Why Do People Hate Cruises?
When talking to people who don’t like cruising, I always ask why. What makes you dislike it so much? What is your distaste for cruising? To be honest, I’d say 9 times out of 10, the answer is “the boat was moving way too much.” or ” they are a floating cess pool! We all know that calling them boats is a “no-no” they are ships. More importantly, they are floating cities in today’s age.
Seasickness
A Ship “rolling” in rough seas can affect anyone. Seasickness is a major turn off for most folks when it comes to going on a cruise. There are ways to combat seasickness with medicines, patches, jewelry and even self-help style exercises. Cruise lines can only control so much, Mother Nature is not one of them.
Cruise ships today are far larger than what they were when I started cruising. They are also far more technologically advanced now than they were 30 years ago. Advances is tech like radar, weather tracking and satellites allow for captains to continuously be kept up to date as weather changes and develops on their planned course. This allows for the crew to take action and make adjustments as needed.
In some cases, they’ll completely change course and avoid a storm altogether. You may miss the original port you were scheduled to see, but I’d rather avoid the weather than have rain or turbulent seas. Besides the monitoring, most ships today have stabilizing systems they can deploy when needed to assist with the rocking of the ship in bad weather.
A perfect example was our August 20024 cruise when we took our daughter on her first cruise aboard the Carnival Mardi Gras. Before we even got on the ship, she was scared to death, didn’t want to go, and worried about anything and everything. When we asked her why and where all this was coming from TikTok! We asked her to show us some of her “learning,” and as you can see , it’s so far over the top and fake that we had to sit her down and explain how it all works.
Cruise companies depend on people’s safety and ensuring they have a good time and enjoy themselves. Most Captains pride themselves on making everyone’s journey safe and pleasant. They want to avoid trouble more than anyone else.
What bugs me a bit about people complaining about the weather is that it’s no one’s fault. Period. No one can control the weather, so don’t beat up the Captain, a cruise line, or even the cruise crew for that matter over Mother Nature. There’s nothing anyone can do about it except go around or avoid said weather. Then when they do make these adjustments to avoid the weather, people are down there screaming at guest services that they will miss a port or their excursions are cancelled. It is a no win sitation.
How to Avoid This
- Book your cruise outside of hurricane season.
Remember, the hurricane season doesn’t just affect cruises departing from Florida, you need to consider this when booking from New York, Boston, New Jersey, Texas, or anywhere for that matter. So keep that all in mind. - Start Small
If you’re unsure about being on a ship and the motion, book a short 3- to 5-day cruise. Most of the time you can get some of these extremely cheap, and if you’re flexible with dates, you can sometimes get them for about $100 plus taxes. - Pack motion sickness bands and/or medicine.
In my daughter’s case, we got her a band. We were actually at sea when Hurricane Beryl was taking place, and she never said a word. However, in Carnival’s defense, the Captain had that ship moving to avoid it all. - Book a BIG ship.
With the technology today and the size of some of the ships on the water, you’ll have no problem finding a ship big enough where you don’t even notice the motion. Carnival Cruise Line, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, MSC Cruise Line, and Princess Cruise Line all have mega ships.
Modern ships today have built in measures to help reduce the roll of a ship when in rough seas. Not every sailing is completely calm and perfect but the video below may help explain how it works and how the system has changed over the years. Here is a good explanation from Captain Kate.
NoroVirus / Hygiene
Another popular comment or complaint is that ships are a cesspool. They are a floating bacteria. Just like anything else that processes thousands of people a week, sickness can happen. I mean look at a hospital. People go to feel better and most times walk out feeling worse.
Now saying that, and this is going to probably be unpopular, most passengers are to blame for causing others to be sick. The sheer amount of people who still do not wash their hands, cover their mouths, openily sneeze without a care for anyone else is astounding.
Did you know that if you do feel ill, and your have been sick for more than 24 hours you are supposed to report this to the medical staff? In a act of selfishness, people will avoid doing this. They do not want to interrupt their vacation and/or delay other in their party or miss excursions. So they will put the whole ship at risk so they cannot be bothered.
Cruise lines have desperately tried to reduce the risk of passengers getting sick with no touch doors, hand sanitizer stations and even employee’s singing as you enter the buffet to wash your hands. Sadly people walk right past them and ignore their plea, all to make a plate of food.
Recently on our Norwegian Cruise Line to Bermuda, we were sitting in the buffet having breakfast. We happened to be seated in a large oval table while enjoying the morning coffee and meal. As we were talking I watched a grown man in line slowly make his way down the offerings. When he got to the pastry line, he grabbed a serving tong and placed a muffin on his plate.
As ge went to return those tongs back onto the buffet station he dropped them on the ground. He bends over, picks them up and puts them RIGHT BACK TO WHERE THEY WERE! I was appalled. I went over, took the tongs and simply handed them to a crew member behind the buffet station and said these are dirty. They had a new set there in 5 seconds.
This is the kind of stupidity that gets everyone sick. Laziness and selfishness. A grown man knows better, a child I could understand, but this was ignorance or stupidity. Same with washing your hands. It takes 45 seconds to wash your hands before eating to keep you and everyone else feeling great.
In Closing
Why do people hate cruises? I don’t know. If you plan your cruise correctly, I’m positive you will have a good time. There’s so much to do on a cruise ship and so much to see on some of these newer vessels. Most major cruise lines all have new ships on order being delivered in the next few years, and they’re all going to be bigger than the previous ship. So don’t rule them out. Unless you’re completely allergic to the sea, I’ll tell anyone to try one!
Never cruised before and not sure? Check out the First Time Cruisers Guide and get some questions answered.
FAQ
When is hurricane season?
The Atlantic and central Pacific hurricane season (includes Hawaii) officially runs June 1 through November 30. The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 to November 30. This is from NOAA.gov
Do seasickness pills really work?
My personal experience is this, I never need them but my family members do. My suggestions is purchasing the NON-DROWSY version of the brand you trust. I would also take them as soon as possible when you feel it. Do not wait.
Do motion sick patches work?
I have no proven experience with them as my wife and daughter use a oral tablet. However when you are on the ship, these patches are VERY popular so I would have to assume they work for lots of folks.
What happens if I get sick?
If you are sick for multiple days, I would suggest you call guest services and inform them you would need to talk to the medical staff about your symptoms. This will be an added expense so keep any paperwork you receive so you can file a claim with your travel insurance company.
What happens if we miss a port?
If you have anything booked through the cruise line, you will be refunded. If you booked on a 3rd party site, you will need to review their cancellation policy. Most reputable excursion companies will give you a refund.
Your ship will deviate to another port or possibly a sea day to avoid the weather.
