How to Keep Crowds From Ruining Your Cruise Vacation

CHARLESTON, S.C.—I booked a Bahamas cruise because I had a hunch it would be crowded.

It’s not that I love hordes of partying tourists and long lines for a chair on the lido deck. I wanted to see firsthand what it’s like on a popular sailing and to figure out strategies for coping with the crowds at sea.

Demand is high for cruises this summer, in a dramatic comeback from pandemic shutdowns. Because cruises can be a rare travel bargain these days, many sailings are sold out or, in some cases, oversold. Thankfully, my fellow passengers on the Carnival Sunshine were almost always in good spirits despite our close quarters. For every moment when the crowds were a bother, there were many more when I had a great time.

Lesson learned: Finding elbow room on a cruise is doable, even on a smaller, sold-out sailing, but it takes careful planning and effort.

Plenty of passengers

I went on the cruise with my father, booking one of the last staterooms before the ship’s mid-July departure from Charleston, S.C. The cruise itself cost nearly $1,900—not including additional expenses like gratuities or shore excursions. Carnival wasn’t aware that I was sailing until after the trip, and The Wall Street Journal paid for it. (Tough assignment, I know.)

The Sunshine’s target capacity is 3,002 guests, which is based on an expectation that every stateroom will hold two people. Since many rooms can hold up to four occupants, the Sunshine’s maximum capacity is 4,220 guests, a Carnival spokesman says. Our sailing was “essentially sold out,” the spokesman notes, with nearly 3,900 travelers aboard.

“We are sailing full ships across the fleet this summer,” he says.

Shorter cruises like my four-day voyage are likelier to sell out, since they involve taking fewer days off work or school, says Colleen McDaniel, editor in chief of travel website Cruise Critic. The Sunshine also represents the rare cruise sailing out of Charleston, so it’s popular with locals who can drive to the port.

Lesson learned: For a better chance of breathing room, book a longer cruise, or one that leaves from a port many travelers fly to, like Puerto Rico, McDaniel says.

Mealtime mania

Check-in and security were a breeze, a testament to Carnival’s timed-entry system. Then my dad and I went to grab a bite after boarding, and we encountered dozens of hungry people just like us.

With cruise packages like this, only certain restaurants and menu items are included in the price. And not all eateries are open at all times, meaning that the places included in the packages can fill up fast. The cruise staff works hard to make sure people get served quickly.

My dad and I boarded the Sunshine around lunchtime and found ourselves in a queue of ravenous people at Guy’s Burger Joint, named after celebrity chef Guy Fieri. The line was brisk. Chefs flipped burgers without pausing in between, making it a grab-and-go operation unless you wanted your patty cooked a certain way. The real trouble was finding a table. Nearly every table in the main dining area on the lido deck, also home to the ship’s buffet, was full. 

The main dining room, where meals are served by waiters, also attracted large numbers of vacationers. Often we had to wait a while to be seated. On the cruise’s elegant night—basically no swimsuits or flip-flops—we waited nearly a half hour after checking in.

That has more to do with the menu than the attire, says Tanner Callais, founder of travel website Cruzely.com. “Usually the formal night coincides with the night that they serve lobster in the main dining room,” he says.

He was right: There was lobster on the menu only that night, for an additional cost.

Lesson learned: To save money and time, take your meals at off-peak times. If you don’t mind paying extra, book reservations at the ship’s specialty restaurants.

Pool party

Cruzely.com ranks ships on a ratio of target passenger capacity and gross tonnage—a rough metric that gives a sense of the elbow room you’d get during the cruise. The Sunshine ranks toward the bottom of the pack.

The Carnival spokesman says that dining, entertainment and recreation, as well as safety, are all designed for high occupancy.

A ship’s size and layout make a big difference when it comes to finding a spot to sunbathe near the pool. In the mornings, my fellow passengers snapped up the lounge chairs near the main pool and the adults-only Serenity pool by about 10 a.m. The same was true during evening movie screenings by the pool. We got chairs when people wandered off for lunch or to get out of the afternoon sun.

Lesson learned: If you can’t be among the first to the pool, look for moments of transition, like just before lunch or dinner, to grab a lounge chair. Busy yourself with other activities, like playing the daily bingo games or hitting the ship’s gym, when the crowds are sunbathing.

Shoreside strategy

My cruise visited one destination: Half Moon Cay, a private island owned by Carnival. Everyone on board flocked there that day, or at least it seemed that way—several onshore excursions, like snorkeling and horseback tours, sold out before the sailing. So did rentals for things like kayaks and beachside cabanas.

My dad and I opted for an early arrival time to the island, which paid off—we grabbed lounge chairs in a prime spot.

That afternoon, my dad headed back to the ship on the early side, while I chose to linger for more time in the crystal-clear waters of the Bahamian retreat. Big mistake.

This island doesn’t have a long pier built for cruise ships, so visitors are ferried from ship to shore and back in small tender boats. The standard security screening that happens before boarding the ship to ensure passengers don’t bring aboard any contraband also happens dockside. My dad waited about 20 minutes for the ferry. I ended up in line with hundreds of people, and stood in the blazing sun for nearly an hour—with a sunburn to prove it.

Lesson Learned: Book excursions and amenities ahead through the cruise line’s website or a travel agent. If you miss out on something, get on wait lists, McDaniel says. Cancellations happen.

Stairs vs. elevators

By design, cruise ships are packed with activities and spaces that provide travelers with alternatives. Too many bingo players for my liking? I ventured over to the casino. Comedy club at capacity? I checked out the piano bar where people were singing Garth Brooks songs.

A bar I stopped in on the first day became my refuge throughout the cruise. Positioned past a bank of elevators, it never drew a crowd.

The main trouble was the elevators, which were always slow and usually crowded. The Carnival spokesman confirms that one elevator was out of service during my cruise, which may have compounded matters. I often resorted to taking the stairs.

“Elevators really are sort of the heartbeat of the ship,” Callais says. “Everybody goes through them.” 

Lesson learned: Check out a map of the ship early to find tucked-away spots that might provide peace and quiet. Also, be prepared for a daily stair-climbing workout.

Unexpected souvenir

I came back from the cruise with more than just good memories and a hankering for another adventure at sea. Two days after my trip, I tested positive for Covid-19 for the first time.

While I can’t say for certain that I contracted the illness on the ship, I wasn’t alone. Other passengers later shared in a Facebook group dedicated to my cruise that they also tested positive for Covid.

The Carnival spokesman says that a review with the ship’s medical team found no positive guest cases during the cruise.

“We know that some people will hold us to a higher standard and we will continue to operate to promote public health and confidence in our commitment to the health and safety of our guests, crew and the destinations we visit,” he says.

Lesson learned: Covid is still out there. Prepare accordingly.

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Write to Jacob Passy at [email protected]