Carnival Cruise Luggage Advice

Hi, my husband and I will be cruising Carnival Glory 5 night out of New Orleans next year. This is our first cruise and I’m having trouble finding good info on what type of luggage to bring. One question I have is regarding “carry-on”. If I understand correctly, the cruise line takes your big bag to be delivered later. Should my carry on be backpack style to carry around the ship for possibly a long period of time or can it be a 20” roller that I can bring directly to my cabin? Next question: for my large bag (27-29”)...soft sided or hard side. Thanks for any help!!

PS...airline considerations don’t need to be factored in, we live within driving distance to port.

YOU won't be able to access your cabin until 1pm or so, unless you buy FTTF. In your carry on, bring that which you must have before luggage is delivered, and anything of value....jewelry, medicines, electronics, etc.

What kind of suitcases is up to you... The cruise line doesn't care what kind or size you have.

There are no rules about luggage on cruises. You simply use what works for you. Regarding your carry-on, we prefer backpacks because it keeps both of our hands free. But many others will use small rollers. If you are the type who enjoys relaxing on deck during the daytime you might want to pack some swimwear in your carry on. If you get aboard early, many would suggest heading directly to lunch. After lunch you can get into your cabin and perhaps change so you can lounge on deck. We like returning to our cabin about 45 -60 min before the scheduled muster drill with the hope that our luggage will have arrived. If we get lucky that gives us time to unpack before heading to the boat drill.

Hank

Thanks for the info. I’m trying to decide on bringing soft luggage vs hard sided. I’m not sure how rough they are with the luggage which makes me want to bring hard but a lot of tips say to bring soft for easy in-cabin storage.

Thanks for the info. I’m trying to decide on bringing soft luggage vs hard sided. I’m not sure how rough they are with the luggage which makes me want to bring hard but a lot of tips say to bring soft for easy in-cabin storage.

Ahhh. They treat luggage about as nice as the airlines :(. The Longshoreman take your luggage and toss it into large bins. In some US Ports those bins then go to an X-ray screening facility (this is obvious in Port Everglades but not as obvious in other ports) where all the luggage is screened. Those bins are large and if your bag is near the bottom it bears a lot of weight. Once on the ship the crew has to sort the luggage and deliver it to each cabin. All this does take its toll.

Hank

I’ve seen people drag in every type of luggage conceivable, even plastic bins.

Under bed height is about 12”. Almost every suitcase you can buy these days will fit there.

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We prefer the soft sided specifically because we can slide it under the bed. one holds the random stuff (snorkels and goggles, beach shoes) and the other becomes the drawer for dirty laundry.

For a 7 day, we can share a larger bag, for 8 or more we do two smaller rollers -- plus backpack style carry ons.

We typically bring at least three bags- a large suitcase (we've used both hard sided and soft sided with no discernible difference), a garment bag (we still dress up somewhat for elegant night), and a 20" roller carryon. We always try to put some changes of clothes in the carryon just in case. Cabins aren't generally available until after 1:30 or so. We had a great time on Glory!