Trivia seems to be one of the most popular free activities at sea – for British and American cruise guests at least!
Some people take it very seriously, others just join in for the fun of it.
Trivia is the one thing in the daily schedule I look out for when I cruise
Where to Find Trivia
Keep an eye on the daily schedule or in the cruise ship app to find out where the trivia will be held.
The pub is a very popular place to hold trivia, but you might also find it in other bars or poolside.
There are often multiple trivia competitions on each day, particularly if the guests are mostly British or American.
How It Works
Crew member asks questions, teams write answers. You can play alone or with a team. Often, they stipulate how many team members are allowed on one team, for fairness reasons.
If you have a team of six people, you have much more chance of winning than if you were playing alone.
At the end, you can mark your own papers, or on cruise lines where they take trivia more seriously, you are asked to swap papers with others sitting nearby. I hate that!
When I sailed in Asia on board Spectrum of the Seas, I realised that different nationalities prefer different types of entertainment.
All the British and American cruisers took part in the trivia, while the Singaporean guests, who were in the majority, all seemed to spend their time in the Karaoke bar!
Find out more about that very interesting cruise here:
The Prizes
Prices are normally small branded cruise line merch – like caps, pens, bags or water bottles.
If you are really lucky, you might get a bottle of wine or champagne.
Azamara had an interesting point system for their trivia when I was onboard.
At the end of every trivia competition you took part in, you got a certain number of points. At the end of the cruise, you could redeem your points for gifts – the more points, the better the prize.
I actually redeemed my points for an Azamara t-shirt, which is far better than winning yet another key ring or a pen.
People take part in trivia for the fun of it – not the prizes, which aren’t really worth having. It’s more about the bragging rights!
Some people do take trivia very seriously, though. My parents were recently on an Ambassador (British cruise) where the trivia question was “Which is taller, The Statue of Liberty or Big Ben?”
A riot nearly broke out when they said it was Big Ben. Most British people would know that Big Ben is the bell inside the tower – the tower itself is called Elizabeth Tower.
When the quiz master tried telling them that Big Ben was taller by 10 feet, many people disagreed! Big Ben (he bell) is only 7ft 6″ tall!
American vs British Ships
There are different questions on American and British cruise lines, which makes sense.
I often think I am bad at trivia, but when I am on a British cruise line, I find them far easier.
If they are asking about American TV shows or US presidents, I have no chance! If they are asking about UK soaps or music, I do far better…
I remember my Mum doing very well in the trivia about the Beatles on a Princess cruise. But the tie-breaker question was how many hits the Beatles had had on the Billboard charts. Billboard charts are American, so we had no hope of answering that one!
I do find that pubs and bars get very busy when trivia is on, so get there early.
The above picture is of P&O’s pub, Brodies, when the ship was sailing at reduced capacity after the Covid pandemic. When I sailed on Iona a second time, it was impossible to get a seat in there for trivia. It was full to bursting.
It was the same on Cunard’s Queen Mary 2; the pub is very popular when there is trivia or music, and you have to be lucky to get a seat.
When I sailed on Queen Anne, Cunard’s newest ship, I was delighted to see they had doubled the size of the Red Lion Pub. Have a look at that, and other improvements Cunard have made when designing the ship here:
Themed Trivia
Trivia is often general knowledge, but can be themed. Popular themes could include:
- Music – often of a decade 70’s / 80’s, etc
- Geography
- Movies
- TV Shows
- Sports
- Harry Potter
- Food and Drink
- Disney
- Musicals
The list is endless, it seems!
When I travel with my family, we do far better at trivia. My brother is great at science, my boyfriend is good at sports and movies, I am good at Musicals and modern music, and my parents are better at general knowledge and older music. We have most areas covered on a general knowledge quiz!
Why People Love It
It is great fun to do as a family, and for solo travellers, it can be a great ice breaker. They can join in with others to make a team, and make some new friends at the same time.
It is free, easy and appeals to all ages. It is often held on an onboard pub or bar, so you can have a few drinks and relax into it.
So if you have never tried the trivia, why not give it a go!
You might be surprised how much you actually know. I think it is amazing that your brain can remember some obscure fact you have read or heard about many years ago, but it’s buried in there – somewhere!
Before You Go
Find out why putting yourself down for an automatic upgrade of cabin when you book might be a mistake here:
3 Reasons Why Ticking the Automatic Upgrade Box on a Cruise May Be a Mistake
Find out about all the weird and wonderful things you might find in a cruise ship shop here:
Cruise Ship Shops – Here Are Things You Didn’t Plan to Buy, But Probably Will
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