Cruise Boston Bermuda

Alleged robbery was drug deal gone bad - Govt

Bermuda’s reputation is being threatened by a website blog entry about a broad daylight robbery in Dockyard which never even happened.

The Cruise Critic website’s message board includes the story of a cruise ship passenger who was punched in the face and knocked to the ground outside the Bermuda Maritime Museum.

The alleged mugging at 4pm on June 14 has prompted a whole host of responses from concerned travellers who question whether Bermuda is safe to visit. But the Ministry of Transport and Bermuda Police Service have investigated the claims and insist the mugging did not take place. They say a man in his 40s from Boston did suffer injuries while visiting Bermuda but this was because of a drug deal that went wrong. He did not report the incident to the police.

Cruise Critic last night published an article reporting police’s conclusion, but described the lack of reporting of the incident as “strange”; at press time, the blog entry remained in place.

A Ministry of Transport spokesman said: “The problem here is that this story never happened. There was no mugging, it’s absolute rubbish, he’s made it all up.

“Yes, this cruise ship passenger went home with his messed up face but because of a drug deal that went bad.

“He had got off the ship and was basically trying to buy drugs, except the deal didn’t go the way he expected it to. He didn’t tell police. No police officer in Bermuda knows anything about it.”

The Ministry of Transport now plans to add their own comment to the website to set the record straight and “calm the situation down”.

The spokesman said: “It’s very unfortunate that this one entry is threatening to smear our reputation. There’s been comments back and forth on the website and none of this is healthy for Bermuda. This displays the power of the internet, how things can quickly spiral.”

An unnamed person who had just returned from the Boston to Bermuda sailing on the NCL Norwegian Dawn wrote the blog entry on Monday.

Norwegian Dawn Sailing from Boston Cruise Port to Bermuda |

Living in New England, I usually have to fly to most ports to get on a cruise ship. With the airline fares skyrocketing this summer, it is difficult to absorb the $500+ fare to Miami on top of the cruise fare. Norwegian Cruise Lines has the only ship sailing from Boston to Bermuda this summer and fall. Most New Englanders can easily drive to the Boston Cruise Port and park their car for $20 per day to go on a cruise.

I decided to check out the Norwegian Dawn on a special travel agent tour with one of my clients. I’ve never sailed on NCL before, which boasts Freestyle Cruising. Freestyle Cruising is a different concept introduced by NCL and offers cruising without a schedule. There’s no assigned dining times, no seating assignments, no schedule to keep. It’s your vacation and you should be able to do what you want. You can dress up or dress down, sleep in or catch the sunrise, go to all the shows and parties or go to sleep early. It’s all up to you. However, there’s no lack of dining options or activities on board.

The ship is part of the Dawn class and was built in 2002. With a crew of about 1200 from over 60 different nationalities who are dedicated to serving you, you can be sure that all your needs will be met. Upon boarding, you will be greeted by the crew in the Grand Atrium. This atrium is the center of the ship. I didn’t find it as spectacular as some other ships I’ve visited. It shares the space with the service desk, the Java Cafe and opens up to Deck 8 and the Blue Lagoon restaurant. I didn’t get the open air feeling that I’ve gotten on other ships of this size.

After having a cup of coffee at the Blue Lagoon, I headed to see the cabins on display. The balcony staterooms on the Dawn can hold up to 3 guests. There is a double bed which can be separated into two singles. Right next to it, there’s a small couch that pulls out to sleep one more. Because there is a couch and a sliding glass door opening to a balcony, this cabin configuration felt roomy.  The bathroom is standard, with a shower stall and a modern sink.

The adjoining stateroom I visited was the Owner’s Suite. One word to describe this suite is Amazing! As you walk in, there’s a lounge area which opens to a double balcony. There’s also a small half bath and a dining area. This cabin category can only accommodate 2 people. There’s a beautifully decorated bedroom with a full size bed, a private balcony with loungers and a full size bath with double sinks, bath and separate shower.

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