Had a great time, but ruined by theft!

[Havingfun2010]

Sorry to say this, but theft happens. You may lock you bag, not lock you bag, put tape around it, leave it out, not leave it out, give it to a bellhop, lug it yourself. At some point, your luggage will be exposed and at that time, a theft of opportunity may occur. $200.00 in goods is minor. I have had more than that go missing in my life. Although annoying, it's forgotten within a few days, and I will go back, and do everything exactly the same way. I don't travel with expensive toys. I don't travel with expensive jewelry. My luggage is already beat up. My credit card has travel insurance. I will file a claim, get some cash, file a police report and just move on. Theft happens.

[Homosassa]

It is very possible that the theft occurred off the ship and on the pier.

[bobandsherry]

All the talk of cheap locks, zip ties and tape may deter but will not prevent theft. Think about it, a person could easily walk by, grab a suit case from the front of your cabin and you'd assume it was taken by the cruise line for disembarkation. They can then ransack through your luggage in their cabin, laundry room or other public place easily defeating any 'security' you put on it and place out with other suitcases in the hall when they are done.

 

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[Drazil65]

Sorry to hear this happened to you and that is will be forever imbedded in your memory of your cruise. This is however a great example of how we have no idea who we are cruising with and for all those people that have no problem with letting their children roam the ship without supervision etc.

 

A ship is nothing but a small city and you will be in very close quarters with possible criminals, racist, morons, alcoholics, drug users and addicts, pedophiles, cheaters or whomever all mixed in with the average Joe.....good lesson for all to remember....

[richstowe]

I'm impressed how many have taken their valuable time to tell you they would never do what OP did .

It's good to offer helpful advice . :rolleyes:

[Sweet Dutch Girl]

I'm impressed how many have taken their valuable time to tell you they would never do what OP did .

It's good to offer helpful advice . :rolleyes:

 

The incident has already happened and none of us can make it unhappen or can really advise on how to get it resolved. We can, through our own experiences, and for the benefit of all those who read these threads, express how we try and protect any valuables from theft.

 

I, too, have learned, through experience that theft happens everywhere. When I was a flight attendant one of my compatriots had their luggage stolen right from under their nose as it was in the cabin of the plane and a passenger, apparently, just grabbed it from under the seat where it was stored and walked off with it.

 

If something is valuable to you, keep it with you. Throw dirty clothes into your luggage and carry those things that are precious. Trust only goes so far. And luggage locks are a joke...lock your luggage and you are saying to a thief: "look, I have something to steal".

[sparks1093]

I'm impressed how many have taken their valuable time to tell you they would never do what OP did .

It's good to offer helpful advice . :rolleyes:

 

A smart man learns from his mistakes, a wise man learns from the mistakes of others.:)

[Nuff_Said]

This trick is widely known. How to open a locked zippered suitcase with only a ball point pen:

[richstowe]

The incident has already happened and none of us can make it unhappen or can really advise on how to get it resolved. We can, through our own experiences, and for the benefit of all those who read these threads, express how we try and protect any valuables from theft.

 

I, too, have learned, through experience that theft happens everywhere. When I was a flight attendant one of my compatriots had their luggage stolen right from under their nose as it was in the cabin of the plane and a passenger, apparently, just grabbed it from under the seat where it was stored and walked off with it.

 

If something is valuable to you, keep it with you. Throw dirty clothes into your luggage and carry those things that are precious. Trust only goes so far. And luggage locks are a joke...lock your luggage and you are saying to a thief: "look, I have something to steal".

OK - So we have established that those mini TSA locks are a joke . And the OP started stated that $200 of stuff was taken which to me is not placing valuables unattended . That's an unfortunate loss but truly peanuts . So since not everyone wants to or is able to use self debarkation , there is always a risk . But leaving luggage in a well lit , Camera recorded area is talking a small risk . Must we live our life's like bad things are always going to happen . Why not just hide in the basement ?

 

Therefore I repeat

I'm impressed how many have taken their valuable time to tell you they would never do what OP did .

It's good to offer helpful advice . :rolleyes:

And it also seems to be helpful to blame the victim .

[Smithkids5521]

My credit card has travel insurance. I will file a claim, get some cash, file a police report and just move on. Theft happens.

 

That's actually a good point- did you have travel insurance (or can you file through your credit card- especially if you bought those souvenirs with your cc)? With an official police report or a report through Carnival, you may have what is needed to file. Just a thought...

[sparks1093]

OK - So we have established that those mini TSA locks are a joke . And the OP started stated that $200 of stuff was taken which to me is not placing valuables unattended . That's an unfortunate loss but truly peanuts . So since not everyone wants to or is able to use self debarkation , there is always a risk . But leaving luggage in a well lit , Camera recorded area is talking a small risk . Must we live our life's like bad things are always going to happen . Why not just hide in the basement ?

 

Therefore I repeat

I'm impressed how many have taken their valuable time to tell you they would never do what OP did .

It's good to offer helpful advice . :rolleyes:

And it also seems to be helpful to blame the victim .

 

At least they offered something.;p:D

[Kflatley]

So.... Any news? Carnival get back to u?

 

Not yet but they were closed yesterday.

[Kflatley]

That's actually a good point- did you have travel insurance (or can you file through your credit card- especially if you bought those souvenirs with your cc)? With an official police report or a report through Carnival, you may have what is needed to file. Just a thought...

 

We paid cash for most everything except the tshirts

[firemanbobswife]

I am very sorry for what happened. It certainly can put a damper on an otherwise wonderful vacation. It upsets me that so many want to trivialize the amount of the theft. For me, it's not only about the money wasted, but also about the principle of it. While it may "only" be $200 to some, it's mostly about feeling violated and the sentimental value of the things you bought for others. Sure, they can point fingers saying it's your fault for not locking your luggage, and whatever, whatever. But the fact remains that you did what Carnival told you to - you left your bags outside and some lowlifes stole from you. I hardly consider t-shirts and trinkets "valuables" and wouldn't carry them with me. Now an iPad or laptop or such - absolutely!

 

When we started cruising, locking our bags never even crossed our minds. We had no idea you had to leave them out the night before until we were on the ship and didn't even have any locks. Now we do self assist mostly for the convenience. I recently bought new luggage and have the fixed lock on the top of the bag where the zipper pulls go directly into the slots. They can't be moved so the ball point pen thing could open it, but they won't be able to close it back up making tampering evident. Is it bulletproof? Nope. But it's something better. It's sad we have to think like this now, but unfortunately there are bad apples amongst every bunch.

 

Maybe someone else can benefit from some of the suggestions mentioned here and hopefully it won't happen to them (or you again).

[Kflatley]

It is very possible that the theft occurred off the ship and on the pier.

 

Highly doubt it.

[crusinpsychRN]

The actual cost is the cost of the cruise and the $200. Probably got things you can't buy here. My painters dropped a Mayan calendar and it smashed. I had to go on another cruise to get another since no stores here carry them.

[FlamingJune1967]

A smart man learns from his mistakes, a wise man learns from the mistakes of others.:)

 

Except - the OP didn't make a mistake. The person who stole her items did. Any fool with access to the internet can pick a TSA lock, and a zip tie can be cut easily, What was she supposed to do - hang out in the hallway guarding her luggage until it was taken by the crew?

 

This is one of the things I have always been uncomfortable about with Carnival and RCCL - the hours that my luggage has to hang out in the hallway waiting to be taken. On Celebrity, our luggage was removed within 5 minutes of us putting it out - and I never saw luggage sitting in the hallway that last night.

 

Also - I've read several comments that $200 was not a lot. True, but our house was burgled 15 years ago, and of all the tvs, computers, and jewelry that was stolen, it was the decorative wax egg that I had purchased as a memento from a family trip for $10 that bothered me the most. It still burns me - no resale value and I loved that egg! Why???

 

edited to add - wasn't picking on you, Sparks! You were just the easiest quote ;)

[SadieN]

The actual cost is the cost of the cruise and the $200. Probably got things you can't buy here. My painters dropped a Mayan calendar and it smashed. I had to go on another cruise to get another since no stores here carry them.

 

 

Had to do exact same thing. Had to book a cruise after the dog ate my La Paz sandals.

 

Locks are too deter the opportunistic thief and to prevent your dirty laundry from going all over baggage claim. The professional or determined thief was not be stopped by a lock.

 

 

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[coevan]

Guess you missed this from the original post: "had been arrested by police that morning on board as he was on probation and had left the country on that cruise." I suppose he could have been on probation from a misdemeanor.

 

 

I guess you should do some research. Probation is offered on misdemeanors many times to avoid jail time.

 

http://www.criminaldefenselawyer.com/crime-penalties/misdemeanors

 

This is the most paranoid post I have ever read. How many people of the hundreds of thousands of people who sail Carnival have had their bags broken into. We have never locked a bag, and we would never carry our own bags. I would imagine this is a very rare occurrence. Mostly after a cruise I have dirty stinky clothes in my checked bags, never anything of value. slam away

[sparks1093]

I guess you should do some research. Probation is offered on misdemeanors many times to avoid jail time.

 

http://www.criminaldefenselawyer.com/crime-penalties/misdemeanors

 

This is the most paranoid post I have ever read. How many people of the hundreds of thousands of people who sail Carnival have had their bags broken into. We have never locked a bag, and we would never carry our own bags. I would imagine this is a very rare occurrence. Mostly after a cruise I have dirty stinky clothes in my checked bags, never anything of value. slam away

 

It's not paranoia if it happened. Yes, I did say he could have been on probation for a misdemeanor but I would think it doubtful they would have taken him off the ship in cuffs, but bottom line he wasn't an upright citizen.

[coevan]

it's paranoia to lock, tape, paper clip or staple your bags. The TSA locks are a joke. I would be more concerned with airline employees than cruise ship guests.

[sparks1093]

it's paranoia to lock, tape, paper clip or staple your bags. The TSA locks are a joke. I would be more concerned with airline employees than cruise ship guests.

 

Heck, I don't even lock my car but I'm not going to belittle those that do. Where do you think the bags go after they leave the ship? I suspect most of them go to the, um, airport:D.

[kcjdwill]

I am interested to hear if this gets resolved. We had an instance where something was stolen off the room door (it was a gift made from a person we were cruising with) and when I reported it and asked about security cameras, I was told they don't have them in the hallways. I found that odd since lots of things can happen in the halls. This was on the Dream last September. I hope you can get some resolution to this unfortunate event.

[evandbob]

We have all heard from someone about something or somebody on a cruise who has done this or that. Sometimes I have heard 3 or 4 versions of the same story, some even contradictory. The medivac was for a heart attack, no wait, it was a compound fracture, the next time I hear the story it was for a stroke victim. Unless we hear an announcement from the Captain, all rumors carried by cruise passengers are suspect.

 

There is no proof that the guy in handcuffs stole anything. He may have been arrested for spousal abuse or domestic violence, or possession of drugs. He could have an outstanding warrant for non payment of child support. To rely on a 3rd party report from someone who heard something about someone is risky to say the least.

 

There are many places where the theft could have occurred. I have had a checked bag with a TSA lock on it vandalized by someone unzipping an outside pocket and using a box cutter to slice the inner lining. The TSA lock was never touched and the bag looked like it wasn't touched. I noticed the damage when unpacking at home.

 

I'm sorry the OP,s bag was broken into, but with no proof, it is useless to pin point where the theft occurred.

[firemanbobswife]

There are many places where the theft could have occurred. I have had a checked bag with a TSA lock on it vandalized by someone unzipping an outside pocket and using a box cutter to slice the inner lining. The TSA lock was never touched and the bag looked like it wasn't touched. I noticed the damage when unpacking at home.

 

That's crazy. I'm glad I have hard sided luggage.