"Absolutely appalling parenting" — Matt and Abby Cruise ship drama explained as internet calls out influencer couple

YouTubers Matt and Abby Howard are facing backlash online after sharing details about their experience aboard Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas cruise. The couple, parents of two children, revealed that they left their toddlers alone on the ship to have dinner, which did not sit well with followers. Despite the growing controversy, the influencers have not yet addressed the matter.

Earlier this week, Matt and Abby posted on Instagram about their vacation with their sons Griffin, who is two, and August, who is 12 months old. In an Instagram story, the 25-year-old mother revealed:

“So we ended up taking them for 5 nights and it became apparent that they weren’t enjoying it and therefore we weren’t either. So, THEN we switched our dinner time to AFTER their bedtime and FaceTIMED the monitors while we ate. And that worked out muchhhh better for everyone!”

Matt and Abby get blasted online amid Royal Caribbean cruise ship controversy (Image via Instagram)

As per Royal Caribbean Blog, Abby further explained that they wished to leave their children with the onboard childcare services, but the children were not pleased with the arrangement. Furthermore, the couple found it difficult to find slots to drop their children with the childcare. Abby said on Instagram:

“Our game plan was to play all day with the kids and then let them hang out while the adults went to the formal dining, as long, nice dinners is not a setting designed for them.”

The revelation sparked outrage across social media, with many expressing their shock over the toddlers being left alone. Some comments online read:

Netizen reacts to the influencers’ Royal Caribbean cruise ship controversy (Image via YouTube)

Although Abby revealed on Instagram that she and her 26-year-old husband were monitoring their children while they dined away, followers were weary of the children being left alone. Some comments online read:

“Matt and Abby are idiots. They either are clueless or don’t care,” one Reddit user said.

“They don’t give 2 sh*ts about their children,” another platform user said.

“They had to “rearrange their dinner” to parent. It’s ludicrous!! You can’t go on an adult themed cruise & be expecting childcare & rip apart their lack of childcare,” another netizen commented.

As per the Royal Caribbean’s Navigator of the Seas official website, they provide nursery care for children under the age of three for an additional cost. Meanwhile, other reactions read:

“They really should be looked into for neglect. You are on a BODY of water, where there are smaller bodies of water (pools, hot tubs). You are on a f**king ship with tons of places kids could get lost… and there are tons of people,” a Reddit user said.

“Cruise ships are huge. It would take you at least 20 min to get back to the room if god forbid you did see something. How could they think this is ok,” another platform user commented.

“Matt and Abby are f**king idiots and they should be investigated for child neglect,” another netizen said.

Other Instagram stories and other content related to their cruise vacation have been removed from Matt and Abby’s Instagram accounts.

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Matt and Abby went viral earlier this year for not celebrating Father’s Day

In a June episode of The Unplanned Podcast, hosts stated that they planned to ‘boycott Father’s Day’ as they did not wish to celebrate the holiday and Matt’s birthday at the same time.

Matt Howard revealed that his birthday in 2023 was “a bummer,” as his birthday and the holiday were celebrated together.

Matt and Abby revealed on their podcast that they then decided to celebrate Matt’s birthday regularly with Father’s Day being celebrated in September so that they can make a “big hoopla about it” as “nothing goes on in September.”

Matt and Abby have been together since high school and got married in 2019. They have been sharing their family life online through their podcast and family YouTube channel.