Question on Alcohol Policies

Hello, folks!

In a couple of weeks, the wife and I will be jetting off to Copenhagen to catch a 11 day RT cruise on the Regal Princess. Our itinerary includes a 2-day stop in St. Petersburg, and we'd love to be able to bring home a bottle of vodka.

I know there are limits to what you can bring with you upon initial embarkation, but does that apply (or worse) during the cruise? We don't want to drink it on board; we just want to pack it up and bring it home with us (to the States)

Upon reboarding the ship, you will be directed to a table where you turn in the vodka for storage for the rest of the trip.

You will be given a receipt for the bottle. It will be returned to your cabin on the last night of your cruise.

Upon reboarding the ship, you will be directed to a table where you turn in the vodka for storage for the rest of the trip.

 

You will be given a receipt for the bottle. It will be returned to your cabin on the last night of your cruise.

Awesome! Duly noted then. Thanks so much! :)

Remember, if it is more that 3 ounces, it will have to be in your checked luggage if you are flying home.

Have a great cruise.

You can also enjoy free shots of vodka at the souvenir shops where tour groups stop. Enjoy your cruise!

The specifics from the Princess website. The same information will be found in the book in your cabin.

Alcoholic beverages that are purchased duty free from the ship's gift shop, or at ports of call, will be collected for safekeeping and delivered to the guest's stateroom on the last day of the cruise. A member of the ship's staff will be at the gangway to assist guests with the storage of their shoreside alcoholic purchases while our Boutiques staff will assist guests with shipboard alcoholic purchases.

Also...

Customs and immigration inspectors will review with you the customs declarations form upon which you have listed all the articles bought in foreign ports or in the ship's boutiques. U.S. residents returning to the United States are allowed a duty-free exemption of $800 USD per person, which includes the cost of one liter of alcoholic beverages (if purchased onboard or ashore) for each guest 21 years of age or older. Canadian citizens, when out of the country for more than 48-hours, may bring back up to $800 CAD duty-free. It is recommended that guests keep their sales receipts handy for declaring their purchases. Food items should not be brought into U.S. ports.

On cruises calling at ports of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, or American Samoa, U.S. residents are allowed an additional exemption of $1,200 USD when returning to the United States, including four liters of alcoholic beverages provided you have the proof of purchase from the designated ports.

Most times the alcohol collection desk at foreign ports is very lax in collecting alcohol & you can just carry it to your room instead of checking it. :)

Agree with floridalover. Last fall on Regal TA we purchased whisky at 2 stops. Packages were passed through the scanner & we were sent on our way. Nobody said a word & no table had been set up to check in liquor. It had been purchased as gifts, so it wouldn't have bothered us to check it in.

Most times the alcohol collection desk at foreign ports is very lax in collecting alcohol & you can just carry it to your room instead of checking it. :)

Good to know thanks:)

Most times the alcohol collection desk at foreign ports is very lax in collecting alcohol & you can just carry it to your room instead of checking it. :)

Experienced it too, though no intent to drink it onboard.:)

As long as you know you could get hit for duty, all is fine.

Yup, always within the US Customs duty-exempt limit!

A bottle of liquor broke in my friends luggage :eek: to be safe pack it in bubble wrap. Good luck.

Tony

Also...

 

Customs and immigration inspectors will review with you the customs declarations form upon which you have listed all the articles bought in foreign ports or in the ship's boutiques. U.S. residents returning to the United States are allowed a duty-free exemption of $800 USD per person, which includes the cost of one liter of alcoholic beverages (if purchased onboard or ashore) for each guest 21 years of age or older. Canadian citizens, when out of the country for more than 48-hours, may bring back up to $800 CAD duty-free. It is recommended that guests keep their sales receipts handy for declaring their purchases. Food items should not be brought into U.S. ports.

 

On cruises calling at ports of the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, or American Samoa, U.S. residents are allowed an additional exemption of $1,200 USD when returning to the United States, including four liters of alcoholic beverages provided you have the proof of purchase from the designated ports.

Yup, always within the US Customs duty-exempt limit!

Don't misread the above statements to mean you may not bring home more than 1 liter per person. It just means you only get 1 liter per person duty free. We often bring home four to five liters of "hard stuff" with no problem at all. Make sure you declare all the alcohol on your customs form.

Actual duty charges are reasonably low (note there is a Federal and a separate State duty) and as such, customs officials typically wave you through as it is not worth their time to assess the charge. Where you get nailed is if you do not declare all the alcohol and get caught. Then the fines are quite large.

All that said, if an officer is having a bad day (or there is a directive from "on high") and decides you have to pay some duty, be prepared to spend some extra time in customs as it requires extra processing. That may be the real deciding factor as to whether you bring more than the duty-free amount home or not. If you have little time to spare before your next travel connection, that could be an issue to consider.

Agree with floridalover. Last fall on Regal TA we purchased whisky at 2 stops. Packages were passed through the scanner & we were sent on our way. Nobody said a word & no table had been set up to check in liquor. It had been purchased as gifts, so it wouldn't have bothered us to check it in.

We sometimes purchase our liquor in St Thomas since they usually have the cheapest prices.

The ship also sells a few of the brands that we like and if they're the same we'll purchase it from the ships store. Also know that a 10% Elite discount applies to the purchases on board plus they will match the lowest price found in any shop if you present a photo with the size & price shown. ;);)

Most times if you make your purchase on the ship the within the last few days of the cruise they'll just let you take you items, rather than go to the trouble of delivering then on the last day or if you're going a B2B they'll deliver your liquor at the end of the first leg if you want to actually drink it on board. :D