Packed/picnic lunches

[clmom]

It's at your own risk...we've taken food off MANY times and never given it a second thought. On 17 cruises I've never seen anyone who cared and have certainly never seen dogs. I've also never heard from anyone who actually got "caught" or received any sort of fine...I think the stories are life Big Foot: talked about but not substantiated.

Santiago, Chile, 2011. Sniffing dogs going up and down the line while we waited to go through customs/immigration looking for contraband food. I had a pack of factory sealed mixed nuts I had brought from home (USA). I thought it might be ok but showed it to the officials anyway. They took it from me, telling me it was probably ok but they wanted to err on the side of caution.

[Paula_MacFan]

Thanks for all your replies but I knowyou cannot take food off the ship , but honestly that is NOT the question I asked !!

 

That's ok.....on the other 'food' thread going the OP asked if they could take a sealed Clif bar to ALASKA. They got a bunch of replies about gun-toting soldiers in South America.

[RNGALNG]

Thanks for all your replies but I knowyou cannot take food off the ship , but honestly that is NOT the question I asked !!

 

It is just that we are on an all day tour in Dominica being picked up in the morning and doing 3 different beauty spots so doubt there will be any shops nearby and the tour does not provide lunch so was just wondering if anybody had ever had a packed lunch

 

I always bring nuts, dried fruit in single serving bags, granola bars, prepackaged crackers with cheese or peanut butter with us when we tour on all day long trips. Check your tour out, if it is sponsored by Princess, there might be snacks or meals included. They usually are if you are away from the ship for the full day. But, I find it better to pack my own as I am diabetic and it is just easier to pack things I know I can have.

 

 

Pam- When we went through the canal two winters ago, as we left the last lock on our way to Columbia, we had the queen bee and her 'party friends' land on our balcony! I don't know exactly how they got rid of them. Our room steward and his superior came into our room and wanted to throw water onto them as their first attempt to rid the merry makers off the railing. We didn't stay in the room to watch, we took off for interior spaces to be far from the action. When we returned to our room, they were gone. Our poor steward got one bite while fighting for our balcony! Poor man!

[RNGALNG]

It's at your own risk...we've taken food off MANY times and never given it a second thought. On 17 cruises I've never seen anyone who cared and have certainly never seen dogs. I've also never heard from anyone who actually got "caught" or received any sort of fine...I think the stories are life Big Foot: talked about but not substantiated.

 

Do you not read the port information or your patter? I know it is written on one or both publications at each port about not taking food off the ship. I can't believe you would not follow the rules to keep the ports and countries free of infestations from food products.

 

Bet you're a chair hog too!

[IECalCruiser]

Coming back to the US at Newark from Copenhagen last year we saw a dog identify a woman ahead of us. She realized that she still had half of a sandwich she had brought on board for the flight.

 

Countries are trying to protect there agriculture systems from unwanted pests and there are many examples of the problems that have been caused. If you have health reasons were you need to bring food, most pre packaged items should OK, but no other items, please.

 

 

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[petlady7]

I think I will just eat a HUGE breakfast that day and then maybe get a light snack when we get back on board before having a later dinner , I think that should do it , the tour is a private one not a Princess one so there is no snack or meal provided but I am sure I will survive , and no I have never taken any food off the ships before but wondered about the packed lunches but it seems that they would not be provided according to some of the posts here

[Pam in CA]

That's ok.....on the other 'food' thread going the OP asked if they could take a sealed Clif bar to ALASKA. They got a bunch of replies about gun-toting soldiers in South America.

How about Logan airport in Boston? Happened to a lady next to me as we waited for our luggage. Last I heard, Boston is still in the US. She was allowed to get her luggage and was lead away by two officers to who knows where. The gun wasn't very visible but the dogs sure were.

[Loonbeam]

The issue is in most countries, to take food into the country, the origin of the food must be documented as well as the contents and the package must be sealed and come from a source of suitable standards. This is why the cheese crackers I am eating right now say product of USA.

 

Princess (nor any line) does not have the facilities to prepare the food, identify the sources and label appropriately to meet those needs, thus nothing prepared on board or served outside of packaging can be taken off ship.

 

In most countries, they are strict enough that food garbage needs to be handled separately which is why many ships incinerate on board. And its not just cruise lines. If you ever have the chance, watch what happens with international flights. You will see the trash is handled separately of domestic and goes to a different facility (usually different colored bags)

[Paula_MacFan]

That's ok.....on the other 'food' thread going the OP asked if they could take a sealed Clif bar to ALASKA. They got a bunch of replies about gun-toting soldiers in South America.

 

How about Logan airport in Boston? Happened to a lady next to me as we waited for our luggage. Last I heard, Boston is still in the US. She was allowed to get her luggage and was lead away by two officers to who knows where. The gun wasn't very visible but the dogs sure were.

 

Once again, I was merely pointing out that in all the replies, the OP's specific question about ALASKA was lost in the replies about OTHER PORTS.

Edited March 27, 2014 by Paula_MacFan

[ggprincess2004]

I think I will just eat a HUGE breakfast that day and then maybe get a light snack when we get back on board before having a later dinner , I think that should do it , the tour is a private one not a Princess one so there is no snack or meal provided but I am sure I will survive , and no I have never taken any food off the ships before but wondered about the packed lunches but it seems that they would not be provided according to some of the posts here

 

Contact the tour provider since it is a private tour - they must be able to make some provision for a stop somewhere to allow their clients to get something to eat. They will be able to tell you what to expect - you may be pleasantly surprised. Honestly, have never been on a private tour where the comfort and happiness of their clients wasn't of high concern. They want good reviews to keep the bookings coming.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Contact the tour provider since it is a private tour - they must be able to make some provision for a stop somewhere to allow their clients to get something to eat. They will be able to tell you what to expect - you may be pleasantly surprised. Honestly, have never been on a private tour where the comfort and happiness of their clients wasn't of high concern. They want good reviews to keep the bookings coming.

 

I was wondering that myself. Maybe the OP should contact the tour operator and double check on the food question. I would imagine the company has sold this tour to many a cruise ship passenger (who would be in the same situation). It could be that there will be a lunch stop planned.

 

We usually don't go on excursions but a few cruises ago we went on a all day tour on the Big Island of Hawaii. The description listed that lunch was included so I figured we would stop somewhere (it was a tour of the eastern part of the island covering the waterfalls, but on the map there were some towns here and there). Our lunch stop turned out to be at a picnic area near the very top of the island. The guide took out a cooler that held boxes containing pre-made sandwiches from his favorite deli. They looked like very nicely made sandwiches, but I couldn't eat as they had the condiments spread on them. I wished I had taken a few of the granola/power bars that were back at my cabin. We also did a snorkeling trip that included lunch and at least you could put together your own hamburgers or sandwiches from the spread they had.

 

On our last cruise, we did another all-day tour and we did stop at a diner (the guide gave us a choice of four entrees and she called in the order ahead of time. And yes, I did ask if the condiments were on the side, which they were).

[SadieN]

Thanks for all your replies but I knowyou cannot take food off the ship , but honestly that is NOT the question I asked !!

 

It is just that we are on an all day tour in Dominica being picked up in the morning and doing 3 different beauty spots so doubt there will be any shops nearby and the tour does not provide lunch so was just wondering if anybody had ever had a packed lunch

 

Many of the warnings are also for others who read this thread now or in the future.;)

[Loonbeam]

Granola bars... Always in my go bag for excursions....

 

I was wondering that myself. Maybe the OP should contact the tour operator and double check on the food question. I would imagine the company has sold this tour to many a cruise ship passenger (who would be in the same situation). It could be that there will be a lunch stop planned.

 

We usually don't go on excursions but a few cruises ago we went on a all day tour on the Big Island of Hawaii. The description listed that lunch was included so I figured we would stop somewhere (it was a tour of the eastern part of the island covering the waterfalls' date=' but on the map there were some towns here and there). Our lunch stop turned out to be at a picnic area near the very top of the island. The guide took out a cooler that held boxes containing pre-made sandwiches from his favorite deli. They looked like very nicely made sandwiches, but I couldn't eat as they had the condiments spread on them. I wished I had taken a few of the granola/power bars that were back at my cabin. We also did a snorkeling trip that included lunch and at least you could put together your own hamburgers or sandwiches from the spread they had.

 

On our last cruise, we did another all-day tour and we did stop at a diner (the guide gave us a choice of four entrees and she called in the order ahead of time. And yes, I did ask if the condiments were on the side, which they were).[/quote']

[PescadoAmarillo]

NO ....and no other cruiseline would do this for you.

 

Not true. We saw box lunches being offloaded in a Caribbean port this winter from a Seaborn ship. Of course, their contents may have been "cleared" by the authorities and certainly the per diem price point is a bit different. But it does happen.

[Loonbeam]

I could see a luxury line investing in the staff to make that happen.

 

Also, pre-clearance CAN be arranged, that's how they are able to offload food at Princess Cay for example.

 

I suspect if the demand were truly there, they could offer a purchase program that would offset the cost of providing it.

 

Not true. We saw box lunches being offloaded in a Caribbean port this winter from a Seaborn ship. Of course, their contents may have been "cleared" by the authorities and certainly the per diem price point is a bit different. But it does happen.

[paul929207]

Thanks for all your replies but I knowyou cannot take food off the ship , but honestly that is NOT the question I asked !!

 

It is just that we are on an all day tour in Dominica being picked up in the morning and doing 3 different beauty spots so doubt there will be any shops nearby and the tour does not provide lunch so was just wondering if anybody had ever had a packed lunch

Dominica and many other islands are worried that thoughtless tourists will introduce animals that have no natural enemies on their island. Therefore the prohibit bringing food into their country.

[Colo Cruiser]

Yes other lines do it but Princess will not.

Edited March 28, 2014 by Colo Cruiser