When the news broke that Margaritaville at Sea would host the first-ever dog-friendly cruise in 2025, many dog-loving cruisers were ecstatic.
It turns out that a large number of pet parents want the opportunity to cruise with their dog. Cruise Tails, the organization chartering the cruise on Margaritaville at Sea Islander, says it’s seeing vast interest from dog owners all across the globe.
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Organizers reported that the dog cruise received over 5,000 registrations from interested dog owners during the first week of its application period. Only 250 dogs are allowed on the cruise. Each one must be approved and dog owners must agree to special protocols on board.
Cruise Tails is hopeful that the passengers aboard the inaugural “Tails of the Seas” cruise will uphold their provided guidelines and make excellent ambassadors, allowing for looser pet-size related restrictions on future Cruise Tails voyages in 2026.
Some cruisers are also hopeful that if this first dog cruise goes well, it could open the door for dog-friendly cruises on other cruise lines in the future.
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Image source: Carnival Corp.
Carnival Cruise Line makes a statement about dog cruise possibility
Carnival Cruise Line brand ambassador John Heald has received questions on his popular Facebook page about the possibility of a future dog-friendly cruise on a Carnival cruise ship.
“Has Carnival considered a cruise where you can take your dog like some cruise lines are testing?” one passenger recently asked. “I understand the logistics would be insane, but thinking perhaps on one of the smaller cruise ships it would be nice to have a few dedicated dog cruises.”
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Out of curiosity, Heald took a poll to see how many of his followers would actually like to see Carnival host a dog-friendly cruise. Surprisingly, only 3% of people voted in favor of a Carnival dog cruise. Another 31% of people who participated in the poll, which also included other topics, voted “no dog cruise for me.”
“I think it’s safe to say that most people understand why we will not do a dog-friendly cruise outside of the service dogs, I mean,” Heald said in a follow-up post. “I know many of us who are dog lovers would really like it, but we all understand the problems that would come with this. And I know the housekeeping department would be horrified if we decided to do this. Where were they all do their devils dumplings?”
Carnival cruise fans discuss pretend dog cruise
In the follow-up post, Heald invited Carnival fans to share photos of the pets they would bring on an imaginary Carnival dog cruise.
“Anyway, let’s all pretend that we are doing a cruise where we can bring our dog and please share the photo of the dog that you will be bringing,” Heald said. “And you know what let’s bring cats as well.”
The post quickly received more than 2,000 comments with many dog owners sharing opinions against cruising with pets.
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“This is Jaxon & I hate leaving him, but cruises are not for animals,” passenger Marian Boyster posted alongside a photo of her dog. “There are too many negatives, such as, people who are allergic to dogs or cats, potty breaks, people who are afraid of dogs, or regulations on animals in ports. NO ANIMAL CRUISES.”
“I wouldn’t go on a cruise with dogs. Don’t get me wrong, I love dogs! They’re better than people.” said passenger Kristen Steinmetz. “But I can’t imagine all the barking, zoomies, accidents, where do they all go potty. That little area for service dogs is not enough. Not to mention all the hair. The poor housekeeping teams and those who clean all the open areas. Disaster waiting to happen. NOTE I have nothing against service dogs.”
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