Informal Survey: have you had your booze "collected for safe keeping"?

[Canuckleheadd]

If you've taken a Princess Cruise since the summer of 2012, you were sailing under a new alcohol policy where all your alcohol purchased in ports of call was "collected for safe keeping" (I love that phrase) and returned to you at the end of the cruise.

 

Yes or No: Have you had your alcohol collected at security when you came back on board during a port stop? (NOT including embarkation day).

[IfishSitka]

If you've taken a Princess Cruise since the summer of 2012, you were sailing under a new alcohol policy where all your alcohol purchased in ports of call was "collected for safe keeping" (I love that phrase) and returned to you at the end of the cruise.

 

Yes or No: Have you had your alcohol collected at security when you came back on board during a port stop? (NOT including embarkation day).

They did ask for my cabin number when i returned from port with a 6 pack of beer. He then joked that he would be up later to join me for his favorite beer that i was packing on. No problem at all in any of the ports.

[caber]

i have seen a desk set up but nobody approached it and nobody was stopped on passing

[coloradocruisers101]

We bought wine and gin in Cozumel with no problems last month on the Crown, no questions.

[spyro1952]

If you've taken a Princess Cruise since the summer of 2012, you were sailing under a new alcohol policy where all your alcohol purchased in ports of call was "collected for safe keeping" (I love that phrase) and returned to you at the end of the cruise.

 

Yes or No: Have you had your alcohol collected at security when you came back on board during a port stop? (NOT including embarkation day).

 

Grand Princess Nov '12 - no

[PineLakeCruiser]

We have never had wine taken away, but last January we had our rum taken away and delivered the night before disembarked.

 

Hope we can still bring wine onboard in October!

 

Carol

[Happy2cruise]

October on Caribbean Princess....No

[Andee]

Yes.

We bought some liqueur at a rum distillery in St. Lucia, and it was confiscated when we got back on the ship.

[DesrtDrmr]

Yes! Bought some on Curaçao and had it confiscated until last night. We just had one bottle, bought as a gift for neighbor, and others embarking were also having bottles removed for "safe keeping".

[Canuckleheadd]

Tally so far: 5 NO, 3 YES. I think we're about to uncover the inconsistency of the application of the new policy.

 

Just to update: until summer of 2012, Princess allowed you to bring a bottle of wine and/or champagne on the ship from ANY port, embarkation or port of call. They changed the policy to only one bottle at embarkation.

 

Thanks for the replies so far. I only need 4,188 more to have a sample that's 90% accurate 19 times out of 20...:rolleyes:

[Ontario Cruiser]

Two bottles turned over for safekeeping coming back from St Thomas Emerald Princess cruise Jan16-26 2013 on the last night.

Ontario Cruiser

[DShock]

We like to get a six pack on some islands we visit. We done this for years and are Elite cruisers doing 3 or more cruises a year. Never have we had an issue...never.

[PunkiC]

We have taken three cruises since the summer of 2012--one Scandinavian, one California Coastal and one to Hawaii. We always bring wine at embarkation and buy it in ports when it suits our fancy. We have never had anyone look twice.

 

IIRC we also took a bottle of vodka aboard on our Scandinavian cruise and our Coatal, again without questions or comments.

 

I think a lot of people who enjoy bringing their own wine on board have already migrated to Princess for that reason and may well migrate away when the rules (or shall we say the enforcements) change.

 

Time will tell. ;)

[shastatroy]

Coral December - NO

 

Desk set up but no one stopped.

[UpcountryTravelers]

I usually buy when in the Caribbean. On a couple of cruises they did not take it. Every other time they did. I would say 90% yes, they take it and send it to your cabin the night before home.

[SeaTheWorldBySea]

I think there has been and will continue to be a difference in the way they treat taking on wine/champagne and liquor. Passengers were never supposed to bring on liquor but wine and beer have always been OK - at embarkation and from ports.

 

The new policy says 1 bottle of wine per person, per voyage. When they begin to enforce this, there will be a $15 corkage fee for any other bottles of wine brought on, no matter where you plan to drink it (MDR or cabin).

 

IMHO they are working up to enforcement. It's just a matter of how much time passes before they decide we have had enough warning/notification. I printed boarding passes and luggage tags for our 2/25 cruise on the Star yesterday - there was a notice about the new policy on both. Folks who printed theirs earlier do not have those notices.

 

My question at this point is mainly about the new wine policy. I think enforcement of the no liquor policy has always been hit or miss whether they collect it or not.

[caribill]

The new policy says 1 bottle of wine per person, per voyage. When they begin to enforce this, there will be a $15 corkage fee for any other bottles of wine brought on, no matter where you plan to drink it (MDR or cabin).

 

 

Or if you just plan to bring it home, unopened?

[SeaTheWorldBySea]

Or if you just plan to bring it home, unopened?

 

Just to venture a guess - $15 corkage fee, even if you'll take it home unopened - or maybe they'll store it for you. This is what the boarding pass says - wording means the same but is a little more condensed on the luggage tags:

 

Thank you for observing our carry-on alcohol policy. As a reminder,

adult passengers are permitted to bring one 750 ml bottle of wine or

champagne onboard per voyage, which will not be subject to a corkage

fee if consumed in the stateroom. Additional wine or champagne

bottles are welcome, but will incur a $15 corkage fee each, irrespective

of where they are intended to be consumed. Liquor, spirits or beers are

not permitted. Please remember that luggage will be scanned and

alcohol outside of our policy will be removed and discarded.

 

Just noticed that beer is in the absolutely NOT column now - I think they used to be as liberal with beer as with wine. They don't address soda and bottled water here.

[Canuckleheadd]

I think there has been and will continue to be a difference in the way they treat taking on wine/champagne and liquor. Passengers were never supposed to bring on liquor but wine and beer have always been OK - at embarkation and from ports.

 

The new policy says 1 bottle of wine per person, per voyage. When they begin to enforce this, there will be a $15 corkage if you bring the first one to the dining room and $15 for any other bottles of wine brought on, no matter where you plan to drink it (MDR or cabin).

 

IMHO they are working up to enforcement. It's just a matter of how much time passes before they decide we have had enough warning/notification. I printed boarding passes and luggage tags for our 2/25 cruise on the Star yesterday - there was a notice about the new policy on both. Folks who printed theirs earlier do not have those notices.

 

My question at this point is mainly about the new wine policy. I think enforcement of the no liquor policy has always been hit or miss whether they collect it or not.

 

I thought this post sounded strange, so I copied the Princess policy word for word, and you are correct:

 

As provided in the Passage Contract, passengers agree not to bring alcoholic beverages of any kind onboard for consumption, except one bottle of wine or champagne per adult of drinking age (no larger than 750 ml) per voyage, which will not be subject to a corkage fee if consumed in the stateroom. Additional wine or champagne bottles are welcome, but will incur a $15 corkage fee each, irrespective of where they are intended to be consumed. Liquor, spirits or beers are not permitted. Please remember that luggage will be scanned and alcohol outside of our policy will be removed and discarded.*

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 passenger's stateroom on the last day of the cruise. A member of the ship's staff will be at the gangway to assist passengers with the storage of their shoreside alcoholic purchases while our Boutiques staff will assist passengers with shipboard alcoholic purchases.

*Princess Cruises is not responsible for any alcoholic beverages removed and discarded by shoreside security staff.

Such items are not eligible for monetary refund or replacement.

 

 

So let's try to make heads or tails out of this. All the wine/champagne you want to bring on the ship after the first one, they charge you $15 each. Looking at the question from the previous post, if you just want to take it home with you, could you leave it with security for safe-keeping and NOT pay the $15?

 

Margins must be getting extremely thin if they start enforcing this policy. Used to be you only paid corkage if you took the bottle to the dining room. And even then I heard of some people who got around that fee by bringing an already opened bottle and saying they paid the corkage the day before, sneaks! So now they're gonna charge you the $15 when you get back on the ship...?:(

 

I guess we can start decanting the wine in an empty Listerine bottle... "No, really senor, this is a new flavor of Listerine..." Mmmmm, red wine that's good for your gums!

 

Bright ideas anyone? And don't forget to answer my extremely scientific survey if you haven't already...

[CruisinMinnie]

I guess we can start decanting the wine in an empty Listerine bottle... "No, really senor, this is a new flavor of Listerine..." Mmmmm, red wine that's good for your gums!

We actually were called to open a bottle of Listerine (and it was Listerine) in front of security on a Carnival cruise.

[coloradocruisers101]

Two Buck Chuck (which is no longer $2.00) plus @15.00 cork fee, still reasonable IMHO :D. Some of his stuff is really pretty good for an inexpensive wine.:eek:

[motoryacht]

People tell too much here!!!!!!!!

 

 

They read these posts so it is your own fault that we can't do this anymore.

 

Keep your secrets to yourself!!! or share them offline.

 

Same as for the best cabins on the ship - can't get close to them anymore.

 

Stop telling everyone!!!! Now everyone tries to get them.

 

There is so much good information here but if we aren't suppose to do something -

 

THEN

 

Don't brag that you do it.

[Gunner22aa]

Have always had any liquer collected upon return to the ship and returned the last evening. That's their policy and I expect it. In the past wine was allowed and I have brought it on without incident.

[khfadpi]

We have always taken on 1-2 cases of beer and never been questioned.:)

[ONT-CA]

I guess we can start decanting the wine in an empty Listerine bottle... "No, really senor, this is a new flavor of Listerine..." Mmmmm, red wine that's good for your gums!

 

We actually were called to open a bottle of Listerine (and it was Listerine) in front of security on a Carnival cruise.

 

We are led to believe that should you have transferred alcohol to another package to conceal the identity, and the security discovers this. that the item will not be returned to you. Does anyone know if this is the policy?