Locked checked bags

[Jtroup]

Will the porters cut the lock off of a checked bag to search it?

[JFCruise]

As a policy - no. If security finds you might be bringing something you shouldn't to the ship, the ship security would call you to review your bag. I'm not sure if they open your bag (aka cut the lock) or they ask you to open it. But they don't "randomly" cut bags to search them as a policy.

Porters are not employed by RC and have absolutely no need to open your bag.

However, I cannot say they wont open your bags. Because they are people, and some people like to do bad things. I've never, ever heard of this happening, though.

[smokeybandit]

All porters do is take a bag from you and put it in a bin. They don't examine bags at all.

Unless you really mean ship security, not porters. But even they aren't going to open your bag w/o your presence short of their scanners detecting something that presents an immediate danger.

[Reigert2008]

Now I want to know what they are planning to put into the bag!

[TXcruzer]

This isn't TSA at the docks, they are not allowed to cut off your lock, or open your bag without your physical presence.

[Traveling Mike]

Luggage screening is a thorough process that involves scanning all checked bags using X-ray machines and metal detectors. During the screening, cruise line staff looks for any prohibited items, such as weapons, drugs, and alcohol, that exceed the permissible limit.

Cruise lines check your luggage for several reasons. The first reason is to ensure the safety of all passengers on board. Cruise ships have strict security protocols in place, and screening luggage is one way to prevent prohibited items from getting on the ship.

The second reason is to prevent illegal items or substances from being brought on board. Cruise ships operate under international maritime law, and any illegal items found on board can have serious legal consequences for passengers and cruise lines.

Finally, cruise lines check luggage to ensure all passengers adhere to their alcohol policies. Most cruise lines allow passengers to bring a certain amount of alcohol on board, but exceeding the limit can result in confiscation of the alcohol or even denied boarding.

** this was pulled from Do cruise lines check your luggage? – CruiseBooking.com

[BrianB]

At Port Liberty in Bayonne…the luggage is screened with X-ray machines in the port before being loaded onto the ship. My luggage is secured with a TSA combination lock.

A few months ago, my large bag hadn’t been delivered to my room and my attendant found out it was being held by security. This was after dinner and the ship had sailed hours ago. I had to go down to deck 2 where security was waiting with my bag. Apparently a port security screener placed a red sticker on my bag which said ‘Iron’.

I told them there was no iron and offered to open the bag. They scanned it in their X-ray machine, found nothing resembling an iron, and just gave me the bag. I asked why they didn’t just do that before I arrived and, finding nothing, send the bag on it’s way. They said their policy is once a bag is flagged by shoreside security…they don’t do anything without the bag’s owner being present. Scanning and then asking for it to be opened only if necessary. Oh, well. At least it wasn’t lost like I was beginning to fear.

 

[Shari]

They do not open your luggage.  We had an incident in 2021 with inexperienced inspectors on the 2nd cruise out of Galveston where they called my husband to security to open the bag so they could inspect what they thought was not allowed.  It turned out to be our magnets that they mistook as revolver speed loaders when they xrayed the bag.  It is one of our funny stories to tell though it was kind of scary since they took my husband off of the ship to port security area.

[smokeybandit]

30 minutes ago, Shari said:

It turned out to be our magnets that they mistook as revolver speed loaders when they xrayed the bag. 

I'd rather get called down to the naughty room for that, then laugh about it, then ammo be missed and allowed on board.

[Psycho and Barb]

We were called down to the naughty room one time...Psycho went all the way down to deck one but forgot to take the keys to our luggage locks.  He had to come back up to the room and get the keys.  So we can verify they don't cut the locks off...At least in our few case they didn't.  Yes we have made a few trips to the naughty room.  Psycho use to take C-Clamps to put his hammock up on the balcony...Guess they make a large image on the X-ray and no longer takes them.  

[Sharla]

I brought scissors onboard (Not Royal, other cruise line) because I was working on a costume and they did remove them and kept them. There was a note inside my bag letting me know I had brought a prohibited item. 

So they do open the bag if necessary and I was not there, but my bag was not locked or anything.