Can I Bring It on a Cruise?
Pick an item and a cruise line: whether it is allowed on board, in the line’s own words from its own rules page, for Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian, Princess and Celebrity.
Wine or champagne · 5 cruise lines
Allowed with a limit on all 5 linesEach line’s own words are below.
Rules read from each line’s own pages on 2026-09-26. A line can change its rules: the link under each answer is its page.
Your cruise packing list · Can I bring it on the plane?
Quick answer: all five big lines let each adult bring wine or champagne (one bottle on embarkation day on four of them; on Norwegian, bottles of it, with a corkage fee), and none lets you bring liquor, beer, a clothes iron, candles or marijuana, even medical. Pick an item above for each line’s own words.
How to use it
Choose what you want to pack and, if you know it, your cruise line. The answer quotes each line’s rules page and links to it. “With a limit” means the line allows it with a condition, such as one bottle, twelve cans or no use on board; “not said” means the pages we read do not mention it, so ask the line before you pack it. These are the rules for sailings from the US; several lines apply other rules elsewhere.
Every item on every line
From each line’s own pages, read on September 26, 2026.
| Item | Royal Caribbean | Carnival | Norwegian (NCL) | Princess | Celebrity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wine or champagne | With a limit | With a limit | With a limit | With a limit | With a limit |
| Liquor or beer | No | No | No | No | No |
| Water or soda | With a limit | With a limit | No | With a limit | Not said |
| Snacks and food | With a limit | With a limit | Not said | Not said | With a limit |
| Clothes iron | No | No | No | No | No |
| Garment steamer | No | Not said | Not said | No | Not said |
| Power strip or extension cord | No | Yes | Not said | With a limit | No |
| Hair straightener or curling iron | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not said | Yes |
| Candles or incense | No | No | No | No | No |
| A drone | Not said | With a limit | Not said | No | With a limit |
| Marijuana, even medical | No | No | No | No | No |
Where the rules come from
Each answer is a line’s own sentence: Royal Caribbean’s food and drink and prohibited items pages, Carnival’s FAQ and safety information, Norwegian’s alcohol, water and soda and prohibited items pages, Princess’s pre-cruise and onboard FAQs, and Celebrity’s before-you-board FAQ and guest conduct policy. A script re-reads every page at each review and stops if a quoted sentence has changed, so a rule that moves is read again before it reaches this page.
Worked examples
A bottle of wine for dinner. On Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Princess and Celebrity each adult may bring one sealed 750 ml bottle on embarkation day; Carnival charges a corkage fee to open it in a restaurant. Norwegian lets you bring bottles of it and charges $15 for each 750 ml bottle opened on board.
Keeping clothes smooth. No line allows a clothes iron. Royal Caribbean and Princess also name garment steamers; the other three do not say, so ask before you pack one.
A drone for the ports. Carnival holds it with the Chief Security Officer after you declare it, Celebrity lets you fly it on land away from the port, and Princess does not allow it on board. Royal Caribbean and Norwegian do not say.
Common mistakes
- Packing liquor in a water bottle. Luggage is scanned: Princess says alcohol outside its policy “will be removed and discarded”, and Royal Caribbean that liquor seized on embarkation day “will not be returned”.
- Bringing a power strip without checking. Carnival allows them, Princess after its electricians check them, and Royal Caribbean and Celebrity do not.
- Assuming a legal state means legal on board. Every line bans marijuana, medical marijuana included.
- Reading one line’s rules for another. The limits differ: twelve cans per person on Carnival, twelve per stateroom on Royal Caribbean, none at all on Norwegian.
Plan the cruise
Start with first-time cruise tips, and for Alaska the Alaska cruise guide and what to pack for an Alaska cruise. Sailing from Florida? See Florida’s largest cruise port. The free packing list builds your list for a cruise, and the cruise cost calculator adds up the gratuities. For the dressy nights, the Cruise Dress Code says how many your line holds and what counts.
FAQ
Can you bring alcohol on a cruise?
Wine or champagne, yes: one sealed 750 ml bottle per adult on embarkation day on Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Princess and Celebrity, and more than one on Norwegian, with a corkage fee. Liquor and beer, no: none of the five lines allows them.
Can you bring soda or water on Carnival or Royal Caribbean?
On Carnival, up to 12 sealed cans or cartons of 12 ounces per person; on Royal Caribbean, up to 12 cans, bottles or cartons per stateroom; Princess allows a small cooler of 6–12 cans. Norwegian allows none. Celebrity’s pages do not say.
Can I bring a steamer on a cruise?
Not on Royal Caribbean, which bans “clothing irons and garment steamers”, or Princess, where steamers “are not permitted in any stateroom”. Carnival, Norwegian and Celebrity ban clothes irons and do not name steamers: ask the line first.
Can you bring a hair straightener on a cruise?
Yes on Royal Caribbean, Carnival and Celebrity, which name curling and flat irons or straighteners; Norwegian names curling irons. Princess’s pages do not say, beyond a hair dryer in every stateroom.
Can I bring a drone on a cruise?
On Carnival, declared at embarkation and held by the Chief Security Officer; on Celebrity, for use on land only, never on board; on Princess, no. Royal Caribbean and Norwegian do not say.
Can you bring snacks on a cruise?
Royal Caribbean allows non-perishable prepackaged food in limited quantities, and Carnival food that is pre-packaged, factory sealed and unopened. Celebrity bars food that needs refrigeration. Norwegian and Princess do not say.