RC's prohibited items: sunscreen types

[shipgeeks]

Our boarding documents contain a section on what sunscreens not to pack.  Petrolatum/mineral oil, oxybenzone, octocrylene, octinoxate are all prohibited. But titanium dioxide is also prohibited, and my understanding is that it is usually recommended as the only one safe for reef life.  Misprint?

[cruiseboy89130]

1 hour ago, shipgeeks said:

Our boarding documents contain a section on what sunscreens not to pack.  Petrolatum/mineral oil, oxybenzone, octocrylene, octinoxate are all prohibited. But titanium dioxide is also prohibited, and my understanding is that it is usually recommended as the only one safe for reef life.  Misprint?

Yes be very careful! They will unpack your suitcase and check the ingredients list of every bottle when you check in!

[mrpayroll]

Been on 47 cruises and have never had them open any bag to check sun tan lotion.

[smokeybandit]

I wouldn't worry about it. RC isn't going to check your sunscreen when you board. 

Even countries that have sunscreen laws have never checked.

[not-enough-cruising]

Several hundred nights at sea and I had no idea there was a sunscreen rider in the contract. 

[jwlane]

The wording states, "we recommend [emphasis mine] avoiding sunscreens containing...."  There is no ban.

[Engineroom Snipe]

How much money would it cost to try and implement this "policy"?

 

Fellow cruisers, think about it:

 

1. We cannot implement and enforce any type of "chair hog" policy.

 

2. We cannot seem to implement and enforce a no-smoking policy or vaping policy in a uniform fashion.

 

3. Do not even think about the MDR dress policy!

 

4. Heck, we cannot even understand how the gratuity policy really works.

 

5. New policies on one appetizer and entree at a time.

 

Royal has to really pick and choose their battles right now.

 

Do you think there is even a remote chance that your suntan chemical substances really matter?

 

🤣

[Ocean Boy]

I wonder what they would do with the loads of confiscated sunscreen?🤔

[Engineroom Snipe]

33 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

I wonder what they would do with the loads of confiscated sunscreen?🤔

 

It would possibly be considered "HAZMAT" and cost them a fortune to dispose of!

 

Then again, the cruise lines have been caught "midnight chumming" with waste time and time again.

 

Second thought, I DO NOT want to know what they do with the confiscated sunscreen.  😢

 

 

Edited May 14, 2023 by Engineroom Snipe
spelling

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

7 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

Even countries that have sunscreen laws have never checked.

 

I have been on some excursions in the Caribbean where the excursion guides collected our sunscreen in baskets before the excursion and returned them at the end.

[Sunshine3601]

1 hour ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

I have been on some excursions in the Caribbean where the excursion guides collected our sunscreen in baskets before the excursion and returned them at the end.

Which island(s) was this?

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

14 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Which island(s) was this?

 

I had it both at Cozumel and Grand Cayman.

 

The excursion instructions stated biodegradable sunscreen required. Mine was - but I still had to put it in the basket.A lot of what was going in there from others was NOT biodegradable - so I get why they collected it. Of course it didn't help the ocean if people had already put it on and what they had was just extra.

Edited May 15, 2023 by WrittenOnYourHeart

[GTO-Girl]

Been on 52 cruises and have never been asked about my sunscreen….

[nasa1974]

It is very difficult to find sunscreen that doesn't at least some of those band chemicals in it.

[jean87510]

9 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

I had it both at Cozumel and Grand Cayman.

 

The excursion instructions stated biodegradable sunscreen required. Mine was - but I still had to put it in the basket.A lot of what was going in there from others was NOT biodegradable - so I get why they collected it. Of course it didn't help the ocean if people had already put it on and what they had was just extra.

Hopefully this wasn't an excursion where the guide dives down to pick up marine life and have everyone hold it or feeds the wildlife to get them to come closer.  

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

2 minutes ago, jean87510 said:

Hopefully this wasn't an excursion where the guide dives down to pick up marine life and have everyone hold it or feeds the wildlife to get them to come closer.  

No it was not.

[jean87510]

Just now, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

No it was not.

Glad to hear it.  Pet peeve of mine.  We invested in scuba shorts and rash guards plus skull caps for snorkeling as extra safety against sun.  I can say I have never had anyone in 25 plus years of snorkeling, diving check my bag and take sunscreen.  

[Engineroom Snipe]

8 minutes ago, jean87510 said:

Glad to hear it.  Pet peeve of mine.  We invested in scuba shorts and rash guards plus skull caps for snorkeling as extra safety against sun.  I can say I have never had anyone in 25 plus years of snorkeling, diving check my bag and take sunscreen.  

While my previous post might seem as I am mocking the well intended effort to prevent water pollution from chemicals, your solution seems to be more sustainable (and practical).

 

I do the same as I use rash shirts and limit my exposure in general while near the water (always bring a small personal beach umbrella with a super comfy head covering).

 

I would think long and hard about any shore excursion that I am paying for to go through my personal items.

[jean87510]

Just now, Engineroom Snipe said:

While my previous post might seem as I am mocking the well intended effort to prevent water pollution from chemicals, your solution seems to be more sustainable (and practical).

 

I do the same as I use rash shirts and limit my exposure in general while near the water (always bring a small personal beach umbrella with a super comfy head covering).

 

I would think long and hard about any shore excursion that I am paying for to go through my personal items.

it's what I was thinking as well.  And I wouldn't allow them to do so nor would my husband.

[BND]

10 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

 

I had it both at Cozumel and Grand Cayman.

 

The excursion instructions stated biodegradable sunscreen required. Mine was - but I still had to put it in the basket.A lot of what was going in there from others was NOT biodegradable - so I get why they collected it. Of course it didn't help the ocean if people had already put it on and what they had was just extra.

We always apply it before we leave the ship.    You are supposed to put it on at least 15 minutes before exposure.   

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

1 hour ago, BND said:

We always apply it before we leave the ship.    You are supposed to put it on at least 15 minutes before exposure.   

I am aware of that. BUT I also carry it with me as you are supposed to reapply after a certain period - especially when sweaty or after being in the water. It's not a put on once and you're good for the day thing.

[baileybrad]

I would think that the tips for a guide who took people's sunscreens were amazing.

[BND]

38 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

I am aware of that. BUT I also carry it with me as you are supposed to reapply after a certain period - especially when sweaty or after being in the water. It's not a put on once and you're good for the day thing.

I never said anything different.  My point was that if everyone follows the directions, they would have already had it on.  Why are you so defensive?

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

42 minutes ago, BND said:

I never said anything different.  My point was that if everyone follows the directions, they would have already had it on.  Why are you so defensive?

Yes...but they were collecting all that people had brought to reapply. So even those of us who followed the rules and had biodegradable sunscreen were unable to reapply because of people who don't follow the rules of having biodegradable sunscreen (the guides were apologetic, but they said because so many people broke the rules, they were required to collect it all since people could put non-biodegradable sunscreen in empty bottles of biodegradable). So yes, we who had applied before leaving the ship were protected for the first portion of the trip, but once the water activity was over we had nothing to reapply and many of us ended up sunburned.

 

So it's just something to be aware of if you're taking an excursion that says biodegradable sunscreen required. You can put it on before, but don't count on being able to keep it to reapply. It's certainly made me rethink some excursions because of that.

 

(And as for being defensive, it's because your comment read like we should have known to put sunscreen on beforehand and there wouldn't have been a problem. The problem came AFTER the first activity because it was locked in a van until the end of the excursion and we couldn't reapply it.)

Edited May 15, 2023 by WrittenOnYourHeart

[shipgeeks]

Thank you for the replies, everyone.

I originally posted because in recent years, titanium dioxide was the recommended ingredient in reef-safe sunscreens, and I was surprised to see it on the "don't" list.

However, after posting, I did some more reading, and discovered that it is now considered to be possibly hazardous.  Interesting how things develop over time.

I will stick with my usual rashguards and hats.