A new research study has revealed what cruisers deem to be the most annoying characteristics of their fellow passengers while on board. Top of the list included the mindless chatter of those aboard, with the invasion of personal space coming in a close second.
Last Cruise Ship Visit (Photo credit: _setev)
The study, carried out by www.bonvoyage.co.uk was compiled from the opinions and experiences of 1,738 individuals, who had all previously been on cruise holidays. These respondents were asked to name what they felt were the most annoying tendencies of their fellow cruisers, with the top five answers as follows:
1. Mindless/Annoying chatter from fellow passengers (38%)
2. Passengers invading personal space (27%)
3. Drunken behavior (fighting, shouting, arguments) (22%)
4. Long queues at buffet/activities due to passenger’s indecisiveness (14%)
5. Irritating young children on board cruise (11%)
Various other, slightly more obscure, complaints featuring fellow passengers were collected by the cruising site whilst carrying out the poll. These included: a man on a Mediterranean cruise whose sleep was interrupted every night during his three week cruise as the couple in the cabin next to him made love very loudly, and an elderly couple who felt that they had a ghost haunting their cabin whilst they holidayed in the Caribbean.
Despite admitting that their confessions of personal annoyances were less than desirable whilst trying to enjoy their holiday, 94% of respondents questioned in the poll were quick to state that the overall of experience of a cruise is something they very much enjoyed, and that they had not been put off returning for another trip in the future.
Regarding the findings of the study, Steph Curtin, Cruise Development Manager at bonvoyage.co.uk, had the following to say:
“It is important for cruise companies to be made aware of the certain factors of holidays that customers did not enjoy, or felt could be improved. A sign of a great cruise company is one that would take these annoyances on board and actively try to improve conditions for all future passengers, and this is why the majority of cruise lines ask customers to complete a survey at the end of their cruise to highlight any areas for improvement.”
She continued, “Having said that, when taking a look at some of the more obscure answers our study revealed, I fear it may be asking too much to ask for cabins to be regularly checked for ghosts and similar paranormal goings-on!”
