The Most Foul Cruise Passenger Habits That Will Make Everyone Want To Avoid You

As escapes go, a cruise is a pretty incredible all-arounder. It certainly promises travelers an experience that is a departure from daily life, allowing them to wander the world's oceans, seas, and rivers while getting fed, entertained, and pampered. Some guests love the idea of seeing many different locations on a cruise but needing to unpack only once — here's a primer on what you should bring along. On the other hand, others might do all they can to stay away from ships because of the unsettling reasons not to take a cruise.

Whatever your opinion, one thing is sure about a cruise — that passengers are stuck with each other for the entirety of the sailing part of the journey. That is a godsend if you are social and enjoy meeting new people. But it's also a curse if you have some bad habits that you just can't shake. If you display these traits, don't be surprised when other passengers and even the crew try to stay away from you.

Frequent fliers will be all too aware of the tight restrictions surrounding what is and isn't allowed on a flight. Newbies might be less cognizant, so they should consult this primer on rookie mistakes not to make on their first-time flight. What might not be as well known to travelers is that cruise lines also have clear guidelines on acceptable and prohibited items. Some items on the list are obvious, such as drugs, guns, weapons, candles, and so on. Other things might not be so clear-cut. 

Royal Caribbean's site notes that alcohol and skateboards are banned, while Norwegian Cruise Line's notes that walkie-talkies and magnetic door decorations are not allowed. Both carriers ban coffee makers, something that this user on Reddit noticed fellow passengers trying to smuggle aboard. "Apparently they had brought in their checked bags an entire [espresso]/cappuccino machine," they explained. "[The] security officer explains to them that they cannot have their own coffee machine in their cabin as stated pretty clearly in all of the prohibited items lists provided prior to boarding." Prohibited items caught by the security screeners will hold up the line when they are detected and will also require that passengers fill out some time-consuming paperwork.

Cruise ship architects and designers are extremely savvy when it comes to maximizing the efficiency of the space onboard. What this does mean, however, is that space is at a premium on a ship, and public areas aren't as generously proportioned as they might be on a land-based resort. The pools are always small, for example. This is also why the space hogger is an especially frustrating character, and we've all seen this type of person. 

They are the ones who save seats by the pool or in the theater but then disappear for what seems like an eternity. They also can exhibit that selfish behavior by spending extended periods of time at hot tubs, pool tables, amusement arcades, and more on the ship. Simply put, this is just bad manners. A writer on Reddit noted this pattern on a recent sailing. "The only thing that really bothers me is when people will 'reserve' the deck chairs nearest the pool by putting their things on them, then proceed to go eat for an hour or two." Some cruise lines try to counter this by having a policy to stop hoggers. Royal Caribbean, for instance, will remove items from a pool lounger that is unattended for more than 30 minutes and place them in the ship's lost and found.

Only about a couple of decades ago, people could smoke cigarettes in the U.S. freely inside public buildings, in nightclubs and bars, and even in restaurants, just feet away from nonsmoking fellow diners. Much has changed since then, and smoking has a much smaller footprint on daily life than it once did. That movement of confinement and containment of smokers is reflected in cruise ships, where smoking and vaping are allowed only in specific areas. Typically, a cruise line will have one set location on a deck — or perhaps a few but clearly designated places — where smokers or vapers can light up and puff away. That said, these policies do vary from line to line.

For passengers who are sensitive to the smell of smoke or vapes or simply can't stand the smell of them, knowing where the smoking areas are can help them avoid them. That is, of course, only if all passengers who smoke or vape follow the rules. Cabin hallways are notoriously narrow (remember, ships need to be efficient with their space) and if a passenger smokes in their room, the stench can quickly spread all the way down the hall. It can also waft onto your cabin balcony if you are near the smoker, spoiling the serenity and sanctity of your outdoor time.

Peace, reflecting on the serene ocean, and escaping from land, are all reasons that cruisers enjoy the experience of being on a ship. That calm will quickly be punctured by wild kids that run amok, though uncontrolled youngsters can be a nuisance even for passengers who aren't onboard. These pint-sized banshees can appear at any time, and at any place on the ship, and ultimately, it is up to their parents to rein them in. You might hear them jumping up and down on the floor above you if they are staying in the cabin directly one floor up. Or maybe they are screaming and yelping as they play tag down along the hallways outside your room. 

Perhaps they like to slalom between passengers at the buffet or run around the restaurant's many tables while their parents take the time to eat in relative peace. They might sprint around the pool area (dangerous because it is often wet), or terrorize other kids in the play area, bringing you into their calamitous orbit en route. They can also disrupt the ambience of a show by crying, shouting, talking loudly, and wandering around the theater during the performance.

Seeing travelers behave badly is upsetting whatever the location. The thing about witnessing it on a cruise ship is that it somehow magnifies the distress of seeing it. You usually can't escape the person who behaves badly; maybe you will see them at dinner, seated near you in the theater, or waiting in line with you at the breakfast buffet, and it might leave a sour taste in your mouth. Unruly behavior comes in many forms. It can include being rude to the crew, which is almost never warranted because cruise crews are among the hardest-working people in the hospitality industry, as well as being unnecessarily loud in public areas. 

There are also passengers who act completely entitled, as if every staff member onboard was hired specifically to serve them. And some travelers, rather than enjoy the treat of being out at sea or taking one of the best river cruises in Europe, endlessly complain about everything. A poster on Reddit came across this type of traveler on a recent sailing. "I ran into a woman a few times in the buffet who complained about EVERYTHING. I could just feel the misery coming off her and she wanted everyone to know how displeased she was with everything that was offered to her."

One of the benefits of taking a vacation is that you can relax, ease your heart rate, and enjoy new surroundings. However, this also poses a problem. By letting down your guard, you are more likely to be scammed or robbed, especially in tourist destinations known for pickpocketing. Cruises are extremely relaxing for many passengers, a one-stop shop for eating, entertainment, and seeing different places. But they are also a fertile stomping ground for thieves, which some might find hard to believe. 

What they steal can vary. Sometimes, they take items from the ship, maybe a dinner table centerpiece, a towel from the pool area, equipment from the gym, or unique cutlery. Thefts of items from other passengers are fairly uncommon, but there is plenty of opportunity for this because cruisers will frequently leave phones, laptops, and wallets lying around without thinking twice. As one user on Reddit explained when discussing the worst passenger they had ever seen onboard, "The couple ... waited for someone to jump in the pool so they could sneak over to their chairs and search their bags for things to steal."

Common wisdom dictates that people waiting to get on the elevator let the exiting riders out before seeing if there is space to squeeze in. And people with mobility issues should always have first dibs for getting on. Anyone who can use the stairs should have no problem doing so if the elevators are repeatedly full. That way, if space does open up, riders who really need it can use it. But some passengers prefer not to play by these unspoken rules. 

They will rush into the elevator as soon as the doors open to stop others having any chance of getting on. And sometimes, they will do it to people who can't walk, as this wheelchair-using Reddit contributor relayed. "I had people jump in front of me and take up just [enough] space so there was no room for my chair," they said.

There comes a certain point on a cruise, usually a few days in, when you inevitably ask yourself, "Where do they store all this food and how do they make it?" Cruises have gained a reputation for their endless quantities of food, from buffets that seem to always be fully stocked to intricately choreographed sit-down meals that are on par with those found in the top land-based restaurants. Many ships give passengers the option of eating every meal at the buffet, and while this does allow passengers to eat as little, or as much, as they want, it can also lead to some pretty unpleasant behavior. 

Some passengers might take a giant plate of food, then leave most of it uneaten, which is just plain rude. It is also incredibly disrespectful of anyone involved in the production of that food. While seeing mountains of food each day on the ship might suggest that such behavior is acceptable, remember that it is not. As one Reddit posted about an ungracious fellow cruiser, "[T]he guy ... loaded an entire plate of food from the buffet and dumped it because HE put the wrong dressing on his salad."

Sandwiching travelers together for days on end on a ship can lead to a kind of magic, it can create an alchemy of socialization that is often missing from a land-based resort. Seeing people repeatedly helps to forge bonds quicker, and passengers on cruises are often very warm, and receptive to strangers, meaning you will quickly feel a sense of community. On the flip side, passengers crammed together for long stretches are perfect vectors for illnesses. Norovirus, for instance, is a serious issue on cruise ships and can cause vomiting and diarrhea in victims. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publishes data on outbreaks on cruise ships, and there have already been instances of norovirus on numerous ships in 2025. One of the best ways to avoid getting it is to wash your hands thoroughly and frequently. 

Some cruise lines have staff at the entrance of dining areas asking all passengers to wash their hands before entering. Most travelers comply, but some don't, as if washing hands is somehow an infringement of their personal liberties. If you see a passenger who refuses to wash their hands, they should be avoided, not just because they are unhygienic but also because they clearly don't care about other passengers' well-being. You might also encounter passengers who act like they are at home and nonchalantly do some outrageous things. One Reddit user witnessed something pretty shocking on one of their sailings: "I saw someone change a toddler's poopy diaper on a food serving surface at one of the food places on the pool deck. It was early morning, very few people around to witness it," they said.

Part of the routine of relaxing on a trip is to toast the occasion with a drink or two. Passengers often feel liberated on a cruise, and they can transfer that feeling of freedom to their drinking practices. This irresistible urge toward excess is amplified by the all-you-can-drink packages that many cruise lines offer. The result is that cruisers who are interesting and charming when sober can slowly drink to excess and get obnoxious and loud on the ship. 

The kind of behavior that they would not get away with back home, either because of social pressure, or prying eyes from family, friends, neighbors, and colleagues, becomes perfectly acceptable onboard. We are in no way claiming that everyone who has a drink on a cruise ship will turn into a demon at sea, but there are certainly passengers who get inebriated and become testy and unreasonable. Drunk passengers are also more likely to fall overboard than sober ones.

There is a strong chance that you will end up eating one or more meals at the buffet restaurant on the ship. This is the venue where many of the cruisers come together physically at set times to chow down, and these buffets can get very busy. The only way they have a chance of working is if diners have a modicum of etiquette, if they follow an unspoken social contract. This requires that they line up in an orderly fashion when approaching each food station. 

They are also expected to use the utensils provided to pick the food that they want or request one of the staff to serve it to them. This ensures that the food remains hygienic. That, at least, is the theory. In reality, some people have an aversion to any lines and will jump them. Others also believe that their hands are better utensils for transporting food items from the buffet stations to their plates. As one Reddit user recalled, "This woman in her mid-50s kept picking up food looking at it and then putting it back down (with her hands)."

As part of the efficiency of design mantra, cruise architects pack in cabins tightly to ensure that none of the valuable onboard space is wasted. Soundproofing between cabins, both laterally and vertically, tends to be good, but it doesn't block out all the thuds, yelps, screams, and other sounds passengers make. For some travelers, the serenity of a cruise, watching the endless horizon as the ship slices through the water, is one of the most appealing aspects of taking a shipbound vacation. 

Encountering passengers who are noisy, loud, or disruptive can shatter that calm with ruthless efficiency. They can also destroy your sleep if they pass by your cabin door at night, shouting, singing loudly, or bumping into walls and doors as they wander the halls. They could also be your neighbors, so their ear-splitting noises might materialize at any time of the night or day.

On large ships, keeping control of crowds has to be treated like a science. It is the only way to make sure that restaurants, bars, entertainment shows, attractions, and more, don't get overrun. Of course, this only works if people respect lines and understand that others are waiting just like them. 

This applies equally to the line at the buffet stations, as mentioned earlier, as it does to the queue of eager cruisers waiting to get in to see that evening's stand-up comedy show. Passengers who repeatedly cut lines — for food, for soft-serve ice cream, for the surf simulator, to see guest services, to get into a theatrical show, and even to use the public restrooms — clearly don't respect the other passengers in front of them. They need a refresher course in civility and a booster injection of manners.

Making a ship's many facets run smoothly requires a precise, tight schedule. A cruise is a grand production, a series of many thousands of finely tuned moving parts, and if one of them runs late, the knock-on effects become evident. Sure, some things run late because of events beyond anyone's control. But passengers who are repeatedly late, from dinner seatings to show times to bookings for special attractions onboard (like a time slot for a skydiving simulator, for instance), ruin the experience for everyone else. 

This not only disrupts the enjoyment of other passengers, but it can also have real consequences, both monetary and experiential. If a group books a shore excursion at a port, and one passenger shows up an hour late, for example, that excursion might be cut short by one hour. The cruise line might offer some compensation to the affected passengers — it also might not — but the actual excursion will be compromised. And where is the fun in that?

Life is messy, for sure. On vacation, it is quite a relief, then, to see clean, tidy areas all around the ship, knowing that you didn't have to lift a finger. Some passengers, however, don't share the same philosophy. They can quite happily overfill their tray of food, eat with abandon, and leave a giant spread of crumbs, dressing, and oils all over their table before nonchalantly walking away for someone else to clean it up. 

They might be so messy in their cabin that it looks like it's exploded from within (you can see this during housekeeping rounds when the staff prop the cabin doors open). They probably also leave plates of unfinished room-service food out in the hallway rather than call housekeeping to come to clear it up. Not only is that unsightly, but it is also a dangerous tripping hazard. These are definitely people you don't want to be around.