When you board a cruise ship your luggage gets scanned for banned items. The list varies slightly by cruise line, but they’re looking for obviously outlawed items like guns, knives, and other weapons.
New cruisers, however, may see items get confiscated that they did not realize were banned. That includes things like small appliances (coffee makers or kettles), candles, and irons.
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It’s often irons and steamers that surprise people the most since those seem harmless and packed clothes tend to be wrinkled. The problem is that anything that poses a fire risk can’t be brought onboard.
There are exceptions. You can bring matches or a lighter in order to smoke cigarettes or a cigar onboard. Enforcement can also be a bit spotty.
On a recent Royal Caribbean cruise, for example, when I ran my carry-on bad through the security scanner I was asked whether I had a cigar cutter. I did, pulled it out, and was allowed to bring it on board.
The scanner saw the blade part and the person viewing it needed to know it was an allowed exception to the no blades rule. The problem is that that same cigar cutter has been packed in the same place in my carryon for at least a dozen cruises after that and it has never been flagged again.
Royal Caribbean also has very specific rules when it comes to power strips, extension cords, and outlet extenders. It recently changed its wording on those rules and that has set social media abuzz.
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Cruise cabins have limited outlets.
Image source: Dan Kline/Come Cruise With Me
Royal Caribbean appears to ban a new item
Royal Caribbean has always banned extension cords, and any power strip or device that has surge protection. There’s a fire risk with the way ship power works with that type of power strip.
Passengers have always been allowed to use multi-plug devices. There are countless versions of those sold on Amazon when you search “cruise-safe power outlets.”
These are power devices that plug into a single port which creates more outlets. Many also have USB ports.
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Most experienced passengers bring some sort of multi-plug device with them. That’s because many cruise ships have one American-style outlet and one European outlet in the entire cabin and some may not offer USB ports.
That has changed on newer ships but for a family needing to keep its devices charged multi-plug outlets have been a very valuable piece of cruise gear. Now, it appears that Royal Caribbean has banned them.
The cruise line has changed the language on its website to show that multi-plug outlets are now banned.
More specifically, the banned list now names “Extension Cords and Multi-Plug Outlets/ Power Strips.”
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It’s unclear whether the cruise line has been enforcing the new rule given that many passengers on every ship would have these devices. Many people have shared the language change on social media, but there have not been widespread (or perhaps any) reports of people actually having their once-approved, now-banned multi-plug outlet confiscated.
Royal Caribbean has not answered a request for clarification sent on Wednesday, Sept. 18 after the close of business. The cruise line has not sent any communication to passengers about this change.
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