Best way to transport a case of wine?

[inspfitz]

What is the best way to transport a case of wine from my car at the San Pedro Terminal to the ship? I have those reusable cloth bags they give you at the wine store and the cardboard box they came in from the store.

Should I also bubble wrap them? How hard is it to get them out to be stamped by Princess? Should I then carry them to the MDR for safe keeping until our cabin is ready? Should they be checked baggage?

[ggprincess2004]

Do not check them. Take them as carry on in some way, shape or form. Hopefully your stateroom will be ready when you board so that you can take them directly to your cabin.

 

In terms of carrying on glass bottles, before there was any limit on the number of bottles of wine one could bring aboard, for a 21 night cruise with 4 people, we used a rolling carryon to "lug" our bottles, some padding or insulation would be wise. You will probably have to get them out so they can be marked as having been subject to the corkage fee. Might take a few moments, but not much longer. Enjoy your cruise.

[2pbears]

We purchased one of these on Amazon and it has worked very well. There are padded sections to protect twelve bottles. The top zips open for easy access. It has worked very well for us. I would not check this on an airplane or at the ship as I am not sure how they would stand up under "rough handling" but as hand luggage this has been a great purchase for us.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Bellino-Bottle-Insulated-Travel-Organizer/dp/B00STVDHJ8/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1536252487&sr=8-3&keywords=wheeled+wine+carrier

[XBGuy]

I use a tote that is very similar to the one that 2pbears linked. It is easy to use. I can wheel it from our vehicle through the check-in procedure, I can carry travel documentation in the outside pockets. It provides a bit of protection to the glass bottles, but I don't think it is sturdy enough to survive airline checking. (There are other products that do a great job if you are checking on an airline.) It is somewhat insulated. So, when I pull the bottle of Champagne from the fridge, put it in the tote, drive to San Pedro, and drag it onto the ship, the Champagne is still cold when I get to the cabin.

 

Since you mentioned San Pedro, I can update you on some procedures. When you get to the security scanning station, you will, of course, put the tote on the belt to go through the scanner. After you walk through the scanner, I can, pretty much, assure you that a security person will have grabbed your tote before you can get to it. Do not be alarmed by this. He'll unzip it to verify that you are not bring any prohibited substances on board--e.g., hard liquor--and will direct you to a nearby table where Princess personnel will count your bottles and have you sign for the corkage fee.

 

An ancillary benefit to this tote, is at the end of the cruise. We love having Princess pick up our luggage the evening before disembarkation. On disembarkation morning we are able to stuff the miscellanious stuff from our last evening--e.g., shaving kit, a few articles of clothes--into the tote because we have no reason to take empty wine bottles home.

 

:cool:

[XBGuy]

I use a tote that is very similar to the one that 2pbears linked. It is easy to use. I can wheel it from our vehicle through the check-in procedure, I can carry travel documentation in the outside pockets. It provides a bit of protection to the glass bottles, but I don't think it is sturdy enough to survive airline checking. (There are other products that do a great job if you are checking on an airline.) It is somewhat insulated. So, when I pull the bottle of Champagne from the fridge, put it in the tote, drive to San Pedro, and drag it onto the ship, the Champagne is still cold when I get to the cabin.

 

Since you mentioned San Pedro, I can update you on some procedures. When you get to the security scanning station, you will, of course, put the tote on the belt to go through the scanner. After you walk through the scanner, I can, pretty much, assure you that a security person will have grabbed your tote before you can get to it. Do not be alarmed by this. He'll unzip it to verify that you are not bring any prohibited substances on board--e.g., hard liquor--and will direct you to a nearby table where Princess personnel will count your bottles and have you sign for the corkage fee.

 

An ancillary benefit to this tote, is at the end of the cruise. We love having Princess pick up our luggage the evening before disembarkation. On disembarkation morning we are able to stuff the miscellanious stuff from our last evening--e.g., shaving kit, a few articles of clothes--into the tote because we have no reason to take empty wine bottles home.

 

If you don't want to go for the $70 tote. I would suggest the you get on of those folding luggage "wheelies" and drag your wine box on board.

 

:cool:

[AZJerry]

We also have a 6 bottle roll-aboard tote from Amazon. It works very well for taking directly aboard.

 

A friend used it once in Alaska, buying wine there before boarding. He chose to send it aboard with his luggage. I don't remember the details but one of the bottles was broken when it reached his cabin. There was the mess in the bag to clean up. On the positive side, Princess didn't charge the corkage fee on any of the bottles.

 

We have transported wine home bought while on vacation using a winery supplied cardboard shipping box with foam inserts. That, I think, is the only way to send wine through the airlines. We still have that in the garage because it was so nice.

[XBGuy]

Apologies for the double post, above.

[KevintheIrishDJ]

We always check the case with our baggage. Never had a problem. Most wine is bottled in "champagne" bottles.