Cruise ships are a high-risk setting for bed bugs: enclosed spaces, cabins turning over constantly, and luggage moving in every direction make it easy for bed bugs to hitch a ride from one cabin to the next. According to a report by TheTravel on January 23, 2026, Carnival Cruise Line’s Firenze saw a worrying pattern — two passengers in different cabins on the same deck reported bed bugs just weeks apart, and both shared video or photos on Reddit to warn fellow cruisers.
Two Cases: Same Deck, Weeks Apart
- First case: December 25, 2025, stateroom 8271. According to the passenger’s post, they found a live adult bed bug in the cabin, and a follow-up inspection turned up a second, dead one. The passenger notified Guest Services and said they were initially told their clothing would be washed and heat-dried, but the plan later changed to steaming only. Their belongings were returned still damp and smelling of mildew, and the passenger said they had to redo all the clothing precautions themselves after getting home.
- Second case: January 18–22, 2026, stateroom 8472. According to another passenger’s post, they inspected the cabin on arrival on January 18 and found nothing unusual — but admitted they had skipped the sofa. On January 22, minutes before disembarking, they spotted a small bug crawling across the throw pillows on the couch. They reported it immediately; staff reportedly collected the bug for inspection and offered medical assistance, which the passenger declined, saying they had no bites. The passenger also noted they had already heard about a similar report on the same ship weeks earlier.
Both cabins were on Deck 8, but the rooms were not near each other. That detail is exactly what worried many readers.
Why This Looks Like More Than an Isolated Incident
- Same deck, different cabins, weeks apart: a single bed bug carried in with one piece of luggage would be unlikely to turn up again in another cabin on the same deck weeks later. Readers questioned whether an infestation in one cabin had already spread, or whether the problem involved the whole deck — or even the whole ship.
- The cruise-ship environment suits bed bugs: cabins change occupants daily, bedding and luggage keep circulating, and bed bugs can hide in mattress seams, sofas, headboards, and carpet edges, moving between cabins on luggage and clothing.
- Discovery often comes late: the second passenger inspected on arrival and still missed it, only spotting the bug when leaving. Bed bugs hide by day and come out at night, so a single glance on arrival is easy to get wrong.
- At the time the report was published, Carnival had yet to respond publicly to these two latest incidents, leaving passengers to warn one another and check their own cabins on arrival.
Carnival Has Faced Bed Bug Claims Before
The same report notes that this is not Carnival’s first encounter with such allegations: last year, a Maryland couple sued, saying they were repeatedly bitten by bed bugs while sailing on the Carnival Horizon, and that inspecting their cabin revealed live bed bugs, fecal stains, and eggs, with no relocation or treatment offered. That lawsuit is still going through legal proceedings, and this article makes no judgment on it. But it shows cruise-ship bed bugs are nothing new — the issue is not one company, but an environment that is itself a breeding ground for bed bugs.
How to Protect Yourself on a Cruise: Inspect First
There is no need to swear off cruises over this, but those first ten minutes in your cabin are worth spending on a careful check:
- Inspect as soon as you arrive — don’t flop onto the bed: check mattress edges and seams, under the pillows, behind the headboard, and in the sofa seams, looking for tiny brown-black spots (fecal matter), shed skins, or live bugs.
- Keep luggage off the bed and carpet: use the luggage rack, away from the bed; don’t toss clothes onto the bed.
- Take one more look before bed: bed bugs are active at night, so a quick check around the pillows and bedside before sleeping is cheap insurance.
- The real key moment is getting home: don’t carry luggage straight into the bedroom. Open it at the door or in the bathroom and inspect; wash and heat-dry all clothing right away; vacuum the suitcase itself, including the seams.
- If you spot anything suspicious, tell the crew at once and keep evidence: take photos, note the cabin number and time, and ask for a written record. Don’t spray insecticide yourself inside a sealed cabin.
Before you sail, read the travel bed bug checklist. If bed bugs do follow you home, the DIY bed bug removal guide has the full treatment process; to understand why bed bugs are getting harder to kill, see super bed bug insecticide resistance.
Source
(Written on October 16, 2026; compiled from public reporting. Details of the two cases come from the passengers’ Reddit posts as cited by TheTravel; the cruise line’s response is as of the report’s publication.)