Royal Caribbean prohibited items: the whole list, with the policy page beside each rule
Royal Caribbean prohibited items are not published on one page of Royal Caribbean's own site — they are split across a prohibited-items FAQ, a separate alcohol policy and a food-and-drink policy. Here are all 20 rules on one page, grouped as what is banned outright, what is allowed inside a limit, drinks and food you carry on and rules that change with the port, each line carrying the Royal Caribbean page it came from and the date we read it (2026-09-06). Two that are easy to miss: clothing irons and garment steamers are banned, and so are power strips and extension cords.
Royal Caribbean Prohibited Items, group by group
Royal Caribbean publishes its prohibited-items policy as one long FAQ page plus separate pages for alcohol and for food and drink. The tables below are all three of those pages, restated in our own words, with the exact policy page and the date we last read it beside every line. The source link is the authority, not this page.
Banned outright — no exception
| Item | Onboard | The rule, and where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing irons and garment steamers | no | Prohibited with no exception, and named in the same electrical clause as power strips and extension cords. Personal hair tools are treated separately (see below). Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Extension cords, power strips and multi-plug outlets | no | The electrical rule bans equipment not designed for personal grooming and names extension cords, power strips, multi-plug outlets, baby monitors and HAM radios among the examples. Device and USB chargers marked with a recognised U.S. or European conformity certification are the stated exception. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Illegal drugs and substances, including marijuana | no | Prohibited regardless of a medical authorisation or of the drug being legal where you board. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Firearms, ammunition, explosives, replicas and gun parts | no | Weapons and dangerous items are prohibited, and the policy names replicas and component parts alongside working firearms. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Fireworks, sparklers, flammable materials and open flames | no | The fire-and-flammable-hazard category. Candles and anything else that carries a live flame fall under it. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Mace, pepper spray, martial-arts and self-defence items | no | Disabling chemicals are listed by name; there is no "checked at the gangway" route for them the way there is for diving knives. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Motorcycles, mopeds, ATVs and similar recreational vehicles | no | Recreational vehicles are prohibited as cargo or as personal property. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Pets | no | Pets are not allowed onboard. Service animals are the exception and are handled under Royal Caribbean's service-animal policy. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
Allowed — but only inside a limit
| Item | Onboard | The rule, and where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Curling irons and flat irons | yes | Permitted for personal use. This is the line that trips people up: the clothing iron is banned, the hair iron is not. Royal Caribbean adds that hair dryers may be prohibited depending on their specifications, and that there is one in your stateroom. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Knives, scissors and tools | limits apply | Prohibited as a category, including hardware tools and screwdrivers over seven inches. The stated exceptions are small grooming items — nail files, cuticle tools and facial-hair scissors with blades under four inches; recreational diving knives, held by Security and checked in and out for an organised dive excursion; and Ulu knives bought in an Alaska port, which Security holds for the rest of the cruise. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Two-way radios (walkie-talkies) | limits apply | Allowed up to a ten-mile, five-watt range. Anything stronger — and HAM radio equipment generally — is not. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Sporting equipment | limits apply | May be brought aboard if it stays in your stateroom and is not used in public areas of the ship. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Smart glasses | limits apply | May be brought onboard, but may not be used in the casino, spa service areas, restrooms, locker rooms, medical facilities, security screening locations, youth facilities, crew areas, back-of-house tours or anywhere guests or crew reasonably expect privacy. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Baby equipment beyond the usual necessities | limits apply | Reviewed case by case by Royal Caribbean's special-needs team before you sail — ask first rather than turning up with it. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
Drinks and food you carry on
| Item | Onboard | The rule, and where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Wine or champagne | limits apply | On embarkation day each guest of drinking age may bring one sealed 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne. That is the whole personal allowance. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Beer and hard liquor | no | Guests may not bring beer or hard liquor aboard. Bottles bought in a port of call, or beyond the one permitted bottle at boarding, are stored by the ship and handed back on the last day of the sailing. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Soft drinks, juice and water | limits apply | Non-alcoholic drinks are capped at twelve standard 17 oz cans, bottles or cartons per stateroom. Milk and distilled water for infant, medical or dietary use sit outside that cap. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Food from home | limits apply | Non-perishable prepackaged food in limited quantities is allowed. Anything perishable or home-cooked is not what this permission covers. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
Rules that depend on where you dock
| Item | Onboard | The rule, and where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Vapes and e-cigarettes ashore in Mexico | no | Prohibited ashore at Mexican ports of call — a destination rule, not a ship rule, and it applies the moment you step off. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
| Camouflage and military attire in Barbados | no | Barbados prohibits camouflage or military-style clothing for anyone who is not military personnel. Pack a different pair of shorts for that stop. Royal Caribbean policy page · checked 2026-09-06 |
The distinctions people get wrong
Hair iron, not clothing iron. A curling or flat iron for personal use is permitted; the thing that presses a shirt is not, and neither is a handheld garment steamer.
Charger, not power strip. A device or USB charger marked with a recognised U.S. or European conformity certification is the stated exception; the multi-plug board people pack because staterooms are short of outlets is prohibited — surge protection is not the deciding factor, the strip itself is.
One bottle, one day. The wine allowance is one sealed 750 ml bottle per guest of drinking age and applies at embarkation, not at every port.
Cruise lines do not draw these lines in the same place, which is why a rule you read on a forum about another ship is not evidence about this one. Our cruise packing list keeps a second line's electrical rule beside this one for exactly that reason, and the flights either side of the sailing follow a third rulebook — the TSA 3-1-1 liquids rule applies in the airport, never on the ship, so the 3.4 oz / 100 ml per container cap (TSA · checked 2026-07-02) stops mattering the moment you clear the terminal. If you are flying to the port, size the bag first with the carry-on fit checker.
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Common questions
What items are prohibited on Royal Caribbean?
Clothing irons and garment steamers, extension cords, power strips and multi-plug outlets, illegal drugs including marijuana, weapons and replicas, fireworks and open flames, pepper spray and martial-arts items, recreational vehicles, and pets other than service animals. Beer and hard liquor cannot be carried aboard either. Verified against Royal Caribbean's prohibited-items and alcohol policy pages on 2026-09-06.
Can you bring a power strip or extension cord on Royal Caribbean?
No. Royal Caribbean's electrical rule bans extension cords, power strips and multi-plug outlets outright, surge-protected or not. Device and USB chargers marked with a recognised U.S. or European conformity certification are the stated exception, so a single multi-port USB charger is the way round it.
Can you bring an iron or a steamer on a Royal Caribbean cruise?
No — clothing irons and garment steamers are prohibited with no exception. Curling irons and flat irons are permitted for personal use, which is the distinction most packing lists get wrong. The same policy adds that hair dryers may be prohibited depending on their specifications, and that there is one in your stateroom.
How much alcohol can you bring on Royal Caribbean?
One sealed 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne per guest of drinking age, on embarkation day only. Beer and hard liquor may not be brought aboard, and bottles bought in port are stored by the ship and returned on the last day.
How many cans of soda or water can you bring on Royal Caribbean?
Up to twelve standard 17 oz cans, bottles or cartons of non-alcoholic drinks per stateroom. Milk and distilled water carried for infant, medical or dietary use are not counted against that limit.
Can you bring a knife or scissors on a Royal Caribbean cruise?
Knives, scissors and tools are prohibited as a category, including screwdrivers and hardware tools over seven inches. The exceptions are small grooming items with blades under four inches — nail files, cuticle tools and facial-hair scissors — plus diving knives and Alaska-bought Ulu knives, both of which Security holds and checks out to you rather than letting you keep them.