Can You Bring Alcohol On A Cruise Ship? Expert Advice

You cannot bring alcohol on most cruise ships. But you may bring one 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne.

A waiter with an alcohol trolley on the deck of a cruise ship.

Hard liquor and beers will get seized during embarkation. If you buy alcohol onboard or at the port, it will get confiscated too.

But you will get them back at the time of debarkation provided you are of legal age and it has the original seal.

Which cruise lines allow you to bring alcohol onboard?

There are only three cruise lines that allow you to bring alcohol onboard.

The details are as below.

Azamara cruises

You can bring alcohol and consume it in your stateroom.

But if you consume it in their bars and dining rooms you have to pay a corkage fee of $10.

The same rule applies to liquors brought from ports.

The legal age to consume alcohol is 21 years for ships sailing from North America.

It is 18 years for ships sailing from Europe, Asia, South America, Australia, and New Zealand.

Silversea Cruises

You can bring alcohol onboard Silversea ships and consume it anywhere on the ship.

There is no corkage fee.

Viking

Viking allows guests to bring alcohol from home and ports.

You can consume it in your stateroom or in bars and restaurants without any corkage fee.

Why you cannot bring alcohol on cruise ships?

Alcohol contributes a major part of revenue for cruise lines.

So, cruise lines do not allow alcohol onboard to protect their business interests.

But most cruise lines allow wines and champagnes in limited quantities.

There are also limits on how many bottles of alcohol can you bring back from a cruise.

Why you should not try sneaking alcohol on cruise ships?

Some people try novel ways to bring alcohol such as putting liquor in wine bottles for cruises.

But, you should not try and sneak alcohol on cruise ships because:

  • Embarrassment: Getting caught with prohibited items and questioned by security causes mental trauma. That may lead to a bad experience and ruin your cruise vacation.
  • Drinks Packages: You will have more drink choices if you buy a drinks package onboard.
  • Financial Loss: Some cruises will not return the alcohol bottles if you are not an adult. So, you will lose the money.

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About Tully Seal

Avatar of Tully SealTully Seal is a travel blogger. She is a BA graduate in Hospitality Management and has over 4 years of work experience in the travel and hospitality industry. She loves to cook in her spare time.

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