- A large-scale brawl broke out on board a Carnival Cruise Line ship, according to video footage shared on social media.
- The incident occurred in the buffet area of Carnival Paradise around 3 a.m. on the final day of a Caribbean cruise in early June.
- One passenger said security personnel intervened and escorted one group out of the room while the other group exited in the opposite direction.
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A large-scale brawl broke out on board a Carnival Cruise Line ship, according to video footage shared on social media.
A video posted to YouTube by passenger Nick Richardson on Saturday shows other passengers throwing chairs, tackling each other and punching each other in the buffet area of the Carnival Paradise. Richardson previously shared the video on TikTok, but told USA Today that the social media platform had removed it.
Richardson, 43, stumbled across the conflict when he went looking for pizza around 3 a.m. on the last day of a Caribbean cruise in early June. “I woke up hungry,” said Richardson, of Clearwater, Florida, when he saw a security guard accosting a group of guests.
Richardson wasn’t sure how the initial altercation started, though passengers were “calling each other names” at the restaurant before the confrontation escalated. He estimated that about 10 to 15 people were involved in the fight.
Security officers intervened, escorting one group out of the room while the other exited in the opposite direction, he said. Video shows the aftermath, with chairs overturned and dishes strewn across the floor and tables, including at least one broken plate.
“Carnival Paradise security intervened following the incident that occurred on June 6,” spokesman Matt Lupoli said in an emailed statement. “Our company policy is to not tolerate this type of behavior. The guests involved have been fined and will never be allowed to sail on a Carnival Cruise Line ship again.”
Richardson stressed that the altercation was an “isolated incident” and that he thoroughly enjoyed the rest of his first cruise – so much so that he immediately booked another cruise with Carnival after returning home.
“The security guys, all the staff that were there, they were very, very good,” he said.
The incident comes after a Carnival passenger pleaded guilty in February to assaulting another passenger, at one point smashing glass in his face.
Nathan Diller is USA TODAY’s consumer travel writer based in Nashville. He can be reached at ndiller@usatoday.com.
