Every cruise has a learning curve. First-timers make predictable mistakes, and even experienced cruisers develop blind spots. These 20 don'ts are the things that waste your money, ruin your sleep, burn your time, or frustrate the crew members who are trying to give you a great vacation.
None of these are obscure edge cases. They're the mistakes that happen on every sailing, on every ship, and they're all avoidable.
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Safety and Legal
1. Don't Skip the Muster Drill
The muster drill is a legal requirement under international maritime law (SOLAS. Safety of Life at Sea). Every passenger must complete it before the ship can depart. Skipping it doesn't make you a rebel. It makes you the person delaying departure for 5,000 other passengers while the crew tracks you down.
Modern cruise ships have adopted e-muster systems: watch a short safety video on your phone, then check in at your assigned muster station. The entire process takes 5-10 minutes. Do it immediately after boarding and you won't think about it again.
2. Don't Skip Travel Insurance
A medical evacuation by helicopter from a cruise ship in the middle of the Caribbean costs $50,000-150,000. A broken leg requiring surgery at a foreign hospital can cost $25,000-50,000. Your domestic health insurance almost certainly does not cover you outside the country, and Medicare covers nothing outside the US.
Cruise travel insurance costs $75-300 for a standard 7-night cruise. It covers medical emergencies, evacuation, trip cancellation, trip interruption, and lost luggage. Cancel-for-any-reason (CFAR) coverage costs 40-60% more but reimburses you regardless of why you cancel.
This is not optional. It is the single most important thing you buy after the cruise itself.
3. Don't Leave Valuables Unsecured in Your Cabin
Cruise cabins have safes. Use them. Your passport, cash, credit cards, electronics, and jewelry should be in the safe whenever you leave the cabin. Cabin stewards and maintenance crew have access to your room throughout the day.
Theft on cruise ships is uncommon but not unheard of. More commonly, items left on beds and desks get moved or accidentally discarded during cabin cleaning. The safe eliminates both risks.
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View on Amazon4. Don't Lean Over Railings or Climb on Them
This sounds obvious, but cruise ship man-overboard incidents happen. And alcohol is almost always a factor. Falling from a cruise ship balcony into the open ocean at night is very likely fatal. The ship is traveling at 20+ knots, water temperature may be cold enough to cause hypothermia within minutes, and the time to notice, stop, and turn a 200,000-ton ship is considerable.
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View on AmazonStay behind the railings. Don't sit on them, stand on furniture to look over them, or hang from them for photos.
Money and Finances
5. Don't Forget to Check Your Onboard Account Daily
Your cruise card (or wristband) is linked to your credit card and functions as a contactless payment method everywhere on the ship. Every drink, every specialty restaurant, every spa treatment, every photo, every WiFi session charges to your account automatically.
It is remarkably easy to spend $500-1,000+ in a week without realizing it. Check your balance daily through the cruise line's app. Most lines also let you set spending alerts or daily limits. Review the itemized bill on the last night. Billing errors happen, and they're much easier to dispute before you disembark.
6. Don't Buy the First Shore Excursion You See
Cruise line excursions are convenient but typically cost 30-50% more than booking the same activity independently. A snorkeling tour in Cozumel might be $89 through the cruise line and $45 from a local operator with identical boats, gear, and guides.
Research excursions before your cruise. Platforms like Viator, GetYourGuide, and local operators offer the same activities at lower prices. The one caveat: if you book independently and the excursion returns late, the ship will leave without you. If you book through the cruise line and their excursion returns late, the ship will wait.
For time-critical ports where the ship has a short window, book through the cruise line. For ports with all-day stops, independent booking is usually the better value.
7. Don't Ignore the Drink Package Math
Drink packages on mainstream cruise lines cost $60-100+ per person per day. They cover unlimited alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages (with per-drink value caps of $12-18).
The math only works if you drink 5-6+ alcoholic beverages per day, consistently, for the entire cruise. If you drink 2-3 cocktails at dinner and a beer by the pool, you're spending more on the package than you would a la carte. Do the calculation based on your actual drinking habits, not your vacation ambitions.
Also note: drink packages require both adults in a cabin to purchase them. You can't buy one and share.
8. Don't Book the Cheapest Cabin Without Researching Location
A cabin at $699 that's directly above the nightclub, next to the anchor chain locker, or below the pool deck will ruin your sleep every night. Cabin location matters more than cabin category.
Before booking, check cruise ship deck plans (available on the cruise line's website and fan sites like Cruise Deck Plans). Avoid cabins:
Above or below entertainment venues (theaters, nightclubs, bars)
Near the anchor chain (forward, lowest decks. You'll hear it drop at 5 AM)
Below the pool deck (foot traffic, furniture being moved)
Near crew areas (doors slamming, early-morning activity)
At the very front or back on high decks (more ship motion)
Mid-ship, mid-deck cabins are the most stable and quietest location on any ship.
Port Days
9. Don't Miss the Ship
The ship will leave without you. This is not a bluff, a threat, or a scare tactic. It is a daily reality on ships around the world.
All-aboard time is typically 30-60 minutes before departure. If you're not on the gangway by that time, you are left behind. You'll need to arrange flights, hotels, and transportation to the next port at your own expense. Which can easily cost $500-2,000 depending on the destination.
How to not miss the ship:
Set an alarm for 1 hour before all-aboard time
Always keep your phone charged with the cruise line app (it shows departure time)
If you're in port with a tight timeline, stay within 15 minutes of the ship
Take a photo of the ship's port schedule posted at the gangway every morning
10. Don't Be the Last One Off the Ship in Port
If the ship docks at 7:00 AM and you roll off at 11:00 AM, you've lost four hours of port time. Getting off the ship early means shorter lines at attractions, less crowded beaches, better restaurant seating, and lower taxi demand (and therefore lower prices).
Have breakfast at the buffet the moment it opens (6:30-7:00 AM), and be in line at the gangway as soon as the port is cleared. First passengers off the ship have a different experience than passengers who arrive when tour buses are already full.
11. Don't Drink Excessively Before Port Days
A hangover on a port day wastes the most expensive part of your cruise. The destination. You've traveled thousands of miles to visit a place you may never return to. Save the heavy drinking for sea days when the only thing you're missing is the pool.
Additionally, showing up to a shore excursion visibly intoxicated can get you turned away. Tour operators, especially those involving water, heights, or vehicles, will refuse service to anyone who appears impaired.
Onboard Etiquette
12. Don't Use the Elevator for One Floor
Cruise ship elevators are slow, overcrowded, and a source of constant frustration. Especially on ships with 5,000+ passengers. Using the elevator to go up or down one deck when you're able to take the stairs wastes everyone's time.
The stairs are faster (genuinely. Time it), help offset the 3,000-5,000 calories per day that cruise dining makes available, and keep the elevators free for passengers in wheelchairs, with strollers, or with mobility limitations.
13. Don't Reserve Pool Chairs With Towels at 6 AM
The towel-on-empty-chair-at-dawn move is the most universally despised behavior on cruise ships. Passengers place towels on prime pool chairs before breakfast, then don't actually use them until 11:00 AM or later. Blocking chairs for 4-5 hours while they're at the buffet, the gym, or still asleep.
Most cruise lines have policies against chair hogging. Crew members will remove unattended towels and belongings after 30-45 minutes. Don't be the person who makes them enforce it.
14. Don't Be Rude to the Crew
Cruise ship crew members work 10-14 hour days, 7 days a week, for 6-10 month contracts. They live in small shared cabins below the waterline, far from their families. They are simultaneously the hardest-working and most underappreciated people in the hospitality industry.
Being polite, patient, and appreciative costs nothing and changes everything. Crew members remember kind passengers. And they'll go out of their way for guests who treat them well. Your cabin steward will prioritize your requests. Your waiter will bring you that special dessert. The bartender will pour a little heavier. Kindness is the best hack on any cruise ship.
15. Don't Ignore the Daily Newsletter
The daily program (Cruise Compass on Royal Caribbean, Fun Times on Carnival, Freestyle Daily on Norwegian) lists every activity, show, special event, restaurant hour, and port information for that day. It is the single most useful document on the ship.
Most cruise lines now deliver it digitally through their app, but many still slide a printed copy under your door each evening. Read it. The best events. Behind-the-scenes bridge tours, meet-the-chef dinners, art auctions (some are actually good), trivia competitions, dance classes. Fill up fast because most people never read the schedule.
Booking and Planning
16. Don't Wait Until the Last Minute to Book
Last-minute cruise deals exist, but they're not the bargains they once were. Modern yield management systems mean cruise lines optimize pricing continuously. The best fares are typically available 6-12 months before sailing, when the cruise line is trying to fill the ship.
Last-minute bookers often end up with the worst cabin locations (the leftovers), limited dining time choices, and no access to sold-out excursions. Book early, then monitor prices. If the fare drops before final payment, most lines will adjust your price or offer onboard credit.
17. Don't Overplan Every Hour
Scheduling every moment of a 7-night cruise like a military operation is a recipe for exhaustion and disappointment. Some of the best cruise experiences are unplanned: a conversation with fellow passengers at the bar, stumbling into a live music set in a lounge, watching a pod of dolphins from the top deck at sunset.
Plan the must-do items (shore excursions, specialty dining reservations, spa appointments) and leave the rest open. Sea days especially benefit from a loose schedule. The point is relaxation.
18. Don't Assume WiFi Will Work Like It Does at Home
Cruise ship WiFi has improved dramatically but still operates via satellite connections that are slower, more expensive, and less reliable than shore-based internet. Expect 5-25 Mbps depending on the ship, the plan, and how many passengers are online simultaneously.
Streaming Netflix, large video calls, and uploading dozens of photos will eat through data quickly and may not work at all on basic plans. Download entertainment before boarding, and use WiFi strategically — checking messages, posting a few photos, essential emails. Unlimited WiFi packages cost $15-25/day, and most lines offer a social media-only plan for $8-12/day.
19. Don't Forget to Download the Cruise Line App
Every major cruise line has a mobile app that serves as your daily planner, deck map, restaurant reservation system, account tracker, and communication tool. Royal Caribbean's app, Carnival HUB, Norwegian's app, and Celebrity's app all function as the digital nerve center of your cruise.
Download it before boarding (ship WiFi can be slow for large downloads), set up your profile, and link your booking. On embarkation day, you'll use it for check-in, muster drill completion, and your first restaurant reservation.
20. Don't Pack Everything in Checked Luggage
Your checked luggage may not arrive at your cabin until 4:00-6:00 PM on embarkation day. The ship departs around 4:00-5:00 PM. That means your first 4-6 hours onboard — pool, buffet lunch, muster drill, and exploring the ship — happen with whatever you carry on.
Pack a day bag with:
Swimsuit and cover-up
Sunscreen
Medications
Phone charger
A change of clothes (if your dinner seating is early)
Cruise documents and ID
Everything else can wait for the checked bags to arrive.
The Bottom Line
Most cruise mistakes fall into three categories: not researching before you go, not paying attention while you're there, and not respecting the people around you (fellow passengers and crew alike).
The passengers who have the best cruises are the ones who:
Research their cabin location before booking, not after
Buy travel insurance without debating it
Check their onboard account every day
Get off the ship early on port days
Treat the crew with genuine kindness and appropriate gratuity
Avoiding the 20 mistakes above won't make your cruise perfect — weather, delays, and seasickness don't care about preparation. But they'll prevent the self-inflicted problems that turn a great vacation into a frustrating one.
For more tips, explore our first-time cruiser guide, use the packing checklist to make sure you don't forget anything, and browse cruise ship reviews to find the right ship before you book.
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