Cruise ducks and decorated cabin doors have become familiar sights on many ships, but Marella Cruises is asking guests to leave both traditions behind.
Passengers aboard at least two Marella ships have reported seeing notices in their daily onboard newsletters asking guests not to hide toys or novelty items around the ship and not to add decorations to cabin doors or public areas.
That means everything from rubber ducks and tiny acrylic figures to magnets, banners, stickers, and birthday signs could be affected.
The message is not framed as a harsh warning, but Marella is clear about what it wants guests to do.
Marella Asks Guests to Stop Hiding Ducks and Decorating Doors
The notice has been spotted aboard Marella Voyager, where it was printed in the ship’s daily newsletter alongside the usual onboard information.
The daily publication is used to keep passengers informed about what’s happening onboard, alongside practical notices such as this one.
The wording addresses two popular passenger traditions at once.
First, Marella is asking guests not to leave or hide toys, novelty items, or other personal belongings around the ship or at destinations.
Second, the cruise line is asking passengers to leave cabin doors and public spaces undecorated.
The notice was shared publicly on Facebook on August 9, 2026, by a guest sailing with the cruise line. Similar wording has also reportedly appeared aboard another Marella ship, suggesting the request is not limited to a single sailing.
However, Marella has not, based on the information available, issued a separate public announcement confirming a formal fleetwide ban.
What Marella Told Passengers About Cruise Ducks
Marella chose to use a little humor when addressing the cruise duck tradition.
The newsletter said:
“As much as we love a bit of personality, the ducks have started to drive us quackers… so we kindly ask that toys, novelty items and other personal bits aren’t left or hidden around the ship or at our destinations.”
While rubber ducks are the obvious target, the wording is broader than that.
Cruise duck hiding now includes far more than the classic yellow bath toy. Passengers sometimes bring tiny acrylic ducks, plush toys, keychains, bracelets, ornaments, and other novelty items to hide around a ship for strangers to discover.
Marella’s request appears to cover all of those if they are deliberately left behind.
The cruise line also explained why it does not want passengers hiding items around the vessel.
“While it’s all meant in good spirit, these can become hazards and are usually disposed of by our crew.”
A passenger may see a hidden duck as a fun surprise for the next person, but crew members may simply see an unattended object that needs to be collected and removed.
Cabin Door Decorations Are Part of the Same Request
Marella is also asking guests not to decorate their cabin doors or public areas.
The same onboard notice said:
“We also ask that public areas and cabin doors are left as they are, without added decorations like flags, banners, posters, stickers or magnets. It helps keep the ship looking its best for everyone and ensures we stay on top of safety.”
That could have a noticeable impact on regular cruisers who enjoy personalizing their stateroom doors.
For many cruisers, the cabin door has become another place to personalize the trip, whether that means a simple name magnet or a much more elaborate display.
Some passengers use magnets with their names or cruise dates. Others go much further with banners, signs, themed decorations, flags, or even small stations connected to duck trading.
Under Marella’s wording, those additions should now be left off the door. For some guests, that may be a bigger adjustment than the duck request itself.
Cruise ducks are something passengers may or may not take part in, but cabin decorations can be a very visible part of the atmosphere on certain ships.
Why Marella Says It Is Making the Request
Marella has pointed to several reasons behind the change.
Safety is one of them. Items left around the ship can become hazards, while decorations placed in public areas may create additional issues for crew responsible for keeping shared spaces clear and orderly.
The cruise line also said leaving cabin doors as they are helps keep the ship looking its best.
Waste is another concern. Marella has been working to reduce plastics and waste, and the newsletter suggests that deliberately leaving novelty items around a ship does not fit well with that effort.
Even if a passenger hides a duck expecting another guest to find it, there is no guarantee that happens. If crew members collect it instead, the item may simply be thrown away.
Why Cruise Ducks Became So Popular
Cruise ducks have developed into a surprisingly large passenger-led tradition.
The tradition works a little like an informal treasure hunt. Passengers place ducks around the ship for others to find, often attaching a note that encourages the new owner to take it home or send it back into hiding.
Over time, the pastime has grown well beyond a few rubber ducks left near stairwells.
There are now online groups and communities dedicated to cruise duck hiding, and some passengers bring large numbers of ducks onboard specifically to distribute during their sailing.
For fans, it adds a small scavenger-hunt element to the trip, especially for families with children. For others, it is simply more plastic being left around a ship. That difference in opinion helps explain why cruise lines have taken very different approaches to the trend.
Related read: People Are Hiding Rubber Ducks All Over Cruise Ships, But Not Everyone’s Loving It
The Notice Has Appeared on More Than One Marella Ship
The notice was first highlighted by passengers aboard Marella Voyager.
The ship carries around 1,912 guests and is currently sailing 8-night Adriatic itineraries from Corfu, Greece. Its routes include visits to destinations in Croatia, Montenegro, and Slovenia.
Another passenger has since said they saw the same or similar notice aboard Marella Discovery. That ship carries around 1,830 guests and is currently sailing Aegean itineraries from Limassol, Cyprus.
With the message reportedly appearing aboard at least two different ships, this seems to be more than an isolated reminder from one onboard team.
Still, without a separate statement from Marella confirming the policy across the entire fleet, it is safer to describe it as a request being seen on multiple vessels rather than a formally announced fleetwide ban.
Other Cruise Lines Have Different Rules
Policies vary considerably from one cruise brand to another, so passengers shouldn’t assume the traditions accepted on one ship will automatically be welcome on the next.
Disney Cruise Line, for example, asks guests not to hide cruise ducks around its ships.
Disney also tightened some of its rules surrounding stateroom decorations from June 3, 2026. However, certain magnetic cabin-door decorations are still permitted under its policies, making its approach different from Marella’s request to leave doors undecorated.
Royal Caribbean takes another approach.
Cruise ducks remain common on its ships, but the cruise line has restricted where passengers can hide them in some areas. In July 2025, guests began seeing signs in Central Park on Oasis-class and Icon-class ships asking them not to hide ducks there.
Central Park contains live plants, green walls, planters, and full-sized trees, and the restriction was introduced after plants were reportedly being damaged by people hiding and searching for ducks.
Carnival Cruise Line has gone in the opposite direction.
The line has embraced the cruise duck trend more openly and even introduced a duck-themed crew character in late 2024 that has appeared in different costumes.
Most other cruise lines fall somewhere in the middle, neither heavily promoting the activity nor completely prohibiting it. The same is true of cabin-door decorating.
That can catch passengers out when they switch cruise lines, especially if they’re used to taking part in these traditions elsewhere.
Cruisers Have Mixed Views
Unsurprisingly, not everyone feels the same way about Marella’s request.
Some passengers are pleased to see the cruise line discouraging hidden toys and door decorations. They see both as unnecessary clutter and prefer corridors and public spaces to remain as the cruise line intended.
Others see them as harmless traditions. For those passengers, finding a hidden duck can be a fun moment during a cruise, while decorating a cabin door may be part of celebrating a birthday, anniversary, family vacation, or special sailing.
Cruise traditions tend to become surprisingly personal, and what feels fun to one passenger can look completely unnecessary to another.
What Marella Guests Need to Know
For guests sailing with Marella, the practical message is fairly straightforward.
Passengers are being asked not to hide or leave cruise ducks, toys, novelty items, or other personal belongings around the ship or at destinations. They are also being asked not to decorate cabin doors or public areas with items including flags, banners, posters, stickers, and magnets.
The notice does not say guests are prohibited from simply bringing a rubber duck, magnet, or other personal item onboard and keeping it in their cabin. The issue is leaving those items around the ship or using them to decorate doors and public spaces.
So, for anyone who normally packs a bag of ducks or a collection of magnetic door decorations before a cruise, a Marella sailing may now require a slightly different packing list.
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