Broken bottles in luggage

[mickym]

Just curious, how many people in an effort to smuggle booze on board have had a bottle break in their luggage? This would be my fear.

[travelntreats]

Have yet to have one break in our luggage.... just pack it properly, bubble wrap, plastic bags, etc... and should be no problem at all.

 

Many here will swear by "Rum Runners", but for me it's an expense I do not have to incur when I choose to bring aboard my select spirits in my luggage. Old School method works for me !

[StillPooh]

Just curious, how many people in an effort to smuggle booze on board have had a bottle break in their luggage? This would be my fear.

Easy fix- don't use glass bottles.

[hancock]

I brought home 2 bottles of Grand Marnier from St. Thomas. I put them in the suitcase wrapped in a wetsuit. I wasn't as careful as I should have been. At some point in the flight, they banged together and one broke. I could smell it as we collected the back at the baggage carousel. I did claim it on my travel insurance and was reimbursed for its cost, not replacement value.

[MrsPete]

This is a travel story, but not a cruise story:

 

When I was in college I was invited to go to a friend-of-a-friend's beach house for the July 4 weekend. A couple of us made the looooooong drive in my hatchback car. About halfway through the trip we started smelling something . . . as we drove on, thinking it was something outside the car, but as time passed it grew worse, so we pulled over . . . and we found that the 1/2 bottle of tequilla in my duffle bag was broken! It was packed in the middle of my clothes, and nothing else hard was in the bag, so I don't know HOW it happened, but it was a mess! For the rest of the trip we were terrified that we'd be stopped by the police and mistaken for drunk drivers! We drove under the speed limit, and we kept the windows down.

 

It wasn't a disaster because the beach house had a washer-and-dryer.

 

Now when we travel, EVERYTHING goes into double ziplock bags. EVERYTHING. I also buy only plastic bottles for travel. For large things liked 12-pack sodas or bottled water (if I'm not taking a cooler), I tend to put them into the XXL ziplock bags.

[hmbr08a]

Use plastic bottles (Smirnoff, others). Be sure top is tight.

[Vampire Parrot]

Having watched the baggage handlers at Heathrow & Frankfurt airports, at Southampton Docks, and at Ft. Lauderdale, I certainly wouldn't put anything as fragile as a bottle (even plastic) in my luggage!

 

Speaking with a steward on one cruise, he told me that one of the biggest complaints they get on turnaround-day is baggage being delivered to a room smelling of booze.. .because someone else's bag contained a bottle that broke, with the contents then running over the luggage below it. Which is another reason I use watertight hard-sided Samsonite cases...!

 

VP

[Almost Packed]

I brought home 2 bottles of Grand Marnier from St. Thomas. I put them in the suitcase wrapped in a wetsuit. I wasn't as careful as I should have been. At some point in the flight, they banged together and one broke. I could smell it as we collected the back at the baggage carousel. I did claim it on my travel insurance and was reimbursed for its cost, not replacement value.

 

 

hopefully it did not ruin anyone else's belongings....

[paul929207]

So far, we have not had a problem.

[geoherb]

I have packed a few mini bottles in my checked luggage and never had a problem. Each one goes into a rolled up pair of socks.

 

But one time I bought a lot of liquor on a cruise. A bottle of coconut rum broke on the flight home. That's when I decided it was not worth the risk just to save a few bucks.

[pg.]

I brought home a bottle of wine, and a bottle of colonge,, from France, this past summer. Neither broke,, its all in the wrapping,, and positioning in the bag..I have the skills...LOL

[JAMS1]

Our TA, surprised us with wine as a thank you gift for booking with her on our Mexico cruise, we had a couple of bottles left over and a bottle we purchased on the ship, so we packed them up and thought they were sealed tightly, WRONG, or was it the pressure in cargo that caused them to leak, do not know but everything had to be washed. Had to toss the suitcase because I could not get the smell out. Maybe special alcohol packing bags would have helped. But now with luggage weight issues I would never think of trying it again.

[Keith1010]

I would not take the risk. Yes, I know some have not had a problem but all it takes is to happen one time and you will ruin your clothing. If you want to purchase an item try to buy after you arrive.

 

Keith

[hikerguy]

i made the mistake of packing mine in my luggage and this is what happened to mine http://www.flickr.com/photos/troyblass/7394561436/in/photostream i had no idea that everything in there was going to be broken and i've been tring for 3 days and still no resolution!:mad: thank you celebrity for being no help at all

[knittinggirl]

To me, it's not worth it to risk getting kicked off the cruise because I tried to smuggle something when it's against the rules. However, we have brought wine aboard Princess legally in our wine vault from Magellans. We also wrap them in a laundry bag too.

[6rugrats]

i made the mistake of packing mine in my luggage and this is what happened to mine http://www.flickr.com/photos/troyblass/7394561436/in/photostream i had no idea that everything in there was going to be broken and i've been tring for 3 days and still no resolution!:mad: thank you celebrity for being no help at all

Your picture makes it look as if it was just wrapped in paper in a cardboard box, which is pretty much no protection at all. What is Celebrity supposed to do for you?

 

If you want to pack glass, you need to securely wrap in bubble wrap, tape and then, for extra security, put it in one of those really large ziplock backs.

[hikerguy]

I wasn't trying to sneak anything on board I was trying to take it home with me. And THEY wrapped it! I picked it up prepackaged and was told it was ok to put in my luggage. When we disembarked my bag was sitting in a puddle of alcohol!

[HImom]

My friend had someone else's broken alcohol saturate her suitcase. She was very unhappy & the suitcase had to be tossed. She brought it to the attention of the airlines & they claimed it must have been HER alcohol, but she showed them both of her suitcases & all of her clothing. She was fortunate that she had a suitcase with her clothing backed inside a larger suitcase. The larger one was the one that was soaked and ruined.

 

NOT a good idea to me! We're not drinkers anyway it seems like a considerable hassle.

[tonyrocks922]

if you have to pack glass bottles in luggage:

http://www.amazon.com/Diaper-Reusable-Absorbent-Eco-Friendly-Accessory/dp/B00308FONW

[kdspark]

Wrap in baby diapers. It will absorb the majority just in case. We do this with wine when traveling from Italy back to US from time to time. They actually recommended it at the winery we frequent!

[Allis154]

We have carried glass bottles in our luggage for years...never had a problem.

 

We wrap the bottles in LOTS of bubble wrap, then tissue paper, then into a ziploc bag...As we purchase it onboard for duty free, it then goes into the box it came in. We then stuff the box to make sure nothing moves.

 

Then, into the suitcase, with lots of padding all around and packed tight enough nothing moves.

 

buying on board means we can pack it in checked bags and not worry about trying to get it into our checked bags at the airport as we always have connecting flights. Given that we can buy 2 bottles of Baileys for less than the cost of one bottle here, it is worth the trouble...

[kazu]

We don't smuggle alcohol on board - but we do like to take some duty free home. First of all we NEVER put the bottles in our luggage until they are OFF Loaded from the ship. The bottles are placed in special protective containers available at Magellans - theyare strong platic on the outside, bubble wrap on the inside and then a plastic bag so that if they break nothing goes anywhere:D We carry the bottles off the ship and then place them in the luggage. We've used these numerous times and never had a broken bottle :D

[LOVECRUISING100%]

My sister packed can's of soda and 1 of them opened up .. she wasn't happy .. Me personally anything liquid is going in a zip locked bag and double bagged .. Good luck !

[CarnivalGirl3]

Funny story-ours leaked.

 

Hurricane Katrina was hitting Miami. The port was still open, no delays. Due to limited space in our car (no way for us and luggage to fit) and an early flight, we spent the night with friends near the airport. She picked us and our luggage up.

 

We get to her place, go get the overnight bag... I smell Bacardi blue Hawaiian. Yum? ALL over my formal BLUE dress and our clothes, dh's freshly IRONED clothes. I did a quick load, no ironing, aired out my dress, and made another trip to buy my Bacardi.

 

Friend's truck still smelled of it the next day.

 

Important lesson-Blue Hawaiian doesn't mix well with others, and after a few days, it's time for something different.

[Gunner22aa]

I don't bring anything but wine on board and it's always the box version. I always find a store and buy it at the port of departure and put it in the suitcase the morning we board. Never had one leak yet. There are some very nice wines that come boxed these days.