Carrying luggage onboard

This may be a silly question but can you carry all of your luggage on board with you or are you only allowed to carry one bag? My Hubby and I are driving to the port and I would just rather bring all my stuff with me rather then possibly have to wait till after dinner the first night for my bags. Is that alright? or do they only allow one bag per person? I will probably have a rolling suitcase as well as a smaller carry-on and my husband will just have a rolling suitcase and a backpack. I plan on getting on the ship ASAP and would rather be able to unpack as soon as my cabin is ready. I realize that it may be an issue if my cabin isn't ready for a while but I don't really mind toting it with me to lunch if I need to :rolleyes:

There has never been a one bag limit. The only 'limit' is that whatever you carry on must be able to fit through the same security scanner as at the airport. So, if your rolling bags are larger than the airline carryon size, you will have to check it. And to add that if your cruise line does not have your cabins ready when you board, you have to drag all that luggage around until they do. EM

You can takeon whatever you can manage, but you don't need to. If you are concerned about the (very!) off chance your bags might not make it to your cabin before dinner why not leave all the bags with the porter at the curb except one. Pack that one with essentials for your first evening.

Thanks for the input. I hadn't thought about the X-rays :)

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Maybe we will just be sure to pack all of our first day stuff in a carry on. We have 8:30 dining so hopefully bags arriving wouldn't be an issue anyway

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It's a whole lot easier to just carry one carry-on each - which should allow for a change of clothes for dinner (which is never formal on first night) in case large bags are delayed. I have seen people wrestle three carry- ons each - for the bulk of their day until cabins were ready --- but WHY????????

Maybe we will just be sure to pack all of our first day stuff in a carry on. We have 8:30 dining so hopefully bags arriving wouldn't be an issue anyway

 

 

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Even though the cruise lines have a dress code for the MDR, the Maitre D and wait staff know that not everyone gets all of their luggage prior to dinner time on the first day. The first evening is most definitely cruise casual. You'll see people in shorts, blue jeans, or whatever they wore when embarking. Keep in mind that you also have the option of the buffet or room service if you don't feel appropriately dressed for the MDR.

Thanks everyone :) I will probably just get on in a sun dress that I feel is appropriate for the MDR if need be :) are the dining times the same for the first night or is it all like MTD? I can't remember from my first cruise and I read somewhere that carnival has odd dining the first night

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Thanks everyone :) I will probably just get on in a sun dress that I feel is appropriate for the MDR if need be :) are the dining times the same for the first night or is it all like MTD? I can't remember from my first cruise and I read somewhere that carnival has odd dining the first night

 

 

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The MDR dining times are the same every evening. So if you're dinner time is 8:30 p.m., it will be the same each evening. MTD, aka Any Time Dining, is just that. You can go in pretty much whenever you want to while the dining room is open. However, there are certain times when there may be a wait to get a table. We chose Any Time Dining for our last cruise, and we typically arrived at the dining room between 6:00 - 6:15, and were seated right away. After 6:15, a line would start to form, so those arriving after that time usually had to wait a bit to be seated. This would have been at the same time as early seating (6:00 p.m.) for the MDR. I would guess it would have been about the same for the late seating (8:30) in the MDR. A section of one of the dining rooms will have Any Time Dining, and the other will have set times (only) for dining.

Thanks beachbum53 :)

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Your countdown calendar is for a RC ship but you're asking about Carnival?:confused:

Anyway, on all of my cruises, our checked-in items have always gotten to our cabin before our late traditional seating, and sometimes even by sailaway. So unless you're on a short cruise and can pack everything in a carry on each (I wouldn't be able to do that, but some apparently can), just make sure all of your ID (passports, DL), medications, valuables, a bottle of sunscreen, etc., is in your carry-on. Many people will cross pack their suitcases (some of the wife's clothes in the husband's suitcase and vice versa). Give your check-in bags to the porter with a tip and it should end up eventually in your cabin.

Princess has the cabins available by the time passengers board, so you can go to your cabin right away. Not sure what other lines also do this or if you have to carry your carry ons with you until the cabins are available.

As far as I know, assigned dining times will be the same throughout your cruise. We always get late traditional (except for the one time we didn't clear the waitlist and got stuck with anytime dining, which we hated) so having the same time is great for us as we know when we're eating and can even have a mid-afternoon snack at just the right time. The dress code should be the same for all the MDRs whether assigned or flexible (so on formal dress nights, all the MDRs will have it, but for those not interested in dressing up -- and on most lines, you don't need a tux or long gown, except for maybe Cunard -- you can eat in the buffet).

I was just using carnival as an example of odd dining schedule night 1, cruising RCI :) sorry for the confusion! Thanks for the info! :)

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And formal nights are probably one of the things I'm MOST excited about! I never get to dress up in real life ;)

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And formal nights are probably one of the things I'm MOST excited about! I never get to dress up in real life ;)

 

 

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What about special occasions, like for your or your husband's birthday, or your anniversary? Anyway, I hope you have a great cruise!

We have kids and don't get out much lol ;) this trip is actually for our 10 yr anniversary and the first time we've been away alone since our honeymoon! If we do have a night out we are more likely to end up at a country bar (we ARE from Texas! ) so I end up in boots instead of heels!

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Congratulations on your anniversary!

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Thank you! We are super excited!

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We have kids and don't get out much lol ;) this trip is actually for our 10 yr anniversary and the first time we've been away alone since our honeymoon! If we do have a night out we are more likely to end up at a country bar (we ARE from Texas! ) so I end up in boots instead of heels!

 

 

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Congratulations on your anniversary. Maybe you could get your husband to do something fun and romantic for you. Take him to the Karaoke bar and have him sing a song to you. I sang a song for my wife on our ten year anniversary. I need a bucket to carry a tune, but my wife didn't care. She smiled and kind of teared up a little. Then she gave me a hug and a kiss, and well, the rest isn't G-rated.:o:D

Thanks! I would love that! But he's super shy so I won't hold my breath! ;)

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