What would you do if your cruise ship sailed into a storm? For some Carnival guests, not even a flooded pool deck could keep them from stopping by Guy's Burger Joint on embarkation day.
While most embark on a spring break cruise with hopes of sunny beach days, cruisers on Carnival Celebration had an unfortunately rainy start to their vacation. On March 30, 2025, the Excel Class ship faced a delayed departure from Miami, Florida, due to intense thunderstorms sweeping through the area.
However, hilarious videos of the incident are going viral on social media with unbothered guests onboard. One TikToker, Randy Stallard (user @stallardcontractingllc), recently shared unbelievable footage of the flooded Lido Deck on Carnival Celebration. Even as rainwater rushed across the deck, determined cruisers waded through floodwater to grab a burger from the signature Carnival restaurant, Guy’s Burger Joint.
Guy’s Burger Joint is a complimentary restaurant on Carnival cruise ships thanks to a partnership with celebrity chef Guy Fieri. Known for serving freshly-made burgers and perfectly-seasoned fries, the burger joint is wildly popular and has become a must-visit for many Carnival guests
The viral Tiktok, set to the dramatic and iconic song “My Heart Will Go On” from the Titanic movie, has garnered more than 1 million views and nearly 50k likes, 2k comments, and 12k shares.
Stallard captioned the video “Taking on water, but guy’s burger joint is open” with video showing a line of dedicated cruisers waiting for their Guy's burger. Water can be seen flooding across the floor of Guy’s Burger Joint, soaking the shoes of the guests standing in line at the restaurant.
Luckily, the ship was not actually taking on water, and there was no immediate danger to Carnival Celebration. Because Guy’s Burger Joint is located on one of the top decks of Excel Class ships, the restaurant was simply exposed to more of the heavy rainfall.
Instead of panicking, the Carnival cruisers seem to be doing the opposite. In fact, guests appear totally unfazed by the torrential downpour with most people walking calmly through the ankle-deep water - burgers in hand. One woman can be seen at the beginning of the video carrying not one, but two trays of burgers and fries while navigating the flooded restaurant!
“[You] do just about anything for a [Guy’s Burger Joint] cruise burger and [fries],” continues Stallard in the TikTok’s caption.
The viral video resonated with many cruisers, as the comment section was flooded with hilarious remarks
Many loyal Carnival cruisers and fans of Guy's Burger Joint shared their thoughts in the comment section of the viral TikTok. The top comment states, “Honestly, if I [were] going down with a ship, a lil cheeseburger would make it better.”
One user wrote, “We’re prepared to go down as gentlemen, but I would like a burger.” Another chimed in with, “You’re not supposed to get into the water until 30 mins after you eat.”
Many seasoned Carnival cruisers expressed their unwavering loyalty to Guy’s Burger Joint, calling the burgers “so worth it” and “gotta do what you gotta do for a Guy’s Burger!” One user even stated, “I would swim up to get a Guy’s burger!!!"
Multiple commenters went as far as stating that Guy’s Burger Joint is their top reason for booking a Carnival cruise
“And if I’m going down, I’m going down with the reason I even paid for the cruise in the first place.. Guy’s burger in hand!” commented another cruiser. “Guy’s Burger [Joint] is the reason I’m on the boat anyway…give me two, sir!” exclaimed one Carnival cruiser.
Flash flood warnings and relentless rainfall hit the Miami area during Carnival Celebration’s scheduled sailaway
Due to severe storms, the Carnival cruise ship was delayed approximately 30 minutes before setting sail on a 7-night Eastern Caribbean sailing. The rainfall caused extensive flooding with water pouring from the upper decks onto the lower Lido deck. Some rainfall even rushed inside the ship, although Carnival Celebration does not appear to have any sustained damage. Dennis Post from PostCard Travel Planning posted video footage of Carnival Celebration sailing away from PortMiami in torrential rain.
“The weather is just getting worse. You can hear the captain sounding the danger signal because the weather is so bad. That’s what happens when you’re at sea and there’s bad weather. It’s so much water, it’s unbelievable. It’s inches of rain on the deck,” said Post in a live video shared to Facebook.
There were eight other cruise ships leaving PortMiami during the storm; however, Post said he could barely see the Coast Guard station while sailing away from the cruise port in Miami. In the video, you can hear multiple cruise ships in the area sounding their horns for safety precautions.
“The ship is listing a little and you can see the water running across. The water is rushing back, into the ship and down the stairs. It is a ton of rain and water, but the ship is running. So much rain so fast - there is nowhere for it to go,” stated Post.
In addition, Post shared that Carnival Celebration cancelled the cruise’s Sailaway Party due to the storm and unsafe conditions on the pool deck. The video shared on Facebook shows the drenched pool deck as the ship slowly sailed away from Miami during the heavy rain.
Other videos shared on TikTok show the flooded top deck of Carnival Celebration. One clip shows the rainwater cascading down the staircase on the ship’s aft near Big Chicken and the Lido Marketplace buffet.
Moreover, Post shared that crew members were monitoring the decks as the rain was pouring into the ship. On the top deck of Carnival Celebration, crew members were resorting to using piles of towels to block the water from flowing into the elevator lobby.
Footage shows the crew on Carnival Celebration working tirelessly to keep the storm water from flooding too much of the ship’s interior. Some crew members can be seen attempting to push the water away from common areas.
Luckily, Carnival Celebration was able to safely sail from Miami and continue on her Eastern Caribbean itinerary. Currently, no injuries have been reported from the incident. The Excel Class cruise ship was able to visit Amber Cove (Dominican Republic), San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Charlotte Amalie (St. Thomas) as scheduled.
Carnival Celebration is one of Carnival Cruise Line’s biggest ships with a maximum capacity of 6,630 guests and 1,745 crew members. Built in 2022, Carnival Celebration measures 183,521 gross registered tons.
Allie Hubers
Allie Hubers has been cruising since she was a tiny toddler. What started as a yearly vacation with family quickly turned into a passion for travel, cruising and adventure. Allie's been on over 45 cruises all over the world. She even studied abroad on Semester at Sea, sailing the world on a ship while taking courses for college and visiting 4 continents.
