It seems to me most cruise ships for passengers do not allow passengers in the bow of the ship (above deck). Painting with a broad brush but mostly the bow seems a no-go area for passengers.
Why?
Apart from re-enacting that Titanic (movie) scene on the bow I’d think the bow would be one of the neater places to hang out.
I’m more of a cargo vessel person than a cruise vessel person so I can’t really answer the question definitively.
Looking at photos online, there are some which clearly show passengers on the deck at the bow so it seems it is sometimes permitted.
However looking at a few photos on line and based on some experience I think you might find there are at least two reasons.
Firstly, it’s clear that some cruise vessels have their mooring winches and maybe anchors on deck at the bow. These are ugly greasy utilitarian objects with trip hazards etc and probably not the most amenable location for passengers. And in port, there would be mooring lines out which are dangerous when under tension.
Secondly, waves can come over the bow and there have been deaths. Of course, you would not ordinarily expect this to occur except in very bad weather and arguably, the bow could be kept open unless seas were adverse. However, seas can be unpredictable and I suspect that in the highly litigious environment of cruise vessels, the operators take a cautious approach.
I agree not all cruise ships are the same and there are a lot of them so I would not be surprised to find plenty of examples where passengers can hang out in the bow.
But looking at the most modern and big cruise ships it is immediately apparent passengers are not meant to hang out on the bow. (it does seem the smaller the ship the more likely you can hand out in the bow…but again…broad brush strokes.)
It’s been six years, but I was on a cruise to Alaska and we had the opportunity to go out on the bow to at the glacier. I have a vague recollection of having to go out through a window, or some sort of hatch with a rather high threshhold. We didn’t stay long - it was really windy and cold. Definitely not wheelchair accessible.
Which is probably the other issue. It’s not comfortable to be out there for very long, and in the case of rough seas, the bow is probably one of the most dangerous areas to be.
Only been on 2 cruises.
On a big ship in Caribbean, the bow on the top deck was right outside the bridge. I assume access is limited for security reasons and to avoid distractions. My wife is an astronomer, and Hyakatuke was up during our cruise, so we went up top to look at the skies. Trying to avoid lights, we made our was as far up front as allowed. As we were hanging out up there, the guy in charge on night duty stepped out for a smoke, and we had a very pleasant and informative discussion w/ him. As I recall, at one point during the cruise they allowed passengers to visit the bridge.
2d cruise was a smaller ship in Alaska. Full access to the front of the ship was allowed/encouraged.
I remember hearing around the time the “Titanic” movie came out that some cruise lines started blocking off the bow. Many people were recreating the scene in the movie where Jack and Rose are leaning over the tip of bow and he shouts “I’m king of the world!” For safety reasons, I’m sure they don’t want people leaning over the front of the ship.
While I’m sure this isn’t universal, it seems like every cruise ship documentary I’ve seen uses that whole area for crew quarters. Almost like an entirely separate apartment/hotel area with it’s own stores, restaurants, bar, pools etc.
It always seemed odd to me as you’d think they’d reserve that for the passengers and put the employees somewhere less desirable.
It really does depend on the ship, and how persistent you are. I’ve been on several cruises, and like wandering the ship to see what I can find. Some ships you just can’t get there, some you can, but sometimes it requires you taking a route that’s not very intuitive or obvious.
I’d say it’s obvious that the crew quarters must either be right forward, or else in the stern. You don’t want passengers walking through the crew area, or having to go round it.
Probably you can design more passenger cabins with good views if you put the crew quarters in the bow.
With no nautical knowledge whatsoever, I’m going to guess that if you fall overboard from the bow, you’ll likely end up being plowed under the hull. If access really is restricted, maybe that’s why.
I’ve been to the bow area on several vacation cruises. You are correct that not all ships make this area accessible, but some do. The very tip of the bow is usually gated off, so no chance of a Titanic re-enactment, but the general area is often open (they close it at night and during bad weather). Demand for this area is generally low anyway. When we were there we were often the only ones. The BIG day is when the ship is sailing to something spectacular where pretty much everyone is on deck somewhere so bow space becomes more useful as overflow. I like the bow for these things because you can see in more directions.
We watched a bunch of dolphins swimming along the nose of the ship. That was pretty cool. It is very cold there though, If you ever go there while the ship is sailing, stand a few steps off the rail at the front and the wind will go over your head instead of into your face.
A minor nitpick: There isn’t actually such a scene in Titanic. There is a scene in which Jack and Rose are leaning over the bow, and there is a different scene in which Jack is standing at the bow with a fellow emigrant (but without Rose) and shouts “I’m the king of the world!”. But our collective memory has collapsed those two scenes into one, very much the same way nobody in Casablanca ever says the exact line “Play it again, Sam”.
We were aboard Zuiderdam going thru the Panama Canal, and the bow was packed with spectators.
We’ve also cruise on Enchantment of the Seas - it’s bow area is the home of all the winches for the dock lines and the anchors - NOT a place for casual spectators, so it’s blocked off.
Ruby Princess has a pool at the bow. It was too cold to swim when we were aboard.
It depends on the ship.
Here’s the bow of Disney Wonder, showing the crew pool: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3b/Disney_Wonder_bow_and_crew_pool.jpg
The bow only goes up to Deck 5, so this is well below the top deck of the ship. There are five more full decks above the bow, and Deck 10 – the top, open deck – is almost fully accessible to passengers.
Powers &8^]
I have not been on a big cruise liner, but I would also suspect the mooring gear (ropes, chains, etc.) being placed in that area would be a hazard to passengers.
I do not know much about these ships, but WRT staff quarters, I would suspect they are not in the most desirable parts of the ship, but are probably located in the least desirable areas. My uncle used to go on fishing trips from Los Angeles back in the day, and told me one time he was the last to select a bunk - the only one left was up in the front of the boat. Little did he know that one was the most uncomfortable due to the bow producing the most amount of movement. Not sure if they place crew quarters up there, but that area may not be the best to reside during a cruise. Can anyone confirm?
On most, if not all Carnival ships the bow area is exclusively for crew use with pools, hot tubs and sun loungers available. While many of the “staff” positions (entertainment, shops, guest services, personnel have some access to passenger areas, the waiters, cabin stewards, galley, engineering staff are not allowed in passenger areas. It’s one of the few areas on the ship that crew can be “outside” and not have to interact with passengers You can also find a lot of the off duty crew on this deck at sailaway with their cellphones while the ship is still in range of a terrestrial tower.
Most crew accommodations are on decks below the lowest passenger decks, most below the waterline. Also on these decks would be crew mess, crew bar, fitness center, barber, etc.
Some of the deck officers may have cabins on or near passenger decks, but in areas off limits to passengers. The Captain’s stateroom will be steps from the bridge.
In bad weather, the bow and stern move a lot more than amidships. Cabins in the centre sell out faster than those at the extreme ends.
Crew cabins also tend to be on the lower decks and frequently have no windows.
The bow of a ship is less desirable. When on one of our cruises I took the grand ship tour. We went up to the forward forecastle where the anchor winches are. the seas were a little rough but not bad. but the ship was climbing waves and dropping. It was load with the bangs. The crew member said you had to get use to the noise and be able to sleep through it. It was not the best place for a crew member to be birthed.
… or berthed! 
On our European river cruise, the lower deck of the boat was referred to as “Aquarium Class”.
