Cruise lines make a lot of announcements, especially when something changes.
It's very important that passengers get information, but the cruise line generally broadcasts only over the loudspeakers in public areas.
That can make hearing announcements challenging for passengers who are in their cabins. And when you hear only a piece of a message, you don't know whether you missed hearing about a port change or something else important. Or maybe you missed just some hype for the nightly theater show.
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During hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30, many ships have their itineraries moved around, and captains often give warnings when bad weather may affect the ships.
The cruise line can also deliver printed letters on important changes to people's cabins, but by the time they do this, one or another passenger may have missed out on an opportunity.
For example, if you don't see a letter or hear the announcement about a port change, you'll miss the chance to book new excursions. And since some passengers return to their rooms to go to bed only once they have dropped off their unpacked luggage and set themselves up, a missed announcement can be a big problem.
A cruiser, Jeff Kellum, recently raised the issue to Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald.
Image source: Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival takes on an announcement problem
Unless it's an emergency, Carnival announcements play only over the speakers in common areas. In your cabin, you can usually hear the tone that heralds the announcement, but can make out the words being said only if you open your cabin door.
"Hi John! It seems like only emergency audio is played on room speakers. But when we hear a 'ding,' we have to hurry to the door and open it to hear regular announcements, where we miss the first few seconds," Kellum wrote.
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The "ding" is the noise that precedes announcements, and every cruise line has its own variation.
"It would be nice if we had the option to play all announcements in our cabin. Perhaps announcements could mute whatever channel the TV is on and play the announcements? We always want to hear them. When we book a balcony, we spend a decent amount of time in our room," he added.
Heald was very clear in his response.
"Hello, no, unfortunately, we don’t make the announcements inside the cabin unless it is an absolute emergency or something. The Captain feels everybody needs to know then yes it would be," he said.
That's because the people who want to hear the announcements would be outnumbered by those who consider it an intrusion.
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"The problem is that if we disturb people inside the cabin for the basic what’s happening around the ship announcements, then I know from experience, having been a cruise director, there will be five more people upset than not," Heald added.
"There are so many people resting or just relaxing in the cabin. Obviously, we are looking to utilize the app more when it comes to announcements."
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