D’Aguilar also conceded that talks on the Freeport Harbour component of the deal, which are taking place between IBM/Royal Caribbean and the Hutchison Whampoa-controlled Freeport Harbour Company, “need to be concluded”, although he added: “I’m advised it’s moving in the right direction.”

#With the Bahamian economy shut down for four to five of the past six months, the minister said Royal Caribbean/ITM’s construction start still remains delayed by around six months.