Cruising ducks all tagged and ready to hide

Why We Absolutely Love Hiding Cruising Ducks 🐥🚢

If you’ve ever been on a cruise and spotted a tiny rubber duck tucked into a secret corner with a cute little note attached—congrats! You’ve stumbled into one of our favourite cruising traditions: cruising ducks!

What started as a simple idea has turned into a full-blown, smile-spreading movement at sea. And if you’re wondering why we love hiding cruising ducks so much… well, let us tell you!

🐤 It Spreads Pure Joy

There’s nothing quite like the look on someone’s face when they spot a duck hiding behind a porthole, nestled in a lounge chair, or peeking out from a plant in the atrium. Whether it’s a child squealing with excitement or an adult laughing in surprise, these tiny treasures turn ordinary moments into memorable ones.

We love imagining someone finding our little duck and wondering who left it. We sometimes even linger in the background to see the expression on someone’s face when they find one. And when we find one ourselves? Instant happiness.

🚢 It Builds Community

Cruising ducks have created a fun and friendly community of cruisers who connect over a shared sense of playfulness. There are Facebook groups, Instagram hashtags, and even cruise meetups centered around this one silly (but wonderful) tradition.

It’s not just about hiding and seeking—it’s about spreading kindness and connecting with others on the ship, even if we never meet face-to-face.

✍️ We Get to Be Creative

Part of the fun is designing and tagging the ducks. Some people personalize them with cruise dates, ship names, or family names. Others decorate them with tiny accessories or fun messages. We’ve seen pirate ducks, princess ducks, and even ducks dressed as cruise staff! We include on our tags, details of our social channels in the hope that the lucky finder reaches out and shares a pic with us where it was found! I know some people have taken the ducks home with them and then taken them on a future cruise to hide again for someone else to find, so who knows where they could end up in the world!

Coming up with fun hiding spots and watching others post about the ducks they’ve found makes it feel like a big, happy scavenger hunt.

📸 It Makes Every Cruise Extra Special

We look forward to hiding ducks as much as we look forward to the buffet (okay, almost as much). It’s now part of our pre-cruise prep—packing sunscreen, flip flops, and of course… a whole flock of ducks.

Even better? Some of the ducks we’ve found have made it back home with us and now live on our travel shelf next to our cruise ship memorabilia—a little rubber souvenir from a big adventure.

🛳️ So… Why Do We Love It?

Because it’s simple. It’s wholesome. It brings joy. And in a world that sometimes feels too serious, cruising ducks remind us that play isn’t just for kids.

Whether you’re a seasoned duck hider or you’re just now hearing about this, we promise: it’s worth trying. So next cruise, grab a bag of ducks, write a few sweet notes, and start hiding. You never know who you’ll make smile. 💛

If you would like to purchase a set of 24 ducks for your next cruise, please visit our Cruise Essentials page for details of the ones that we use.

Have you ever found a cruising duck? Or do you have a favorite place to hide them? Let us know—we’d love to hear your duck tales!