Cruising Along the Halachic Way.
As a Rav on various tours all over Europe and Africa, I am often asked to share some of the more substantial and frequently asked Halachic questions that come up during my travels. This overview is merely a discussion of the issues and not a final Halachic ruling. Your local Rav should always be consulted.
Can I board a cruise on any day of the week?
It is preferable to board before Wednesday morning or at least by Thursday morning. If that is not possible, it is permitted to join a cruise even on an Erev Shabbos, even if the ship will travel on Shabbos
(This is opposed to flying on a plane for a duration of over 24 hours, beginning Erev Shabbos, which the authorities have forbidden).
Is this permission unconditional?
Certainly not, if the workers on the ship are Jewish, it is forbidden. However, even if the ship has been leased by a company owned by Jews, as long as non Jews do all the work it is permitted. See, however, next question, condition. Unfortunately, on many "Jewish" and non-Jewish cruises, the security personnel consist of Israelis who might be desecrating the Shabbos for the Jewish passengers. This serious problem should be clarified with a competent Rabbi.
Can I make a Bar-mitzvah or any simcha on a cruise which will travel on
Shabbos or Yom Tov?
You are permitted with the following conditions:
1) The ship is a modern, state-of-the-art liner in which guests will not have nausea or sea sickness which will hamper their enjoyment of Shabbos.
2) The staff doing work is solely non-Jews.
3) Ideally, most of the passengers aboard the cruise should be non-Jews. (Of course, if the destination of the cruise is Eretz Yisroel, the trip becomes a travel of mitzvah, in which case, even if the majority of passengers are Jewish, it is permitted. Traveling by ferry from Spain to Morocco, for example, to pray at the gravesite of a great Tzaddik in Tangiers for a sick person who needs a speedy recovery, would also be considered a "travel of mitzvah” but one must board before Shabbos.) If the cruise company would be making the cruise as part of their regular schedule, regardless of the Jewish group on board, then the majority of passengers may be Jewish. If, however, the cruise would have been canceled if the large Jewish contingent would not have joined for whatever reason, this presents a serious problem as the non Jews might be considered working for the Jews, who are the majority on the cruise A competent Halachic authority must be consulted in this scenario.
4) It is imperative not to use any of the hot water warmed up by the non Jewish workers unless they fill up the samovars or urns anyway, regardless of the number of passingers on the cruise.
5) All guests must board before the onset of Shabbos.
I would even venture to say that having a "simcha” on a cruise is Halachically much more valid than inviting friends and relatives to a Shabbos "simcha” when they will definitely arrive by car or train!
May I take a tour of the port area on Shabbos?
You may walk all around the port area but not out of its "techum'- more than 2000 cubits (966 meters) from the end of the port. Of course, if the port is connected, "Halachically,” to a town or a city, you would be able to tour all around there as well, but not outside the techum of the city. If you are unclear about the distance of 966 meters, one should simply count 2000 steps and then refrain from continuing and walkback.
If the ship docks on Shabbos, may I disembark?
You may disembark from the ship as long as you do not need to carry a passport or any kind of identification with you. In that case, you are also permitted to return to the ship on Shabbos. If, for whatever reason, all passengers must completely disembark from the ship on Shabbos, a non-Jew should be requested to carry all your documents and baggage.
If an Israeli disembarks on the Second day of Yom Tov in the Diaspora, what should he do?
He should remain in the port area if it is outside the "Techum” of the Jewish community he plans on visiting until after Yom Tov. He may do all kinds of work! If however he disembarks in a port/city which has a Jewish community, he must refrain from doing any work, even in his own privacy, according to many authorities, and must put on Tefillin.
Can I carry all over the ship on Shabbos?
Yes, you may. It is considered to be no different than carrying in a hospital or hotel. Some authorities are of the opinion that for cruises lasting for over thirty days, one should make an Eiruv Chatzeiros.' This would also be the case for hotels.
May I use the elevator on the cruise on Shabbos?
It is no different than a hotel and one should always request a low floor. Making this request is an important part of Shabbos and Yom Tov preparation. In certain situations, one may board the elevator if the non-Jew has already summoned it for himself. The elderly, sick and pregnant women are mited a priori, to ask the non-Jew to summon the elevator and then join him.
Is there anything different about a kosher kitchen on a cruise?
Although, it is absolutely necessary to have reliable and trustworthy Mashgichim supervising the kosher kitchen in a non-Jewish hotel, it is even more crucial on a cruise. In a hotel situation where a completely separate kosher kitchen area is not available (indeed, many competent Rabbis will not offer a "Hechsher' in this case), the "koshered” cooking equipment can, at least, be moved to an area which has been designated as the "kosher area.” This is not the case on a ship where all equipment is bolted down and not movable. This situation requires much more effort on the part of the Mashgichim to keep the kosher food “away” from anything non-kosher.
Keeping kosher on a non-Jewish cruise
Any food properly double wrapped is foil can be warmed up in a non-kosher oven. The same is true for a microwave oven, except that foil cannot be used then and one wrapping is also sufficient. Ideally, one should place a glass of soap-water in the microwave for a few minutes and this can "kasher" the microwave and no wrapping will be needed. No cut vegetables or fruits may be eaten from the non-kosher kitchen. You may drink their hot and cold drinks (i.e. pure juices,milk (which in most countries is kosher but not Chalav Yisrael, of course) from a glass or paper cup, not their china cups, using a stirrer and not one of their spoons. This is true about hotels and airplanes also.
Can a Jewish company óperate a special cruise to Eretz Yisroel which is a"travel of mitzvah?
In one of the only two responsa written by the Gadol Hador, Ha’’Rav Moshe Feinsten, of blessed memory, to another Gadol Hador, the Lubavitcher Rebbe, of blessed memory, Rav Moshe forbids such an undertaking." In fact, he did not permit that undertaking even if the actual workers would have been all non-Jews.
What about davening and fasting when on a cruise to Alaska, Finland or Norway?
The situation on a cruise is no different than a plane. As soon as the sunrises, one should begin to pray, even if his "night" was only a few minutes! And he should not reckon with the 3 and 4 hours allotted for Shema and Amidah. Conversely, on a fast-day, as soon as it is night (at least 3 stars can be seen), one may eat even if the fast lasted much less than 24 hours. Indeed, one may travel to Eretz Yisrael on Tisha B'ay after mid-day and benefit from a much shorter fast. If the day/sunlight, however, is much longer, then the fast is also much longer. The same is true for the counting of "the seven days;" the day ends with Sundown in the woman's city of arrival.
Lighting the Menora
The same laws that apply to lighting a menorah in a hotel apply to a ship with one exception. If permitted by the hotel authorities, it is certainly halachically "better” to light in the window of your room, facing a public area and, thereby, creating a greater publicization of the miracle. The preferred condition is that you try to eat your meal in the room, if possible. In the case of a ship, however, where the window faces out directly to the sea, it perhaps is better halachically to light in the main dining room.
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