Sometimes cruise passengers break rules because they don’t know they exist.
That may happen because rules on a cruise ship don’t always match rules on land. Some passenger, for example, may have legal prescriptions for cannabis products, but those items cannot be brought on a cruise ship.
Cruise lines generally follow federal law, and the U.S. government, on the federal level still considers marijuana and its derivatives illegal. That means that even CBD products could get you kicked off your cruise even if they are sold at gas stations, liquor stores, and other places where you would not expect to be buying illegal items.
Related: Carnival Cruise Line worker shares look at what crew members eat
All cruise lines that sail from the U.S. use 21 as the legal drinking age and 18 as the age where you can gamble in the casino.
They also enforce a rule that does not come up if you’re at home playing cards or another game with your friends. That’s because cruise lines can’t ignore something that’s not legal, even if everyone involved would agree that it’s a minor offense.
Doug Parker from Cruise News Today has the full story as well as some other big news.
Sign up for the Come Cruise With Me newsletter to save money on your next (or your first) cruise.
Carnival Cruise Line shares gambling rules
Transcript
This is Cruise News Today with Doug Parker.
Good morning, here’s your cruise news for Wednesday, January 8.
Carnival Cruise Line is reminding guests that gambling is strictly limited to onboard casino areas only.
The clarification follows questions about cash games being played in card rooms and poolside. Brand Ambassador John Heald weighed in and he emphasized the importance of adhering to international gambling laws, encouraging guests to enjoy games for fun but without involving money.
The policy, which prohibits cash-based games outside the casino, does align with global regulations and mirrors similar rules from other cruise lines.
Royal Caribbean passenger gets huge bill; MSC changes stops
And a Royal Caribbean passenger was shocked to receive a $1,300 cell phone bill after failing to enable airplane mode during a Mariner of the Seas cruise.
The unexpected charges came from background data usage, even though the guests had purchased the Voom Surf and Stream Internet package, which only covers WiFi, not cellular networks. Now, it should be noted that Royal Caribbean does advise guests to enable airplane mode to prevent devices from connecting to those costly roaming networks in international waters.
Additional tips include using ship WiFi packages and disabling background app refreshes and updates.
And the MSC Meraviglia has made changes to its itinerary due to hazardous weather along the eastern seaboard.
After docking in Port Canaveral yesterday afternoon, the ship remained there overnight into Wednesday and is expected to depart later on today.
Guests have been informed that the scheduled stop to MSC’s private island, Ocean Cay, has been canceled. However, the ship is still going to Nassau, Bahamas as planned. The Meraviglia is scheduled to leave Port Canaveral at 5 p.m. today.
It was nasty. We had 40-mile-an-hour winds outside the studio yesterday.
Have yourself a great Wednesday. I’m Doug Parker with Cruise News Today.
Are you taking a cruise or thinking about taking one? Visit our Come Cruise With Me website to have all your questions answered.
