If you could ban one thing from cruise ships, what would it be?
It sounds like a fun, throwaway question—but when cruisers were asked, the answers came fast… and a few frustrations showed up over and over again. Not just once or twice, but in waves.
Some focused on specific habits that seem to happen on every sailing. Others pointed to bigger issues—things cruise lines themselves control. And then there were the answers that had nothing to do with rules at all, and everything to do with how people behave when they’re on vacation.
What stands out isn’t just what people would ban—it’s how consistent the patterns are. Because once you group the responses together, a clearer picture starts to form of what actually gets under cruisers’ skin—and why those same issues keep coming up trip after trip.
The Pool Chair Problem That Never Goes Away
If there’s one thing cruisers would almost universally ban, it’s this: saving pool chairs without actually using them.
It comes up again and again because it’s something nearly everyone has seen—and experienced. You walk out to the pool deck, ready to relax, and somehow every lounger is “taken”… even though half of them are empty except for a towel, a book, or a random flip-flop marking territory.
What frustrates people isn’t just the lack of available seating—it’s the feeling that the system is being gamed. On busy sea days, especially in warm-weather itineraries, pool space is limited. So when chairs sit unused for hours while others are actively looking, it quickly turns into one of the most visible (and irritating) examples of cruise ship inconsideration.
At the same time, there’s an interesting contradiction here. Some cruisers openly admit they save chairs too—not because they want to, but because they feel like they have to. If you don’t claim a spot early, you might not get one at all. Which turns this from a simple etiquette issue into something bigger: a cycle where behavior spreads because people feel like they have no other option.
And that’s why this one keeps coming up. It’s not just about towels on chairs—it’s about fairness, availability, and the small moments that can shape how relaxing a day at sea actually feels.
Smoking: The Debate That Splits Cruisers Every Time
If chair saving is the most agreed-upon frustration, smoking is easily the most divisive.
For some cruisers, it’s the first thing they’d ban without hesitation—especially when it drifts beyond designated areas. The biggest complaints tend to center around places where avoiding it feels impossible, like casinos, nearby walkways, or even balconies where smoke carries from cabin to cabin. For these cruisers, it’s less about personal preference and more about not being able to fully escape it.
But the pushback is just as strong.
Other cruisers argue that smoking is already limited to specific areas, and that’s the compromise. From their perspective, it’s no different than any other onboard activity—not everyone enjoys it, but that doesn’t mean it should be removed entirely. If anything, they see the issue as one of awareness: avoid the smoking sections, and it’s largely a non-issue.
That’s what makes this topic so consistent—and so unresolved. It’s not just about smoke itself, but about how different cruisers define a “shared space.” One group prioritizes a cleaner, more controlled environment. The other prioritizes personal freedom within clearly defined boundaries.
And because cruise ships have to cater to both, this is one debate that isn’t going away anytime soon.
It’s Not Just Kids—It’s Where and How They Show Up
“Kids” came up a lot—but when you look closer, that’s not really the full story.
Most complaints aren’t about children being on cruises at all. They’re about specific situations where behavior crosses into shared spaces in a way that feels disruptive. The biggest flashpoint by far? Hot tubs. Over and over, cruisers pointed to kids taking over these smaller, more confined spaces—often unsupervised—as one of the quickest ways to frustrate other guests.
From there, the pattern expands: running through hallways late at night, pressing every elevator button, crowding buffets, or showing up in areas that are supposed to be adults-only. It’s less about age and more about boundaries—and whether they’re being respected.
At the same time, there’s strong pushback against the idea of banning kids entirely. Many cruisers see that as missing the point. Cruises are, at their core, family vacations. Well-behaved kids are part of the experience, not a problem. And plenty of people point out that they’ve sailed with kids onboard and had no issues at all.
So where does that leave things?
Like a lot of cruise debates, it lands in the middle. This isn’t really about kids—it’s about supervision, shared spaces, and expectations. When those line up, it’s not an issue. When they don’t, it quickly becomes one of the most talked-about frustrations onboard.
When “Other People” Become the Problem
After the specific complaints—chairs, smoking, kids—there’s a broader theme that keeps surfacing: sometimes, it’s not one thing… it’s just other passengers.
This shows up in a lot of different ways. Loud phone calls on speaker, music playing without headphones, people shouting down hallways late at night, cutting lines, talking through shows, or simply being overly drunk and disruptive. None of these are unique to cruising—but on a ship, they’re harder to escape.
That’s really what ties these complaints together. On land, you can leave. On a cruise, you’re sharing the same environment for days at a time. So behaviors that might be minor annoyances elsewhere can feel amplified when there’s no easy way to avoid them.
At the same time, there’s a clear divide in how people react to this. Some cruisers expect a certain level of courtesy and see these behaviors as crossing a line. Others take a more relaxed approach—accepting that a cruise is a mix of personalities, and not everyone defines “fun” the same way.
And that tension is hard to eliminate, because it’s not tied to one rule or policy. It’s simply what happens when thousands of people bring their own version of a vacation onto the same ship.
The Rules (and Prices) Cruisers Would Scrap
Not everything people want to ban has to do with other passengers. A big chunk of frustration is aimed directly at cruise line policies—especially the ones that feel restrictive or unnecessarily expensive.
One of the most common examples is the drink package rule that requires every adult in the same cabin to purchase it. For couples where only one person drinks, this comes up again and again as something that just doesn’t make sense. It’s not that people don’t understand why the rule exists—but that doesn’t make it feel any less frustrating when you’re forced to pay for something you won’t use.
Then there’s WiFi pricing, soda packages, specialty dining charges, and all the little add-ons that can quietly turn a “good deal” into a much more expensive trip. For some cruisers, these aren’t minor annoyances—they’re the first things they’d eliminate entirely.
What’s interesting here is that this group isn’t reacting to behavior—they’re reacting to value. These cruisers tend to be more cost-aware, more detail-focused, and often more experienced. They know how cruise pricing works, and they’re quick to point out where it feels like the experience doesn’t match the cost.
Unlike chair saving or noisy passengers, this isn’t something you can avoid by walking to another deck. It’s built into the cruise itself—which is why it sticks with people long after the trip is over.
Not Everything Needs a Ban: The “Just Let People Cruise” View
Amid all the strong opinions, there’s also a noticeably different mindset—cruisers who wouldn’t ban anything at all.
For this group, the idea of removing smoking, limiting kids, or policing other passengers misses the point of cruising entirely. A ship is a shared space, yes—but it’s also a place where different types of people are supposed to coexist, each enjoying their vacation in their own way.
Instead of focusing on what others are doing, these cruisers tend to lean toward a simpler approach: avoid what you don’t like, and move on. Don’t sit near the smoking areas if it bothers you. Don’t stress about chair savers if you’re willing to wait a little. Don’t let small annoyances define a trip that’s meant to feel like an escape.
There’s also a recognition here that cruise ships are designed to serve a wide range of guests. Families, couples, first-timers, retirees, party-goers—it’s all mixed together by design. And for this group, that variety isn’t a flaw. It’s the whole experience.
What makes this perspective interesting is that it doesn’t ignore the frustrations others raise—it just places less weight on them. Where some cruisers see problems to fix, others see trade-offs that come with shared travel.
And in a way, that contrast is exactly what this question reveals: not just what people would ban, but how differently people choose to experience the same ship.
What This All Really Says About Cruise Life
Once you step back from the individual complaints, a clearer pattern starts to emerge—and it has less to do with any single “bad” habit and more to do with expectations.
Most of what cruisers want to ban falls into one of three categories: how shared spaces are used, how other passengers behave, or how the cruise line structures the experience itself. Chair saving, smoking, kids in certain areas, loud behavior, pricing rules—they all sit in different buckets, but they point to the same underlying tension: everyone is on the same ship, but not everyone is there for the same kind of vacation.
That’s what makes these conversations so consistent. Cruise ships are one of the few vacation environments where total strangers share pools, dining rooms, entertainment venues, and even hallways for days at a time. And in that kind of setting, small differences in behavior feel bigger than they would anywhere else.
What’s also clear is that there isn’t a single “fix” that would make everyone happy. Tighten rules in one area, and you risk frustrating another group. Loosen them, and the same complaints come back in a different form. It’s a balancing act that cruise lines constantly manage—and one that passengers experience in very different ways depending on their own travel style.
In the end, this isn’t really a list of things to ban. It’s a snapshot of what happens when thousands of people try to enjoy the same floating resort in their own way—and why, despite the occasional frustration, most still keep coming back.