The U.S. issued an advisory for Bahamas travel. Here is Canada’s advice

Canadian travellers are warned to “exercise a high degree of caution” due to high crime rates, especially in the cities of Nassau (on the island of New Providence) and Freeport (on the island Grand Bahama).

“There has been a decrease in violent crime since the beginning of 2018. Crime, however, including violent crime, still occurs, mainly on the islands of Grand Bahama and New Providence,” the advice reads.

“Armed robberies, burglaries, purse snatchings, theft, fraud and sexual assaults are the most common crimes committed against travellers in Freeport and Nassau,” it continues.

The advice level is the second of four levels. The first level advises travellers to “take normal security precautions,” the second tells them to “exercise a high degree of caution,” the third suggests to “avoid non-essential travel” and the fourth suggests to “avoid all travel.”

United States issued travel advisory

The United States issued its advisory on Jan. 26.

 Canada and the U.S. give similar advice about areas in the Bahamas to avoid, including Nassau’s “over the hill” area (south of Shirley Street), where the U.S. advisory said “gang-on-gang violence has resulted in a high homicide rate primarily affecting the local population.”

Days before the advisory, the U.S. embassy in Nassau called attention to 18 murders occurring in the city since the beginning of the year.

“Murders have occurred at all hours including in broad daylight on the streets,” the security alert reads. “Retaliatory gang violence has been the primary motive in 2024 murders.”

Correction — Feb. 5, 2024

A previous version of this story incorrectly said Canada had just issued an advisory for the Bahamas. However, travel advice has not changed in recent weeks.