The 16 Craziest Stories From Cruises - Thievery, Debauchery & Ghost Cruises!

Each year, somewhere between 30 and 35 million people go on a cruise.

The vast majority of those people are going to have a very typical experience – making great memories, trying new foods, sipping on tropical cocktails and just generally having an amazing time.

But purely based on the odds, some people are going to go through an unusual experience, whether it’s something they do, something that happens to them, or something they witness from other passengers.

And these events can get a little crazy. I found this collection of the craziest stories from cruises and had to pick out the best ones to share with you – some of these really are wild!

Disclaimer: I’ve shared the stories as I found them and so some of the wording might be a little rude.

1. A diamond heist, foiled!

A photorealistic image of a man inside a luxurious jewelry shop, discreetly swallowing a large, glittering diamond. The man, dressed in casual clothing, is shown mid-action with a slightly tense expression, his hand near his mouth as he swallows the diamond. The jewelry shop around him is elegant, with glass display cases showcasing various expensive pieces of jewelry. The lighting in the shop is bright, reflecting off the glass and the jewelry, highlighting the contrast between the man's secretive action and the opulent surroundings.

Lots of cruise ports have jewellery stores around the port area, especially around the Caribbean. And you’ll sometimes hear stories of guests being the victims of harassment or scams, but it’s not so often you see something like this, where the guest is the one trying something (literally) criminal.

The fact they got caught when they got back to the ship – and then had to wait for the diamond to be recovered in the “natural way” must’ve been excruciatingly embarrassing for him. Maybe don’t be a thief.

2. If you’re going to risk this, maybe find somewhere more private…

A photorealistic image of a man sitting at a dimly lit bar, looking suspicious and dodgy as he interacts with his phone. The man is dressed in casual attire, perhaps wearing a hoodie or a jacket, with a wary or secretive expression on his face. His body language is tense, as if he's trying to hide or obscure what he's doing on his phone. The background features a typical bar setting with low lighting, a few patrons in the distance, and a bartender behind the counter.

Drugs aren’t allowed on a cruise, but some people did try to sneak them onboard, especially marijuana. You shouldn’t, but I bet a few people try and get away with it.

However if you’re going to bring cocaine onboard, and somehow you manage to get it past security, maybe consider doing it somewhere more private than from your phone screen while sitting at a bar in view of a crowd.

This guy 100% got booted off the ship, I bet.

3. Taking game shows too far

Even if you’re attending an event on a cruise that’s for adults only, please remember that it doesn’t mean it’s an “adult” show.

These guests clearly got very carried away during their ‘performance’ in the couples gameshow on the ship, but I bet there were plenty of people in the audience who really weren’t impressed.

Do I need to add “Don’t have sex on stage” into my advice I give to new cruisers? I hope not…

4. Violent attack during a show

A photorealistic image of a man in a theater, seated or standing, with a blood on his clothing. The man looks surprised or concerned, with an injury visible onabdomen. The theater environment is dimly lit, with rows of seats visible in the background, and a stage in the distance. The scene suggests that something unexpected has happened, but the focus is on the man's reaction and the setting rather than the injury itself.

Some of the stories on this list are wild in a way that we can laugh at them, but this one’s very serious and scary too.

Fights do break out on cruise ships. They’re rare, and they pretty much always involve alcohol. But it’s normally a fistfight.

How a guest in the main theatre of the ship was so drunk that they wanted to stab someone, and they had a stabbing implement with them, is beyond me. Rumours in the comments suggest it was a broken cocktail class that he used.

Thankfully they were arrested and according to the comments, the passenger recovered fine.

5. Panic and disaster averted

A photorealistic image of a very young girl, around 3 years old, standing in front of an elevator on a cruise ship. The girl is dressed in casual, colorful clothing and is holding a small toy. She looks curious and slightly hesitant as she reaches out to press the elevator button. The elevator doors are partially open, and the setting is a clean, modern building hallway. The scene is well-lit, emphasizing the girl's innocence and the everyday nature of the moment.

This story might not sound very crazy, but think about the implications if that guest hadn’t been there, and hadn’t thought to act. That’s a three-year-old girl who could’ve ended up anywhere on the ship, or worse.

You would hate to think that she could accidentally climb anything and fall over a railing, or that another passenger would wish her harm, but you don’t know.

Young children should always be supervised, and this story could’ve been a lot worse had the customer not had the luck and bravery to be there and handle it.

6. Where’s your name tag?

A photorealistic image of a male piano bar entertainer wearing Australian flag print underwear. The entertainer is seated at a piano in a lively bar setting, with a confident and charismatic expression. The bar is dimly lit with warm lighting, and you can see a small audience in the background, enjoying the performance. The scene captures the playful and relaxed atmosphere of a piano bar, with the entertainer being the focal point.

Crew members are supposed to entertain guests onboard, but they’re also supposed to stick to their jobs in doing so.

A piano bar entertainer is not a stripper, so this crew member deciding to strip down to their underwear was certainly not something they were supposed to include in their act.

The fact that the piano bar was closed the next day does definitely suggest that the entertainer’s contract was terminated. From the comments, it seems as if they’ve landed a successful career with their own venue back in Australia.

7. Stuck onboard for a crazy reason

A photorealistic image of a cruise ship stranded off the coast of St Thomas

Imagine waking up to find that your cruise line had gone bankrupt, and that you were now stuck in the Caribbean?

It almost sounds like the stuff dreams are made of, though I can’t imagine the conditions onboard were fantastic when food was limited and the crew were no longer being paid.

Still, the guests did get a refunded fare once they got home from their extended cruise, so it can’t have been all bad. Maybe being stuck in paradise is your idea of the perfect cruise?

It’s still pretty crazy for a cruise line to go bust mid-cruise though. Typically a cruise line would see it coming, and cancel sailings.

8. Woken up to an ice trap

photorealistic image of a cruise ship surrounded by ice in an Arctic environment.

Here’s another tale where guests woke up to an unexpected delay, although this one was more natural in cause and certainly didn’t last as long.

The ship was stranded due to ice flows and literally couldn’t sail out of the port until the afternoon when they’d broken up enough.

That must’ve been some pretty cool sights, suddenly being trapped by ice overnight in every direction. A shame that half the ports were cancelled on the cruise due to weather conditions, but talk about a crazy and memorable experience.

9. The Norovirus ghost cruise

photorealistic image of a person alone in the adults-only area of a cruise ship

Norovirus is a gastro illness that does sometimes strike cruise ships, and when it does often a lot of people onboard will catch it – not necessarily because of the enclosed environment, but because people are terrible at washing their hands before using the buffet, or sneezing into their elbow.

Anyway, this cruise almost served as a preview of the world during the global shutdown a year later. The guest described walking around what felt like a ghost ship as so many people were quarantined. They enjoyed no lines at the buffet, and the entire adults-only part of the ship to themselves.

I can almost see the appeal – though you certainly wouldn’t want to be on a ship riddled with a virus.

10. When creeps get justice

A man on a cruise ship being dragged off by security guards

Another alcohol-fuelled story and this time it was a guest who decided to act on their creepy instincts when drunk, and try to sexually harass a member of the crew.

That sort of behaviour doesn’t tend to go down well with the crew, and the fact he was dragged to his room by 3 or 4 security guys pretty sharpish was probably a lucky outcome for him. Though I can’t imagine they were gentle.

I’m sure they weren’t when the guest tried to bite them too. No wonder he was disembarked the next day and left to make his own way home. What a shame.

11. Excuse me, you’ve something on your leg…

photorealistic image you requested of a guest on the lido deck of a cruise ship, carrying a tray of drinks and food with a crew member following behind her with a mop and bucket.

I just… I don’t know where to start with this one.

I’ve heard of kids ruining a pool deck due to bathroom accidents. Pools are sometimes emptied when kids who shouldn’t be in them have an ‘incident’.

But an adult woman walking around a pool deck and dripping something that isn’t pool water… This is one of the most disgusting cruise stories I’ve ever heard. Yikes!

12. Prank creates a false alarm

photorealistic image of a kid throwing some swimming shorts off the balcony of a cruise ship

Kids fight sometimes, and can get a bit stroppy with each other. Or they might just think it’s funny to pull a prank on their siblings, such as throwing their bathing suit off the balcony.

Unfortunately, this time it caught a gust of wind and ended up in the sea, and turned into a bit of an incident when the crew thought someone had gone overboard.

There’s no further detail on how long the false alarm was sustained – you’d hope the kid came clean quickly to let people know what had happened.

But it’s pretty crazy that a pair of shorts could cause such drama.

13. Picking up an unwanted passenger

whale carcass stuck to the bow of a cruise ship

This story is equally sad and unpleasant, and it’s not the first time I’ve heard of a ship striking a whale carcass.

The fact that this one got stuck to the ship and continued to decompose is not a nice thought. And the person telling the story described the vile stench which I bet was utterly horrific.

Using a tender boat can make you feel a bit sick even at the best of times – throw in rotting whale smell and I’m not surprised a few people were unwell as a result.

14. A not-so-happy marriage

a man looking sorry and banging on the door of a cruise ship cabin

If you’re planning on cheating on your partner on a cruise, maybe don’t get up on stage as part of the Newlywed Game so that other passengers can see who your wife is, and then see you with another woman later and realise you’re misbehaving.

Obviously, don’t cheat. That sucks. But if you’re going to, maybe learn your lesson from this muppet.

Anyway, it didn’t end well for him with a shattered arm. Married life, eh?

15. A dance-off gets heated

a man in his late 60s dancing with a woman in her 20s. Seperately, a woman in her late 60s dancing with a man in his 20s. Both couples on the same dance floor. The older woman is laughing.

One of the tamer stories on the list, but it’s a fun one where a hothead learned a valuable lesson.

If you’re prepared to cut in and dance with someone else’s wife because you think that you’re the centre of attention, don’t be shocked when your wife is invited to dance instead!

The fact he got annoyed and stormed off shows that some people just don’t know how to have fun.

16. Possibly the craziest story of all…

Between on-stage sex acts, diamond theft and other horrible stories, I had to save this shocking and scary one right to the end.

I don’t know how guests coped on this cruise…

I’m joking of course, but I did love how someone replied to a request for the craziest cruise stories with this. And the comments are equally shocked too.

Pizza never runs out on a cruise, right?

Final word

There you go – some of the craziest stories at sea.

Again, there are millions of people who go on cruises each year, so if you’re new to cruising and you’re worried this is what it’s always like, it really isn’t!

But you never know – maybe you’ve witnessed something crazy on a cruise that’s worthy of joining this list? If you have, let me know in the comments!

Perhaps it was the behaviour of another guest that shocked you? I’ve sure heard some shocking tales, like these: The Most Shocking Tales of Rudeness on Cruise Ships.

If you found this interesting, please share!

Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.

The 16 Craziest Stories From Cruises – Thievery, Debauchery & Ghost Cruises!

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