Carnival, Royal Caribbean crackdown leaves cruisers surprised

Both cruise lines' new policies have gone into effect in February.

Feb 27, 2025 - 18:24

Carnival, Royal Caribbean crackdown leaves cruisers surprised

While being of legal age allows one to buy a plane ticket and book a hotel room almost anywhere in the world, cruise ship companies that sail out of the U.S. have recently begun cracking down on solo travelers under 21 due to the legal issues around alcohol onboard.

After updating its policy to match competitor Royal Caribbean (RCL) , Carnival (CCL) also stopped allowing bookings to be made by young travelers as of this month.

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"Guests are required to be 21 years of age (on embarkation day) to travel on their own," reads the updated Carnival policy posted on its website. "Guests not conforming to this policy will be denied boarding, and no compensation will be provided at embarkation."

All guests who are younger than 21 can now only travel on a booking with another adult older than 25 on the ship while those younger than 14 need to stay in the same cabin as the guardian. Travelers who are between 21 and 24 can also travel alone with their minor children.

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Royal Caribbean has had a similar policy in place for itineraries starting out in Canada or the U.S. for a few months now but retains the 18 minimum for sailings from Europe, South America, Asia as well as Australia and New Zealand.

"This age limit will be waived for children sailing with their parents or guardians in connecting staterooms; for underage married couples; and for active duty members of the United States or Canadian military," the Miami-headquartered cruising giant writes on its website.

Sailings from U.S. ports use the U.S. drinking age no matter where they stop.
Image source: Daniel Kline/ComeCruiseWith.com

This crackdown is unpopular so here is why cruise lines insist on it

Norwegian (NCLH) has always had a 21-plus requirement for solo sailings while Disney Cruise Line (DIS) is so far sticking the 18-year age limit. Regardless of where the ship is leaving from, anyone of legal age can travel on one of the Disney ships alone.

The recent crackdown on the part of Carnival comes down to the legal issues that can arise with alcohol onboard the ships as well as the spike in unruly behavior from that demographic particularly when traveling alone rather than as part of a larger family group.

The requirement for kids and younger teens to be booked in the same cabin as at least one guardian has always been an unpopular one as families traveling together often prefer to have kids in a separate room. The cruise lines have also been looking to crack down on the practice in which a parent will officially register their children in one cabin but then divide them so that the adults and kids each have one room to themselves.

"There are several reasons why guests may look to break the rules, including parents who just want a child-free room where connecting cabins aren't available [...]," writes cruise blogger Jenni Fielding. "Another common reason is to break rules on drinks packages. According to Carnival's policies, all guests in the same room must book the same drinks package to prevent drink sharing, although minors don’t need a package with alcohol."