CRUISE TIP
15 THINGS CRUISE PASSENGERS DO THAT CREW CAN’T STAND — ARE YOU GUILTY?
You finally find the perfect pool chair.
Actually, you find four.
So you drop a towel on one, a tote bag on another, a book on the third, and a hat on the fourth. Your family is still at breakfast, but they’ll be back later.
Problem solved.
Then a crew member approaches.
“Sir, deck chairs can’t be reserved when no one is using them.”
Suddenly, what felt like a harmless cruise hack becomes an argument.
“Seriously? We paid for this cruise. We’ll be back later!”
And that confrontation illustrates a much bigger issue aboard cruise ships: some passenger behaviors don’t merely annoy other vacationers—they can create extra work for crew, interfere with shared spaces, violate published ship rules, or even become genuine safety and public-health problems.
A clarification before we start: “crew can’t stand” is editorial shorthand. It does not mean every crew member personally hates every behavior below. This list is primarily grounded in published cruise-line conduct rules, safety policies and cruise-health guidance.
So, before your next sailing, ask yourself:
Are you guilty of any of these 15 cruise habits?
1. Saving Pool Chairs You Aren’t Actually Using
Let’s start with one of cruising’s most notorious battlegrounds: the pool deck.
You’ve probably seen it.
It’s 8 a.m. and prime loungers already have towels, books, flip-flops and bags sitting on them—but the supposed occupants are nowhere to be found.
Then they stay empty.
And stay empty.
Meanwhile, passengers who actually want to sit by the pool are walking around searching for seats.
On Royal Caribbean, this isn’t merely a matter of etiquette. Its current Guest Health, Safety and Conduct Policy says pool, deck and theater chairs may not be reserved, except in disability-related circumstances.
That doesn’t mean every cruise line handles abandoned belongings identically, and you shouldn’t assume a universal “X-minute rule” across every ship.
The safer rule?
If you’re not actually using the chair, don’t treat it like your private property for half the day.
2. Yelling at Crew Because You Don’t Like the Answer
Your dining time isn’t what you expected.
Your excursion was altered.
Something costs more than you thought.
The weather changed the itinerary.
Your cabin isn’t ready when you want it.
Being disappointed is understandable.
Turning the nearest crew member into your personal punching bag isn’t.
Royal Caribbean’s published conduct policy prohibits abusive or offensive language, threats and harassment toward crew members and others.
There’s also a practical reality here: the person standing in front of you often didn’t create the policy you’re angry about.
You can complain.
You can ask for a supervisor.
You can request an explanation.
You can dispute a charge.
But there is a massive difference between:
“Can you please explain why this happened?”
and:
“THIS IS RIDICULOUS! FIX IT NOW!”
Treating crew respectfully isn’t surrendering your right to complain.
It’s basic cruise etiquette.
3. Ignoring Safety Instructions Because “I’ve Cruised Before”
Veteran cruisers sometimes fall into a dangerous trap:
“I already know all this.”
Maybe you do.
But safety instructions aren’t entertainment.
Royal Caribbean’s conduct rules specifically require guests to comply with health, safety and security instructions and policies.
Crew members aren’t reminding you about procedures because they’re desperate to interrupt your vacation.
They’re responsible for operating a ship carrying thousands of people.
If a crew member gives you a legitimate safety instruction, arguing simply because you don’t like being told what to do isn’t clever.
And “I’ve been on 20 cruises” doesn’t make shipboard safety rules optional.
4. Smoking or Vaping Wherever You Feel Like It
One of the easiest ways to create conflict onboard is to assume:
“I’m outside, so I can smoke here.”
Not necessarily.
Cruise lines establish designated smoking areas and restrictions that can include cabins and private balconies.
For example, Royal Caribbean’s current smoking policy prohibits smoking and vaping inside staterooms and on stateroom balconies and says violations can result in a $250 cleaning fee.
Policies can differ by cruise line, ship and venue, so check the rules for your sailing.
What you shouldn’t do is light up first and argue about the policy afterward.
Your balcony may feel private.
But you’re still aboard a vessel with published rules—and smoke doesn’t necessarily remain politely inside your personal square footage.
5. Climbing, Sitting or Standing on Railings for a Photo
The ocean is beautiful.
The sunset is spectacular.
And yes, everyone wants the perfect vacation picture.
But a railing isn’t a photo prop.
Royal Caribbean expressly prohibits guests from sitting, standing, lying, jumping on or climbing over protective railings and other barriers.
This is one of those situations where crew intervention may feel like they’re “ruining your fun.”
They’re not.
A photograph isn’t worth creating a serious fall risk.
Keep both feet where passengers are supposed to stand and take the picture from there.
Your social-media post will survive.
More importantly, so will you.
6. Entering Crew-Only Areas Because You’re “Just Curious”
That mysterious door?
The crew corridor?
The staircase marked for authorized personnel?
It’s not a complimentary behind-the-scenes tour.
Royal Caribbean’s conduct policy prohibits passengers from entering restricted areas, including crew staterooms and crew corridors, unless specifically authorized.
Cruise ships may feel like floating resorts, but they’re also complex working vessels.
There are areas passengers simply aren’t supposed to enter.
If you want to see behind the scenes, look for an authorized ship tour where offered.
Don’t turn curiosity into trespassing.
7. Tampering With Ship Equipment
Buttons are tempting.
Doors are interesting.
Equipment can look harmless.
But “I just wanted to see what it did” is a terrible philosophy aboard a ship.
Royal Caribbean’s published conduct rules prohibit tampering with ship equipment, facilities and systems.
That includes treating operational or safety-related equipment as toys.
If it doesn’t belong to you and you haven’t been invited to operate it, leave it alone.
Crew members have enough to manage without passengers creating entirely preventable problems.
8. Getting So Drunk That Everyone Else Has to Deal With You
Cruises and cocktails often go together.
But there’s a difference between enjoying a drink and becoming the passenger everyone around the pool suddenly has to monitor.
Royal Caribbean says guests must consume alcohol responsibly and reserves the right to limit or refuse alcohol service; violations of alcohol policies can trigger enforcement.
The worst version of this behavior isn’t merely embarrassing.
It’s when intoxication turns into:
aggression, harassment, dangerous behavior, arguments with staff or safety problems.
If crew has to stop what they’re doing because you can no longer manage yourself, your vacation has become someone else’s job.
Enjoy the drink package.
Just don’t make the crew babysit the consequences.
9. Trying to Sneak Prohibited Alcohol Onboard
Passengers have become remarkably creative about this one.
Hidden bottles.
Liquids transferred into other containers.
Alcohol disguised as something else.
But security procedures and cruise-line alcohol rules exist whether passengers like them or not.
Royal Caribbean’s current policies regulate what alcohol passengers may bring onboard and permit inspection of containers; concealed alcohol can be handled under those rules.
Before sailing, check your specific cruise line’s current allowance rather than relying on something a stranger posted three years ago.
And if the rule says you can’t bring something?
Trying to outsmart security creates a problem that could have been avoided before you even boarded.
10. Treating Crew Members Like Personal Servants
Good cruise service can be extraordinary.
Your cabin attendant may remember your preferences.
Your waiter may know your drink before you order.
A bartender may recognize you after one evening.
But excellent service doesn’t erase the fact that you’re interacting with another human being.
There’s a simple distinction:
“Could you please help me with this?”
versus:
“Do this for me.”
The first is a request.
The second can sound like an order.
Crew members work long operational schedules serving enormous numbers of guests. You don’t need to become their best friend, and you certainly don’t need to pretend problems don’t exist.
Just use the same basic respect you’d expect someone to use with you.
And never cross the line into harassment or unwanted physical contact—conduct explicitly prohibited under Royal Caribbean’s guest rules.
11. Turning Shared Spaces Into Your Private Sound System
You’re on vacation.
You love your playlist.
Unfortunately, the couple three loungers away may not.
Royal Caribbean’s conduct policy identifies disruptive behavior and noise nuisances, including loud radios and similar devices, as prohibited behavior.
This is an easy etiquette mistake because passengers sometimes think:
“It’s a pool deck. It’s already noisy.”
But shared space is still shared space.
If everyone brought a speaker and decided their music deserved priority, the pool deck would become an audio war.
Headphones solve this problem remarkably well.
12. Returning to the Buffet With a Used Plate
This one isn’t just gross etiquette.
It can become a food-safety issue.
The CDC Vessel Sanitation Program addresses self-service food operations aboard cruise ships, including the use of clean tableware when guests return to self-service areas.
So when you finish your first buffet plate and decide you want seconds:
Get a clean plate.
Don’t carry your dirty plate back through the buffet because you’re trying to “save dishes.”
You’re not helping.
The cruise operation has sanitation procedures for a reason.
Let them wash another plate.
13. Skipping Handwashing Before You Eat
You’re hungry.
The buffet smells incredible.
The burger is waiting.
Surely a quick dash to the food won’t matter?
Cruise health guidance says otherwise.
The CDC recommends washing hands frequently with soap and water while cruising, including before eating and after using the restroom, as part of reducing the risk of gastrointestinal illness.
And cruise ships are unusual environments.
Thousands of people may share:
elevator buttons, handrails, serving areas, door handles, restrooms and dining spaces.
Proper handwashing isn’t glamorous cruise content.
But neither is spending two days of your vacation sick in your cabin.
Wash your hands.
Your fellow passengers—and the people responsible for sanitation onboard—will appreciate it.
14. Hiding Gastrointestinal Symptoms Because You Don’t Want to Miss Your Vacation
This one is understandable emotionally.
You’ve paid thousands for the trip.
You’ve waited months.
Now you feel sick.
The temptation can be:
“I’m not telling anyone. I’ll be fine.”
But gastrointestinal illness aboard a ship isn’t only about you.
The CDC advises cruise travelers to report illness and follow shipboard health instructions.
Why?
Because communicable gastrointestinal illness can spread in environments where many people live, eat and socialize close together.
Hiding symptoms may protect today’s pool plans.
It can also make infection-control efforts harder.
If you’re sick, follow the ship’s medical guidance rather than pretending nothing is happening.
15. Acting Like Every Rule Is Negotiable
This may be the behavior that ties almost everything else together.
Some passengers seem to approach shipboard rules as the opening position in a negotiation.
“But nobody is sitting in these chairs.”
“But it’s my balcony.”
“But I’m only going through this door for a second.”
“But I always do this.”
“But I paid for this vacation.”
Yes—you paid for a cruise.
You didn’t purchase the ship.
Published conduct rules still apply, and cruise lines can take violations seriously. Royal Caribbean’s policy states that failure to comply with its conduct requirements can result in interventions ranging from corrective action to removal from the vessel or restrictions on future travel, depending on the circumstances.
Most passengers will never get anywhere near that point.
Because most of these problems have an incredibly simple solution:
Don’t make every reasonable instruction a fight.
THE ONE PHRASE CREW SHOULDN’T HAVE TO HEAR
There’s a sentence hiding underneath many of these situations:
“But I paid for this cruise.”
You absolutely did.
And that payment buys you the cruise experience described by your fare and booking terms.
It doesn’t buy:
four private pool loungers all day,
permission to smoke wherever you choose,
access to restricted areas,
the right to ignore safety instructions,
or permission to abuse an employee when you’re frustrated.
Thousands of other people paid for their vacation too.
That’s why shared rules exist.
WHAT ABOUT TIPPING?
This deserves clarification because “crew pet peeve” articles frequently turn tipping into a moral judgment.
Cruise-line gratuity systems differ.
Some fares/packages may include gratuities; other lines or bookings may add daily service charges or gratuities, and policies can change.
So this article is not claiming:
“Crew hates you if you don’t hand them extra cash.”
That would be an unfair universal statement without adequate evidence.
Follow your cruise line’s current gratuity policy, understand what is included in your fare, and reward exceptional service additionally if you genuinely want to.
Respect should never depend on whether you’re holding a $20 bill.
WHAT ABOUT LEAVING YOUR CABIN MESSY?
There’s also a difference between ordinary vacation mess and treating a cabin like a disaster zone.
Leaving towels to be collected?
Normal.
An unmade bed?
Normal.
A few clothes around the cabin?
You’re on vacation.
But deliberately creating unnecessary mess because:
“Someone gets paid to clean it”
is a different attitude entirely.
The broader principle is easy:
You don’t need to clean your cabin for the attendant.
You also don’t need to make their job unnecessarily harder.
THE BIG DIFFERENCE: ANNOYING VS. ACTUALLY AGAINST THE RULES
Not every irritating behavior is a policy violation.
That’s important.
Some behaviors are simply poor etiquette.
Others are specifically prohibited.
And still others are public-health or safety concerns.
For example, on the policies reviewed for this article, Royal Caribbean explicitly addresses chair reservation, abusive behavior, restricted areas, railing behavior, tampering and compliance with safety instructions.
Its smoking rules separately restrict smoking and vaping to permitted locations.
Meanwhile, CDC cruise guidance focuses on health measures such as handwashing and reporting illness.
Those aren’t interchangeable categories.
And that’s why “crew hates this” shouldn’t be used as a substitute for understanding the actual rule.
HOW TO BE THE PASSENGER CREW REMEMBERS FOR THE RIGHT REASONS
You don’t need to tip everyone $100.
You don’t need to memorize every crew member’s name.
You don’t need to spend your vacation worrying that you’re somehow inconveniencing somebody.
The formula is much simpler.
Say please and thank you.
Follow legitimate safety instructions.
Respect shared spaces.
Don’t reserve things you’re not using when the policy prohibits it.
Keep your hands off restricted equipment.
Use designated smoking areas.
Practice good hygiene.
Report illness appropriately.
And when something genuinely goes wrong, complain about the problem without attacking the person trying to solve it.
That’s it.
You can still be demanding when something important needs fixing.
You can still insist on receiving what you paid for.
You can still escalate legitimate problems.
Just don’t confuse being assertive with being abusive.
ARE YOU GUILTY?
Let’s return to our angry passenger at the pool.
He sees four empty loungers and thinks:
“Perfect. I’ll save these for my family.”
The crew member sees something different:
Four prime chairs unavailable to passengers who are actually at the pool.
That’s the hidden theme behind many cruise etiquette battles.
What feels insignificant when you do it can become a major problem when hundreds or thousands of passengers do exactly the same thing.
One saved chair?
Maybe it seems harmless.
Hundreds of saved chairs?
Now the pool deck doesn’t work.
One person ignoring hygiene?
Maybe nothing happens.
An outbreak?
Now the entire ship’s health operation becomes much more complicated.
One passenger yelling at an employee?
It’s an ugly conversation.
Hundreds treating crew that way every sailing?
That’s a culture nobody wants onboard.
FINAL VERDICT
The easiest way to avoid becoming “that passenger” isn’t complicated.
Remember that a cruise ship is both your vacation destination and somebody else’s workplace.
It’s also a shared environment with thousands of other paying guests.
So enjoy the buffet.
Order the cocktail.
Grab the pool chair.
Take the sunset photo.
Ask crew for help when you need it.
Complain when something genuinely deserves a complaint.
But don’t reserve half the pool deck, climb the railing for Instagram, wander into crew areas, ignore sanitation guidance, smoke wherever you please or scream at an employee because the answer wasn’t what you wanted.
Because great cruise etiquette comes down to one surprisingly simple rule:
Enjoy your vacation without making everyone else’s harder.
