Things that can get you kicked off a cruise ship in an instant

Cruise ships have rules and breaking them can result in serious consequences.

[Subscribe for more Royal Caribbean videos!]

[Listen to our Podcast]

[Social Links]

[JHKaz]

My friend played in a cruise ship band. He called me one day and asked me if I wanted to come play drums on the ship, because the drummer was fired and kicked off the ship. I asked what he did, and apparently he played a drum roll as the ship hit rough water, and a woman in a wheelchair was sent rolling towards a wall. When she hit the wall screaming, the drummer hit a crash cymbal right on time, and the rest is history.

[jameswilson]

I would bet that 80% of the time when the passenger is bad enough to be booted, alcohol is involved.

[pdallen]

Unfortunately, being on a cruise doesn’t all of a sudden change people. When people are negligent parents, abusive drunks, etc. on land, so they are at sea. That’s why ships have brigs.

In an episode of Andy Griffith years ago, A character asked him why a town like Mayberry had a police department. He answered, “Well Mayberry have people now, don’t it?” Those acts that can get you thrown off the ship they can get you arrested in most other places, too.

[philipricciardi]

I was at Guest Services because my room key wasn’t working when a security person with a tight hold on a teen boy’s arm walked up. He whispered something to the desk person then took the boy into the corridor behind the desk. As they walked I heard him say to the kid “Just because you’re on a cruise ship doesn’t mean you can do that.” I’ll always wonder what the boy did.

[cruisingal]

I was on RCL Allure or Harmony, can't remember, but in the middle of the night we started feeling the engines turning. Went on balcony and there was a Carnival ship close by circling with us. A man on our ship got in a argument with his wife and said he was going to jump and disappeared from their cabin. When he didn't return for several hours, she reported this to the security and they stopped the ship. They later found him hiding behind something the next morning, so they were kicked off in Cozumel as I recall.

[paidc]

I've been on several cruises which someone was put off the ship. One case was an unfortunate domestic violence case when the male member severely beat the female member. He was taken off the ship by the police and she went on an ambulance, I believe this was in Miami. The second situation was a family group of probably ten members. They were constantly arguing and in general causing problems on the ship. The bunch of them got into a family altercation which took 10 crew/staff to get under control. The next morning the entire family was standing on the dock with their luggage as we sailed off into the sunset. As I remember passengers on the pool deck were applauding as we sailed off. I actually feel the cruise line is very lenient with the enforcement of the rules and regulations.
Bill

[RetiredEUSARMY]

On a cruise to Cozumel and a couple other places a 17 year old was caught stealing money from another passenger, zero tolerance, he was kicked off at one Mexican port with limited flight to home, it happen on out deck and heard the mother pleading with an officer but off he went and tge mother went with him.

[budderkupp]

Years ago, I was sailing on the Carnival Celebration. A young man was drunk, obnoxious & hitting crew members. He was handcuffed, and escorted to the cruise line's jail, down in the bowels of the ship. When we got to New Orleans, he was escorted off the ship to find his own way home. Sadly, his uncle had paid for the cruise for himself & his 4 nephews. The rest stayed on board but, the uncle lost his money on that one nephew.

[ValerieB]

Hi Matt, not sure if you remember, but you were on Harmony with us in 2021 and there was a passenger who was kicked off with his entire family. We encountered him at Wonderland and he was screaming at the bar tender for not making his drink right. His wife was trying to calm him down. I heard from other passengers that he was being abusive to his wife in port (I think it was St. Kitts) and the local authorities got involved. They kicked the whole family off which was about 5-6 people.

[theneverendinghighway]

People who throw trash overboard and into the water should be kicked off the ship, fined a ton of money and banned for life from cruising.

[kellykeller]

Was on Symphony last September and watched a man try to fight the Guest Services staff. Allegedly a crew member had said something racist to him, he filed a report earlier in the day, and wanted to see the report but Guest Services wouldn't let him. He then proceeded to attempt to verbally assault multiple of the staff members before the manager came out, and he attempted to physically assault him. Honestly it was allowed to go on way too long (about 45 minutes) and the man was screaming all sorts of obscenities in the middle of the Promenade. Security finally escorted him away while the man was yelling "I ain't afraid of the Brig!"
We saw him and his family being escorted down the pier with all of their luggage the next day in St. Thomas.

[diannebest]

My daughter, husband and I were on a cruise that was a scary situation but not us. University party time, one girl jumped off the upper railing and taken off at next port to medivac back to USA as broken hips, TV's going over board, drunks sleeping in the halls. Long of it they were locked in there rooms, taken off back in USA with lots of police autos to take them off, a few ambulances for others. It was a back to back and the start of the next week the rules were explained, limit on drinks, purchase to give to minors was auto lock up. The second week was better and more security on the ship.

[kenyattaclay]

I've never been on a cruise where someone has been kicked off. However I have seen where different crew have come out to talk to people because they were a bit overserved & were able to handle it before it gout out of hand. Also I'll just add that people need to realize when they are going out of the country or away from their home you have to have a when in Rome philosophy. I spent six years in the military (two of which were in the Navy) & everytime we went to a different country we had to emphasize this because we were told that if you break the law in whatever country we were in you could get left behind.

[andrewjackson]

It's gotta be tough enforcing the out of control children rule, I see them everywhere, parents letting them run riot with no intervention.

[cadmando]

Just went on our very first Royal Caribbean cruise and it was amazing. We didn’t see anyone get kicked off the ship but we did see a family get kicked off the pool deck because of the behavior of their kids and their small child had been left alone in a larger pool and had messed his diapers which the parents didn’t change, and just put him in another pool.

[DennisMatheson]

I think it was a Holland America, but there was someone in a bar trying to impress people by doing Vodka shots then spraying it out of his mouth and ignighting it to make it look like he was "breathing fire." He almost immediately had crew show up and take him away from the bar, and we saw him (and his travel companion) at the end of the dock with all of their luggage the next day. Cruise lines do *not* like people playing with fire.

[thsealord]

There is a movie line that I have always liked, and seems highly appropriate here - "We expect you to be stupid. Don't abuse the privilege."

[queenswillrule]

There's a clip on YT somewhere that shows the ship's officers standing outside of someone's room. Those passengers had apparently been late on every single outing and perhaps something else, but the entire family (2 adults 2 kids) were put off the ship at whatever location they were at the time.
We're not talking about being 20 minutes late. They were late by hours.

[sandrawilkinson]

I have been on a couple of cruises where we saw families escorted of the ship. Once was in Nassau. That time it was due to their teenage kids.

[davva]

So the basic rule is don't be an idiot! Seems simple enough but unfortunately not for everyone. 38 days to my next Royal cruise. Looking forward to it.