It seems that most Britons do not know whether it is illegal to kill their mother-in-law while cruising with her in the Bahamas or swim naked while sailing through the Panama Canal.

latest research conducted by a new cruise website revealed that most Brits do not have a clue which laws apply to them while cruising. Nearly 25% of the 1,669 respondents simply assume that “the law of the sea” would apply.

While most people have a good idea of what is allowed on land and what is not, only 3% of respondents knew what laws apply on a cruise liner. Sixty-one percent of respondents simply had no idea and the rest said they were “not sure.”

Twenty-four percent of respondents said “the law of the sea” would apply, while 49% of them believed that the law of the country to which they were closest at the particular moment would apply. Eighteen percent were of the opinion that there were special laws for cruise ships. A full 7% believed that no laws of any country applied when you are at sea.

Only 6% of respondents thought that the captain and his staff had to take care of law enforcement on board the ship.

So what laws really apply to you when you’re on a cruise ship? While the ship is at sea, the laws of the country where the ship is registered apply, but once the ship docks in a port, that country’s laws apply.