Many cruises feature fantastic meals, Broadway- quality shows and lazy afternoons spent sipping drinks while watching the shore disappear. Yet because many cruises aren’t accessible, they may be difficult for Deaf passengers to enjoy. While hearing passengers can easily chat with the ship’s staff and each other, Deaf passengers may struggle to get information, communicate their needs and socialize.

Cruise ships sailing in and out of the United States, and those registered here, are required to provide accommodations to Deaf passengers under the Americans with Disabilities Act. How they do so varies, and Deaf passengers usually need to request accommodations in advance.

For example, Deaf passengers sailing on Royal Caribbean can request a room kit that provides visual cues when someone knocks on their door, when the telephone rings, when an alarm clock goes off, or if the smoke detector is activated. Royal Caribbean can provide a teletypewriter in staterooms to make communicating with the Guest Relations Desk easier, as well as select closed- caption shows on in-room televisions and interpreters for those who communicate via American Sign Language. Princess Cruises provides similar accommodations.

However, there may be limits to where interpreters can go. Brianne Burger, who is Deaf, has sailed with Carnival Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean with her husband, who is also Deaf. She only requested an ASL interpreter for her Carnival cruise. “The interpreters followed us around on the boat,” Burger said, accompanying her to meals, shows and other activities but not shore excursions. Burger and her husband mostly explored on their own. On one occasion, they paid an onboard interpreter’s expenses to join them for the day. Burger said this limitation prevented her from fully participating in the cruise.

A spokesperson for Carnival said, space permitting, it provides an interpreter at no extra charge for excursions purchased through the cruise line if requested in advance. However, if booking an excursion through a third party or exploring on their own, passengers make their own arrangements. As required by the ADA, Carnival stated all U.S.-based tour operators should “provide a complimentary ticket and interpreting services … . However, outside of the United States, it would be up to the operator’s discretion.”

To fill these gaps, companies such as Deaf Vacations, Deaf Land and Sea, Keristn’s Deaf Travel and Deaf Globetrotters offer cruises with the needs of Deaf passengers in mind. Typically, these cruises have ASL interpreters on board and during land excursions and may arrange performances in sign language and coordinate other events specifically for Deaf passengers. This enables Deaf passengers to participate in more activities and get to know their shipmates more easily, creating a cruise experience closer to the one hearing passengers have. Burger hopes to take a cruise specifically designed for Deaf passengers one day so she can experience more of what cruises offer, with more opportunities to socialize and participate in excursions. Nevertheless, she acknowledged there would be less privacy because other passengers using ASL could “eavesdrop” on her conversations with her husband.