Ahoy there Rebecca, and welcome to planDisney!
We're your online resource for some first-hand experiences at sea and nautical knowledge to help you ahead of your next
Disney Cruise Line voyage! I'm glad that you've come to ask about items that may or may not be allowed to be brought on board; as a former officer on board I've seen my share of things over the years that haven't been allowed for fellow seafarers and crew alike.
The first thing to always remember is that the
Prohibited Items List is always subject to change without prior notice, and it is ultimately up to security personnel at any Embarkation Port along with the crew members of the vessel you are embarking on to decide whether any item is deemed acceptable. More often than not, you might not be surprised to find that the biggest reason why certain things may be prohibited on board is their ability to pose a safety hazard to your family and possibly fellow guests. A lot of these policy updates have also been reactive, which means that an incident may have occurred that caused injury or risked the safety of someone on board one of
the ships in the fleet - especially as new products become available over the years. (In my experience this has included things like Heelys shoes, hoverboards and most recently, drones.)
In this case, the main reason why a shoreside security screening may prevent someone from taking on board a ride-on suitcase is likely due to the fact that they can be considered as transport devices - some can even convert into scooters or be motorized which could pose a number of risks that may seem small on land, but much bigger at sea. Generally anything that someone of any age can ride on must be safely secured, especially while the ship is in motion - I've experienced my share of
sloping seas sailing in certain destinations causing items to slide to the other end of a room and impacting whatever (or whoever) may be in their path and any ship will do its best to avoid any need for medical attention at all costs, due to the sheer distance and hassle of seeking treatment.
The strictness and severity in adhering to screening policies may vary depending on your embarkation port and whether there are heightened security considerations for your particular ship or voyage; most often items are just taken for additional inspection by the Chief Electrical Engineer or safety officers and either cleared to be returned to you or kept safely stored to be retrieved at the end of the voyage. Like bringing prohibited wagons into Theme Parks, there may have been instances where families have been able to get past port security with items that are likely to be seized by crew members once on board so my best advice would be to play it safe and save these for land-based vacations just to avoid any potential disappointment as you embark.
Please come back to planDisney to
ask me any more questions you may have about rules and regulations on board and be sure to connect with our Disney Cruise Line specialists
Tracie and
Adrianna for the oceans of knowledge that they share about cruising!
Here's to some safe sailing on the horizon!
Prince