Marella Cruises has asked guests to stop hiding cruise ducks around its ships and to leave cabin doors free from decorations, as the popular passenger traditions come under fresh scrutiny.
The request has appeared in the printed newsletter delivered to guests’ cabins, which also carries onboard updates, entertainment schedules and other information passengers may need during their sailing.
The wording has been spotted aboard Marella Voyager, though other guests have noted that they’ve seen similar requests on other ships in the fleet.
Rather than taking a stern approach, Marella has used a little humour to get its point across.
“As much as we love a bit of personality, the ducks have started to drive us quackers… so we kindly ask that toys, novelty items and other personal bits aren’t left or hidden around the ship or at our destinations.”
The notice explains that although the activity is intended as fun, objects left around the vessel can become hazards and may ultimately have to be disposed of by crew.
“While it’s all meant in good spirit, these can become hazards and are usually disposed of by our crew.”
Marella also points towards its work to reduce plastics and waste, saying that deliberately leaving objects behind does not fit particularly well with those efforts.
The request is not necessarily surprising given just how far the cruising duck trend has grown. What started as passengers occasionally hiding rubber ducks for strangers to discover can now involve large numbers of toys being brought aboard specifically for the purpose.
The pastime has developed its own online communities, with ducks often carrying labels inviting whoever discovers them to keep them or hide them again.
Cabin Door Decorations Are Being Discouraged Too
Cruise ducks are only part of Marella’s new reminder.
Guests have also been asked not to personalise their cabin doors, covering everything from birthday banners and posters to stickers, flags and magnets.
“We also ask that public areas and cabin doors are left as they are, without added decorations like flags, banners, posters, stickers or magnets. It helps keep the ship looking its best for everyone and ensures we stay on top of safety.”
Crew may remove anything left where it should not be, according to the notice.
That could make the change more noticeable to some regular cruisers than the request concerning ducks. Decorating a cabin door has become a cruise tradition in its own right, particularly for passengers celebrating birthdays, anniversaries and other occasions.
But this is also an area where cruise lines take very different approaches.
Disney Cruise Line, for example, has long been closely associated with decorated stateroom doors, although it has rules governing what can be used and has tightened some of its decoration policies. Royal Caribbean passengers will likewise regularly encounter decorated cabin doors.
The same variation exists with cruise ducks. There is no universal cruise industry rule saying they should or should not be hidden, meaning an activity which forms part of the fun on one holiday may be discouraged on another.
That perhaps makes Marella’s message less a case of cruise lines turning against passenger traditions and more an example of brands deciding what sort of onboard environment suits them.
Marella itself says there is no one-size-fits-all approach to cruising, promoting different styles of holiday across its fleet.
And there is an interesting twist when it comes to the ducks. The cruise line may be asking passengers not to leave their own ducks scattered around its ships, but ducks have also featured in Marella’s organised family entertainment.
The promotes an onboard Fun Fair during the high season which can include traditional games such as Ring Toss, Splat the Rat… and Hook a Duck.
There has even been a giant duck aboard Marella Explorer, with the oversized decoration becoming something of an onboard character in its own right.
Those are, of course, very different from passengers leaving small plastic objects around a ship. Organised activities and permanent or controlled decorations can be managed by the cruise line, while hundreds of individually hidden objects potentially cannot.
Still, the contrast is likely to raise a few entertaining questions.
If passengers’ ducks are now being discouraged, will Hook a Duck continue as part of the family fun? Presumably so, given that it is a supervised cruise line activity rather than an object being abandoned somewhere onboard.
And what about the giant Marella duck? Again, there is nothing in the notice to suggest that cruise line-owned decorations are affected.
The bigger question may be where Marella draws the line when it comes to personal touches onboard.
Could other long-standing cruise traditions eventually come under similar scrutiny? Towel animals, for example, are another familiar feature of cruising, although there is currently no suggestion whatsoever that Marella intends to stop them. Unlike hidden ducks, they are created by crew, remain inside passengers’ cabins and are made from towels already onboard.
For now, Marella’s request is much narrower. The concern is with passengers leaving their own possessions around ships and destinations, along with adding decorations to public spaces and cabin doors.
Different Ships, Different Traditions
Marella is far from alone in deciding that some cruise traditions need limits.
Disney Cruise Line permits certain magnetic stateroom door decorations, demonstrating how a practice discouraged by Marella can be perfectly normal elsewhere. At the same time, Disney has asked guests not to hide rubber ducks around its ships.
Royal Caribbean takes yet another approach. Cruise ducks remain commonly associated with its ships, although the line has previously restricted where guests can hide them in particularly sensitive areas.
That distinction matters because passengers increasingly move between cruise brands and may assume the unwritten customs they encounter on one line apply everywhere.
A family accustomed to elaborate Disney cabin doors may find Marella’s preference for undecorated corridors unusual. Someone who loves searching a Royal Caribbean ship for hidden ducks may similarly be disappointed that Marella would rather they were not left behind.
Other passengers will undoubtedly prefer Marella’s approach, particularly those who see discarded plastic objects and increasingly elaborate door displays as unnecessary clutter.
Neither style has to be right for every cruiser. In fact, the difference is part of what makes the cruise market so broad. Some lines embrace traditions which others deliberately keep at arm’s length, and passengers can choose the experience that suits them.
For guests sailing with Marella, however, the message is now clear: the ducks can come on holiday, but they should not be left behind for somebody else to find, and the cabin door should remain just as Marella designed it.
NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!
Don’t miss the latest Marella Cruises offers…
