Another - bringing booze aboard

[deb380]

Obviously they xray our luggage. In some of the threads they say take off the labels, Okay. SHould you wrap the bottles in a towel, or don't you have to worry about that. I'm not bringins a ton just a bottle of vodka. Just want to know the best way to sneak it on?

 

We're dancing

[Gonz]

That's a question I've been thinking about as well for my upcoming cruise. My folks are avid cruisers and drinkers, and I know they usually bring at least a bottle for their cabin, so I'll ask them what the procedure is, although by the time I get back on here I'm sure this question will have been answered 10 times!

[theblueroom]

Pouring the vodka into a water bottle always works great for me.

[JLTMET56]

Obviously they xray our luggage. In some of the threads they say take off the labels, Okay. SHould you wrap the bottles in a towel, or don't you have to worry about that. I'm not bringins a ton just a bottle of vodka. Just want to know the best way to sneak it on?

 

I have never taken off labels, have never put them in other bottles and I do wrap them well in my suitcase...especially since the bottle I bring on is bombay sapphire and its a glass bottle..first I wrap it well in plastic, then bubble wrap it and tape it well then I wrap it in plastic again and then wrap it in a beach towel and put it in between the clothes..we've never had a problem ...

[arayasunshine2]

They sell plastic bottles of vodka, captain morgan etc. I brought 3 bottles in my checked luggage just wrapped in a small towel and then ziploc bag.

[chefboyrdee]

vodka or gin in a water bottle has always worked for me. i call it "the cruise ship deception method"!!! lol

[caribbean dreams]

I also have do not conceal booze in my suitcase, i just wrap it real go so it does not get broken when my suitcase is being tossed around, My mother inlaw and some friends brought a whole suitcase full of wine on the ship, just wrapped it in bubble wrap (i was not part of that group, i am not a slushy as i call them) they do this on every cruise, I usually only take 1 bottle and buy the rest of my drinks on board.

[deb380]

My vodka bottle is plastic wasn't worried about that just the x-ray part.

We plan to buy drinks on board, but when your getting ready for diner we enjoy a cocktail. I also have to bring on my low cal cranberry juice. We get in the night before so have to start that vaca with a few cocktails also!!!

[Jerry101]

Alcohol...ah yes here we go again…:rolleyes:

 

Okay here’s the drill. ALWAYS put it in your checked luggage, NEVER in the carry-on. Try to protect the bottles, bubble wrap, foam wrap or clothes, whatever works to cushion them as much as possible. ALWAYS tip you baggage handler the MAX you can budget for. I know it may seem excessive but I tip $2.00 per bag. It's double what most people tip but my bags still look like new and I have never had a problem. The carts they stack your luggage on are huge and yours may (or may not) be on the bottom. :( Yep, once you check-it it’s totally in their control. It could end up in your room still looking like new or in the Bay in 100 feet of saltwater :eek: (accidentally, of course). Don’t miss this step!! LOL. :D I packed a plastic flask of 1792 Ridgemont Reserve Barrel Select (YUM!!) and a bottle of Morgan’s Spiced Rum. I would NEVER mix good Bourbon with anything and I thought the Fruit Punch or lemon aid might work with the Rum. LOCK your bag for sure. This has worked every time for me. Just remember it is their right to take it if they find it. You will not have a leg to stand on argument wise. So be prepared to do without. :cool:

[LSUtraveler]

Always brought extra booze in orginal container in my checked in luggage and never had a problem. More worried if it would break. Never brought a lot on board, more for a night cap on the balcony but never heard of anyone having a problem with check in luggage booze.

 

But so what if they take it out.

[Gonz]

A couple of folks have mentioned locking their bags. With security the way I assume it is getting your bags on the ship, can you lock your bags? If you do lock your bags is this going to be some sort of search deterrent, or should I be concerned about some baggage handler actually stealing something out of my bags?

 

Also, and this may come out wrong, can one assume that luggage might receive treatment relative to what category luggage tag is attached to it? If I have VIP/Suite tags on my bags, will they possibly get better treatment?

[jayzee]

First, lock your luggage, booze or no booze. The baggage handlers are not employed by the cruise line and the cruise line is not responsible for them. I have never heard of anything going missing, but lock them none the less! I know on the airlines you cannot lock your bags in case they want to search them, but not the case with the cruise line.

 

As for the booze, we always pack two bottles. Vodka for dh and The Captain for me and we never have had a problem. The very first cruise we went on we bought a HUGE bottle on and just put it in the middle of my suitcase - no problems. However, we did bring our rolling cooler full of soda and they did search that for any beer - although they didn't find the lonely two left from the two day trip to New Orleans:D ! I do try to buy plastic bottles so that they won't break and I still put them in plastic bags just in case. We buy plenty of drinks on board also, these are just for a before dinner drink in the cabin or a nightcap. I do know you can bring wine and champagne on board with no problems - Not sure if it is all cruise lines though, so if you are planning this, you'll need to check with the cruiseline. My friend always brings champagne and wine right in her cooler and puts it on the xray machine - even leaked once:eek: !

 

I had heard once that the metal caps on the bottles tipped them off, but that may have been an urban legend as I am sure I have brougth metal caps on.

 

I'm not sure about your luggage being treated better or worse depending on your stateroom tags. I've been all over the place and it's always been treated well. Never any problems there. They really do want you to be happy and start your vacation off well. Of course, somebody has to be the last one to get their luggage, but I think they just start getting it to the staterooms ASAP!

 

Have a fun trip!

[ezjack1825]

It's pretty easy to get stuff on board. Just get the bottle of your choice in plastic, put it in a big ole zip lock just in case. Wrap it in a towel, pairs of shorts or jeans, etc and place dead center in your checked bag. So say something happens to it..... More than likely at your first port you can buy a bottle and they won't say a thing as you come back on board. Done it several times just fine. Seems that they know it's the rule, but then they have to store it and lug it to your room. Too much work and they have enough to do.

 

Have a great trip!

[KruznKel]

We just returned from the 03/05 Victory cruise.. My SO.. brought in his checked luggage.. just tucked inside his shoes.. (they are size 14):eek: A bottle of Baileys, Amarula (sp) and 2 bottles of Kaluha.. Never questioned. Arrived in tack.. stayed on the bar all week.. he brought it back home with him LOL..

[ohman4966]

We just returned from the 03/05 Victory cruise.. My SO.. brought in his checked luggage.. just tucked inside his shoes.. (they are size 14):eek: A bottle of Baileys, Amarula (sp) and 2 bottles of Kaluha.. Never questioned. Arrived in tack.. stayed on the bar all week.. he brought it back home with him LOL..

 

Hey irish newfie didn't you use wellwishers for beer how did that go?:p

[jerseygirl3]

As long as it's in your checked luggage, you won't have a problem. If it's in your carry-on, yes, they may confiscate it. We always bring hard liquor in it's original bottle (well wrapped in bubble wrap) in our checked luggage. We used to always bring an extra suitcase just filled with beer, but my husband stopped drinking beer, so we no longer do that. The porter at the pier would always laugh whenever he had to pick up that suitcase!!! We always slipped the porter a few extra bucks to make up for the hernia he developed after lifting the beer suitcase!

[wwakla]

I was just telling some cousins (new cruisers) about smuggling :D

I told them how I had about 2 inches left in a bottle of Southern Comfort so I left it for the room steward to do what he saw fit with it. We were discussing what the crews breakroom must look like the first night after debarkation and what the crew must look like..........hic up :o

 

About the post of your luggage may be on the bottom. Ours was on the top and fell off.:eek: Weren't we and the porter surprised when soda started spraying out the zipper. We all had a good laugh and we gave her an extra $5 tip. :D

[Gonz]

Well, you've all made a believer out of me. Although my wife can't drink for the next 9 months;) I'll be certain to pack myself a good bottle of scotch for a pre-dinner and after dinner drink on the balcony!

[dognewtricks]

OK, so, I'm sailing the Liberty on 3.26 (yippee!) and I was wondering about the liquor situation. I'll probably bring a bottle of Captain and a bottle of whatever my bf wants. If we aren't allowed to bring liquor on board, the stewards won't say anything about it??

[Gonz]

It's been my impression thus far that the Stewards work mostly for tips. Not that they'll let you get away with murder, but they'll let minor things like this slide otherwise they know it may affect their tip at the end of the week.

[KruznKel]

Hey irish newfie didn't you use wellwishers for beer how did that go?:p

 

Yes I did use WW's .. went well. both cases of beer delivered to my room 3pm all wrapped up with a pretty bow:D

[ohman4966]

How much was that if you dont mind me asking think i might try them out:)

[KruznKel]

How much was that if you dont mind me asking think i might try them out:)

 

It was $55 per case plus $7 per case delivery.. works out to $2.58 per beer.. compared to $4 plus Carnival wanted..:D

[ohman4966]

thanks for the info:cool:

[Gonz]

I believe I just checked the Well Wishers site, specifically for Miami, and it wasn't very helpful. Would anyone here have a link specifically to where you got the beer from? Or at least any info on what kind of beer it was, bottles or cans etc.

 

Thanks!