Smuggling Booze on Cruises? Carnival Says “Don’t Do it”
Every frequent cruiser is always looking for tips, tricks, and hacks to make each voyage as smooth and easy as possible. Many of these hacks can be ways to save money, and one of the most popular of which is also one of the most well known – including to cruise line authorities.
With the high cost of alcohol on cruises, some of the most popular so-called hacks involve finding ways to sneak booze onboard.
Cruise lines have strict regulations on what type of alcohol guests can bring onboard, but clever cruisers think they know better by using hidden bottles or fluid-filled compartments, resealed packages, and other ways to try and smuggle spirits aboard.
What many cruisers don’t realize, however, is that cruise lines are well aware of these tricks and watch closely for them.
Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador, John Heald, noted the practice – and its hefty consequences – in a recent brief video on his Facebook page.
“This is crazy, right? We have known for years that you can go on Mrs. Amazon and you can get things to smuggle booze in,” Heald said. “We know about it, and we catch people. Don’t do it.”
He explained that at least a dozen people had written to him and shared a social media video with a guest bragging about their success in smuggling alcohol onboard.
Such videos have been around for years, with a variety of “techniques” for circumventing the rules. In the past, guests might receive a letter alerting them to the violation after the smuggled alcohol was confiscated. Now, however, the consequences are more severe.
What is actually surprising and new about this illicit trend is that people who happily post about their shenanigans on social media, bragging that they’ve beaten the rules.
Read Also: 15 Mistakes to Avoid on a Carnival Cruise
“It makes me laugh, to be very honest,” Heald commented. “When people get on the ship and they go, ‘Oooo, look what we smuggled onboard, a tube full of vodka! Ha ha ha HA! We’re so clever!’ Of course, of course we have people monitoring social media pages. Of course we do.”
Heald also noted that other cruisers share such videos, links, and photos with him, and Carnival Cruise Line does act on that information whenever possible.
“We go to their cabin and then we find it, and then we tell them they can’t cruise with us anymore,” he confirmed. “Don’t smuggle. We find it.”
So why do people take the risk of being banned for life from Carnival Cruise Line? Reasons can vary from someone wanting their preferred brands to feeling like a rebel for “beating” the rules to protesting the cost or policies of the Cheers! beverage package.
“I know why people do it, I get that. But don’t do it, don’t do it,” Heald emphasized. “And to put it on social media is absolutely ridiculous. Bonkers.”
Heald noted that it’s a sad situation when someone does have to be banned over what is typically such a small quantity of alcohol, but such strict reactions and consequences are necessary.
What Alcohol Can Guests Bring Onboard?
This does not mean that Carnival cruise guests can’t bring any alcohol onboard their cruise.
In fact, Carnival Cruise Line has always permitted guests to bring a bottle of wine or champagne onboard at embarkation, a maritime tradition that goes back to sailaway toasts.
To be clear, however, bottles must be no more than 750 mL and must be sealed, as well as placed in the guest’s carryon luggage. No fortified wines or other alcoholic beverages are permitted to be brought onboard.
“All liquor, beer, other forms of alcoholic … beverages are strictly prohibited in both carry-on and checked luggage and such items will be confiscated and discarded and no compensation will be provided,” the policy states.
Guests can purchase alcohol while in ports of call, but those purchases will likewise be confiscated when they reboard the ship. Those bottles will not be discarded but will be kept by ship’s security and can be picked up by guests on the morning of debarkation to take off the ship.
Of course, every Carnival ship is well-stocked with a wide variety of wine, beer, and liquor, with enthusiastic bartenders ready and willing to serve up any traveler’s favorite spirits – no need for any sneakiness!