A New York family’s vacation ended abruptly. Ready to board a Royal Caribbean cruise, they were told their itinerary had changed, leaving them unprepared, and they were unable to travel. The couple’s 8-month-old daughter was not allowed to board following the sudden change.
Maria, also known as MariaAuDHD, shared her experience on TikTok. She is a mother who was diagnosed in adulthood with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Her content centers on her neurodivergent life, and the clip above was no exception. Within days, it garnered 224,500 views, 21,600 likes, and more than 1,600 comments.
The New York woman said that she had experienced an autistic meltdown right before boarding her cruise. According to her, she learned about two major changes to her vacation within a matter of minutes, even though the family had planned the cruise for months, even though they had planned their cruise vacation for months. Royal Caribbean rerouted the October 18 Oasis of the Seas sailing because severe weather developed off the East Coast. The cruise was originally scheduled to visit Florida and the Bahamas but was rerouted north to Halifax, Nova Scotia, with several extra days at sea.
The first major change was that the cruise was stopping in Canada, a destination Maria and her family weren’t prepared for.
“We had just dropped off our luggage two minutes before this, filled with summer clothes, shorts, bathing suits, flip-flops, not jackets,” she said.
Itinerary Change Leaves Baby Unable to Sail
Crying already, crew members told her and every other passenger that they had communicated the itinerary change. When exactly? At around 10 p.m. the night before the cruise departed. She said she didn’t receive an email at all.
Then, things took a turn for the worse. One lady asked her about her baby’s age. Maria’s daughter is only 8 months old.
“Well, you guys can’t go because she’s under a year old, and it will be three international sea days,” the lady told Maria, she said. “So, I’m gonna give you a piece of paper, and there’s a number you can call.”
Royal Caribbean’s published infant policy explains why the itinerary change created a problem for the family. While infants can generally sail from 6 months old, the cruise line requires children to be at least 12 months old on any itinerary with three or more consecutive days at sea. The revised itinerary included three consecutive sea days, meaning Maria’s 8-month-old daughter no longer met the cruise line’s requirements.
Maria was in the middle of her meltdown, not fully understanding what had just happened. Her cruise vacation had been effectively canceled. And just like her and her family, other families with infant children were told the same thing. Worst of all, some families who did read the itinerary change weren’t told about the no-sail rule for babies.
With her vacation ruined, Maria called out Royal Caribbean, saying they claim to be autism-friendly, but provided no support at the time.
Reactions
The video sparked many responses, mostly from viewers who joined the Royal Caribbean bashing. One said, “I am currently on Royal. Never again.” Another one commented, “Oh no, absolutely not. They need to give more notice than that if it’s literally a different climate. Completely unacceptable.”
Others shared their own cruise stories. One wrote, “I feel like this happened a year ago too. They were supposed to go to Bermuda and ended up going to Canada, and they said that it was comparable.” Another one added, “When we cruised, I’m pretty sure that it said the itinerary changed without notice. The babies under one thing is a whole different issue.”
The New York family returned home and went back to their regularly scheduled programming. According to Maria’s latest TikTok updates, she hadn’t received a response from Royal Caribbean.
