Cruise ships have many unique traditions. They may vary by line, but some things remain ingrained in cruise culture even when the cruise lines themselves don't participate.
There are, for example, unauthorized Facebook groups dedicated to both Carnival Cruise Line (CCL) – Get a free report and Royal Caribbean adult beverage packages. People share their favorite drinks, modifications they might request to improve certain drinks, or even where their favorite bartender works.
Related: Carnival Cruise Line Makes One Key Drinking Rule Very Clear
There are also social media groups dedicated to gambling and the various benefits offered by each cruise line's casino program, where people also share their big wins or the names of their favorite slot machines. Cruise passengers tend to like to talk about all aspects of cruising and if you search on Facebook you should be able to find some very specific groups on almost every aspect of cruising broken down by cruise line.
That includes ducks, the rubber ones, not the flying ones. It's a family tradition on cruise lines for people to buy little plastic rubber ducks and hide them around the cruise ships. In some cases, hiders paint the ducks or attach cards so people can share photos of the ducks they have found on a social media group.
It is an elaborate tradition that Royal Caribbean (RCL) – Get a free report and Carnival have adopted it, while Walt Disney's cruise line has recently banned the practice on its ships.
Image source: Daniel Kline/TheStreet
Walt Disney prohibits hiding ducks
walt disney (DIS) – Get a free report quietly banned hiding ducks on their boats without publicly announcing it. The company confirmed the change on its PlanDisney website. This is a website where panelists, who are paid with free trips, answer questions about various Disney vacation topics.
Shirley, from Florida, wrote to the site in late December asking about the policy after she was not allowed to hide ducks on her recent Disney cruise.
“I've been hearing rumors that guests are being discouraged from hiding ducks aboard Disney cruises, so I called the friendly agents at Disney Cruise Line to ask if they had an official policy I could share with you. They let me know that guests can't hide things, like rubber ducks, in cabins or public areas of the ship,” responded Adrianna, the site's official panelist.
This is a change in what had been a long-standing policy that allowed ducks to be hidden.
“I know this is a popular thing for many cruisers on board, but it seems to be being discouraged and, like you said, crew members are removing the ducks they see around the ship. I have children in my house with eyes that are trained to ducks on board, so I guess it's time to tell them not to hide any ducks they might find again,” he added.
Carnival and Royal Caribbean allow you to hide ducks
Hiding ducks seems like a harmless activity, but some people really don't like it. That's the case with a Carnival passenger who wrote to brand ambassador John Heald on his Facebook page.
“Well done, Disney Cruises for banning the hiding place of these hellish, disease-ridden rubber ducks. I'm a parent. I don't want to have to deal with a bunch of ducks to bring home, so I just left them in the cabin or on trash.” So I can totally understand that decision. VIFP's Facebook page says Carnival is announcing the same thing. Well, I say it and I bet almost everyone else echoes this,” he wrote.
That's not actually happening, Heald shared.
“Am I surprised that beards at Disney banned ducks? I didn't know that, I wonder if Donald had anything to say about it,” he joked.
(Beards is Heald's nickname for cruise line leadership.)
“The answer is no, we are not going to ban duck hiding. I know this is not for everyone, but they are not 'disease riddled' either and I also know that it brings joy to a lot of people, so why should we stop the Spreading joy?” she added.
Royal Caribbean also allows passengers to hide ducks whenever they are in public areas. A spokesperson for the cruise line was unaware of Disney's change and did not comment in response to TheStreet's request.
