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How much liquor can we bring back?

FISH OUTTA WATER

By FISH OUTTA WATER,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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Irishlinny

Irishlinny

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Posted
We are sailing to Grand Cayman, Roatan, Belize & Cozumel on Valor in April. I'm wondering how much alcohol we can bring back thru customs? AND.... if you know of a great place to make such a purchase that would be greatly appreciated! ;)

 

You are only allowed one bottle per person duty free (it used to be 2!). But I don't think there is a limit on how many you can bring back as long as you pay the duty on them (not sure how much that is...maybe someone else will know). The ship's prices are very good. There are shops right at the port in Cozumel that sell liquor. Roatan is a wonderful place but very undeveloped, even at the port, so don't count on getting much there. I'm thinking Grand Cayman may be a bit high priced (their prices seem higher as far as ports go....when you see some of the gorgeous homes on the water, it will make sense!) I'm trying to remember if the port shops at Belize had liquor stores...drawing a blank.

Also, I know that I read alot of comments on the boards about buying liquor in port and just putting it in their beach bags and walking right on with it (to consume on the cruise). That didn't work for us. We had a bottle of Kahlua wrapped in newspaper in our back pack and the xray caught it. The took it until the end of the cruise....:(

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Yvonne

Yvonne

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I think customs allows 1 liter per person.

 

My husband and I were on the Glory last month and we brought back 4 and had no problems. We didn't even have it in our luggage, we just carried all 4 bottles in the boxes Carnival packed them in.

 

We spoke to one of the crew members as we were concerned about bringing back more than what we were allowed, but he said customs isn't going to start stopping people because they are bringing home a little too much alcohol. It would keep the lines standing still forever, and they basically want to get you off the ship, so they can let a whole new group on.

 

We bought our alcohol in one of the shops on the ship. Great price!! Just wish we'd bought more Sheridans as we can't get it here!

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denisey

denisey

Posted
Posted
We are sailing to Grand Cayman, Roatan, Belize & Cozumel on Valor in April. I'm wondering how much alcohol we can bring back thru customs? AND.... if you know of a great place to make such a purchase that would be greatly appreciated! ;)

 

You can pretty much bring back as much as you want...but on anything over 1 litre per adult you MAY have to pay a small duty on. (we had 6 bottles once, and they didn't charge us, they just waved us through.)

 

If you are flying home, you will need to pack the alcohol in your checked bags.

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beluga

beluga

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I just got back from a carnival cruise out of Galveston. If you are a Texas resident - you can only bring back one liter duty free. Otherwise its $2.80 for each additional liter. If you are a non Texas resident - you can bring back 3 liters duty free. The first day on the ship - they usually have a tasting of different alcohols. This is the time to get it because they have discounted prices for that time only (I got two liters Bailey's and one liter Sheridan for only $33). And everyone who buys during this time gets placed into a drawing for free alcohol. They sold out of the Sheridan in one hour. The only port I could find it in was at the duty free shop at the end of the downtown pier at Cozumel. I love Sheridan - if you like coffee liquers you have got to try it.

 

When I went through Customs in Galveston - they didn't even look at my claim form. They just scanned my passport and waved me through.

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Frank12

Frank12

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I cruise every year and always stock my bar because the prices are so good on the ship. I always report all of the alcohol to customs (as many as 6-8 bottles) and have NEVER been charged extra duty.:)

So buy as much as you want - just don't lie about it when you get off the ship.

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tripdaddy0801

tripdaddy0801

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I guess this must of changed recently. We used to always bring back 3 or 4 per person. We always wrote the extra down on the custom forms and they just waved us through. Never got charged any additional fees. Hope the same thing happens this year. By the way, Sheridan is VERY GOOD!!!:D

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cubsfan2008

cubsfan2008

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In July on the Liberty we saw a man who held up the tenders at the Cayman Islands because he bought boxes upon boxes of alcohol for his daughters wedding. It almost filled up the entire boat and alot of people were frustrated because we thought the booze should of waited until we got back to the boat, after all the liquor doesnt care if it stands out in the sun. Not sure if they had to pay extra at customs but the gentleman told us that he is probably saving 1k buying it this way.

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  • 5 months later...
jmsnyc

jmsnyc

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Im on a cruise that just goes to Mexico out of New Orleans. So basically if I decide to bring back 3 bottles, I should put down on the customs form and then it will be hit or miss whether or not they charge me a couple of bucks per bottle?

 

Also when you travel with other people, it is a liter per person, so if there are 3 adults in your family that means 3 bottles duty free.

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KroozNut

KroozNut

Posted
Posted
Im on a cruise that just goes to Mexico out of New Orleans. So basically if I decide to bring back 3 bottles, I should put down on the customs form and then it will be hit or miss whether or not they charge me a couple of bucks per bottle?

 

Also when you travel with other people, it is a liter per person, so if there are 3 adults in your family that means 3 bottles duty free.

 

Straight from the horses mouth..

 

"Adults at least 21 years of age who are residents of the United States may bring in, free of duty and internal revenue tax, not more than one liter of alcoholic beverages beer, wine, liquor for personal use. Quantities above one liter are subject to duty and internal revenue tax and all must be declared.

 

DUTY AND TAX RATES SAMPLES (Approximate):

 

Beer - 16 cents per liter

Still Wine - 36 cents per liter

80 Proof Scotch - $2.89 per liter

 

In addition to U.S. Federal laws, the traveler must also meet state alcoholic beverage laws which may be more restrictive if the state in which you arrive permits less liquor than you have legally brought into the United States, that State's laws apply to your importation of alcoholic beverages.

The shipment of alcoholic beverages by mail is prohibited by United States postal laws."

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jmsnyc

jmsnyc

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Yeah thanks. Im going to assume Louisiana has no major rules limiting it more so than the Federal laws. I guess its kind of a YMMV whether or not they let an extra bottle or 2 slide duty free.

 

The only thing I have to watch is my luggage weight because if the liquor brings it over 50lbs it can defeat the savings.

 

I believe LA is also one of the states where Walmart sells liquor on the shelves, if so sometimes you can get really good prices there.

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jetskier

jetskier

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Texas is the only port that limits you on the amount you can bring back (state law). I have brought back 19 bottles in Mobile and 12 in New Orleans. It is hit and miss if they charge you the duty. The fee was $2.85 per liter.

 

So when you fill out your form list it by the number of liters that you have and not by the number of bottles. I also break it down by domestic and foreign. They are not suppose to charge you for imported a US product though some do.

 

Dave

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kjunea

kjunea

Posted
Posted
Im on a cruise that just goes to Mexico out of New Orleans. So basically if I decide to bring back 3 bottles, I should put down on the customs form and then it will be hit or miss whether or not they charge me a couple of bucks per bottle?

 

Also when you travel with other people, it is a liter per person, so if there are 3 adults in your family that means 3 bottles duty free.

 

When we came back on the Fantasy via Mobile, we brought back 5L and being the law abiding people that we are, we claimed all of it and for the first time in my many, many cruises, I had to pay duty on it!! It turned out to be $12 for the 3 extra Liters, with $9 of it going to the IRS!! I've always just been waived on, actually told once that they didn't worry about 10-15 dollars! Oh well, at least I feel like I did the right thing and even with the extra money, it was still waaaaaaaaaaaaaay cheaper than buying it stateside.

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  • 9 years later...

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