Is Cruising a Safe Way to Travel?
A cruise is a great way to relax and travel to a new, and usually exotic, destination. The sun, the sea, and cruise ship activities make the entire travel experience fun in itself before you even get to a far away island. Travelers are attracted to cruises for a lot of reasons. Meals are included in your price so you don’t have to worry about meal planning. Cruises, which include a destination, are relatively inexpensive compared to taking a multi-city trip on your own.
However, there is some risk associated with being on a massive vessel in the middle of the sea – a risk that keeps some people from trying a cruise as way to travel. It doesn’t help that this has been a tough couple seasons for the cruise industry, with accidents prominently featured in headlines around the world. A few high profile events include the Costa Concordia running aground off the coast of Italy in January 2012 or the engine fire that occurred on the Carnival Triumph in the Gulf of Mexico.
Carnival, an industry leader with $15 billion in annual revenue, announced that it would be investing $300 million over a span of two to three years to improve fire safety and back-up power on its ships. However, these incidents are few and far between, and even since the incidents have occurred, the cruise industry has continuously bounced back.
Ultimately, each incident that occurs puts into focus the constant need to improve the safety of cruise ships. Customer safety is crucial to the bottom line and the success off cruise industries and the cruise liners understand that. That is good news for the people who choose to travel by way of cruise ships. Cruise ships are much safer today than they were in previous years and as we continue to develop more advanced technology, we are able to take proactive measures to prevent incidents from occurring.
Beyond accidents, traveling on a cruise ship can be safe if you are consistently aware of your surroundings. More common than a cruise accident, are incidents caused by other cruise travelers. To protect travelers from thievery, missing persons, and sex crimes, cruise ships are equipped with security cameras, security departments run by federal, state or military law enforcement, and staffed by highly qualified personnel. In addition to those protective measures provided by the ship, you should always be aware of your surroundings, leave your expensive belongings at home, and try to stick with the people that you can with.