It seems like a new item is being added to any given cruise line’s “banned list” every other day. While recent items have included multi-plug adapters, WiFi routers, and Starlink Minis, a recent item is less techy.
Gender reveal parties have become synonymous with confetti cannons. We’ve all seen the videos of confetti shooting in the wrong direction or the colored dye covering someone’s face in blue or pink.
But on a cruise ship, there are other factors to take into account.
A recent Carnival Cruise Line passenger wrote to Brand Ambassador John Heald about an incident at a gender reveal party.
“We just came off the Breeze. My daughter was having a gender reveal party for her and her significant other,” the message shared on Facebook read.
“They had planned to use the confetti cannons to show the rest of the family if she was having a boy or a girl. There were 15 of us on board for this cruise. The confetti cannons were confiscated. We were told that they are not allowed. There is nowhere that this is written!!! The party was ruined and nobody would help us. Why are they not allowed. SMH”
In his reply, Heald explained that confetti cannons might have to be added to the list of prohibited items. It is not currently listed, however, which has led to some confusion on the topic.
He went on to explain that it could be a major problem if the confetti cannons were used outdoors.
“Thank you and I can imagine the disappointment. We do not allow them and I will have to see if we can get this specifically added to the prohibited list. But as gender reveal parties are very popular I should explain that we do allow confetti. The biggest reason is that had you done this outdoors and some of the confetti had gone overboard we would be in breech of environmental rules and regulations,” Heald explained.
All cruise lines have rules and regulations that prohibit throwing anything overboard, even if it is biodegradable.
Some veteran cruisers remember a time when a popular activity was hitting golf balls into the ocean, but those days are long gone.
Carnival’s Brand Ambassador went on to say that the cruise line itself does sometimes use confetti in various venues around the ship. But the difference is that this is always indoors and does not allow any confetti to fall into the ocean
“We do use confetti in some of the show finales in the theatres bit not outside. And indeed it is not something easy for housekeeping to clean up. We do allow confetti at the organised weddings we have on board but again only indoors,” Heald concluded.
