Have you ever wondered what it’s like to work on a big cruise ship? While most passengers are perfectly pleasant, some requests make crew members do a double-take.
From the outrageous to the simply bizarre, cruise staff have seen it all and often share these oddities on social media.
Thanks to their stories, I’ve gathered seven of the most jaw-dropping demands that’ll make your last room service order seem completely reasonable. Trust me, some requests will have you wondering if some people left their common sense at the dock.
500 White Roses
One particularly demanding passenger on a luxury cruise ship sent a request for five hundred pristine white roses to be delivered to their cabin before dinner.
The reason for the request wasn’t specified, but considering the gesture, it was probably a surprise for a loved one.
The crazy part isn’t even that. This happened on a ship that was cruising in the middle of the Caribbean! The crew tried it all to arrange a private helicopter from Miami that could make the delivery on time.
The price tag ended up being around $80,000.
Personal Gym
According to a crew member’s account, before boarding a luxury cruise, a guest reportedly requested to have several pieces of gym equipment in their suite.
Specifically, a treadmill, weights, a barbell, and various aerobic accessories. It’s definitely not an easy task, considering the limited space on the ship.
The cabin stewards worked for hours to move everything and get the equipment into the suite, and yet the customer never lifted a single dumbbell during the entire voyage.
Instead, the guest spent their time lounging on deck with cigars and cocktails. The unused equipment ended up being donated to a local fitness center, making this perhaps the most expensive gym membership never used.
Also Read: 17 Things You Can Get Free on a Cruise – If You Ask!
Food That’s Measured to Perfection
Some guests take their dietary preferences to extraordinary lengths. A waiter I know, who has worked on cruise ships for several years, revealed to me that one passenger insisted that all his dishes should have been weighed to perfection.
From pasta to breakfast cereals. Yes, the crew should have used a scale every time.
As you can imagine, cruise ship kitchens are extremely busy, and doing something like that is really difficult. That’s why the request was declined.
Moreover, the passenger had no health condition that required it, which might have been an exception.
Also read: 7 Tips to Eat the Best Food on a Cruise (without paying extra)
Equator Line
One of the more amusing questions cruise crew members have received is from a guest who asked, “What will it look like when we cross the equator?”
At first, the crew member thought the passenger was referring to a special onboard ceremony that some cruise lines hold when crossing this significant maritime boundary.
However, it quickly became clear that the guest was expecting a physical marker, like a line in the ocean or a visible sign, similar to how country borders are marked on land.
The staff at customer service had to explain to him that there is no visible line and that even those visible at the equator sites in Ecuador or Kenya are just painted lines.
Only Female Crew Members
A man traveling alone once insisted that every visible crew member during his voyage be a woman. He even submitted a detailed list of preferred physical attributes, including height, weight, and hair color.
When told this wasn’t possible, he offered to pay double their fare to have certain crew members replaced before departure. The ship’s management, thankfully, declined, explaining that their staff were hired for their skills and experience and not their appearance.
A Whole Room For Storage
A couple booked two identical suites on a Mediterranean cruise, one for themselves and one exclusively for their designer wardrobe.
They demanded the second cabin’s furniture be removed and replaced with just clothing racks and storage solutions. The staff told them this request violated maritime safety regulations.
However, they attempted to negotiate by offering to pay triple the cabin rate. The request was still denied, but the couple proceeded to fill their cabin with so many clothes that their bathroom door couldn’t fully open.
Also Read: 10 Weirdest Things People Have Tried to Smuggle on Cruise Ships
Captain For a Day
The most audacious request came from a tech executive who demanded to “park” the cruise ship in Dubrovnik’s harbor. He claimed his experience with his 40-foot yacht qualified him to handle the 900-foot cruise ship.
When declined, he offered to pay some money for the “experience” and suggested the captain could “supervise” from behind.
Obviously, this is impossible for security reasons, and the guest spent the rest of the cruise explaining to fellow passengers how he could’ve done a better job.
Also Read: 10 Things You Must Never Do in a Cruise Cabin (Can Get You Banned)
I have tried several of them but these are the most durable and sturdy.
