Everyone hates to wait in line – especially when that line is for food and you are starving after a busy day. However, on a cruise ship it might be worth hopping into a queue rather than grabbing the first buffet meal you see.
While cruise ship staff have always taken passenger safety into immense consideration, there are some incidences that are out of their hands. Outbreaks of contagious illness or noroviruses is one of these.
According to the Australian Institute of Food Safety, there has been six outbreaks of gastro in the past 12 months which included over 700 victims who contracted the norovirus on a cruise.
The main cause of the outbreaks is usually passengers bringing a disease on board and sharing it through touching high traffic areas such as hand rails, elevator buttons and buffet utensils.
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Food on board cruise ships are carefully prepared and monitored to make sure any risk of an illness is avoided, however, some food might not be as fresh as you would like it to be. Opting for a few different options will help in making your dining experience much safer.
Waiting in a line rather than heading to an empty buffet could end up saving you a big problem in the future. Lines might be boring, annoying and painful but the one thing they are good for is ensuring you receive fresh food. The more people there are in line, the more food the kitchen has to cook up on the spot. This means your chances of getting a freshly fried egg rather than one that has sat under the heaters for too long is much higher.
Another option is steering away from the buffet altogether and instead picking foods that are prepared for you when you order them. These options might be a bit more expensive and have a longer wait, but they sure are worth it when it comes down to quality and safety.
Avoiding the buffet also means you aren’t using the shared utensils and tongs that are so commonly used in this area. As many travellers on board lack a general sense of food safety, who knows who you are sharing with and what they are giving you.
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Another way to avoid the risk of sickness is to pack your own snacks. While it might not be a very fun option, eating out every night on a cruise can start to hurt your bank account. You will thank yourself later for having a few packets of easily accessible snack foods for when you don’t feel like heading to the busy eating hall or paying triple the price for the same snacks on board.
A running joke with cruise ship workers is the number of times they have to wash their hands throughout the day. Most ships are littered with sanitary stations for people to ensure they are always germ-free, however these can only control so much.
Remember to take advantage of the excess number of hand sanitiser stations on board and try to steer clear of the buffet to keep yourself healthy and happy on your next cruise!
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