Are you going on a cruise? You wouldn’t want to ruin your vacation by losing your luggage, which can be a real nightmare. Here are practical tips on how to keep your luggage safe throughout your cruise.
How to Keep Your Luggage Safe on a Cruise
1. Print Luggage Tags at Home
The most important thing you can do to keep your luggage safe on embarkation day is to print your luggage tags at home. This will ensure that your luggage is clearly labeled with your deck and stateroom numbers, leaving no room for mix-ups or human error.
If you have to fill in your luggage tag manually at the cruise port, it’s easy to make a mistake. The last thing you want is for your luggage to get lost due to poor labeling or the wrong stateroom number. Don’t let lost luggage become a nightmare that ruins your vacation!
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2. Lock Your Luggage
When you go on a cruise, make sure you lock your luggage. There are many instances when luggage is left unattended, such as on embarkation day when it’s delivered to your stateroom and placed in the hallway. To keep your belongings safe, it’s best to lock your luggage. You never know who might be passing by! Also, on disembarkation day, your luggage will be left at the cruise port, so it’s important to keep it locked.
Always use a TSA-approved lock to avoid any issues when checking in your luggage at the airport. If the TSA agent needs to inspect your luggage, they can use a special key to open a TSA lock. I like this TSA-approved lock because it needs to be re-locked by the TSA agent in order for them to remove their key. That way, you won’t have to worry about your luggage being left unlocked after inspection.
Trust me, you need a TSA lock! Otherwise, they will have to break the lock, which can lead to damage like what happened to one of my luggage. The worst part is that they not only broke the lock but also damaged the zipper, making it impossible to put a lock on it again!
3. Label Your Luggage
An important thing you need to do to keep your luggage safe on a cruise is to make sure you label your luggage. Attach a luggage tag with your name, cellphone number, and email address clearly written on it. Use a fine-tip marker so it’s easy to read and won’t rub off. I like these luggage tags because they come in bright colors and are made of soft silicone.
4. Label Inside the Luggage
It’s a good idea to not only label the outside of your luggage, but also the inside with your name, cellphone number, and email. To do this, simply fill out another luggage tag and keep it inside one of the zipper compartments. This way, if the outside label falls off, there is still a label inside your luggage. I use these luggage tags for inside, it’s cheap, and I have a multi-pack. I also use it to label my carry-on bags.
5. Track Your Luggage
One thing that I started doing that gives me peace of mind is to use an Airtag to track my luggage. I leave an airtag inside every luggage. It’s a device that can track my luggage in real time.
Thankfully, I’ve never had to use it to track lost luggage, but it’s there in case I need it. I’ve heard of stories of people using their airtags to assist in locating their lost luggage.
6. Make Your Luggage Stand Out
The worst thing you can do when you go on a cruise is to use a plain black luggage that everyone has. That can result in other passengers easily getting their luggage mixed up and mistakenly taking yours instead.
When you go on a cruise, on disembarkation day, they will leave your luggage for you to pick up on a self-serve basis The last thing you want to happen is for another passenger to get your luggage mixed up with theirs and take your luggage home by mistake!
To avoid this problem, I always choose luggage that looks different from the rest. I usually buy luggage in bold and bright colors that stand out from the crowd.
If I use my plain black luggage, I tie ribbons and attach big, bold luggage tags to make them different. This way, there’s no chance of anyone else mistakenly taking my luggage. I like using these colorful luggage handle wraps to make my luggage stand out.
7. Don’t Pack Valuables in Your Luggage
One of the worst things you can do is to pack valuables in your luggage. Important documents such as passports and identification should never be packed in your luggage, keep them in your purse or carry-on bag.
Don’t pack electronics, either. Keep your iPads, phones, and laptops in your carry-on bag. You also want to make sure other valuables, like jewelry, are kept close to you and not in your luggage.
8. Take a Picture of Your Luggage
Whenever I go on a cruise, I always take photos of my luggage. This way, if my bags are ever lost, I can easily describe them to crew members when I report the lost luggage. I believe having a picture will increase the chances of them being located and returned to me promptly.
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