Bringing Beverages On Board [Archive] - Cruise Critic Message Boards

jhannah

January 12th, 2005, 05:51 PM

localady

January 12th, 2005, 06:00 PM

Sure sounds like it to me......:rolleyes:

Another nickle and dime item??? This one would not sit well with me. :mad:
If that is the case, they will have a number of angry passengers aboard. Heck on our last cruise on HAL we watched people bringing all kinds of alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks on board, so they don't even seem to be enforcing the "no alcohol" consistently.:eek:

gizmo

January 12th, 2005, 06:01 PM

I haven't head a thing.

This thread may go for at least 3 or 4 pages !!!

Esme

January 12th, 2005, 06:48 PM

Just read it - that seems odd, because we took on some sodas/pop in each of our ports of call recently. Very confusing.

1cruiselvr

January 12th, 2005, 06:54 PM

If it's true, it was not enforced on our 12/04 Statendam cruise. Plenty of sodas and water being brought onboard regularly....happy sailing!

elmorejj

January 12th, 2005, 07:27 PM

It wouldn`t surprise me if they stopped the pax from bringing water and pop on board. Carnival has stopped it. I have a friend who cruises Carnival and she always took a case of bottled water on board, on her last cruise it wasn`t allowed, as they said they sold water on the ship!!.....jean :cool:

fsdj1097

January 12th, 2005, 07:45 PM

Just visited HAL website. Under "For Booked Guests", "Planning and Advice", "On Board Policies",and then, "Bringing Alcohol On Board", it still says "Except for Wine and Champagne", blah, blah, blah.

lee-gold

January 12th, 2005, 09:36 PM

That what it says!
Look at the HAL website, under Planning and Advise
Boarding Procedures.
No sodapop!

Whiskeyman

January 12th, 2005, 09:57 PM

I think someone missed the word "Alcoholic" when typing that up...
After the Please Note: and before beverages.....;)

peaches from georgia

January 12th, 2005, 10:12 PM

Planning & Advice:
On-board Policies

Bringing Alcoholic Beverages Onboard
Except for wine and champagne, alcoholic beverages purchased in the vessel's shops or otherwise brought on the ship cannot be consumed on the ship. Bottles and other containers will be collected for safekeeping and delivered to your stateroom on the last day of the voyage.

It doesn't read like anything has changed according to HAL's Alcohol Policy on the website

K&RCurt

January 12th, 2005, 10:19 PM

As JHANNAH said it under "boarding Procedures"

From the HAL website:

Boarding Procedures
Embarkation times are printed on the front of your Cruise Contract. Generally, however, early embarkation will commence at 11:30 a.m. There may be certain exceptions due to local governmental procedures. We strongly recommend that you do not arrive at the cruise terminal prior to 11:30 a.m. Keep in mind that you must be on the ship at least one hour before departure, and the gangway will be pulled thirty minutes before sailing.

Prior to boarding, you will pass through a security checkpoint. Next, you will be required to complete ship check-in formalities. Please note: beverages may not be brought on board during embarkation or in ports of call.

Nothing about alcohol..just 'beverages"

RuffinReady

January 12th, 2005, 11:37 PM

Well, I remember a very large thread that discussed this subject before. It was said there by reviewers that wine and Champagne were allowed. I think that someone from HAL must monitor these postings ;) and has modified their previous policy to rule out all beverages.

What do you think?

Ruffin

jhannah

January 12th, 2005, 11:53 PM

I think there is an inconsistency in what is printed on the website. Question is, which "version" is correct?

shipcafe

January 12th, 2005, 11:56 PM

I almost hate to start this thread. I don't want to "start" anything. But I just noticed something on HAL's website that appears to be different than before, and I'm wondering if they've changed their policy.

Under boarding procedures, here's what the website says now:
Please note: beverages may not be brought on board during embarkation or in ports of call.

Now, if I remember correctly, the info previously addressed liquor and said only wine and champagne could be brought on board. But in looking now I see no reference to this. Just the sentence in italics above.

Has anyone heard that HAL has changed their approach and now doesn't want ANY beverages brought on board ... including soft drinks? Have I missed something? Is this a "soft launch" of a new policy that hasn't been announced yet?

This sounds like it's just an over-examination of the "fine print". It doesn't seem to sound any different than that which has been discussed in the past unless I'm wrong? . . I've brought bottled water on before and have had no issue with it. I think that if this were a breaking news issue, it would have gone out by fax or press release versus just being tucked into the fine print for anyone to find inadvertantly ...

Steve

Southbound

January 13th, 2005, 12:07 AM

On our recent holiday sailing on the Rotterdam, I was told by a veteran staff (not crew) member that the hotel managers read this board every day to monitor comments, compliments, complaints and opinions. She has personally witnessed this on many occasions. I, for one, cannot drink Coke, which is the only brand HAL carries, and therefore carried on a 12-pack of Pepsi to enjoy in my cabin during our 14 days on board, in addition to regularly patronizing the bars/lounges every evening. We booked a b2b while on board and if, in fact, there's been a change in policy, we'll have to reconsider our booking. :(

michmike

January 13th, 2005, 05:57 AM

I personally have never understood the reason for allowing wine and champagne and prohibiting beer and liquor. Seems discriminatory to me. But it certainly isn't likely to change.

The pop (soda to those of you not in the Midwest) thing seems stupid though. Not a pop drinker myself (at least as long as they still make bourbon) but if HAL really needs the additional revenue all that bad, why don't they just raise the base price of the cruise $25 per person? Roughly another $40,000 in revenue per cruise and they can then quit all the nickel and dime nonsense that is alienating their base.

Don't think any of us, given the right itinerary, are going to balk at the additional cost. Certainly not to the extent we're all getting fed up with the fact that every time we cruise there has been another penny ante change in the experience we have come to expect.

trubey

January 13th, 2005, 07:56 AM

I find this slightly worrisome. One of the nice things about having a cabin with a fridge is putting a few bottles of champagne (or local plonk) in it to enjoy when the whim strikes. ("Just because I CAN, @#$% it!")

As it seems perpetually useless to email HAL for much of anything, does anybody know where we can get (ala CONLRAD) news and official information?

lkt

peaches from georgia

January 13th, 2005, 08:12 AM

The official HAL website (Planning and Advice:/On-board Policies/BRINGING ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES ONBOARD) still states that wine and champagne can be brought onboard and enjoyed in your cabin.

NOT ONE pax has come back from any HAL cruise on any HAL ship stating that there has been an alcohol or beverage policy change or that they have been told there would be a change.

Isn't there a little over-reaction here? Then again, isn't there often? ;)

RuthC

January 13th, 2005, 09:43 AM

IIRC the last time we discussed this we came to the conclusion that the reference meant no open containers. I believe we decided HAL didn't want to deal with spillage of sodas from cups as people were manuvering to get back on board.

At least that's the way it's worked out.

jhannah

January 13th, 2005, 12:07 PM

... the last time we discussed this we came to the conclusion that the reference meant no open containers.
I don't recall that -- but I could certainly understand it. Anything you bring aboard has to go through the x-ray machine, and an open container surely wouldn't be a good thing to try to run through. Would be good, however, if the website notation I found would specify that they were talking about open containers.

bickhal

January 13th, 2005, 04:45 PM

My wife and I just came back from 28 day Amazon cruise and 7 day Caribbean Cruise(Prinsendam and Oosterdam). The policy on both was no beer or hard liquor. Wine and Champagne are ok. Anything taken from you is returned on the last day of the cruise!

HeatherInFlorida

January 13th, 2005, 04:53 PM

I'm thinking they sell clothes onboard, too, so pretty soon we won't even be able to pack a bag:D . KIDDING!!!

I know a ton of people who brought a ton of Diet Coke onboard on our November cruise.
I think Ruth's post makes perfect sense and I'll bet that's what they mean.

anngie

January 13th, 2005, 04:58 PM

When in doubt call HAL customer service.
When we sailed in December coke c2 was allowed and water was too.:)

peaches from georgia

January 13th, 2005, 05:12 PM

[QUOTE=Ruth] IIRC the last time we discussed this we came to the conclusion that the reference meant no open containers. I believe we decided HAL didn't want to deal with spillage of sodas from cups as people were manuvering to get back on board.

You are absolutely correct about the previous thread on this subject, Ruth. This can't be a 'new' sentence on the website since we have discussed it before. That is exactly what it was- no open beverages while boarding. I don't think HAL expected every single word on the website would be parsed, when they clearly state the alcohol policy under the heading 'Bringing Alcoholic Beverages Onboard' and there has been no change of policies for soft or hard beverages on any of the ships.

I think we all can count on HAL telling us when there is a change in any policy. So far there has been no evidence of a change in policy or even a thought of a change on the web or on the ships. ;)

Charlie2na

January 13th, 2005, 05:34 PM

i'M GONNA TRY THIS SUNDAY.... A TWELVE PACK OF DIET PEPSI... WE'LL SEE

dakrewser

January 13th, 2005, 05:51 PM

This can't be a 'new' sentence on the website since we have discussed it before. That is exactly what it was- no open beverages while boarding. I don't think HAL expected every single word on the website would be parsed,

Parsed? Perhaps not, but they should strive to be sure that everything is clearly understood. From this discussion, and the earlier thread, it seems that it isn't clearly understood - nor clearly stated. If they intend "open beverage containers" then they should say "open beverage containers." But I really doubt that anyone is going to stop me bringing on a styrofoam cup of coffee....

-dave

xpcdoojk

January 14th, 2005, 09:21 AM

I think it is called trying to quietly discourage the practice of bringing outside beverages. I do not think from my experience on other cruise lines with similar or even more clearly specified policies that they really intend to enforce these type of policies. They do hope to benefit by making people think it may not be allowed or to just say ahhh screw it I don't want to deal with the hassle of bringing my own if they might take it away. I would assume an adult couple shows up with a small bottle of whiskey and a 6 pack of diet pepsi, and the most likely response is going to be nothing at embarkation. However, if a pair of 25 year old young men were to show up with 5 1.75 liter bottles of alcohol, 2 cases of beer, and 2 cases of mixers that the enforcement might be radically different. On my last cruise on RCI which has the clause prominently displayed in documents and online that no alcohol may be brought on board, along with the confusing classic we reserve the right to limit beverages, and the even more confusing, you may bring a special bottle of champagne and wine but we will charge a $15 plus tip corking fee. We sailed from Auckland, NZ and the day of embarkation we took a drive thru the nearby wine country. We collected about 15 bottles of wine amongst two couples. When we got to the port we placed them in a waterproof float bag, and wrapped the bottles in our scuba gear and bubble wrap. Then I took electrical tape and wrote Fragile wine do not drop on the outside of the bag in electrical tape. We drove our rental van to the baggage drop-off along with our other suitcases. After we checked in about 2 hours later all bags including the giant heavy wine bag were safely delivered to our cabins. So much for the written policy. This has been my experience on X, RCI and Carnival. I would imagine that HAL is more likely to follow the same pattern as not. To me the goal is to discourage not to stop. These forums provide the medium to plant the idea in our minds that it is going to be a hassle and not worth it, and we should just accept the fact that we should acquire all of these items on board from the cruiseline. JMHO and YMMV.

jc

shipcafe

January 14th, 2005, 10:18 AM

FYI I checked with a highly reliable source and was advised that the prohibition of soda, etc. is news to them !

LizB1

January 14th, 2005, 10:25 AM

Steve, how about wine, etc. Does that policy still remain the same?

serene56

January 14th, 2005, 10:31 AM

Wine is allowed to be carried on... You shouldnt have a problem-unless you are carrying on a case of the stuff.

shipcafe

January 14th, 2005, 11:58 AM

Wine is allowed to be carried on... You shouldnt have a problem-unless you are carrying on a case of the stuff.

Exactly. Not even sure how or why this all came up again in the first place :P haha

xpcdoojk

January 14th, 2005, 12:32 PM

Exactly. Not even sure how or why this all came up again in the first place :P haha

Because it gets started on a regular cyclical rotation thru all of the cruise forums, along with tipping, children ruining cruises, formal wear, nickel and diming, poor wages for cruiseline employees, smoking, chair hogging, and a few others. :D

jc

lambcom

January 14th, 2005, 03:54 PM

Someone, I think on this thread (it's so long now I don't have the energy to go back and try to find the post), mentioned that you can buy hard liquor (scotch, gin, etc.) from HAL in advance of the cruise and it will be delivered to your stateroom at or shortly after boarding. The prices were only slightly above those of a liquor store and certainly less than the bar price of $5 and up for a one to one and a half ounce drink. The question is: is the bottle sold by HAL a 750 ml (fifth) or a litre or the 1.14 litre (40oz.) bottle sold in Canada?

m steve

February 14th, 2005, 09:10 PM

Every cruise line that I have taken says "no alcoholic beverages may be taken on board except certain wines for dinner w/ a corkage charge.I have always packed a few bottles in my baggage as well as mixers and were never stopped. At the ports I put my carry on bag which sometimes contained a special rum from that island and was only stopped and held by NCL. Buying in duty free on board is held until late afternoon of last day, (I just ran out and opened the box in the room) and the Island(St. T or St. M) are held and brought the last day as well. Never a problem w/ cigarettes except limited choice bu well priced on ship. If bought in St. T, as many as you can carry, otherwise 1 ctn per.
Celebrity overprices it's drinks and I would rather pay for concierge class and drink my stuff on my veranda. I find tipping and extra $20 at the start to the room steward insures silence and lots of ice. Additional tips at end of cruise, of course.
I have never taken wine on borad but will on my next cruise as the selection I read on line isn't great. I would rather tip the wine steward a 20 several times and drink my favorites.
This will be my 7th cruise and I've booked 2 more for later '05 and Feb. '06. I am not cheap on the cruise but I don't like to be taken advantage of either. There is always one bar/bartender who pours a good shot and deserves a good tip. The cruise lines buy at duty free discount prices and their drink charges should be comensurate. I hate being nickle and dimead on the ship and I never drink the free(of taste) champers. Also I avoid art sales since it is the same junk on every ship. I don't know who places the value on that stuff but I wouldn't pay $5 for any of it. Hello suckers!!:mad:

zdude

February 14th, 2005, 09:25 PM

You're right m_steve. I use this practice all the time. I do not frequent 5 start places, but I used to work at them. My SO is amazed in the rare occurance that we frequent a 5 star or similar "tipping important" establishment.

My approach-- first impressions are everything. Tip the first time really, really generously. Strike up a conversation that will keep the ball rolling for the rest of your visit. I've been to hotels where people nicckel and dime the first few tips, waiting to see what kind of service they get-- not the right approach. Start out by shelling out. From there on out you can do some moderate tipping, but that first impression really sticks and if they keep the level of service up, I will too with the tipping. You gots to pay to play.

dakrewser

February 14th, 2005, 09:32 PM

And I'll bet you get good service, don't you?

Strangely enough, so do I and I never bribe the help. If the staff goes above and beyond, I'll tip well - but I see no reason to proclaim myself an obnoxious American by throwing dollars around as if this will buy me love.... But I do bet the staff likes to see you coming!

zdude

February 14th, 2005, 09:55 PM

I love it, they love me and I almost always get excellent service. I actually like to pay a bit mroe than the average Joe, to get treated a bit different than the average Joe. Its not all that often that I do so, but i see where it could pay off on a cruise.

If they are crap on the first impression, they will still get that first tip (maybe not quite so generous) and usually I find my ways to either get them improved or get them replaced.

Might be tougher on a cruise, I am only due for my first one. However I have been to all inclusives, 5 star hotels, its all the same. Most of the service people desire to get good tips and if rewarded appropriately they will give good service. I have had excellent service at "elcheapo" Cancun all inclusives. To the point where you get fresh, made to order meals when others do not.

Sometimes you have to spell it out to them, but they will get it, i.e. "bring me X and you will get Y". I hate having to do that because good service people should not need this, but if you can't swap out your cabin attendent what else is left?

Anyway, we should not be stingy. I can hardly imagine that the $10 pppd added to your bill really handles gratuities for the people that are taking care of you, but that is a whole other thread.

zdude

February 14th, 2005, 10:00 PM

Oh, yeah I have to add. I do like it when they like to see me coming. Isn't there somthing about someone seeing you walk in the door and saying...

Ah, Mr. Jones, good evening, hows the wife, have you had a great day, I have your favorite cocktail and table right over here. What else could I possibly do to make you the happiest man on earth...

LOL.

And its NEVER a bribe, I make them work for every penny.

dakrewser

February 15th, 2005, 12:48 AM

zdude

February 15th, 2005, 04:19 AM

Disappointed? No, more pocket change? Yes!:D

Tarkus

February 15th, 2005, 08:20 AM

i just play the odds - they can't check every bag of every passenger... so for my upcoming cruise i'll do what i've done on all my past cruises: pack a bottle of premium vodka and a 12-pak of diet coke (in cans) in my checked luggage... so far (knock on wood) i've yet to have a problem in a half dozen cruises i've taken over the past decade. hopefully this time won't be the first.

i agree that this is needless nickel-and-dimeing that doesn't help their cause - not adding much to the bottom line and creating ill will.

p.s. before my remark deteriorates into a "what if it breaks" caution, i have some very tight waterproof bags that in which i place the bottle... and when it's then cushioned by soft clothing... well, it'd take a drop from 20' or more to actually cause it to leak. i'm not worried.

jaguarstyper

February 15th, 2005, 08:52 AM

The question is: is the bottle sold by HAL a 750 ml (fifth) or a litre or the 1.14 litre (40oz.) bottle sold in Canada?

The liquor on Veendam and Zuiderdam was in 1 litre bottles. I'm going to assume thats the case on all HAL ships. I think that is pretty much the standard size everywhere in the world except for USA, Canada and UK.

Tim

CDRMark

February 15th, 2005, 09:51 AM

On Maasdam 11/20 inst. DW and I carted a full case of sparkling wine onboard in the original container, overtly, and were smilingly assisted by various HAL personnel all the way through (curb to cabin). Some of them even commented on it and were excited to hear it was in celebration of a special occasion. I'm betting typo or disconnect; foul up, not conspiracy.
I had pre-ordered, thru an extremely helpful ships services in Seattle via the 800#, some alcohol which was delivered to the cabin on the first sea day. It was in litre bottles.
Cheers
MarkB

maddie404

February 16th, 2005, 08:17 AM

I have a hard-sided suitcase that I plan to put the soda, water & wine. Has anyone else used a case specifically for this purpose & had any embarkation problems with it? I plan to wrap the wine w/ bubble wrap to prevent breakage & put the suitcase thru with the other luggage, not as a carry-on bag. We are driving to the port, not flying. If anything breaks inside I figure I have no wine-stained clothing, just a wet case. I plan to tape the bottle caps close to prevent leakage. Do you think they will search the bag? I use a luggage strap on it. With driving to the port, can I lock the suitcases or are we subject to search similar to the airports?

Maddie

bookworm0911

February 16th, 2005, 08:58 AM

I have a hard-sided suitcase that I plan to put the soda, water & wine. Has anyone else used a case specifically for this purpose & had any embarkation problems with it? I plan to wrap the wine w/ bubble wrap to prevent breakage & put the suitcase thru with the other luggage, not as a carry-on bag. Do you think they will search the bag? I use a luggage strap on it. With driving to the port, can I lock the suitcases or are we subject to search similar to the airports?

Maddie
Don't understand why you are going to all this trouble. You are allowed to take on soda, water, and wine. Just carry it on.

dakrewser

February 16th, 2005, 11:34 AM

Don't understand why you are going to all this trouble. You are allowed to take on soda, water, and wine. Just carry it on.

Maybe it tastes better if you think you're "putting one over" on the cruise line...

JaniceB

February 16th, 2005, 11:55 AM

If I choose to bring alcoholic beverages on board, I will still purchase drinks on the cruise. I would not bring my own drink to lunch or dinner. My consumption would be limited to my cabin or a walk around the ship. If I drank a specific non-alcoholic drink and the ship didn't carry my brand I would bring it with me. I don't think many people would complain about that. I personally don't like the fact that you can bring a bottle of wine and not some other type of alcohol. There are lots of people who do not like wine. I think this is the reason that the policy is not strictly enforced. Isn't HAL losing money when people bring their own wine? I am happy that they let us bring wine on board, but isn't this a type of discrimination? No alcohol is no alcohol.

dakrewser

February 16th, 2005, 12:05 PM

I am happy that they let us bring wine on board, but isn't this a type of discrimination? No alcohol is no alcohol.

Sure it is discrimination. Discrimination happens all the time. You discriminate, I discriminate - everyone discriminates. Some discrimination is illeagal, but most isn't.

RuffinReady

February 16th, 2005, 01:20 PM

I wonder what happend to those old "steamer trunks"? I'll bet that you could pack several cases of your favorite beverage in one of them. And, how about having a keg of beer delivered to your cabin?

Just trying to be helpful.

Ruffin

cruisy

February 16th, 2005, 03:29 PM

Maddie

On our last cruise we put an entire case of soda into a cheap gym bag, zipped it up an slapped a luggage tag on it. They have extras at the port. We have even placed the stickers directly onto a case of Coke. We had a porter joke that he wanted a can, but other than that no questions or problems. If it is confiscated, who cares. If not, then you save yourself a few bucks.

Personally, we buy the soda cards, and we bring our own Cokes. It's nice to have a Coke or two to bring with you off the ship. We even bring FOOD, as there is a general lack of candy and chips on all ships.

maddie404

February 16th, 2005, 04:22 PM

I know I am allowed to bring in all of the products I mentioned. Thanks to these boards and my previous 5 cruises I am aware of the difficulty of getting a diet soda at 7 a.m. And we always bring water. Used to bring our fav alcohol too & never had a problem. They don't serve the brands we like on board. We do buy our share of cocktails, but like alot of others we enjoy wine in the room pre & apres dinner.
I suppose I should have worded the post differently. What I wanted to know about luggage was can we lock suitcases? I dislike schlepping carry-on except for the bare essentials, esp since we are driving to the ship. If someone could kindly answer it would be most appreciated. Port of embarkation is Port Canaveral.