Ever wonder what ends up behind the scenes, tucked under beds or behind wardrobes, after passengers disembark? Cruise staff—especially room stewards and housekeeping teams—have a front-row seat to humanity’s secrets. From the bizarre to the shocking, here are some of the strangest, most jaw-dropping items (and stories) that crew members report finding in cabins.
(Warning: Some of these are NSFW or just plain strange. You’ve been warned.)
1. Hidden Cameras & Voyeuristic Devices
One of the scariest things staff sometimes find is clandestine recording devices — cameras tucked behind mirror frames, inside smoke detectors, or even under sinks. In one high-profile case, a Royal Caribbean cabin attendant was arrested after a hidden camera was discovered in a bathroom, allegedly used to film passengers.
For crew, discovering such a device is more than awkward — it’s a legal and ethical red line. More than one ship protocol triggers immediate incident reports, cabin quarantine, and security investigations. What would you do??
2. Drugs, Narcotics & Contraband
Some guests leave behind more than travel brochures. Over the years, cruise lines across the world have reported seizures of narcotics hidden in luggage or within furniture in cabins. For example, authorities once found around 10 kg of cocaine concealed in a couple’s suitcases aboard a ship arriving in Portugal.
When housekeeping spots odd sachets, pill containers, or hidden stashes behind panels, they flag it immediately to security.
3. Sex Toys, Condoms & Intimate Gear
Perhaps expected in a daring “naughty” blog, but very much real: crew members occasionally disclose discovering sex toys, lubricants, adult magazines, and similar intimate gear stashed away in drawers or under mattresses.
These finds generate awkwardness for staff (not sure whether to laugh, ignore, report) but generally aren’t policy violations unless they breach decency laws or privacy boundaries. The fact they show up frequently enough goes to show how cruise cabins turn into private little worlds once the lights go out.🍍
4. Personal Items, Keepsakes & Undelivered Notes
Some of the more touching (or tragic) finds are personal items left behind: love letters, journals, childhood trinkets, even family heirlooms tucked in drawers. In rare cases, passengers depart mid-trip (often suicide 😢), and crew later find notes addressed to them.
One passenger famously left the ship prematurely, leaving behind a note and a cash tip for their stateroom attendant, saying they “did not want to be found.”
5. Garbage, Waste & “Gross Outs”
While we all expect trash bins and room cleaning, sometimes cabins are absolute horrors. Staff report finding used condoms, dirty underwear sprawled on floors, half-eaten food hidden under beds, or overflowing bins with biological messes, including soiled feminine products.
In one viral “room steward horror” thread, a guest’s steward rushed in shortly after arrival and seemed uneasy cleaning because of the mess. There’s also the infamous “poop lasagna” incident from the Carnival Triumph debacle, where sanitation systems failed, and human waste spread through corridors and cabins.
6. Wildlife, Insects & Creepy Crawlers
Some of the more innocent but still startling finds are live animals or insects. Cruise passengers have complained of cabins infested with biting flies emerging from air vents. On Reddit, one user wrote:
“Our cabin was infested with flies. They were coming out of the vents.” (~Reddit User)
Sometimes small lizards, geckos, or rodents (in extreme cases) make their way onboard and hide behind curtains, wardrobes, or ventilation shafts. For crew, having to clean up life forms is just another day at sea.
7. Prototype & Illegal Tech Gadgets
Beyond standard electronics or cameras, crew find cutting-edge or illicit tech: GPS trackers clipped inside luggage, earpieces hidden in clothes, or even drug sniffers built into suitcases.
While rarer, these discoveries trigger full security investigations. Cruise lines and port authorities take them seriously, seizing devices and investigating passenger backgrounds.
8. Fake IDs, Passports & Counterfeit Documentation
In some cases, crew have stumbled on passports, forged IDs, or identity documents hidden beneath mattresses or sewn into seams. These are red flags for smuggling, human trafficking, or illegal migration attempts.
Housekeeping staff, trained on privacy and procedure, immediately hand such items to security — though no one wants the awkwardness of discovering someone’s false identity in “your” drawer.
9. Jewelry, Cash & High-Value Items
Sometimes guests forget or intentionally leave behind large sums of cash, jewelry, or valuable watches. Crew often catalog them in lost-and-found, but occasionally the value is shocking.
Given strict internal auditing and surveillance, any discrepancy triggers internal reviews. Still, the temptation and ethics questions exist — but most crew say they would never take a thing.
10. Human Remains / Unattended Deaths
The darkest cabin confession: occasionally, a passenger dies in their cabin, and crew are the first to enter after hours. Ships are equipped with morgues and protocols for handling deaths. Some codes over the PA system (e.g. “Code Alpha”) may be used to discreetly signal medical or fatal emergencies.
Crew preparing a cabin post-mortem might find medical paraphernalia, drug residues, or personal belongings left in disarray by a sudden passing. It’s not a daily occurrence, but one that stays with staff.
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