Many cruise guests enjoy decorating their stateroom doors, whether to simply celebrate their vacation, to note a special occasion, or to make their room easier to find in a long corridor of similar doors.

During the holidays, door decorations can be even more elaborate, but Carnival Cruise Line does not permit one very common festive accent: holiday lights.

The clarification comes from the cruise line’s brand ambassador, John Heald, after a guest reached out with their frustration.

“Our cabin had the battery lights on around our doorway REMOVED. I was told by the cabin cleaner that they are not allowed. I asked to speak to THE HOTEL MANAGER but have not had a RESPONSE,” the irate guest explained.

While Heald does not reveal which ship the guests are sailing on, the policy is the same fleetwide.

“Yes, that is correct, we do not allow them on the doors or in the cabins for safety reasons,” he explained. “You can of course decorate the doors for Christmas and bring a small tree for your room, both of which I think is wonderful to see people do.”

Holiday lights are not explicitly listed on Carnival Cruise Line’s prohibited items list, though some items could be interpreted as including holiday lights.

“Electrical and household appliances containing any kind of heating element” and “lasers and laser pointers” are both prohibited. Depending on the design of different holiday light strands, they could certainly generate heat or function as lasers or beacons.

On the cruise line’s guide for decorating stateroom doors, however, the restriction is clear:

“No string lights of any kind are allowed,” the policy says.

There is no detailed explanation for the restriction, but there are very few manufacturing regulations on light strands. The gauge of wire, power sources, and insulation can vary, and it is possible that such strands could present a fire hazard depending on how they are hung, attached, or powered.

Cruise lines take the risk of fire very seriously and these items will not receive any exemptions, even during the festive season when they are very popular as decorations.

Unfortunately, it is clear that not all Carnival crew members actively enforce the restriction on holiday lights. Multiple guests commented that they use small light strands, even posting photos of their illuminated stateroom doors, and the decorations were not removed.

Are Door Decorations Out of Control?

Not all cruise guests enjoy or appreciate holiday door decorations. Another guest also contacted Heald with their displeasure because they disagreed with others’ festive spirit.

“Why does Carnival allow [passengers] to decorate their doors at xmas with tacky decorations that people feel everyone else wants to see. It’s really getting out of hand,” the guest explained.

“People used to limit themselves to something small on their door but now we see stuff strewn along the hallways on the walls and over the door frame. It is a selfish act.”

It’s true that some guests get very festive indeed, creating entire scenes or arches all around their door or into the hallway. This is common when guests may be traveling together in adjacent staterooms and combine their door decorations into a coordinated display.

Read Also: What You Need to Know About Cabin Cruise Door Decorations

Carnival’s door decoration policy does theoretically limit the placement of such decorations.

“Decorations may only be placed on the stateroom door and not the surrounding frame, walls, or railings,” the policy reads.

Multiple guests also show that this is not strictly enforced, sharing photos of elaborate setups with extra signs, stockings, magnets, garland, and more on the walls near their doors.

Most Guests Don’t Mind Decorations

Heald goes on to ask whether guests enjoy seeing holiday door decorations or not, or if they feel the decorations ought to be banned entirely.

The majority of guests either happily decorate their own doors, enjoy others’ decorations, or at least don’t mind how others choose to enjoy their vacation.

“It’s not for me, but I’m happy for others who enjoy it. Who am I to rain on other people’s parade?” one guest said. “Here’s a thought… if you don’t want to see others enjoying a bit of festive cheer, perhaps don’t cruise during the festive season.”

One guest suggests that Carnival Cruise Line offer clear guidelines for holiday door decorations.

“Would a battery-powered 6-foot-tall Santa skeleton with battery-powered red eyes and a motion sensor moving waving hand be allowed on the door?” they asked.

Perhaps that might be just a bit more festive spirit than most cruise guests would enjoy!

Carnival Clarifies Holiday Door Decorations That Are Not Permitted