Carrying wine/alcohol onboard

[scotch_scotch]

I have been cruising, and cruising these Boards for many years. I have also been bringing wine aboard since, at the latest, my first Mediterannean cruise in '97; never had a problem and I always cruise Celebrity.

This topic thread comes up all the time. People chat on it for a while and then, months later, there will be a new one. About 4 years ago, when there was an actual report in a cruise newsletter about Carnival's booze confiscation we had a 26 page thread on this board about bringing alcohol aboard. You might be surprised but people on both sides of the argument got really really really really upset and started going at each other. It was hilarious ! [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] There were lawyers on the thread giving legal opinions about the cruise-lines reservation of rights and waivers and implied waivers; there were alcoholics threatening to picket the cruise docks; there were god-fearing abolisionists decrying the sins of alcohol (even wine!); there were antagonists just stirring things up and calling people alcoholics - it was hilarious [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] Oh, and needless to say, I have not seen any reports of Carnival confiscating liquor since then (the people who had the liquor confiscated were bringing cases of tequila, margarita mix and beer on board, they were extremely loud, rude and condescending to the staff and that is, probably, why the alcohol was confiscated).

In any event, here is something to keep in mind: the cruise lines all monitor these boards, very closely and on a daily basis. I wouldn't be surprised if sometimes they even stir up the discussion to see what the customers (you and I) have to say. Having monitored these alcohol bring-aboard threads for years, the well-reasoned consensus is that the Cruise Lines are not going to stop you from bringing alcohol on board as long as they don't anticipate a problem and as long as you don't broadcast (like posting on here how much you intend to bring) the mass quantities that you bring aboard.

I don't know why you keep anouncing the fact that you are going to bring a case (or more) of wine on board for a party; it seems like you are asking for trouble. Don't get me wrong, I understand you're nervous about slugging all of that wine to the port only to have it taken away until the end of the cruise, but nobody is going to be able to give you any more comfort. Further, the fact that you are openly announcing your intention to have a party with alcohol, at which the ship will not be controlling the amount of alcohol served, sends up real RED FLAGS ! This is exactly what the "policy" is designed to protect against. I'm not saying, or even thinking, that you and your freinds will be over-imbibing and causing an unruly uncontrollable disturbance fueled by an un-controllable supply of alcohol, but that has happened before and that is exactly what the ship does not want to happen. The policy is not aimed at making the extra mark-up on booze, enough people are going to buy booze on board in any event (even you will buy some drinks, right? (say yes, there's no upside to disagreeing here)).

So, I don't know if that's cryptic or pretty straight-forward, but I hope you get my point [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_confused.gif[/img] Enjoy that cruise and your wine.

Oh, by the way, who suggested that it would be acceptable to bring 2-buck chuck and pay a $12 corkage fee? NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, let me say that again, NO, and that has nothing to do with the quality of the wine (while I am not particularly fond of $2 buck chuck, it is actually comparable to $12-$15 Calif. wines (which are all over-priced) and similar to what most Europeans, especially Italians and French, drink as their everyday wine). It's just that (i) it's a little bit too much hassle to carry around a bunch of $2 wine and (ii) it does seem a bit wrong to pay more to open a bottle of wine then you paid for the wine! Celebrity actually has a very reasonable wine list and for a few dollars more, you can enjoy a nice $24 bottle of wine with dinner.

This many much more days until I'm cruising:

Time To Cruise !!! :
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[10s nut]

Goodness! Many thanks S_S for the lengthy and well thought out post. My question, however, was not fearloaded. I know this cruiseline and do not worry about them...just the logistics of how. I guess we should let the sleeping dog lie (or is is lay? maybe we can start a new thread with all the English majors! Oh yeah now I remember...lay is to put or place, lie is to rest) [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[bankr]

Last year we were on the Constellation (Baltics) and we brought a case of wine in a 'shipper'. We got on in La Havre so it was very noticeable since no other passengers were boarding at that time. We had no problem and no one questioned it. We typically bring wine and have never had a problem.

[10s nut]

What exactly is a "shipper"? Do you mean the case box that is divided into 12 slots?
How did you carry it on?

[wanderlust1]

Can anyone recommend a good place to buy wine in Ft. Lauderdale so I don't have to "lug" bottles of wine on the plane?

[gardencat]

Wow, sorry I missed the long thread four years ago sounds like it was a hoot!
Anyone interested in the confiscated alcohol situation might want to check out the NCL board today.
Having read several of these questions on different boards in the last little while I think the only answer is no-one really knows what will happen till they get there. You may get it on, you may have it confiscated. As long as you won't let it spoil your cruise if it is taken from you ( you get it back later right) and won't be angry, humiliated or real upset I say go for it. If you get it on good,if they take it you'll just have something left to cheer you up after the cruise.
Seems the best policy is to be as discrete and polite as possible when attempting to board with it. (Discrete may be a bit of a problem with case amounts!)
For those of us who can't be bothered with the hassle of bringing our wine (or who have it confiscated while boarding). Does Celebrity have any wine program or deal which lets you get a bit of a break if you order wine every night for dinner?

[bankr]

10s nut..a shipper has styrofoam in it so the wine bottles aren't banging. You might ask your local wine store if they have them or where to get one. It probably holds 6 bottles max. We probably took two or put some in our luggage. Can't remember, must have been all that wine [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img]

BTW, I just saw some 'wine luggage' in a catalog. It didn't look like you could check it but it has dividers and wheels etc.

[sddiver]

10s Nut,

Here is the best way to bring a case on board. Get one of the soft sided coolers(with wheels) that collapse at Walmart/Costco et al. If you buy the right size(case size) you can insert the cardboard seperators out of an actual case of wine box. Load your wine into said cooler with handy seperators to protect the bottles. Roll onto ship, with your carry on piggybacked atop the rolling cooler. Easy and no need to carry all that weight. Did this last year on Princess and plan on doing it this coming New Years on Celebrity out of Galveston.
Bonus- you have a cooler you can tuck under the bed or use for ice or excess chilling for all those white wines you may be serving.

Enjoy
Rich

[Bruinboy]

We travel often to Napa and Sonoma and bring back wine with us. A couple of years ago we purchased a wine carrier on wheels. One carrier holds a case and the other carrier holds a half case. The slots for the wine are padded. We just carry the wine on the plane. Sites like iwa.com or wineenthusiast.com will have them in stock. It's one of the best investments we've made. It sure beats having to "carry" the stuff on board a plane or ship. The wheeled carrier makes it very simple.

Hope you find what you need and enjoy the wine!!!

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Sun Princess 2000
Constellation 2003

[lkb125]

We brought a few bottles of wine on board so we could have a glass on the verendah no one bothered us. Lorelle

[patqrq]

Last week on Galaxy carried 1 case beer;2 bottles wine;1 bottle whiskey;1 bottle vodka.Be sure not to pack in your checked luggage.Also,once on board when the shops opened,we were permitted to purchase alcohol and take to our cabin.This was the first time out of our 9 cruises that we were allowed to do this.

[gardencat]

That is a policy I would certainly like to see adopted. I don't mind buying alcohol at a reasonable rate from the ship store. But $55 for a liter of vodka (which someone on another thread said NCL quoted them) seems to me way too much.
Sure if I want a fancy frity drink on the pool deck I'll pay the going rate (just as I would in a restaurant or terrace back home).
I do think in your own cabin you should be able to pour yourself a drink at a more reasonable rate.

[patqrq]

Hi Gardencat-The duty free prices on board for alcohol were about half of what we pay at home.Celebrity does seem to be a little more liberal with their alcohol policies regarding consumption in your cabin.Last year on an NCL cruise,alcohol was collected from many passengers who attempted to carry it on.We were able to bring champagne on when we informed them it was our 25th anniversary.

[Bry]

My wife an I have carried wine aboard every cruise we've been on (mostly because cruiseline winelists, until recently, haven't been very good) and have never had a problem.

Celebrity pretty much encourages carrying on wine by chargin corkage. I wouldn't worry about bringing as much as you like.

Non-wine alcohol may be a different story as the line doesn't have a good way of profiting from your bringing it onboard.

[JNLROSE]

I think this will answer several of the above-mentioned questions.

Right across the st. from the Embassy Suites on 17th St. in FLL is a GREAT liquor store. They have almost anything & everything you could possibly want at great prices! [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

We just carried a pull carry-on full of wine & a couple of bottles of rum & vodka on the Summit on 2/23. I mean to tell you, the entire suitcase was nothing but wine and booze, not a problem! [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] Went through all security without a hitch! We were also carrying a 12 pack of diet coke & a 12 pack of bottled water for our suite. No one bothered with us at all. We used all this for in-suite drinking & entertaining. [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_wink.gif[/img] We purchased wine every night at diner. Our bill to get off the ship was in excess of $2000, so before anyone flames me, think twice!

Rosie

E-mail me <a href="mailto:JNLROSE@AOL.COM">here</a href>

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CELEBRITY MERCURY HERE I COME!!!

[JNLROSE]

I think this will answer several of the above-mentioned questions.

 

Right across the st. from the Embassy Suites on 17th St. in FLL is a GREAT liquor store. They have almost anything & everything you could possibly want at great prices!

 

We just carried a pull carry-on full of wine & a couple of bottles of rum & vodka on the Summit on 2/23. I mean to tell you, the entire suitcase was nothing but wine and booze, not a problem! Went through all security without a hitch! We were also carrying a 12 pack of diet coke & a 12 pack of bottled water for our suite. No one bothered with us at all. We used all this for in-suite drinking & entertaining. We purchased wine every night at dinner. Our bill to get off the ship was in excess of $2000, so before anyone flames me, think twice!

 

Rosie

 

E-mail me <a href="mailto:JNLROSE@AOL.COM">here</a href>

 

CELEBRITY MERCURY HERE I COME!!!

 

[gardencat]

As I stated before I don't mind paying the going rate for a drink I consume in a bar or on the pool deck I don't even mind paying a premium for a nice bottle of wine at dinner, although sometimes I would like to be able to enjoy a special bottle of my choosing and would be more than willing to pay a 'corkage' charge for the privilege.

I do find it annoyiung to be told I can not bring a bottle of wine or spirits to enjoy in my own caban or on my balcony. Unfortunately it has seemed to me on past cruises, that all cruise lines were hanging together on their policy to forbid anyone to bring their own alcohol on board. If Celebrity (or any other cruise line) is more flexible in this area it would certainly encourage me to choose to cruise with that line.

Lets hope that Celebrity is seeing the light in this area.

I cruised a couple of years ago on RCCL and was surprised that the head sommilier did not seem to be familiar at all with Canadian ice wine. (They certainly did not have ice wine on their wine list.) The next time I was cruising on RCCL I would have loved to bring a bottle to share with the wine staff just to introduce them to it but didn't want the hassle of trying to bring it on and maybe having it confiscated so just forgot it.

Wouldn't it be nice to have a more open minded line that would make that sort of thing possible?

[Texed]

I wanted to bring a small still on board in my carry on. Is that ok?

 

Texed

 

[brigittetom]

gardencat, I think previous posters have stated that you can bring a moderate amount of alcohol on board. That would include the Ice Wine. I have read over and over that it's rude to bring alcohol on board. Sorry, we like to have a before dinner drink in the cabin and always bring a bottle in our checked luggage. Celebrity will not stop you from doing this.

 

Zenith from Jacksonville

Feb. 13 05

[Princess-of-Quite-alot]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>and always bring a bottle<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

A bottle????? I was planning on about 6!

 

Celebrity Century 5/8/04 -Western Caribbean

 

Carnival Ecstasy 2/04 - Baja

Tahitian Princess 2/03- French Polynesia

Sea Princess 7/02 - Alaska

Carnival Ecstasy 5/02 - Baja

Royal Caribbean Monarch 10/00 - Southern Caribbean

Carnival Elation 10/99 - Mexican Riviera

Royal Caribbean Monarch 1/97 - Southern Caribbean

[brigittetom]

Princess, Okay, a bottle for each of us and we replenish in San Juan.

 

Zenith from Jacksonville

Feb. 13 05

 

[This message was edited by brigittetom on 04-25-04 at 09:24 AM.]

[gardencat]

Texed, I don't mind if you bring a small still with you but given the no candles, no iron, basically no source of heat allowed in cabins it might be kind of useless. Why don't you just bottle it at home and bring that with you.

[Princess-of-Quite-alot]

Part of my packing dilemma is gonna be what wines and champagnes to bring!! Life is rough.

 

Celebrity Century 5/8/04 -Western Caribbean

 

Carnival Ecstasy 2/04 - Baja

Tahitian Princess 2/03- French Polynesia

Sea Princess 7/02 - Alaska

Carnival Ecstasy 5/02 - Baja

Royal Caribbean Monarch 10/00 - Southern Caribbean

Carnival Elation 10/99 - Mexican Riviera

Royal Caribbean Monarch 1/97 - Southern Caribbean

[pokerplayer]

10s nut as I promised here is the report on taking wine on board. Century 4-24, I purchased a case of wine at store the night before and rolled it on the ship. No questions no comments. During the trip, the ship sent us a bottle of wine to the room to apologize for a mishap. Many afternoons spent on verranda. I did buy a gym bag large enough to put the case inside, probably not neccessary. Have a good trip.

[mari 10]

Was on the Infinity on 4/18/04, had 8 bottles of wine packed in my carry on bag. No problem at all. We enjoyed some of the wine on the veranda and other bottles with dinner. The wine steward liked our choices and was happy to sample our wine. We were charged $12.00 in the main dining room and $15.00 in speciality restaurant.

We also packed various mini bottles of cordials for our after dinner drinks (after midnight) on the veranda.

We certainly didn't cheat Celebrity, cause we frequented all the various bars.

yes, we did drink and eat alot, and had the best time of our lives. it was truly great.

Can't wait to sail again.

Mari