Cruise holidays are designed to be relaxing but one behaviour on board seems to be causing outrage among passengers. A Reddit thread has gone viral after one cruise guest complained about people who overload their plates at buffets, only to leave most of the food untouched.
The post, titled “Why do people pile up their plates at the buffet and end up leaving it untouched?”, sparked hundreds of replies, with many calling the habit wasteful and inconsiderate. “I’ve seen it many times,” the original poster wrote. “People fill their plates to maximum capacity and eat just a few bites and leave the rest. What is the reason that they feel they must be inconsiderate a******s and waste so much food?”
The user, Dazzling-Leader7476, argued that food waste is partly to blame for rising cruise prices, and others were quick to agree.
One comment read: “I hate wasting food. I’ll usually take small portions of various dishes and go back for what actually tasted good.”
Another added: “It makes me sick to see the amount of food people waste. I’ve seen people leave multiple plates of food, I think just because they can. Disgusting pigs.”
Some blamed the “all-you-can-eat” format for encouraging excess. “People think those words give them licence to do whatever they want – piling up plates, grabbing everything, taking food back to their cabins.”
Others suggested the buffet setup itself might be part of the problem.
“Sometimes I think ships should ditch the buffet and go to served meals only. Less waste, better food, and less chance of spreading viruses,” one user said.
While many agreed the habit was frustrating, a few users admitted they had done it themselves in the past, often because the food looked better than it tasted.
“I made the mistake once of piling my plate high because it all looked so good and I was really hungry,” one passenger said.
They added: “It was not. I hate wasting food, but I hate eating terrible food more.”
Another wrote: “Sometimes people are overwhelmed, especially first-timers. Everything looks amazing and they feel like they need to try everything to get their money’s worth.”
Some even blamed social media, suggesting people were loading up for the perfect buffet selfie rather than the food itself.
“People want to post the most impressive plate on Instagram, even if they don’t eat it,” one comment read.
“It’s not art class – your mountain of croissants and fruit doesn’t impress anyone.”
With cruise lines already facing criticism over food waste and environmental impact, some passengers now fear that stricter rules could be introduced to tackle the issue.
As one user warned: “Eventually, if people keep abusing the buffet, cruise lines will change the way food is served. Everyone will get treated like children.”