Cruise lines have slightly different rules about what passengers can bring on board.
All cruise companies don’t allow weapons of any sort, and they all ban open flames, irons and small appliances. You can’t bring any sort of cannabis on any cruise ship sailing from the U.S., nor can you bring your own liquor.
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Policies on beverages vary. Some cruise lines allow one bottle of wine per adult while others ban all alcoholic beverages. Rules also vary by company when it comes to other liquor as well as water and soda..
Rules can vary even between cruise lines owned by the same parent company. So it’s important for cruise passengers to read the prohibited-items list for their specific cruise lines because there’s no industry standard.
When a cruise line changes its prohibited/banned items list, it should send an email to the affected passengers. Royal Caribbean, for example, recently made a major change to the type of outlet extenders/power devices it allows on ships on its namesake cruise line.
That change was not communicated to passengers, and the cruise line has not clarified the matter through the media.
Cruise ships have limited plugs and USB charging ports.
Image source: Dan Kline/Come Cruise With Me
Royal Caribbean changed a rule
Keeping your devices charged when you’re on a cruise ship, especially an older one, can be a bit complicated.
Newer ships might have multiple plugs and USB ports on the desk and on each side of the bed. The absolute newest ships have USB and USB-C in unexpected places to allow families to keep phones, tablets and smartwatches charged.
On an older ship, even ones less than a decade old, many cabins will have a single American outlet and one European one. They may have traditional USB ports but many do not.
To get around the lack of outlets, many cruisers bring a multiplug device. Most cruisers know that anything with surge protection has been banned across all cruise ships, but multiplug devices have long been considered cruise-safe.
Royal Caribbean, however, recently changed the language in its banned-items section to make it appear that multi-plug devices are not allowed. The new language says the following.
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“Extension Cords and Multi-Plug Outlets/ Power Strips”
The problem is that passengers are unclear whether that definition includes the multiplug outlets that plug directly into the socket and don’t have any sort of cord. Those would appear to be banned, but the cruise line does not seem to be enforcing its new rule, at least in some cases.
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Royal Caribbean creates confusion
Traditionally, when someone tries to bring a banned item (like a coffee maker, an iron, or a power strip with a surge protector, Royal Caribbean confiscates that item and returns it after the cruise. (More illicit items like guns or alcohol may have broader consequences.)
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Since Royal Caribbean banned multiplug devices — something it has not done for its Celebrity Cruises brand — enforcement appears lax. That may be because it has not fully publicized the change.
A few people on social media have posted that the cruise line has confiscated devices they have used for years. Many others, including people who likely don’t know the new rule, have used multiplug devices without consequences.
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Under the new rule, a single plug device that has multiple USB and USB-C ports would be allowed. Whether Royal Caribbean would allow a single-plug device that offers multiple charging ports and a single plug is unclear.
Multiple Come Cruise With Me readers and friends of the family (so to speak) reported that they have been on Royal Caribbean ships since the rule change was made without having their multiplug device confiscated.
Royal Caribbean’s public relations department on Sept. 19 acknowledged receipt of the request for clarification on the rules but has not yet clarified the matter.
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