At what age should you throw in the lido deck towel and stop cruising?
Today, cruising is more popular than ever. However, many cruise lines, including Royal Caribbean, have noticed a shift in consumers.
According to Royal Caribbean Group's Q2 2025 earnings call, Millennials and Gen Z travelers make up roughly half of the company's customer base.
In fact, the Cruise Lines International Association's (CLIA) State of the Cruise Industry Report revealed that roughly 67% of cruise travelers in 2024 were Gen-X or younger.
Moreover, Gen Z and Millennials were the most enthusiastic about taking a cruise, with 84% of respondents saying that they'd plan to take another cruise vacation.
Does that mean that cruising has become a young person’s game, though? Absolutely not.
Cruising continues to be a popular choice for seniors because of the overall convenience. Retirees, especially, can enjoy longer voyages to off-the-beaten-path destinations while taking advantage of the ship's amenities, rather than coordinating their own transportation.
How old do you have to be to go on a cruise?
Seniors can face increased health risks while traveling, and while every ship has a medical facility, its capabilities fall short of what full-scale hospitals and emergency rooms are capable of. Because of that, older travelers need to consider whether a cruise is right for them.
Stan Sandberg, co-founder of TravelInsurance.com, shared his advice on what anyone over 60 years old should be doing before they go on a cruise ship:
"While travel insurance is a smart purchase for travelers of any age, for Baby Boomers and Seniors (together, the over-60 crowd), travel insurance is essential for traveling the world."
Continuing, he said, "[Retirees who are on Medicare] must check whether their coverage extends to international travel. Standard Medicare plans typically won't provide coverage when the recipient travels outside of the United States. A travel insurance plan with travel medical coverage and emergency medical evacuation coverage is a necessity for those travelers."
As such, Sandberg believes that the best travel insurance plan for senior travelers is one with a pre-existing condition exclusion waiver.
Most travel insurance policies won’t cover expenses resulting from pre-existing medical conditions — unless the plan includes a waiver. To be eligible, travelers generally need to buy their insurance soon after booking or placing the deposit on their trip. Generally speaking, it should be no later than 7 to 21 days afterward.
"Other requirements can include purchasing insurance to cover the entire trip costs. Since the definition of a pre-existing condition and the terms to qualify for a pre-existing condition exclusion waiver can vary between plans and providers, we always recommend reading a plan's detailed terms and conditions before purchasing," Sandberg added.
Shore excursions restrictions
Although there's no maximum age to hit the high seas, many cruise providers enforce age-related restrictions for excursions.
For example, the maximum age for Carnival's "Segway, Sites & Local Bites" tour in Nassau is 60. Similar limits can apply to other physically demanding excursions, such as zip-lining and snorkeling:
- Two Reef Snorkel Tour in Grand Turk: Maximum age is 70
- Canopy Zipline Adventure in San Juan: Maximum age is 68
These restrictions are put in place to ensure guest safety and often stem from strict insurance requirements put in place by the tour operators.
Do ships have accessible cruise cabins?
All cruise ships have accessible staterooms for those with mobility issues. However, they're typically limited in number. For example, out of 2,805 cabins on Icon of the Seas, just 50 are accessible.
These staterooms were designed to accommodate guests who use wheelchairs, scooters, or other mobility devices, offering features like roll-in showers with fold-down benches, wider doorways, grab bars, lowered fixtures, and more.
If you need an accessible cabin to make your cruise more enjoyable, plan ahead. Moreover, it's smart to work with a travel agent, so they can ensure that you're reserving the right stateroom.
How old do you have to be to go on a cruise?
On the flip side, some may be wondering the minimum age to set sail. While there's no maximum age, most cruise ships don't let infants on board unless they're at least 6 months old.
That said, if there are more than three consecutive days at sea, many cruise lines raise the minimum age requirement to 12 months. The same is true for transatlantic and transpacific cruises.
"Infants sailing on a cruise must be at least 6 months old as of the first day of the cruise and/or CruiseTour. HOWEVER: For transatlantic, transpacific, Hawaii, select South American and other selected cruises and/or CruiseTours, the infant must be at least 12 months old as of the first day of the cruise/CruiseTour. For the purposes of this policy, any cruise that has 3 or more days consecutive at sea will require infants to be 12 months old on the first day of the cruise/CruiseTour," reads Royal Caribbean's age policy.
Elizabeth Wright
Elizabeth graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with her M.A. in Journalism in May 2023. Having sailed on over 30 cruises across different lines, including Royal Caribbean, Carnival, MSC, Margaritaville at Sea, and Princess, she loves sharing her insight and expertise on all things cruising!
In addition to writing for Cruise.Blog, Elizabeth has bylines in Business Insider, Royal Caribbean Blog, and Cruiseshipfood.com.
