As the gang violence in Kingston, Jamaica rages on, many Connecticut travelers are rethinking the country as a vacation destination.
As of Monday night, employees of Copper Travels, in Enfield, said one customer had already changed plans.
"Once they heard about the advisory for Jamaica, which was their first choice of islands by the way, they asked us to look at different islands, different destinations," Graham Hird, of Copper Travels Co., said.
The State Department has issued a travel alert for Kingston, which is a distance away from the key vacation spots of Negril, Montego Bay and Ocho Rios. Still, many wonder if their beach getaways could be disrupted.
"This is why I recommend talking to your booking agent so that you actually know what's going on, in real time, and what's happening at that point and time," said Hird.
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Hird said the key to staying safe when traveling to Jamaica, or anywhere else, is to know the place you're traveling to and use common sense when you're there.
"You have to not just think about, I'm on vacation mode, have a few drinks and everything goes. You have to use common sense and, if you do, the odds are you're going to be just fine no matter where you go," Hird said.
Still, many people say it will make them think twice about where they're going and when they go.
"The same thing as Aruba, when all the stuff happened with Aruba, I didn't want to there during all then," Chelsea White, of Enfield, said.
"It makes you think that maybe you should do a little bit of research and check it out first," said Peter Blaisdell, of Enfield.
