Do NOT become to complacent as we did :O(

[Harooni]

right shippy always be careful no matter where dont give any opportunity.

 

 

phone money credit cards passports ipad mini documents. i even lock up my designer glasses

Edited May 23, 2014 by Harooni

[seaofwonder]

Your insurance will cover your losses....but it still sucks. In hotels, even the room's occupants aren't allowed in the room, unless their key will unlock the door...at least, the hotels I stay in! Doesn't matter if they recognize you or not...they will NOT allow you in the room while they're cleaning unless your key springs the lock!

 

Lesson learned...put your valuables out of sight! Lock them in a suitcase, if they won't fit in your safe! No one is going to steal an entire suitcase!

 

 

I just stayed at a Marriott Marquis and we walked right in while cleaning. We were never asked for our keys. I've never had anyone ask me for a key when I walk in while cleaning. These are mostly sheratons, Marriott, hyatts, etc.

 

 

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[f1mauro]

Always be leery of your balcony sliding doors as well. It's VERY easy to open up the balcony divider without a key and walk over to the next cabin via the balcony. They don't offer much security so don't leave too much faith in them.

[MrsPete]

Several thoughts:

 

- First and foremost, I'm sorry this happened. We've all been the victim of some type of crime at some point -- large or small -- and it is worse than just the loss of the item; it's also upsetting and violating on an emotional level.

 

- If you have been on 50 cruises and haven't bought insurance . . . and this is your first loss, you are actually ahead financially (because you haven't paid the premiums). While an iPad and watch are expensive, it isn't all the money in the world, and the sooner you can let go of it, the better for your emotional well-being. I know, I know, easier said than done.

 

- I don't see how the thief could be a random person. A random person wouldn't have stayed in your room more than a few seconds, and that wouldn't have been enough to find an iPad under a stack of magazines -- nor to go to the other side of the bed and take the watch.

 

- Yes, you should lock your balcony door, but IF it were a person who came through the dividers (or climbed -- I've always been a gifted climber, and I promise you I could do it), that would be on camera. We've heard about images of people jumping or throwing things off, so we know they have the sides of the ship covered.

 

- On the other hand, if I were the steward and I were the thief, I wouldn't hide it in my own cabin -- I'd pass it off to a friend to hide in his cabin or in a neutral location like a back shelf in the laundry. And I would have no trouble crying my eyes out when questioned! I don't want to think it was the cabin steward (because we all trust them in our rooms /around our things), but I just can't believe anything else.

 

- I'm not super high-tech, but if I were the thief, I would not be stupid enough to turn the iPad on during the cruise. I'd figure you were trying the locator thing, and I'd wait 'til I was home -- and far, far away from you -- before I turned it on. Point being, if it's not found yet, I wouldn't count on it.

 

- I too am shocked that they don't have cameras in the hallways. Things much worse than theft could potentially happen, and I'd think the ship would want proof-positive in those situations.

[Ladysilver]

After reading this, I feel like we've become complacent also. We often leave our room with phones on the charger, etc. Never again! :o

[Robinola]

Yup...good reminder. I thought it was interesting the post from the person who walked into their hotel room and was never questioned. How easy would it be for someone to walk in and be like, oh, I forgot something..don't mind me.....continue cleaning.

[thrifty99]

I bought one of these PacSafe bags a couple years ago and take it with on all trips. When empty it lays flat / takes up very little room in my suitcase. I found it on sale for about $50.

 

I lock it around anything permanently fixed in the room or around the bed frame that can't be easily removed from the room. Great for larger items like camera bags or when you have a small safe that won't hold your ipad / computer.

 

http://pacsafe.com/travelsafe-12l-portable-safe

 

 

 

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[Kezzie62]

Don't rely on a locked suitcase. Any case with a zip can be opened and reclosed without unlocking it all you need is a pen.

 

 

 

 

 

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Edited May 23, 2014 by Kezzie62

[lovesthebeach2]

I started to write this on the thread asking about if an Ipad would fit in a safe but decided better for more people to read this.

 

 

We have been on almost 50 cruises on all cruiselines.Either used the safe or put things in the suitcase under the bed.

I would say that for the last 2 years we got "lazy".

You know....like leaving the phones on the chargers on the desk,etc.

 

Our luck ran out 2 months ago on a Princess cruise.

Their nightstands have drawers and an open shelf on the top. I am an insomniac & basically use my ipad for games during the night. Instead of putting it in the suitcase under the bed, I left it on the shelf of the nightstand with some magazines on the top. It was not actually visable but easy to get to.

We left the room in the morning and returned in the afternoon. As soon as I walked in, I could tell that area had been touched. My Ipad was gone and a watch from my husband nightstand.

I actually cried and then called security and demanded to see the video from the hallway.

They said their room keys acted like security because they could see who goes in and out. I said that proves nothing EXCEPT WHO GOES IN AND OUT....not who might take something.

HERE WAS THE REAL SHOCKER.....they said there are no video cameras in the hallways of any of their ships but all over the rest of the ship.

They immediately did a search of our room...I mean complete including looking under the mattress & dumped out our laundry bag. Their reasoning was we might have put these items somewhere and forgot where or....sometimes a thief will hide something and come back for it later.

They did the same search in the cabin of our cabin stewardess. That afternoon, she cried hysterically in the hallyway. She had been with the company 15 years and was scared for her job. It was an awful experience. The next few days I had to meet with different people and fill out all kinds of paperwork. I felt without cameras....you are stuck.

Those who have cruised before, I am sure you have walked down a hallway where a cabin door was left open while the steward left for a few minutes to get something while doing the morning cleaning. Not that you would want to think there are sleaze bag passengers onboard but obviously, you never know.

Plus we had gotten a note the night before they would be working on the balconys the next morning. Lazy me, I never lock the balcony door even though my husband always bugged me to do so.

Bottomline......we got nothing....we got a piece of paper we could submit to our homeowners insurance which we will not do. Probably under the dedutable plus I do not want unnessary claims.

It is a pain to get your luggage out from under the bed and I am sure no one would bother especially not knowing if anything is inside. They go for the easy target.

I have learned my leason the hard way.....

 

This is exactly why I asked the question. I won't bring our iPads if they don't fit in the safe. I have seen too many room doors open while being cleaned. I'm sorry that you learned the hard way. :(

[Shippy]

Don't rely on a locked suitcase. Any case with a zip can be opened and reclosed without unlocking it all you need is a pen.

 

 

 

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

I think the kind of theft we are talking about here is the quick crime of opportunity.

In and out within a minute.

If I were to have 1 minute in a ship cabin to steal....I would look for things in plain sight OR IN THE NIGHTSTAND.

People would probably put things in there they would not in their home nightstand because of traveling, convinence, lack of other storage, etc.

It is hard to get a large suitcase out from under the bed quickly, then you would have to open it....and that might be for nothing because you would not know if anything was in it. So, in the future, I will leave things I care about in the suitcase like we used to do.

It is like the people that leave their front door unlocked or the keys in their car....That makes thieves happy because it is easy..

My husband also reminds me not to leave the car unlocked in the driveway because since the garage door opener is in there...it is like leaving the house keys out.

[marci22]

WRT the Cruiseline Policy - as I interpret, only theft of baggage is covered - not personal items. You'd have to rely on Homeowner's Policy and maybe Credit Card coverage as someone mentioned above. ken

 

That was me ;)

 

I mentioned it because I recently got an email about purchase protection from Chase. They will even cover things that are not really lost, but you cannot reach them. I guess this would be dropping your phone in the ocean, etc. Always ask. Nothing to lose by asking.

[marci22]

I think the kind of theft we are talking about here is the quick crime of opportunity.

In and out within a minute.

If I were to have 1 minute in a ship cabin to steal....I would look for things in plain sight OR IN THE NIGHTSTAND.

People would probably put things in there they would not in their home nightstand because of traveling, convinence, lack of other storage, etc.

It is hard to get a large suitcase out from under the bed quickly, then you would have to open it....and that might be for nothing because you would not know if anything was in it. So, in the future, I will leave things I care about in the suitcase like we used to do.

It is like the people that leave their front door unlocked or the keys in their car....That makes thieves happy because it is easy..

My husband also reminds me not to leave the car unlocked in the driveway because since the garage door opener is in there...it is like leaving the house keys out.

 

I think a random person could have done it. Like you said, they go straight to the nightstand where people leave wallets, phones, etc.

 

When you read about break-ins here they thieves are in and out of entire houses in minutes. They run up to the bedroom, look in the top dresser drawer, grab any tvs or laptops they can carry. Even with alarms, they get out before police arrive.

 

Lots of people leave stuff out. Once I left our safe wide open with $1500 in it (still there when I got back from port). You just had bad luck that day.

[galavant3]

I have learned my leason the hard way.....

 

I really appreciate the warning. I think I've become complacent, both with jewelry and electronics. We've never had an issue at all but there is always that first time.

 

I did stop taking "better" jewelry on cruises because it just gave me something to worry about. However, phones, cameras, wallets etc are usually in the cabin.

 

I will be more diligent going forward.

[rthouse]

Yup...good reminder. I thought it was interesting the post from the person who walked into their hotel room and was never questioned. How easy would it be for someone to walk in and be like, oh, I forgot something..don't mind me.....continue cleaning.

 

"interesting"? Here's something interesting...I used to travel weekly for my job. I recall losing my room key on two occasions, each in different hotels. Each time I went to the desk, gave my room number, and they issued me a new key without asking me for any identification.

 

Whenever we travel, it's my duty to make sure everything of value is in the safe before we leave the room/cabin. It is my GF's duty to remind me to lock the safe.:o

[pcur]

I'm really glad the OP started this thread to remind all of us. My husband thinks I'm a little paranoid about putting stuff away in the cabin, but this thread proves my point.

 

I insisted we charge everything overnight. We both have ipads, so mine would charge overnight, and his would charge in the morning since he sleeps late. Phones are overnight, too.

 

When we leave the cabin ALL our stuff is out of sight, and what can fit in the safe goes in there. Our ipads won't fit with all the other stuff, but we usually take them with us since our books are on the ipads. If we have to leave the ipads in the cabin they go inside the dark closet in a black zipper bag so they are practically invisible, and even doing that makes me a little nervous. Someone would have to go on a hunting expedition to find them, though.

 

My philosophy is make it hard on the bad guys to find stuff.

 

I will only leave the charging cords and plugs out, since they are only a few dollars on ebay to replace.

Edited May 23, 2014 by pcur

[Ocean Boy]

Thanks for posting. I know that I have become complacent over the years. Sometimes it is best to not have to learn lessons first hand. I will remember this thread.

[Chris Copeman]

Unfortunately I also learned this lesson the hard way on the Allure in December 2012. It was disembarkation day and I left my iPhone on the charger/radio they have in each of the rooms. I noticed only 10 minutes later or so while waiting in the Diamond Lounge area waiting to leave the ship. I ran back to my room... the door was already stuck open and my iPhone gone. My room steward and another one were in the room remaking the bed. I confronted both and asked that security and a supervisor come to the room.

 

I knew exactly where I had left it and it had only been 10 minutes. Both came to the room and questioned the room stewards. It turns out that a 3rd person first accessed the room which the supervisor called a "bed stripper" - someone who comes in and takes all the linens out of the room before the regular stewards make it up again. They could tell by looking at the history of keys used as mentioned above.

 

I waited in my room for over an hour refusing to leave until they found this 3rd person. After an hour they told me that they had left the ship as their shift was over and there was no way for them to question them or search them. They did look in their room however. But honestly why would they put it in their room when they were getting off the ship and could easily sell it to a taxi driver etc.

 

I was then told I had to leave the ship or they security would remove me. I was taken to guest services to fill out a "lost luggage form" and told to contact my insurance company for a claim and I could contact a number on the form.

 

When I got home I called the number and the man said there was nothing he could do and that he would contact the ship to see if they had spoken to the "bed stripper". He called me a week later basically saying I was SOL and to contact my home insurance.

 

In the end I just bought a new iPhone and in the future will NEVER use the docking stations on Allure and will make sure everything is in the safe when I leave.

[Kartgv]

I can imagine a team off 2 passengers who were looking for "opportunities" wandering the halls, looking casually for open doors with no room steward in sight. They wouldn't be hard to find. One person goes into the room and quickly looks for anything of value while the other waits outside the open door as a "lookout". Steward or anyone else appears, lookout says, "Hurry up, we'll be late", and off they go to the next hallway. Sad that there are people who would do this, but I have no doubt that it happens on occasion. Thanks for the reminder to be more careful.

[Wilda]

So sorry this happened. Like previous posters have stated, we charge our phones and iPad overnight and keep them with us during the day. At night everything easily fits in the safe while we are eating dinner and at the shows. I take my wallet and checkbook out of my purse and place those in the safe too. I leave my pocketbook next to the couch...there is nothing in it ! Passports go in the safe as well. We have used the same number combination for years so that is never an issue.

[Justmekaren918]

I am so sorry for the loss. That stinks.

 

I was on Brilliance and my 10" e-reader did not fit in the safe. I guess I was lucky cause I think at night before dinner left out my phone or the tablet on a charger. I will have to be more vigilant on the electronics! I figured in the evening the steward was in to do a quick thing and leave.

[EmmasNana]

This is what I use if items will not fit in the safe. It is slash proof, locks and you can anchor it to something in the room. I use it as my purse when boarding ships or airplanes.

 

 

http://www.kyssbags.com/

[chengkp75]

Some cruise lines have cameras in the guest passageways, some don't. The cameras are there not to protect the passengers, but to protect the cruise line. Many, many hotels do not have security cameras outside all the rooms. The surveillance cameras on cruise ships started out because of the casinos, and were designed for watching the crew.

 

While hotel housekeeping generally do one room at a time, because of the USPH sanitation requirements to continually change gloves between various tasks of cleaning a cabin, the cabin stewards will service a group of rooms at a time, so that they do, for instance, all cabin bathrooms at once, remove gloves, make all the beds, put on gloves, empty trash, things like that. I don't recall all the specifics of what tasks require gloves, which don't, etc, but I do know that part of USPH seminars is gaming how to do cabin service with a minimum number of glove changes.

 

This does, however, leave a number of cabins open at one time, without the steward being aware of who enters the cabins. It is a weak point in ship's security, but again, the ticket contract limits liability for loss or damage to passenger's "belongings, whether contained in baggage or otherwise" to $300.

[CVU]

Not just your room attendant that has access to your room. Mini Bar checks and any deliveries as well that come into the cabin. We empty our mini bar Day 1, so one less person to enter.:)

[goodycruising]

Not just your room attendant that has access to your room. Mini Bar checks and any deliveries as well that come into the cabin. We empty our mini bar Day 1, so one less person to enter.:)

 

Very good point. We have had mini bar let themselves in while one of us was showering and the other out on the balcony. They are very quick to barge in.

 

I must thank the OP for bringing this topic up as we have been very complacent now that I think back.

 

In a way you feel like this is your personal space, whereas it is not. The through traffic is considerable and it is in our best interests to only take on board items that you can carry around or secure in the safe. I take very little jewellery and will have more of a think in future about leaving items on the charger when we go out.

[Erik101]

Here's what I want to know….what happened to the cabin attendant who's own cabin was searched and was in fear of losing her job? Did she keep her job or did the cruise line send her packing? Frankly, if I was her and someone accused me of stealing, I would be pissed as hell!!

Edited May 24, 2014 by Erik101