Cruise Etiquette: What have passengers done onboard your cruise that was rude?

[PORT ROYAL]

I was wondering if anybody has some stories from their Royal Caribbean cruises (or any cruise lines) about passengers that have been rude and acted unruly.

 

Here is another.

Our group was of a four. BIL left to go to the toilet. Along the aisle of seats came a group of six, all took seats in our row including the seat of my BIL. I stated to the male in the seat that it was for my BIL who was at the toilet. The reply was "You can not save seats". With that the rest of the six joined in with abuse. My BIL returned and asked if the male would move. Denied and more abuse. I asked for assistance from staff, the reply was "could you move to save any trouble".:eek:

[mapsmith]

We fly Southwest almost exclusively. Families with kids under a certain age board after the A group, not first. Children flying solo board first.

 

I've not noticed hoards of people boarding early because of physical handicaps. They have to have a blue folder to do so, but I don't know how you qualify for one of those.

 

These observations have been made in Columbus, Nashville, St. Louis, Tampa and Orlando. Your mileage may vary.

 

You get a blue folder by asking at the desk for preboarding because you need more time because of a disability. Seldom do they ask what the disability is. (Bum Knees or a bad back seem to be used a lot)

[tigercat]

From a previous post of mine (miracle flight) I realize that a lot of people do abuse the system but not everyone does. Sometimes I feel that people feel that all people do abuse it. I am not saying anyone here has said it but it feels that way sometimes. I use a walker on the ship but getting on and off is really hard during embarkation and debarkation. Also, getting to and from the gates at airports is beyond my ability to walk. Much as I would love to be able to do it again at this point it doesn't look like it. I am having a lot of problems right now realizing that I can't do the things I used to do without a lot of pain, like walk without assistance. I do not want to be in a wheelchair or use a scooter but I know that if some "miracle" plane trip doesn't work I will end up with them. Not a fun prospect at all.

 

tigercat

sorry I am having a down day, I really need a cruise.

[Beachdude]

I still don't see that she did anything wrong. There's no reason a larger group or some mix of singles and couples couldn't share the table with her. The only reason she would need a smaller table is if she didn't want to share.

 

But now I think I understand why this bothers some people: People lingering in the buffet probably doesn't often cause others to not sit down and eat, it just makes them share a table with strangers. Somebody that doesn't like to share could get offended by this (I sometimes get cranky too, if I don't get what I want).

 

Cranky? Some folks are just plain shy or need a whole table. A person taking up the whole table just reading while folks are walking around looking for places to eat is just rude. No other word for it. There are plenty of places on a ship to sit and read during meal times. I experienced this very problem last year when Sally and I took our elderly mothers on a cruise. I never noticed it before because Sally and I typically eat out doors or on the balcony. But our mothers insisted eating inside and my eyes were opened to the number of single readers holding a table.

 

Burt

[Slugsta]

I don't have a story of my own to tell ( I am blessed with a bad memory for the rudeness of others) but a couple of comments in response to posts by others.

 

The post complaining about people wandering around with food in the buffet whilst looking for tables - I thought that was complaining about people who don't move on after they have finished when the buffet is busy, not complaining about the people unable to find a seat.

 

Someone a few pages ago asked why people use mobility scooters when they are able to walk. I would refer them to comments made by tigergal on this page. On larger ships distances between places are huge. For people with fatigue or pain conditions, for instance, or whose mobility is poor, walking these distances could cause a great deal of distress, not to mention exhausting them for the rest of the cruise! The same applies to embarking a cruise ship or getting to a plane at the airport.

[pinotlover]

People that wake up in the morning and self proclaim that clothing typically viewed as scruffies/tackies are hereforeth "country club casual". Then they put up a huge scene when they are not allowed into a venue because of their dress. It becomes particularily annoying when they do it every day of the cruise. :mad:

 

Just because they identified one country club located in the bowels of SoCal with no dress codes, doesn't transform that clothing into ccc!:(

[Laurie S.]

My guess is that she's travelling with a large group and grabbed a big table thinking the others would be coming along. I've probably done that myself, fully aware that others might ask to join me. And i would have been fine with that -- I enjoy chatting with strangers and making new friends.

 

 

That's what we thought at first, too. But, no, she was at the same table every day by herself. We would see her throughout the day from at least 9 am until late afternoon.

 

We were a group of six people and could have used a large table to eat. We never pressed the issue, just went outside and squished into a four-top. But, we sure noticed her every day.

[WetToes]

I'd have "squished" her out.

[Laurie S.]

Lol!

[Lady Chew]

That's what we thought at first, too. But, no, she was at the same table every day by herself. We would see her throughout the day from at least 9 am until late afternoon.

 

We were a group of six people and could have used a large table to eat. We never pressed the issue, just went outside and squished into a four-top. But, we sure noticed her every day.

 

I think by the third day, I'd have said "since you never use the whole table, we're just going to sit over here; I hope our conversation doesn't disturb your lunch"

[JustCruiseMe]

We fly Southwest almost exclusively. Families with kids under a certain age board after the A group, not first. Children flying solo board first.

 

I've not noticed hoards of people boarding early because of physical handicaps. They have to have a blue folder to do so, but I don't know how you qualify for one of those.

 

These observations have been made in Columbus, Nashville, St. Louis, Tampa and Orlando. Your mileage may vary.

If a person "of size" buys two seats on the flight they get to board first too and there is a reason for that, so they are guaranteed two seats together.

[tispwisp]

I love their non stops BUT am so tired of them allowing wheelchair people and people with children to board first. They also allow people with medical cards to. Over the holidays when the boarding started, a dad with a small child was up with the gate attendant and she yelled back and said the entire family could board - it included gramma and grampa plus an aunt and uncle and more kids. It really made many people including me mad because they did not purchase the early boarding option. Same with many older people - they have figured out how they can board early and not pay the extra fee. An elderly couple came into the gate area with both pushing wheelchairs that were full of bags. They sat at chairs right by the gate entrance and the wheelchairs were parked next to them. The boarding started and they pushed their way to the front of the line. Number one, I thought the airport had people that pushed them so how did they get an airport wheelchair for their luggage???? They looked very spry - yes, that doesn't show all.

 

 

 

And on every flight I have been on lately, the bulkhead seats are taken up kids. I don't care for those seats but I don't feel kids need take them just because they are allowed on first.

 

 

 

And I also am sick and tired of being told to move over while I am in line waiting to board a ship. I had to stop at the ramp to the ship while 12 wheelchairs and their guest went past us. But what really upset me was when they jumped out of the chairs and ran off when they got on the ship. Saw several of them all over the ship - even dancing - no wheelchair

 

They are already seated - why do we have to stand while they are allowed to go on first. This handicapped stuff is getting out of hand.

 

 

 

Oh, and before you flame me, I do have a handicap car permit and my own wheelchair but I don't use them very often because it is better for me to walk and unless I am having an attack, I don't use it.

 

 

No flaming from me either. I agree with all of the above!!

[MCAT48]

I don't get why people get so angry really....your going to the same place and the ship/plane will not leave without you if you are standing there to board.....what will the extra 5-10 minutes get you?

[$hip$hape]

I don't get why people get so angry really....your going to the same place and the ship/plane will not leave without you if you are standing there to board.....what will the extra 5-10 minutes get you?

I've seen a crabby passenger, when there was no room left in the overhead, take his seat and leave his carry-on in the isle.

He told the flight attendant, "YOU take care of it !".

Edited March 18, 2014 by $hip$hape

[A2Mich]

I've seen a crabby passenger, when there was no room left in the overhead, take his seat and leave his carry-on in the isle.

He told the flight attendant, "YOU take care of it !".

 

 

In his defense, but not to that extreme, some people do bring WAY too much stuff onboard with them. Or there are also the people seated at the back of the airplane that put their stuff in the forward overheads so they don't have to lug it all the way back, leaving no room for forward passengers to put their carry ins except for the back of the aircraft!

 

 

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[WetToes]

I don't get why people get so angry really....your going to the same place and the ship/plane will not leave without you if you are standing there to board.....what will the extra 5-10 minutes get you?

 

Tell that to the one's who are always scheming to get to the head of the line. When you get a bunch of people claiming to be disabled, that 5 -10, becomes a lot longer wait.

[bluemug]

In his defense, but not to that extreme, some people do bring WAY too much stuff onboard with them. Or there are also the people seated at the back of the airplane that put their stuff in the forward overheads so they don't have to lug it all the way back, leaving no room for forward passengers to put their carry ins except for the back of the aircraft!

 

 

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What a good idea. After all; there are no rules stating that you have to put your carry on luggage in the locker above your seat.:D

[Amg1955]

My worst is when fellow passengers are rude when out on excursions, to tour guides and locals. They seem to think they are privileged and everyone else lives in a 3rd world country. In Russia, someone (who previously had been heard very loudly talking about her friend Lavinia at the tennis club) started to ask the guide about what type of sanitary arrangements were available to local residents! The guide was amused, and wryly said that it was quite modern in Russia, they had electricity and taps and everything, including many millionaires! She reported him for being rude......in Buenos Aires, the guide was asked about the poor and starving....we were in an area where all of the condos had their own yacht moorings....the guide clearly didn't know what to say.

On a trip to St Petersburg, 4 young men spent all day drinking while we were in the Hermitage, threw up on the coach, then when we got to the Airport and we were divided into planes for London and Manchester, shouted that they didn't think anyone from the north would be on a "culture trip".....I understand they weren't allowed on the plane!!!!

For some reason, I feel responsible for their behaviour!

 

 

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[jrose1982]

Cranky? Some folks are just plain shy or need a whole table. A person taking up the whole table just reading while folks are walking around looking for places to eat is just rude. No other word for it. There are plenty of places on a ship to sit and read during meal times. I experienced this very problem last year when Sally and I took our elderly mothers on a cruise. I never noticed it before because Sally and I typically eat out doors or on the balcony. But our mothers insisted eating inside and my eyes were opened to the number of single readers holding a table.

 

Burt

 

I understand that. What I'm calling Cranky, is when you label somebody else rude simply because you're not getting what you want. I'll be honest, I've done it (usually when I can't make a turn while my light is green because somebody is crossing the street I'm turning onto; or for other whiny crap like that). These labels don't stand up to examination and neither does this one. You don't get what you want, you start looking for somebody to blame, and you find somebody whose behavior is in some way not what you think it should be. That's when the labels start. That's the scenario I'm talking about.

 

What I'm seeing here, is people who don't want to share a table see somebody occupying a seat; envision how that could potentially lead to them having to share a table; and then they decide that it's positively wrong.

 

And putting one person's selfish desire to not share a table against somebody else's selfish desire to sit at a table and read does not make sense. One is not better than the other, they are equal.

 

I can also balance your "there of plenty of places to sit and read" with there were seven other chairs at that one table alone where somebody could sit and eat.

 

Because, while there are many places to sit and read, there are not many places outside the eating areas where you can pull a chair up to a table (which some might prefer just as much as others prefer to have a table to themselves). So one person's insistence that she not read in the buffet is equal in merits with her choice to do it anyway.

 

Further, nobody seems to consider that she might have been hoping that others would join her. Sitting at a 2-seater is just shy of a guarantee nobody is going to share your table. Even if it's crowded, it's more likely somebody will the take the empty chair to another table. Sitting alone at a table for 8 says "there's room here, come join me".

 

And whether you think this behavior is rude or not, there is absolutely no need or excuse to deal with it by being rude. In fact, responding with rudeness is counterproductive.

 

You can politely ask if you can share the table. If you need a whole table, you can politely ask if they will be done with the table soon. These are good manners.

 

If I were reading and somebody asks politely to share my table, I will say yes. And it will pull my attention away from my book long enough to notice if the area is really crowded. It which case, I'll probably decide to leave. If somebody politely asks me if I'll be done with my table soon, it will have the same affect.

 

If somebody behaves rudely about my reading in an eating area, I'll still share the table if they need a place to sit. But I'm going to stay put and continue to read until they leave (that's the counterproductive part).

[notentirelynormal]

I understand that. What I'm calling Cranky, is when you label somebody else rude simply because you're not getting what you want. I'll be honest, I've done it (usually when I can't make a turn while my light is green because somebody is crossing the street I'm turning onto; or for other whiny crap like that). These labels don't stand up to examination and neither does this one. You don't get what you want, you start looking for somebody to blame, and you find somebody whose behavior is in some way not what you think it should be. That's when the labels start. That's the scenario I'm talking about.

 

What I'm seeing here, is people who don't want to share a table see somebody occupying a seat; envision how that could potentially lead to them having to share a table; and then they decide that it's positively wrong.

 

And putting one person's selfish desire to not share a table against somebody else's selfish desire to sit at a table and read does not make sense. One is not better than the other, they are equal.

 

I can also balance your "there of plenty of places to sit and read" with there were seven other chairs at that one table alone where somebody could sit and eat.

 

Because, while there are many places to sit and read, there are not many places outside the eating areas where you can pull a chair up to a table (which some might prefer just as much as others prefer to have a table to themselves). So one person's insistence that she not read in the buffet is equal in merits with her choice to do it anyway.

 

Further, nobody seems to consider that she might have been hoping that others would join her. Sitting at a 2-seater is just shy of a guarantee nobody is going to share your table. Even if it's crowded, it's more likely somebody will the take the empty chair to another table. Sitting alone at a table for 8 says "there's room here, come join me".

 

And whether you think this behavior is rude or not, there is absolutely no need or excuse to deal with it by being rude. In fact, responding with rudeness is counterproductive.

 

You can politely ask if you can share the table. If you need a whole table, you can politely ask if they will be done with the table soon. These are good manners.

 

If I were reading and somebody asks politely to share my table, I will say yes. And it will pull my attention away from my book long enough to notice if the area is really crowded. It which case, I'll probably decide to leave. If somebody politely asks me if I'll be done with my table soon, it will have the same affect.

 

If somebody behaves rudely about my reading in an eating area, I'll still share the table if they need a place to sit. But I'm going to stay put and continue to read until they leave (that's the counterproductive part).

 

OMG! Move on! You have your opinion and others have theirs. Just because they don't agree with you makes them neither selfish or ignorant.

 

You seem to be the one that doesn't get it. Some people have a group they are traveling with and want to eat their meals together. I have zero problem with a single sitting at a large or even small table WHEN THEY ARE EATING. She was READING during peak meal time. How on earth can this be so difficult for you to comprehend. The reader is the perfect example of what YOU feel is wrong with this world. It sound very much like you are a "reader" type cruiser and are trying to justify your actions.

Edited March 19, 2014 by notentirelynormal

[Beachdude]

If somebody behaves rudely about my reading in an eating area, I'll still share the table if they need a place to sit. But I'm going to stay put and continue to read until they leave (that's the counterproductive part).

 

Ah I see what you are getting at, your rudness doesn't excuss their rudness, so their rudness gives you the permission for you to be rude that you didn't have before.

 

What was the title of this subject again?

 

Jrose, the next time you are taking up a whole table reading and waiting for someone to be rude to you, take some notice of those folks who passed by your table twice looking for a place to relax eating a meal. It may be someone who doesn't speak a common language or a child venturing on his own. It may be an elderly person with a very quiet manner or it maybe a group of us who are just plain shy in these situations. Whoever we are, it is our vacation too.

 

And while you're taking up a whole table for the excuss of an opportunity to meet new people, that shouldn't be the expectation of everyone else on a cruise. A shy person shouldn't have to step out of their comfort zone as a result of your selfishness. There are plenty of very nice and appropriate places on the ship to read a book and it is much easier for someone with just a book to find those places than the a person holding a tray of food. It is the dining room, not the library. It's another place where a family should be able sit and enjoy their cruising experience together while eating.

 

It's pretty black and white to me, so my oppologies if I just can't see the gray of it.

 

Burt

[Aquahound]

jrose1982 - taking up any seat in a dining facility for the sole purpose of reading is rude. Any way you spin it, it's still rude. It's not only rude....it doesn't make sense. It's like eating dinner on a massage table...it just doesn't make sense.

[A2Mich]

If the place is empty I can see using a table to read. But when people are circling like vultures searching for a place to sit, it's time to relocate.

 

Here's another example--at a crowded gas station where there is a line for every pump, is it OK for someone to pump their gas, go inside, order and eat their lunch and relax while their vehicle is still blocking a pump? (Yes, I've seen this happen several times). The person with two licks of common sense would pump their gas and move their vehicle elsewhere before they went inside and make that pump available.

 

Same principle. Would anyone want to have to sit in a line with nowhere to go while someone takes their dear sweet time doing all of this? I didn't think so.

 

 

 

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[jrose1982]

I get it just fine. People are complaining about a POTENTIAL PROBLEM. When there's a real problem, it's easy to fix. Maybe I just have a different approach to things.

 

Not a single person here as said "I couldn't find a place to sit, and somebody was reading, and they wouldn't move." Everybody has said (basically) "I saw somebody reading". whine, whine, whine.

 

If it's really a problem you ask somebody to move. If you don't have to ask somebody to move, then it's not really a problem.

[tcher0619]

Practically run me over with their scooter / power chair, like just because they have one, I'm supposed to automatically jump out of their way.

 

I have had a few laughs reading this thread. Unfortunately, this one upset me a little. My husband uses a scooter. He has never run someone down(yet). By the way, hope you are never limited in your mobility.