Three arrested after Britons robbed by armed gang
Police in St Lucia have arrested three people suspected of carrying out an armed robbery of 55 cruise ship passengers, including 10 Britons, as they stepped off a bus to go sightseeing in Soufrière.
A spokesperson for the St Lucia tourist board said the robbery, which happened last Friday, was "rare" on the Caribbean island.
Authorities believe four men were involved in the robbery at Soufriere Botanical Gardens, during which a tour bus was held up and valuables taken from passengers who were voyaging round the Caribbean on Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Eclipse.
A police statement said: "The men systematically searched the guests as well as their belongings. The masked men robbed them of monies, jewellery, cameras and cell phones and escaped in the nearby bushes. Apart from the trauma of the incident, none of the passengers robbed were injured."
Two crew members from the cruise ship were also on the bus along with passengers.
St Lucia Tourist Board chairman Matthew Beaubrun told local broadcaster DBS: "This is a rare incident. This is such an important industry for us that we need to respond. We have taken it very seriously at the highest level."
Celebrity Eclipse is on a 14-night Caribbean cruise that departed Fort Lauderdale in Florida on April 6.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
France prepares for a massive strike across all transports on September 18
Turkish tourism stalls due to soaring prices for accommodation and food
CCS Insight: eSIMs ready to take the travel world by storm
Germany new European Entry/Exit System limited to a single airport on October 12, 2025
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt