It’s a church trip with about 20 adults and 30 kids. They will be teaching poor kids and staying at some campus away from town. I’m not comfortable with it. She’s a good kid and I’m not worried about her doing anything but worried about local predators.

Is it safe at all or too dangerous?
Do US cell phones work there?
Are there health concerns?

Would you let your teenage daughter go?

I have a 14 year old daughters and have spent enough time in Nassau to say hell no double damn no.

No. Except in all caps.

What's the long term benefit for them? What are the risks, pragmatically assessed without propaganda? And weighing conservatively, I'd think no.

I wouldn't.... (from the state department)


Last Update: Reissued with updates to health information.

Exercise increased caution in The Bahamas due to crime. 

Country Summary: The majority of crime occurs on New Providence (Nassau) and Grand Bahama (Freeport) islands. 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.

Activities involving commercial recreational watercraft, including water tours, are not consistently regulated. Watercraft may be poorly maintained and some operators may not have safety certifications. Due to these concerns, U.S. government personnel are not permitted to use independently operated jet-ski rentals on New Providence and Paradise Islands.  

Never swim alone, regardless of your age or level of swimming skills. Keep within your fitness and swimming capabilities. Be aware of weather and water conditions and heed local warnings.

Read the country information page for additional information on travel to The Bahamas.

If you decide to travel to The Bahamas:  

Read the Department of State’s COVID-19 page before planning any international travel, and read the Embassy COVID-19 page for country-specific COVID-19 information.  
Do not answer your door at your hotel/residence unless you know who it is.  
Do not physically resist any robbery attempt.  
Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP)to receive Alerts and make it easier to locate you in an emergency.  
Follow the Department of State on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.  
Review the Country Security Report for The Bahamas.  
Prepare a contingency plan for emergency and medical situations.  Review the Traveler’s Checklist.  
Visit the CDC page for the latest Travel Health Information related to your travel.

You might not want to read up on Natalee Ann Holloway and her disappearance in Aruba in 2005 while on a high school senior graduation trip. Talented and attractive young lady never seen again.

My Ex arranged (despite my strenuous objections) for my kid to do a mission trip to Mexico. Where they stayed, a Mexican police unit staged an armored vehicle at a nearby intersection and based on the kids description, a full platoon to support it. My kid had no fear and was used to hanging out with cops, so he went right over to them and hung out with them! I thought I would have a stroke before he left Mexico. And this was years ago, so its worse now. I believe the mission trip was essentially pointless and made no real difference in the lives of the locals. And lots of people here in the US would benefit from a mission trip!
I vote stay home and help Americans!

quote:

Do US cell phones work there?

depends on your plan. Many of the MVNO's are a solid "no," while larger providers like AT&T may work there via "roaming", but it will be expensive and require additional fees and/or their international roaming plan. Be careful, if you do it wrong, it's like $1 per minute and up for voice. not sure about data.

Google Fi apparently does not work in the Bahamas, which surprises me.

Does she have a passport? If not, getting one is expensive and can take a month or so depending on if you pay the expedite fee.

Getting passports for kids is a pain in the butt and below a certain age, they only last 5 years.

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
...I believe the mission trip was essentially pointless and made no real difference in the lives of the locals...

A family friend did a tour with the Peace Corps in Ghana. She was told this exact thing (privately, of course) by the organizers.

I haven't been to Nassau / New Providence for a few years, but last time I was there, it was turning into an absolute shit-hole.

Decades ago, it was a nice place to visit, but it has gone steadily downhill.

An American teen-age girl there? Nope. Nope. Nope. Not without around-the clock adult (or two) at all times.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:

An American teen-age girl there? Nope. Nope. Nope. Not without around-the clock adult (or two) at all times.

I'm inclined to agree. I was there on a recent cruise ship stop and, well, shithole.

Can you get me some additional information about where she would be? Nassau is a city on New Providence. Most refer to the entire island as Nassau, but it makes a difference does not provide too much information.

I find it strange that a mission trip would be scheduled for NP, not one of the family islands.

I've lived there and have made an additional 50 trips to the island and the Bahamas, so I may be able to provide some insight.

Back to the topic at hand, my experience in the Caribbean is out of date by almost 40 years, but the term "abject poverty" didn't do it justice.

We had a contest - "find the cheapest hooker" - and the low quote was $1.35. It probably came with a surprise that shows up some days later.

The poorest person in the US is knee-deep in money compared to that place, and the locals will gladly thump you to improve their lot. It is not a place for unguarded kids.

I think you knew the answer to this question before asking it. Go with your gut. My gut would be saying Hell No as well.

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:
Does she have a passport? If not, getting one is expensive and can take a month or so depending on if you pay the expedite fee.

Getting passports for kids is a pain in the butt and below a certain age, they only last 5 years.

Getting passports for kids is no more difficult than getting them for adults. All three of my children, the oldest being six and the youngest six months, have passports. We recently renewed our oldest daughter's passport. Easy peasy Japanesey.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:
I haven't been to Nassau / New Providence for a few years, but last time I was there, it was turning into an absolute shit-hole.

Decades ago, it was a nice place to visit, but it has gone steadily downhill.

This was the impression with which I was left, back when we had a sailboat (2007-2012), from reading what sailors who visited the area related in various sailing forums.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:
An American teen-age girl there? Nope. Nope. Nope. Not without around-the clock adult (or two) at all times.

Preferably armed--which is, naturally, not legally possible.

I would be inclined to veto the notion, were I you.

quote:

Originally posted by ruger357:
Would you let your teenage daughter go?

Others know more, but I can answer this: No way. My wife and I went to Jamaica for our honeymoon in 2009, and there's no way in hell I would go back. I know that's a different island, but the way abject poverty is a layered in next to wealth in the Caribbean, and it all being on a scale far below the median income in this country makes tourists super juicy targets. Hell. No.

https://www.travelsafe-abroad.com/the-bahamas/nassau/

My cousin did a similar style trip many years ago. A group went to Las Vegas to volunteer at a soup kitchen. They had a fund raiser to pay for the trip.

I asked, wouldn't it be a better idea to raise money to donate at a local homeless shelter and volunteer there instead. I was told the trip would be a great experience for them. You mean a paid vacation under the guise of helping others.

I just randomly searched flights from Alabama to Nassau for a weeks stay leaving next Sunday.

$820 a person x 50 travelers = $41,000 ask them how many people they could help locally for that amount.

Nope. I wouldn’t go either.

I’ve never understood this whole church “mission” trip thing to far away places like that. I suspect they end up being more a vacation trip but I’ve never been on one so I really don’t know for sure.

That’s the one thing I have to give credit to my former church for, they had a policy about mission trips that they DID NOT go far away into other countries. They went 20 miles north into Reading, PA or 20 miles south into Philadelphia and did local mission work as the pastor said “we have 1.5 million people who don’t know Jesus right here, we don’t need to travel to some far off country”

The point of short-duration mission trips is long-term not short-term.

Short-term it's more cost effective to not spend the money on airfare and give it to the locals.

Long-term it's:

sending people who can teach someone to fish instead of handout. For example, send a civil engineer on a building project and find they're not mixing concrete properly resulting in unsafe (e.g. too much water used to make it "go further" but resulting strength is too low). Civil engineer teaches how to do properly so structures/buildings don't collapse which would give the local church a blemished reputation or kill people. This has happened.

you're building relationships and advocacy. These are meant to result in meeting long-term needs on training, funding, etc. For example, I went to Rwanda with my church on a 2.5 week trip where we had existing relationships. I did some work that was short-term benefit and some work that was long-term benefit, and remained an advocate in home church for many years keeping the relationship going.

Eye opening and changes the person who goes. I've done local Houston missions for the "poor" who live in air-conditioned, subsidized apartments with TV and Internet which jaded me. It's way different going to rural Rwanda with people who live in huts made from sticks and mud. One thing to hear about microfinance, but seeing the village gather while people publicly payback their loan keeping everything above board, the village can't progress to the next funding level until everyone repays so seeing the village pitch in to help someone who became ill (i.e. keep their community / tribe intact), seeing the invidual businesses in the market, etc.

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Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity

DISCLAIMER: These are the author's own personal views and do not represent the views of the author's employer.