Emerald Cruise Luggage restriction?

[robertmartha]

For those who have sailed on Emerald - paperwork from Emerald indicates one suitcase per passenger? Typically travel with a suitcase and a carryon each.  Is this allowed or is one suitcase the max per person? Thinking may not even need the carry-on since we are not staying pre or post cruise and since its the summer should be traveling light anyway...but the other couples we are traveling with do not travel light! Thought I would pose the question on the boards to see what others have experienced.

 

thanks all

Bob

[Host Jazzbeau]

I've seen similar paperwork on many cruise lines.  We also travel with 1 checked bag, one roller carry-on, and one 'personal item' each – and have never had a problem.  [Haven't sailed on Emerald, but this experience is from Ama, Scenic and land tour operators]

[gnome12]

If you don't have room for 4 pieces of luggage under the bed put the carryons into the larger suitcases.

Edited April 18 by gnome12

[Canal archive]

Agree with Jazz but I’m pretty sure the one item of luggage is to do with the staff rather than storage you’ll have all of under the bed to use. The Orient Express is where you really must follow the luggage rules.

[Roz]

Yes, it has to do with the staff having to schlep the bags on and off the ship. 

[CDNPolar]

I would agree that they are trying to make the loading and unloading of luggage easier, but we typically handle our own carryon.  We rarely leave that with the checked luggage to arrive in our cabin, because this bag is where we have the medications, laptop, and other valuables.  So, we are technically only giving any cruise line one bag pp to schlep.

 

And, yes @gnome12 this is a great suggestion and this is how we store our bags at home too...

Edited April 18 by CDNPolar

[robertmartha]

Thanks all - never thought of it from the perspective of the "handling" of the luggage - I was thinking more "space".

 

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

But my experience is that the staff runs up from the ship to your cab and just grabs everything without counting – they even try to take the 'personal item' that I want to keep handy!

[Canal archive]

Yes mini tug of war or is it tug of luggage!

[Host Jazzbeau]

50 minutes ago, Canal archive said:

Yes mini tug of war or is it tug of luggage!

It's actually such a wonderful initiation to the joys of River Cruising – compared to Ocean Cruising, where the highly paid stevedore demands a tip to make sure your luggage arrives and isn't too badly bashed up...

[ericosmith]

2 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

It's actually such a wonderful initiation to the joys of River Cruising – compared to Ocean Cruising, where the highly paid stevedore demands a tip to make sure your luggage arrives and isn't too badly bashed up...

Or perhaps it's Europe vs. the US handlers.

[pontac]

@robertmartha Hi Bob, if Emerald wanted to restrict baggage to one item they'd have said so.

One suitcase means what it says, hand baggage is OK.

 

Usually we are collected from the airport by the cruise line, and our cases go in the coach hold while we keep our hand baggage with us. When we get to boat we get out, go to boat reception to get cabin keys and go to cabin.

 

The cases are collected from the coach and delivered to cabins by boat staff. You'll get tags with your cabin number you attach to your case so the crew know where to take them.

 

At the end of the tour, cases are collected from outside the cabin and loaded on the coach.

 

You don't need to carry your cases from time you get to transport on way there to getting to the airport on way back.

 

If you make your own way to/from the boat, your cases will be taken from/to your taxi.

 

You'll get baggage tags that indicate what time you're leaving and how.

 

If there are 180 people on your boat, the crew have to carry 180 cases up a gangplank and get them to cabins; if people were allowed two cases each then crew could be taking 360 cases.

It's as @Roz says.

 

One time I made my own way (I didn't fancy an early morning flight, so I came day before and stayed  in hotel near mooring spot) the boat crew saw us walking along quayside and came running towards us to take our cases.

 

 

[robertmartha]

Thanks everyone for your insight. DW and I are determined to start traveling lighter - we always tend to overpack - and with this being a summer sailing and more casual then an ocean sailing we are determined to pack lighter and not be weighed down with both a suitcase and a carryon. Just have to convince the other couples traveling with us 😉

[Canal archive]

Last year we treated ourselves and had our suitcases couriered oh so decadent and well worth it.

[pontac]

1 hour ago, robertmartha said:

not be weighed down with both a suitcase and a carryon

 

Hold on - you need a carry on for your plane trip: you don't want to pack essentials (medicines, chargers, e-readers, cameras and valuables in checked in cases, if for no other reason than the bag might not arrive with you.

[gnome12]

36 minutes ago, pontac said:

 

Hold on - you need a carry on for your plane trip: you don't want to pack essentials (medicines, chargers, e-readers, cameras and valuables in checked in cases, if for no other reason than the bag might not arrive with you.

Yes, but it might be the difference between a backpack and a rolling carry-on suitcase. (Personally, I would never travel with anything but a single rolling suitcase and a backpack, but that is me.)

[robertmartha]

Should have specified that I will be bringing a backpack - laptop (still working 😔) and other important items. When we bring the roller carry-ons it's always to use for the pre/post stays before a sailing so we don't have to open/dig into the large suitcase.

The older we get - the lighter we want to travel😉