Even a family-friendly cruise line has adults-only events: Both Royal Caribbean and Carnival offer age-18-plus comedy shows and other events where younger passengers are not allowed.
Cruise ships, at least those from Royal Caribbean (RCL) and Carnival, are generally all ages. You can bring your kids into most bars with no restrictions. They can't drink alcohol on sailings out of the U.S. since the drinking age on board is 21, but in most cases they can be in bars and even sit at the bar.
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Both cruise lines do offer after-hours dance clubs with age restrictions, and kids under age 18 have a 1 a.m. curfew if they are not with an adult. Still, most activities on Royal Caribbean and Carnival Cruise Line (CCL) ships are all-ages, and even the adult activities, aside from the comedy shows, aren't all that adult.
There is, however, one notable exception, "The Quest," a risque adult scavenger hunt both cruise lines offered before the Covid pandemic. "The Quest" was slow to return, first due to social distancing and, for a while, because ships were not sailing full.
Royal Caribbean has been offering "The Quest" on most sailings while Carnival passengers have questioned why they weren't seeing the popular late-night event on their sailings. Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald explained why the cruise line has brought back "The Quest" but you may not find it on your cruise.
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Carnival Cruise Line offers 'The Quest'
Heald held his weekly "Coffee with John" livestream on May 9 and he addressed "The Quest."
"Another thing that was a big talking point yesterday was a game show called 'The Quest.' For those of you who don't know what this is, this is a late-night show usually 11 p.m. at night or afterward and it's sort of an adult scavenger hunt. Now, there is a saying that what happens at 'The Quest' stays at 'The Quest' and there were lots of people asking me 'Why have we canceled it?'" he posted.
"So, again, I want to address this. 'The Quest' is still an option and is still being performed on, the event is still being hosted on some of the ships, most of them in fact," he added.
Most, however, is not the same as all and the brand ambassador explained the scenario where interactive show would not be offered.
"We do give the cruise directors the opportunity not to host it. And the reason not to host it as 'A, they don't feel comfortable doing so' and speaking to some of them, they have decided not to host it based on the number of large, well I shouldn't say large, based on the negative comments from people who were in attendance and complained about the event," he said.
Heald did offer a warning about the show.
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"Now, it is very adult-orientated. I'm not going to say any more than that. You will most likely see it on your ship, but if you do not it is not because we've canceled it, but it is because the cruise director has decided that he or she does not feel comfortable in performing and hosting that," he added.
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"Instead they will have other late-night activities options and they include late-night comedy which we move to the big theater or the 'Family Feud Live: After Hours Edition' which is also a little spicy," Heald said.
Carnival wants you to keep your clothes on
While "The Quest" has returned, Carnival will not be bringing back another adult option it once offered.
"I received a follow-up from “M” who asked “ why the Serenity Deck cannot be made a clothing-optional area?” he said. "So let me say straight away that like smoking, we cannot and will not be allowing this. However, maybe some context may help them with that answer."
Topless decks, he shared, did once exist.
"Where once we had topless decks in the 90s on ships like the Holiday, Celebration, and Jubilee, today nudity is now a massive no-no, unless it’s a specific full ship charter," he posted.
That's not just a Carnival change, it's also a cultural one that extends beyond the U.S.
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"And it’s not just the ships that are this way. If you go to the beaches of Saint Tropez, Sardinia, and Cleveland, Ohio this summer, you’ll see very few topless female sun worshippers. Yes, there are still beaches where you can lie on the sand in the nude, but these are mainly for people who are comfortable in their own skin," he added.
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