Busted with Booze????

[PSCruiser]

OK, I've read all the threads about regulations on bringing alcohol aboard, how they're going to search luggage, how to sneak it on, etc.

My premise is that its 99.99% bluff- that there is no time during embarkation to bother confiscating a bottle or two in luggage. While I have read of one confirmed case of being busted on NCL, does it ever actually happen on RCCL?

I'd like to hear from posters that have DISCREETLY hidden a bottle or two in checked luggage or carryon luggage at the original embarkation port, and then had it discovered and confiscated. Especially interested if this has ever happened on an RCCL cruise.

[Cinebrat]

My fiance and I went on Monarch of the Seas last year. I wanted to wrap the smuggled contraband into our checked luggage but she said, "There is no way they will take it from us." She was dead wrong. As soon as we went through the metal detectors, they red flagged her bag and made her step to the side as they went through her carry on. They pulled out the 3 bottles of liqour and wrote our room info down and kept it in storage. On the last night of the cruise, they gave us the bottles back. They do check and they do confiscate.

[mikeblum]

did you put the hooch in your carry on stuff...if so...they may have caught it...put it in your luggage that they will deliver to your room...on most of our cruises we have done a pre-nite...usually purchase the booze there and then wrap it up good in towels...then when we get to the pier the porter takes the bags from you and you won't see them again until they are delivered to your room...the only bags that would get ex-rayed at that point would be the ones that you would carry on...we have brought on this way on about the last 10 cruises botrh booze and dt mt dew...the wife can't live without it and doesn't exsist in the caribbean...you can find mt dew but not the unleaded stuff...have never gotten caught yet...lot's of passangers wanted to know where we got it from...

[truffles2]

We had liquor confiscated from carry-on in Oct. while boarding Vision.:(

[voyager70]

Like I and many others have stated on other threads, if you pack booze in your carry on DON'T leave it in the original bottles. Instead, use empty water bottles for vodka or gin (which I've done many times & never had a problem) or use an empty mouthwash or similiar product for darker colored spirits.

[cruznsugs]

We left from Cape Liberty last September. Had wine in our luggage. But also had a bottle of Asti in a rolling cooler that we carried on with us. Went thru the xray machines and the security stopped us, made us open the cooler. They pulled out the bottle then said oh it's blue ice. We had a few pieces of blue ice to keep the bottle cold and they couldn't figure out what it was on the xray. They put everything back and sent us on our way. Also our wine that was in our luggage was untouched. It looked like the security was for the pier not run by RCCL. So they really didn't care what you had as long as it wasn't dangerous.

[ga-shel]

Just remember that ALL bags are xrayed now just like at the airports. Homeland security made that happen. They do reserve the right to go thru your bags in the cruise contract.

 

While most times it will make it to your room just realize that there is a chance it may not.

 

Happy cruising and good luck.

[CRUZ-AHOLIC]

I'm a repeat 'smuggler'....have carried stuff both in my carry-on and checked..and never had a problem.

 

For bottled booze, buy the 1-liter bottles of water and use them for storage in checked luggage, double bagged, of course.

 

For carry-on, repackage things discreetly...for example, if you have cans of beer, put them in a package of cokes :-)

 

Cindy

[odis]

One Carnival cruise from New Orleans, there was a table set up at debarkation with the liquor confiscated from passengers trying to carry it on. They even checked to see what was in the containers as some of the liquor was not in their original bottles and were in water bottles, coke bottles, etc.

 

We have brought a bottle of liquor and soft drinks on each cruise. I believe they expect for some to be brought, but if you try to smuggle a case, they may get ticked.

[critterchick]

Los Angeles is the only port where I've seen active confiscation of alcohol. We usually bring some wine on board in the other ports, but have resigned ourselves to paying the over-inflated ship's prices when we sail out of LA.

 

Now, has anybody been stopped from bringing wine on in Ft. Lauderdale or San Diego?

[ckrobyn]

At the Pan Am pier in San Juan, people were buying wine etc at the place right in the terminal and simply carrying it on the ship.

The people we were in line with bought a few bottles and then right before boarding, ran back and bought a few more.....

[Leejnd4]

Well this is the first time I've actually read of confiscations at embarkation on RCCL. I know it happens routinely on NCL -- apparently they are quite gestapo-ish about booze smuggling. And I also know it regularly happens on RCCL when coming back to the ship in port. But I've not heard of it happening at embarkation.

 

This blows my whole idea of bringing my wine on in a small wheeled carry-on. It's not like I can pour fine red wine into a plastic water bottle! I guess I'll have to actually pack it into my luggage before we board. Bummer.

 

Honestly, I find the whole thing so distasteful. I'm just horrified that they feel they can deny me the right to sip the beverage of my own choice in my own room, where I'll be living for a week, for which I've paid thousands of dollars. It's just so paternalistic. Naturally I understand the corkage fee -- most fine restaurants allow you to bring the wine of your choosing into the restaurant, and charge a reasonable fee for the service of serving it to you at dinner. But I truly am disgusted by RCCL disallowing me to sip the apertif or late-night liquor of my choosing in my own bedroom.

 

Well enough about that -- it's been discussed ad nauseum in here already. I'm just irritated to learn they really do confiscate booze at embarkation, so I have to play this whole juvenile smuggling game just to be able to sip the Madeira wine that I brought back from Madeira as I dress for dinner, or my favorite single-malt Scotch on my balcony before bed.

 

This is one of the reasons I rarely cruise on RCCL anymore, going with lines such as Radisson that don't treat us like low-life scum.

 

LeeAnne

[Merion_Mom]

If you like Radisson, and can afford it, then more power to you, and enjoy your cruise, LeeAnne. Truffles and Cinebrat are the only ones who have reported personally having bottles taken from them. I have used carry-on and checked bags, and never had a problem. That's the "norm." Wine is also less likely to be flagged than liquor.

 

Whatever you do, may you have calm seas and fair skies.

[Leejnd4]

Well I am booked on one RCCL cruise coming up this summer, as well as a Windstar cruise in 2 weeks, and a Radisson cruise in November. I'll be bringing bottles of wine and probably single-malt on all three. It's certainly nicer to NOT have to play the smuggling game!

 

But if it really is so uncommon for RCCL to confiscate at embarkation, maybe I'll go ahead and try it. I know you are a very experienced cruiser, Merion Mom, so I'd take your advice to the bank. I just would hate to be one of the unlucky ones. My inlaws have vineyards in Temecula and produce a very fine Syrah, which I enjoy tremedously with dinner. I'll be pretty bummed if they take them away from us before we even get on board!

 

Oh, and I wish you calm seas and fair skies on all your cruises as well!

 

LeeAnne

[Jayme580]

I had a bottle in my bag for water. They made me pull it out to show them what it was. I am sure if it was booze they would have taken in.

[Merion_Mom]

Well I am booked on one RCCL cruise coming up this summer, as well as a Windstar cruise in 2 weeks, and a Radisson cruise in November. I'll be bringing bottles of wine and probably single-malt on all three. It's certainly nicer to NOT have to play the smuggling game!

 

But if it really is so uncommon for RCCL to confiscate at embarkation, maybe I'll go ahead and try it. I know you are a very experienced cruiser, Merion Mom, so I'd take your advice to the bank. I just would hate to be one of the unlucky ones. My inlaws have vineyards in Temecula and produce a very fine Syrah, which I enjoy tremedously with dinner. I'll be pretty bummed if they take them away from us before we even get on board!

 

Oh, and I wish you calm seas and fair skies on all your cruises as well!

 

LeeAnne

They are still supposedly saying that you can bring "TWO BOTTLES OF WINE" per passenger of wines NOT on their winelist. Assuming that you are travelling with one other adult person, that's four bottles. So, make the presumption that you can "legally" bring four. But feel free to try for more!

[critterchick]

:D

They are still supposedly saying that you can bring "TWO BOTTLES OF WINE" per passenger of wines NOT on their winelist. Assuming that you are travelling with one other adult person, that's four bottles. So, make the presumption that you can "legally" bring four. But feel free to try for more!

 

I don't know who says that, though. The customer service reps in Miami don't have a firm grasp on so many RCI facts that I frankly wouldn't trust them if they said that. I know that The checkpoint in LA doesn't have a wine list handy, so the person doing the nabbing isn't going to have a clue whether the wine is on their list or not.

 

The policy posted on the website is NO alcohol, but also adds that the policy may or may not be enforced depending on the ship and local regulations. So maybe LA is just stricter about the issue. We'll bring a bottle or two in FLL and if it's confiscated on the first leg of our B2B, maybe they'll return in on the last night and we can drink in on the second leg.

[Leejnd4]

I had a bottle in my bag for water. They made me pull it out to show them what it was. I am sure if it was booze they would have taken in.

Man, that's just so...so...distasteful. Can't think of any better word for it. To have adults, CUSTOMERS, treated like this...sheesh. I know I'm preaching to the choir here, but I just find this to be one of the biggest absurdities I encounter.

 

But anyway...so, two bottles a person, eh? I'm traveling with my two teenagers -- do they count as people? ;)

 

LeeAnne

[Merion_Mom]

18 or older, yes. Lower, no. But then, "peoplehood" is somewhat debatable with one's offspring, isn't it? ;)

[Merion_Mom]

:D

 

I don't know who says that, though. The customer service reps in Miami don't have a firm grasp on so many RCI facts that I frankly wouldn't trust them if they said that. I know that The checkpoint in LA doesn't have a wine list handy, so the person doing the nabbing isn't going to have a clue whether the wine is on their list or not.

 

The policy posted on the website is NO alcohol, but also adds that the policy may or may not be enforced depending on the ship and local regulations. So maybe LA is just stricter about the issue. We'll bring a bottle or two in FLL and if it's confiscated on the first leg of our B2B, maybe they'll return in on the last night and we can drink in on the second leg.

Isn't that the glory of a B2B, Jean? Gotta love those *official procedures* ! :rolleyes:

 

My assumption (and it really is pure speculation) is that Californians are more likely to be smugglers, particularly of wine. You have such an abundance there, and so many people drive to the ports, that it may be more of a problem, percentage wise, than other cruises.

 

JM(silly)O, of course.

[Leejnd4]

We're Californians, and yes we do love our wine! :D Especially that Syrah my in-laws grow. But we're actually cruising out of Galveston nthis time, so hopefully we won't have so much of a problem getting it onboard.

 

LeeAnne

[critterchick]

We're Californians, and yes we do love our wine! :D Especially that Syrah my in-laws grow. But we're actually cruising out of Galveston nthis time, so hopefully we won't have so much of a problem getting it onboard.

 

LeeAnne

 

What Syrah is that, LeeAnne? I've developed a taste for Syrah lately, so I'm always in the market for a tasty find!

 

Carol, maybe we Californians are just more inclined toward civil disobedience!

[Buccaneergirl]

On our cruise out of Barcelona on Splendour, there was a store inside the RCCL terminal that sold all kinds of liquor, beer, soda, and water, so after we went to our cabin and put our things away, we came back down to the store and bought rum, soda and lots of beer and walked right back on the ship with it all in plain sight! I couldn't believe no one stopped us and many people were doing it!

[MszKitty]

I'm going on the Monarch (out of L.A.) this weekend and I plan to take my bottles with me. I'll report back and let you know how it goes. Although, I do have to say, I sailed on her 3 times last year and my booze got thru just fine.

[Leejnd4]

What Syrah is that, LeeAnne? I've developed a taste for Syrah lately, so I'm always in the market for a tasty find!

 

The 2002 Syrah from Falkner Winery in Temecula is made exclusively from the grapes grown on my in-law's 15 acre vineyard. It still needs a couple of years of cellaring to get to its peak, but is quite drinkable now, and goes mighty fine with rack of lamb or duck. :) You can buy it direct from the winery for $15.95 at http://www.falknerwinery.com. Of course we have cases upon cases of it here!

 

LeeAnne