Wine: HAL vs. Other Cruise Lines

[Rudolph38]

Is HAL the only major cruise line that allows you to bring wine on board?

[wwinfl91]

We've taken wine onboard on Costa, Princess and RCCL as well as on HAL without any problems.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[jimgev]

Is HAL the only major cruise line that allows you to bring wine on board?

Other lines allow you to bring wine aboard but HAL is the only one of the mass market lines that allows you to bring an unlimited amount aboard. The others have limits of someting like 2 bottles per cabin.

Jim

[nini]

How do you suggest to bring wine on the ship- Carry Ons or pack in baggage? Also, does anyone know what the curent policy is regarding bringing wine on board for the flight? we will be flying on Alaska to San Diego for the MR in December. Last time when I called Alaska, they were very confused and did not know. We are in Oregon and have great wine here that we would like to bring. Thanks!

[brucory]

You are only allowed to bring 2 bottles of wine/champagne on Celebrity.... Some friends of ours spent a fortune on wine in the dining room on their recent Alaskan cruise... Mind you, that has more to do with them than the BYO policy. :D :D :D

[Twickenham]

Other lines allow you to bring wine aboard but HAL is the only one of the mass market lines that allows you to bring an unlimited amount aboard. The others have limits of someting like 2 bottles per cabin.

Jim

 

Unless their policy has changed, Princess does not limit the number of bottles either.

However, contrary to what someone else posted, RCI does not allow you to bring alcohol of any kind.

[corkpopr]

previous poster is correct, RCCL and NCL do not allow any type of liquor/beer/wine at all. Not that it ever stopped us on those lines however. carnival, princess, celebrity, holland never hassle you. you cannot bring your wine from oregon on your flight as a carryon, just pack it.

[fann1sh]

How do you suggest to bring wine on the ship- Carry Ons or pack in baggage? Also, does anyone know what the curent policy is regarding bringing wine on board for the flight? we will be flying on Alaska to San Diego for the MR in December. Last time when I called Alaska, they were very confused and did not know. We are in Oregon and have great wine here that we would like to bring. Thanks!

 

As gorgeous as Oregon wines can be, I'd shop in San Diego before getting on the ship. There are a couple threads here about where to buy.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=853612

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=855519

 

The problems with putting wine in checked bags is: how cold it can get in the hold, weight and number of bag limits which can make this expensive, and the possibility of breakage.

[jjeffjb]

I've sailed HAL, Oceania, Princess, NCL and Regent. I always bring my own wine on HAL because their mark up is very high. It's higher than any other line I've sailed. I don't mind paying the corkage fee. However, HAL might make out better if they lowered the mark up. Perhaps more people would order from the ship's wine list.

[Fishndawg]

Allowing unlimited wine to be brought on board is a huge plus for HAL. If two cruises are very similar - I would book on HAL for that reason.

[PEPALR]

 

The problems with putting wine in checked bags is: how cold it can get in the hold, weight and number of bag limits which can make this expensive, and the possibility of breakage.

 

You don't need to worry about "cold" unless you are trying to take Champagne/Sparkling wine. That will explode if it gets too cold. You should be ok with table wine.

 

Due to 3-1-1 rules - you can not carry any liquid more than 3oz (wine and Liquor included) on board in a carry on. You must check them. Even if you are travelling internationally and buy liquor duty free in the airport and they deliver it to you on your plane. If you have a connection, you must put that purchase in your checked bag before re-checking the bag from customs.

 

If you are concerned with breakage in your bag, I would recommend getting to your embarkation port a little early. Then grab a taxi and go to buy what you want and then bring it on board. It might be a little more expensive than your home state when you add in the cost of a taxi - but it is still cheaper than the prices on board. And most large format wine stores have Oregon wines. You might not get the FULL selection, but enough to satisfy you. And if you have one or two bottles that you absolutely have to have but don't think you will be able to get outside of OR, you can always pack them, well wrapped, and in a Zip bag so you don't have red wine all over your clothes if it does break. My DH and I brought 6 wines with us for our New England cruise and ended up bringing 4 Canadian wines back. No breakage.

[nini]

As usual, the CC people are a wealth of information. I appreciate all responses. I am an Oregonian for 29 years, but born in San Diego and grew up in the San Gabriel Valley. Anyway, my Mom only shopped at Ralphs. On a visit to So. Cal in 2006, I was so impressed by the great liquor deals at Rite Aid of all things! The Northwest has fabulous wines which can be purchased in grocery stores here (even Target), however, liquor must be purchased in "State" liquor stores (Yes, Oregon is sort of a liberal Victorian state) LOL. IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO FIND GOOD WHITE WINES i.e. REISLINGS, PINOT GRIS IN CALIF. STORES, so I'm sure Trader Joes will help in this area.

Anyway, between Ralphs, Trader Joes, and Rite Aid, we will be good to go. We are excited for the Oosterdam 12/13/08. This is our first cruise with our daughters who are both over 21! Happy Adventures to All! Nini

[ViolaSwamp]

With all of the issues surrounding wine on the ship (to bring or not, corkage, cost of wine onboard), it makes me REALLY glad that neither DH or I like wine at all!! :p

 

That's not entirely true - I like a good Merlot now and again - but wine, without fail, causes us to fall asleep. EVERY time. Instant drowsiness - need to sleep - for us both. :rolleyes:

[Born Cruiser 2]

This is a first for us. We leave in the morning to drive to Ft Lauderdale. Will spend Friday & Saturday just relaxing before boarding the Westerdam on

Sunday.

 

This will be our 17th cruise. Over the years we have bought MANY a bottle of wine at the ship's prices but this time the markup just seemed to be too

much. The exact same wines we drink at home for under $10/bottle will be

a minimum of $39 & up PLUS the 15% tip.

 

End result: we are bringing 6 whites & 6 reds that we enjoy which will last us thru the first week. When we come back into Ft Lauderdale before the 2nd leg, we will go into town and get another case.

 

Lugging the wine will not be a problem either. I have a "rolling" document case (kinda like a rolling "carry-on" bag) with combination locks that will hold exactly 12 bottles. I pad each bottle and LOCK the case. It can then be

checked directly to our stateroom.

 

Bon Voyage to all!

[itsmlf]

We have been on 25 cruises, many of them RCI and Celebrity....have never had a problem taking wine on board or soft drinks. You just cant buy wine or liquor in ports and expect to take it to your cabin

[Sundagger]

Cruise Critic has an article pertaining to bringing alcohol on board in its varied forms:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=46

 

Under RCCL, it states:

 

Bringing liquor onboard at embarkation: Not allowed.

Bringing wine or Champagne onboard: No alcoholic beverages of any kind are allowed, including beer and wine.

Purchasing liquor in port: Retained until the end of the cruise.

Purchasing liquor in ships' duty-free shop: Allowed, but items purchased in the shops onboard are held until the end of the voyage.

 

Under Celebrity, it lists:

 

Bringing liquor onboard at embarkation: No alcoholic beverages may be purchased ashore for consumption onboard.

Bringing wine or Champagne onboard: Wine purchased from the selection of bon voyage gifts are not subject to a corkage fee. Guests may bring two bottles of wine per stateroom, but when consumed in any shipboard restaurant, bar or dining venue, each bottle is subject to a corkage fee of $25.

Purchasing liquor in port: No alcoholic beverages may be purchased ashore for consumption onboard.

Purchasing liquor in ships' duty-free shop: Onboard purchases from the gift shop of any bottle of liquor will be held until the last night of the cruise.

[royalcruz]

Under Celebrity, it lists:

 

Bringing liquor onboard at embarkation: No alcoholic beverages may be purchased ashore for consumption onboard.

Bringing wine or Champagne onboard: Wine purchased from the selection of bon voyage gifts are not subject to a corkage fee. Guests may bring two bottles of wine per stateroom, but when consumed in any shipboard restaurant, bar or dining venue, each bottle is subject to a corkage fee of $25.

Purchasing liquor in port: No alcoholic beverages may be purchased ashore for consumption onboard.

Purchasing liquor in ships' duty-free shop: Onboard purchases from the gift shop of any bottle of liquor will be held until the last night of the cruise.

 

Is this a new policy? We have been on several Celebrity Cruises, and I didn't know that we were allowed to bring wine.

[Sundagger]

Is this a new policy? We have been on several Celebrity Cruises, and I didn't know that we were allowed to bring wine.

 

I have no idea when the restriction to two bottles came into effect, but it is listed on the Celebrity website also. The CC article used poor wording when it said "No alcoholic beverages ...", when there is the allowance for two bottles of wine noted in the next sentence.