Carnival Cruise Line passenger demands rule for cruise tight spot
One Carnival cruise passenger says rules for the road should carry over into this claustrophobia-inducing cruise ship space.
Although cruise lines continue to build bigger and bigger ships, many cruise ship spaces are still pretty cramped.
This is especially true in most cruise ship cabins, which are extremely compact in order to maximize space and accommodate a large number of passengers on board the ship.
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Along with tight cabin spaces, cruise ships have cramped cabin corridors—long, narrow hallways lined with cabin doors.
For passengers who are uncomfortable in tight spaces, these constricted corridors can be enormously stressful.
One cruiser who was troubled by the narrow situation recently wrote to Carnival Cruise Line Brand Ambassador John Heald for help with an impasse. The passenger was hopeful that the cruise line could do something to open up an easier escape route from the uncomfortable corridors.
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Cruiser asks Carnival to address claustrophobic situation
“Why are the passenger cabin corridors not getting wider when you build new ships? How wide [are] the hallways going to be on Carnival’s big ships?” A passenger identified as “A” wrote to the brand ambassador on his Facebook page. “If there are two people walking side by side it is impossible to get past. People will [walk] too slow.”
The passenger suggested that Carnival should establish cruise rules for the cabin corridors that mirror rules of the road.
“They should walk in single file. They should not walk side by side. Mobility chariots should not drive themselves in the middle. They should drive only one side,” the passenger insisted. “Those are road rules. These should be cruise rules too.”
The passenger rationalized that the long, narrow hallways induce anxiety for those with an intense fear of enclosed spaces.
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“I am terribly claustrophobic. I walk quickly,” the passenger explained. “There should always be room for passing other [passengers].”
As Carnival’s brand ambassador shared the passenger’s message in a Facebook post, he sympathized with the cruiser’s uncomfortable jam but noted that most passengers would likely make space if they were aware that another passenger was trying to pass.
“Thank you and I realise claustrophobia is not a nice thing to suffer from,” Heald noted. “I think for the most time guests will move to the side if they know someone is trying to pass, right?”
Carnival brand ambassador, passenger share tips for cruise hallways
Although Carnival’s brand ambassador can’t control whether passengers will make space for others to pass them in the hallways, he did try to provide some of his signature comic relief.
“Thinking about this I have come up with my advice for trying to pass other people in the guest corridors,” the brand ambassador wrote. “It is as follows:
- Accelerate to uncomfortable speed.
- Once past the guest(s), continue at the speed for at least another 50 feet.
- Never look behind you.
- Get to your cabin.
- Open the door as quickly as possible.
- Collapse on the bed from exhaustion, killing the towel animal in the process.”
In the comments on the post, very few passengers sympathized with the claustrophobic cruiser. Some noted that saying, “excuse me,” and requesting to squeeze by other passengers in the hallways is a simple solution. Others pointed out that a cruise might not be the best type of vacation for someone who suffers from claustrophobia.
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Nevertheless, where there’s a will, there’s a way — as another avid cruiser who could relate explained.
“I’m extremely claustrophobic, the hallways are narrow and go on forever. I just try to focus on decorated doors. Enjoy the photos on the walls and not focus on the hallway,” Lisa Trahan Benoit wrote. “The elevators really gets me. Again, I do my best not to focus on the elevator. I take that time to meet and greet the elevator riders. If alone, I close my eyes and count to distract myself. However, I'd never blame Carnival or expect them to change things on my account.”
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