Without fanfare or a major announcement, Royal Caribbean has added a popular travel item to the “do not pack” list.
The cruise line’s prohibited items webpage was recently updated to combat a growing trend among travelers who are trying to stay connected while at sea.
While internet service on cruise ships has gotten faster and more reliable over the last few years—thanks to Starlink– most cruise lines offer different internet packages based on how many devices you would like to use.
The more devices you use, the more you pay.
Some savvy cruisers started using travel routers to get around this. They would connect to the internet with the device and then connect their devices to the router.
But now Royal Caribbean is making sure passenger know not to bring the devices on board their ships.
The updated policy for prohibited items is worded as follows:
Cybersecurity and deliberate electronic crime: Satellite dishes, routers, and other networking equipment.
The wording of “other networking equipment” leaves room for the cruise line to ensure other devices that can be used get around the internet services of the company are also kept in check.
It was already against company policy to use a device that beats the system in this way, but now the cruise line can attempt to keep travel routers off their ships entirely.
After all, most of the time they would have no way of knowing if someone was using multiple devices on one internet package at the same time if they used a device like this.
Some cruise boards and forums have discussed the policy and have reported travel routers being confiscated.
For those who bring their work with them on a cruise, a travel router has been a normal part of packing for the trip. Now it may require adding another device to the internet package.
It should be noted that cruisers can also opt to switch devices even if they only paid for one. They just can’t use more than one device at the same time if they only paid for the single device internet package.
It can be a hassle to log out and log back in with another device, but if you don’t need to be connected at the same time, it’s a way to save a few dollars.
Carnival Cruise Line has also listed “routers” on their list of prohibited items. In a recent story, a cruise passenger had his Starlink Mini confiscated.
Carnival has “satellite dishes” and “other internet related equipment” listed on the page of items passengers are not allowed to bring on board.
Recently, another popular item was banned from Royal Caribbean ships: multi-plug adapters.
Multi-plug adapters with several 110/120 volt outlets are not allowed on the cruise line’s ships as they can cause problems with the electrical systems, but multi-outlets that are USB only are permitted.
You can see a list of the multi-plug adapters still allowed on Royal Caribbean ships here.
