What Does It Mean When A 'Cabin Crawl' Is Happening On Your Cruise?

With a constant stream of activities, it's hard to get bored on a cruise. From fitness classes and trivia to nightclubs and performances, it seems the entertainment is endless. However, there's one activity you may not have tried or even heard of: cabin crawls. A cabin crawl is similar to a bar crawl in that you'll be hopping from one place to another. However, it doesn't involve alcohol (unless you want it to). Instead, you'll be visiting several staterooms, getting a glimpse into each. 

Before booking a cruise, you'll want to know what nobody tells you about interior cabins, and this crawl is a great way to see if those suites are worth the upgrade. Don't expect cabin crawls to be on the cruise schedule. Passengers organize this activity, which makes sense since they need to volunteer their rooms for viewing. Plus, you can socialize with the other passengers and learn some cruise storage tips (like this magnetic hook hack to keep your cabin organized).

Since cabin crawls are arranged by passengers, you'll need to be proactive. Typically, they're organized through online forums before your cruise departs. To organize or join one, hop on the Cruise Critic website and look under the Roll Call to find your ship. It will be listed with the company, location, and dates.

In these Roll Call discussion groups, you can connect with other passengers before your upcoming trip. It's a great place to ask questions and plan get-togethers — including the cabin crawl. There's a chance someone on your ship has already organized one, so you can join the thread and offer up your cabin for viewing or simply be a participant. If nobody has taken the lead, organize the cabin crawl yourself!

Start a chat with an appropriate heading. A title like "Join our cabin crawl!" should be self-explanatory and draw the right attention. Be clear in your intro that you need volunteers to show their rooms to the other guests. Bear in mind that you should have a variety of different rooms, like interiors, ocean views, balconies, and suites. It's also important to secure a date, time, and meeting place for the cabin crawl. You'll want to do this in advance since not everyone will have access to Wi-Fi or phone coverage on board.

For smooth sailing, planning is key. If you want to get the most out of your cruise, schedule the cabin crawl on a sailing day fairly soon after departure. This way, guests can mingle and connect. Include four to five different types of cabins to give your crew a full perspective of what's available on board.

The order in which you view rooms matters. Take into account where each room is located on the ship to avoid traipsing back and forth from the aft to the bow or up and down several flights of stairs. Also, keep in mind that some individuals may need to take the elevator and lag behind. Furthermore, you can start in smaller interior rooms and work your way up to a larger room with a balcony where people can socialize.

A cabin crawl is simple, but there are ways to make it more fun. Even if you're not the one planning, you can still toss out a few ideas on the forum. If the volunteers are willing, have them provide personal touches by offering snacks or small keepsakes from their hometowns. Alternatively, you can turn the tour into a game. Hand out a playing card when guests enter each room. By the end of the tour (assuming you've visited five cabins), guests should have a full poker hand. The best hand wins!