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As the 2025 cruise season approaches, AAA estimates that a record 19 million Americans will take to the seas on ocean cruises … and we will be among them! But as travelers prepare to pack, one small decision could have big consequences, not just for their trip, but for everyone on board. The culprit: flushing wet wipes.
As a mom of two young children, I’ve used my share of wet wipes over the years for a multitude of purposes but I know not to flush them. (This was reinforced when a houseguest cost my sister and her husband thousands of dollars in repairs after flushing wet wipes down the guest bathroom toilet.)
Cruise ship plumbing is not built like your system at home and is even more tenuous. These vessels rely on a complex vacuum-powered toilet system designed to move waste through narrow pipes using minimal water. It’s an efficient solution for life at sea, but also an extremely fragile one. A single improperly flushed item like a wet wipe can wreak havoc on an entire section of the ship.
Wet wipes, even those marketed as “flushable,” don’t break down the same way marine-grade toilet paper does. Instead, they can bunch together and cause severe clogs in the ship’s plumbing network. In recent years, multiple cruise lines have reported incidents in which entire blocks of guest rooms were left without functioning toilets due to clogged systems caused by flushed wipes.
According to a recent article from Cruise Hive, Carnival Cruise Line recently issued reminders to passengers to never flush wipes or other foreign materials down the toilet, citing expensive repairs and passenger inconvenience as reasons for concern. The Royal Caribbean blog has also emphasized the importance of using only the toilet paper provided on board, which is specifically formulated to break down quickly in marine systems.
The issue isn’t limited to cruise ships. Hotel plumbing systems, especially in older or high-rise buildings, are also susceptible to damage, leaving hotel staff to contend with costly plumbing emergencies due to guests flushing items like paper towels, wipes or sanitary products.
To avoid contributing to the problem, consider this simple, packable solution: Pristine toilet paper spray. This product, available on Amazon, can turn ordinary toilet paper into a moist, wipe-like alternative without risking plumbing damage. Lightweight and TSA-compliant, this toilet paper spray does the hard work of a wet wipe without the environmental or mechanical consequences. Each ounce of Pristine toilet paper spray is equivalent to 50 flushable wet wipes.
With cruise ships at capacity and hotel occupancy running high, it doesn’t hurt for travelers to be mindful of the role we all play in maintaining a shared infrastructure. So before you pack that next bundle of wet wipes, consider this: skipping them might be the best way to ensure that everyone on board has access to a functioning bathroom for the duration of the trip.
KEEP READING:
–Your guide to tipping in the 25 most popular countries in the world
–Should you tip on takeout?
–How much I tip hotel housekeepers and my trick for making sure they get it
–Pay it forward: The trick to ensuring the next guest gets clean sheets at a hotel or vacation rental
–Has tipping in the United States gotten out of control?
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