It’s kind of ironic to be on a ship, surrounded by water, but not have access to water to drink or use in the bathroom.
But guests boarding Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas on August 19, 2024, found themselves in this very predicament.
The round trip sailing, which is based out of Athens, Greece, is slated to call on Istanbul, Turkey; Kusadasi, Turkey; Santorini, Greece; and Mykonos, Greece, over the course of seven days.
But on embarkation day, at least one guest, who posted about the situation on Reddit, was disappointed to find that there was no water anywhere on the nearly 25-year-old ship due to an unspecified plumbing issue.
“We boarded a couple hours ago and since boarding the ship has had no running water. But we hadn’t understood as they haven’t closed off or marked anything. So as you’re at the buffet to get a drink the machines just have syrup coming out. We assumed it was a buffet issue,” a current passenger shared on Reddit.
As the anonymous cruiser explored the Voyager-class vessel, they found that the situation was indeed a ship-wide issue – with the lack of water impacting both public bathrooms and the 1,708 staterooms.
“But then then you go to the bathroom and you can’t flush or wash your hands and there is no sanitizer…the stalls in the bathroom just have poop in them…Finally wanted to wash my hands in the room but to find the rooms have no water either,” continued the Redditor.
Read Also: What Do Cruise Ships Do with Sewage and Waste?
Thankfully, the plumbing crisis was resolved on the same day – and the 3,602-passenger ship was able to embark without delay.
Although Voyager of the Seas has been in service since the end of 1999, the vessel is not known for frequent maintenance issues. Royal Caribbean works hard to maintain its vessels, and the ship’s most recent refurbishment was in 2019.
A Lack of Communication Frustrates Voyager’s Passengers
While widespread plumbing issues pose a huge inconvenience, what really irked this guest was the lack of proactive communication from the approximately 1,200 crew members onboard.
The passenger did not hear any announcements made about the situation, and didn’t feel that the employees took action to help keep the ship sanitary for guests while it was being resolved, such as by making hand sanitizer readily available in bathrooms.
The only update this passenger claims to have received was when he personally took the initiative to inquire with guest services.
“I called guest services and asked if there was water and they said ‘no not right now.’ I asked if there was anywhere I could wash my hands and she said, ‘sorry, not right now sir’. I asked when they expected it to be working and they said they will be repairing for at least another hour,” the Redditor explained.
“I’ve cruised many many times but haven’t experienced this before. I guess I just expected an announcement and some instructions. They’ve still been boarding people for hours without telling anyone…I just figured they would be much better at handling a situation like this,” concluded the original poster.
Even when the water was turned back on, the Redditor alleges that the guests were left to find out via word of mouth from other passengers.
Read Also: How Do Cruise Ships Get Fresh Water?
Royal Caribbean has not specified what the plumbing issue was or released an official statement. But rest assured, the cruise lines do comment when these events are significant enough.
As recently as earlier this summer, Carnival Brand ambassador John Heald issued a reminder to avoid flushing wet wipes, which are a terrible nuisance to cruise ship plumbing systems and are prone to causing blockages.
The disposable wipes can result in messy sewage overflowing into staterooms or public restrooms when not disposed of properly – and have caused enough of an issue fleet-wide for Heald to speak out.
Earlier this year, in March of 2024, a broken pipe caused flooding in the central atrium of Seabourn Sojourn – which made guests and crew alike realize what happens where this is too much water (in contrast to the events onboard Voyager of the Seas).
With the water inundating multiple decks, crew members had to work quickly to repair the burst pipe and clean up the flooding to ensure guests were safe and to prevent slip hazards.
Something similar occurred at the end of 2023 when passengers onboard Carnival Radiance awoke in the early morning hours to water flooding into their staterooms, presumably from a burst pipe.
The incident, which was confined to deck 7, was dealt with quickly. But when water isn’t cleaned up properly, it can soak into the walls and carpet, leading to mold, mildew, and a disgusting aroma.
