Many of us fantasize about going on a tropical cruise, but did you know that there are several items that are officially prohibited on board?
Lucy Southerton, who runs the Cruising as Crew social media accounts, recently uploaded a YouTube video video with an overview of some prohibited items.
More obvious things might come to mind, but Lucy dove straight into some quirky things that Royal Caribbean Cruises – one of the biggest providers – can’t offer, or can with caution.
No-go items ranged from floaties to appliances, and she even used a gruesome anecdote involving a family’s ashes to illustrate why they are rarely allowed on board.
She outlined a total of five things that you might not think would be confiscated or subject to strict controls.
Floating devices
Lucy Southerton uploaded a video to her YouTube channel Cruising as Crew outlining some of the strange things that can be confiscated on board a ship if you don’t follow the rules
Lucy said: ‘Floating devices, rubber rings, etc. The reason you can’t take lilos or rubber rings is because there is little space in the pool.
‘So if you have five people all on a lilo on a pool, no one else could fit in the pool.
‘It is logical that you are not allowed to use them and bring them on board.
“You can, however, bring your floatie on board and use it in port; You are just not allowed to use them in swimming pools on board the ship.
“And if you like to use a lilo, a rubber ring or a flamingo, I would bring that, just because you can save yourself some money.”
‘I was recently in CocoCay (in the Bahamas) and they have lilos you can use, but they cost $20 each! so if you have one at home, you can just take it with you.
“Or if you just want to pay the $20 to save yourself the hassle of wasting luggage space and the time it takes to inflate it, then I would understand.”
Appliances
The cruise ship employee emphasized that some items were fine to take, but with caveats and specific permission
While it’s fine to take your hair straightener or curler on board, you should be more careful with other appliances, which could put you at risk of a fine.
Lucy explained that this also includes irons and steamers.
She said: ‘If you’ve been watching my videos for a while you’ll know I tried to take a steamer on board one of my Virgin trips and I thought I was being crafty. but it was confiscated’.
‘No coffee machines, no huge smoothie makers or anything like that. No toasters – someone tried to bring a toaster on board!’
‘The The reason for this is that it poses a fire hazard and fire on a cruise ship is the thing we members fear most on a cruise ship.
‘It would be quite disastrous if there was a fire on board, and can you imagine if your toaster or iron started that fire it would be quite embarrassing.
“Anything to do with her is of course fine.”
Drones
The YouTuber is known for her popular videos where she discusses the cruise life and encourages others to take the plunge and work on it
Another strange one: drones. Lucy insisted: ‘You can take a drone on board, you just can’t use it on board.
‘Of course, like everything else, it is thoroughly checked. You also can’t use it at any of the private destinations, but you can use it at a generic port of call.’
So, for example, if you dock in St. Thomas, you can use your drone as soon as you get outside.
Walkie-talkies/baby monitors
Lucy, who is pictured all dressed up, revealed some of the things cruise passengers should never bring on board, or should take with caution
Although she admitted she had no idea about the walkie-talkie ban, Lucy understood why baby monitors were banned on board.
‘I honestly don’t know why walkie-talkies are not allowed, it must interfere with something.
‘It’s just a bit weird when you leave your baby in the cabin and the parents go to one of the bars.
“I don’t think either of these would work effectively on a cruise ship either.”
Spread ashes
Some travelers may want to scatter ashes if they visit a place where a loved one has recently died, but the rules are strict, Lucy revealed.
She said: ‘Spreading ashes at sea is allowed, but with restrictions. I always remember on a P&O ship a family arrived to spread their father’s ashes and they stood at the back of the ship and stupidly threw the ashes from the urn into the sea.
‘The wind was blowing the wrong way, so the ash flew back to the sundeck and covered everyone. You can imagine that there were a lot of people sunbathing in their bikinis with sunscreen, so the ash stuck to their bikinis!’
She also explained that the urn must be thrown into the sea and therefore be biodegradable so that it is suitable for that purpose.
‘Upon boarding, you must present a death certificate and cremation certificate to guest services, and arrange a time for the ashes to be spread and thrown into the ocean. So it’s allowed, but please don’t spread the ashes like confetti!’