Fishing gear in checked or carryon luggage?

[ZoeyVictoria]

We will be taking fishing gear on the 4-night Liberty sailing on September 2.  My SO would like to take a folding rod, reel, pliers, fish grabber,  knife with 4-5” blade, and a small plastic box containing hooks, weights, bobbers, etc.  Will the knife be permitted on board at all?  If not, can I substitute a small pair of scissors (better than nothing)?  And should these items be packed in carryon or checked luggage?

[Joe817]

That should be all spelled out for you in the FAQ's. Have you checked there?

[ZoeyVictoria]

35 minutes ago, Joe817 said:

That should be all spelled out for you in the FAQ's. Have you checked there?

 

Yes, I did check there.  I am hoping to hear about other people’s  personal experiences, even possibly get some tips.  If anyone ever had hooks or sinkers confiscated, for example, because they were interpreted to be weapons, that would be good to know.

[geezersgirl]

We take our fishing gear pretty much every time we cruise. I have carried my small tackle kit and reel in my checked bag with no problems. We carry a large rod tube that holds up to three poles and have had absolutely no issues.  On our last cruise I had all my gear in my carry on bag.  I take nail trimmers and a small pocket knife instead of the larger stuff. Fishing the ports is fun and we have done it all over the world just don't try fishing off the balcony like my hubs did!

[Schoifmom]

There is nothing mentioned regarding HOW you may take these items on board.  TBH, with the knife, I would carry it on, rather than have to go to the "naughty room" to retrieve it.  I circled the portions that pertain to your question.

[ZoeyVictoria]

26 minutes ago, geezersgirl said:

We take our fishing gear pretty much every time we cruise. I have carried my small tackle kit and reel in my checked bag with no problems. We carry a large rod tube that holds up to three poles and have had absolutely no issues.  On our last cruise I had all my gear in my carry on bag.  I take nail trimmers and a small pocket knife instead of the larger stuff. Fishing the ports is fun and we have done it all over the world just don't try fishing off the balcony like my hubs did!

 

Thank you, that is exactly what I am looking for.

[ZoeyVictoria]

12 minutes ago, Schoifmom said:

There is nothing mentioned regarding HOW you may take these items on board.  TBH, with the knife, I would carry it on, rather than have to go to the "naughty room" to retrieve it.  I circled the portions that pertain to your question.

 

Thank you.  Since we are using off-site parking, we can’t just take the knife back to the car if it is rejected, so I think he will have to take something smaller, as geezersgirl does.  I hope the last sentence shown is something we will actually need to know, and isn’t overly optimistic 😄

[Garth2]

This reminds me of a post several years ago, from someone who wanted to know if he could bring his catch back to the ship and have the galley prepare it especially for him and serve it in the MDR.

[Haveuseen1]

I would buy some "Fishbites" to use for bait. Simple, very portable, and easy to pack.  Plus they work quite well.  There are a lot of restaurants that are on the water that you can bring your catch and they will cook it for you. This is quite common anywhere around the Gulf Of Mexico, and the Eastern shore.  The first tuna I caught we took it back to a restaurant and they prepared it a variety of ways.  It was amazing.

 

So if I was going to bring fishing gear, I would bring a spinning rod/reel, a few pompano rigs, a few weights, fishbites, and some pliers. I would do Catch & Release because of the ease.  But if you wanted to get it cooked, I would reach out to some of the beach side restaurants before you leave on your trip to see if they would accomodate, and I bet they would.  If you get to port early enough you could catch some fish, and have them for lunch before returning to the ship.  That could make for a really memorable day.

 

Dont forget you may need a license, and good luck!

[ZoeyVictoria]

My SO sent an email to the Department of Marine Resources in the Bahamas, inquiring about the need for a license.  We have printed out the response saying that no license is required for surf fishing, and packed it with the fishing gear.  Just in case.

 

I had to look up Fishbites.  We used a different brand of Fishbites  last week on St. Pete Beach and will be taking another package with us.  They worked pretty well and were so easy, no point taking the time to search for live bait and take along a bucket.

 

Thank you!

[coevan]

basically the cruise ship doesn't care much. I would be more concerned with TSA. I always bring a 6" dive knife and i have never been flagged.