Last month's murder
of a Star Clippers passenger in Antigua once again has raised the issue
of safety on the island. Is it time for cruise lines to pull out?

Star
Clippers, for one, already has decided the answer is yes. The sailing
ship line Friday said it would replace
calls in Antigua with calls at the Caribbean island of Nevis,
effective immediately. But so far, no other line has followed suit.

Among
the lines with upcoming calls scheduled for Antigua are Celebrity
Cruises, Princess
Cruises and Norwegian
Cruise Line.

The murder of Star Clippers passenger Nina Elisabeth Nilssen, 29, of
the San Francisco area on Jan. 19 was just the latest serious crime
against tourists in Antigua. A 38-year-old Australian man visiting the
island last year on his yacht was shot dead while walking with his
girlfriend, and in 2008 the island was the scene of a double
murder of a honeymooning British couple — incidents that had
previously raised questions about the safety of visiting the island. The
British couple were shot in their room at Antigua's Cocos Hotel.

The
crimes, moreover, weren't isolated incidents. The Antigua Sun
recently reported
there were 13 murders in Antigua in 2009, giving the island a per
capita murder rate more than twice as high as major U.S. cities such as
New York. The murder rate in 2007 was even higher with 19 people killed.

Cruise
Loggers, how do you think cruise lines should respond to such
reports of crime in Antigua? Is Star Clippers making the right
move in pulling out or would you like to see it stay? Should more cruise
lines follow in its footsteps? And, in general, how much do you worry
about crime and safety on Caribbean islands such as Antigua when booking
a cruise in the region? Let's discuss the issue in the comment area
below.