Bringing food on board for 8 yr old

[Traveler4Life]

We are cruising in March 2013. My son eats only very specific food (another story for another board

Can we bring his food on board? I'd like to bring several bottles of Boost nutrition drinks, box of cereal, and possibly granola bars.

Can I put the drinks in a carry on and the box of cereal
, granola bars, etc in my checked luggage?

Also, can a carry on cooler have ice or ice packs in it?

I have so many questions

Thank you!!!

[jdb in AZ]

Originally Posted by Traveler4Life

We are cruising in March 2013. My son eats only very specific food (another story for another board

Can we bring his food on board? I'd like to bring several bottles of Boost nutrition drinks, box of cereal, and possibly granola bars.

Can I put the drinks in a carry on and the box of cereal
, granola bars, etc in my checked luggage?

Also, can a carry on cooler have ice or ice packs in it?

I have so many questions

Thank you!!!

Coolers are not allowed. (too much damage to the carpet by previous cruisers.)

You can bring on packaged food, nothing home-made.

[PrincessShmoo]

Originally Posted by Traveler4Life

We are cruising in March 2013. My son eats only very specific food (another story for another board

Can we bring his food on board? I'd like to bring several bottles of Boost nutrition drinks, box of cereal, and possibly granola bars.

Can I put the drinks in a carry on and the box of cereal
, granola bars, etc in my checked luggage?

Also, can a carry on cooler have ice or ice packs in it?

I have so many questions

Thank you!!!

Any beverages you wish to bring onboard must be in your carryon bags. That's ANY beverages, so Boost is OK. Any food brought onboard must be prepackaged, not homemade, and non-perishable.

No coolers allowed except for medical purposes.

I will point out there is cereal onboard. And granola bars, but they have a cost.

[scootch]

We had gone to MNSSHP before going on our cruise. I had bags of candy from it... along with some things I brought for quick protein, like protein bars, peanuts, ect.... You could put like juiceboxes in your luggage also. just fyi, the cereal selection onboard was not very broad.

[PrincessShmoo]

Originally Posted by scootch

We had gone to MNSSHP before going on our cruise. I had bags of candy from it... along with some things I brought for quick protein, like protein bars, peanuts, ect.... You could put like juiceboxes in your luggage also.

DCL requesst that all beverages be brought onboard in carry on bags, not checked bags.

[Traveler4Life]

Thanks for the quick responses! The DCL website says soft coolers are ok; however, can they have ice packs in them? Can I put ice packs in my carry on with string cheese or yogurt for snacks?

[PrincessShmoo]

Originally Posted by Traveler4Life

Thanks for the quick responses! The DCL website says soft coolers are ok; however, can they have ice packs in them? Can I put ice packs in my carry on with string cheese or yogurt for snacks?

Where are you seeing that coolers are permitted? This is from the DCL site:

QuestionWhat food or food storage containers are not permitted?

AnswerFood coolers containing personal snack foods and drinks may not be brought onboard. They are only permitted if needed for medications, baby food or items related to special dietary needs.

Homemade, pre-cooked or other perishable items plus any open snack containers cannot be brought on board. Limitations on permitted food items are directly related to concerns for food safety and contamination prevention.

Disney Cruise Line regrets that the crew members on board are unable to provide food preparation, refrigeration or storage for personal food or beverage items. Disney Cruise Line cannot verify the cleanliness of the environment in which pre-cooked or homemade food items were prepared, and so for the safety of all Guests and crew, these items are not permitted aboard the ship.

The following electrical appliances are not permitted on board due to safety concerns: rice cookers, hot plates, coffee makers, bottle sterilizers and bottle warmers, electric blankets, electric blenders. A limited number of approved bottle warmers and bottle sterilizers are available upon request through Guest Services. In addition, Guests can request hot water to be delivered to their stateroom at any time from Room Service.

Alcohol is permitted on board. However, be aware that any fragile items (including bottled alcohol) must be hand-carried on board in a day bag and/or carry-on bag, the dimensions of which cannot exceed 22" wide, 14" high and 9" deep. Alcohol brought on board may not be consumed in any lounge or public area. Guests who arrive in the dining room with a bottle of champagne or wine that has been brought on board will be charged a corking fee of $20.00 per bottle.

Please be advised: Disney Cruise Line reserves the right to remove fragile items (including beverages) from luggage. In such cases, items will be stored and returned at the end of the voyage. Beverage containers are considered fragile and have previously caused damage in checked luggage. All fragile items must be transported inside carry-on luggage.

There was a time that small personal coolers were being allowed onboard in spite of the policy, but that has changed. No personal coolers except for medical reasons, or baby food. At that time, no you couldn't have ice or blue ice in them. I would think cheeses and yogurt would fall under the no perishable items allowed, also.

[disney 2010]

Coolers and soft sided insulated bags are not the same. We brought our soft sided rolling cooler bag on two cruises one from Port Canaveral and the other in California for the MR. We had no problem, really it is no different than a rolling carry on, but nice to have on board as we did add ice then Both times we had it full of canned beverages. You can not put ice or ice packs in it. It must be dry to go through the security scanners. DD has type 1 diabetes and we needed packaged snacks availalble for all port excursions. Had no problem bringing fruit snacks, granola bars etc onboard. Packed them in our suitcase and juices in the carry on.

[Traveler4Life]

Thank you. I think I mis-read it or saw somewhere about soft coolers in size 12x12x12. Good to know coolers are not allowed.

It's also comforting to know I can bring unopened food and Boost drinks for my son. Thank you!!!!!

[PrincessShmoo]

Originally Posted by disney 2010

Coolers and soft sided insulated bags are not the same. We brought our soft sided rolling cooler bag on two cruises one from Port Canaveral and the other in California for the MR. We had no problem, really it is no different than a rolling carry on, but nice to have on board as we did add ice then Both times we had it full of canned beverages. You can not put ice or ice packs in it. It must be dry to go through the security scanners. DD has type 1 diabetes and we needed packaged snacks availalble for all port excursions. Had no problem bringing fruit snacks, granola bars etc onboard. Packed them in our suitcase and juices in the carry on.

When was this? They started enforcing the "no coolers" (all cooler-types, soft sided or otherwise) policy about 2 or 3 months ago. A lot of people were unhappy about it.

[mickeyfan1]

Originally Posted by disney 2010

Coolers and soft sided insulated bags are not the same. We brought our soft sided rolling cooler bag on two cruises one from Port Canaveral and the other in California for the MR. We had no problem, really it is no different than a rolling carry on, but nice to have on board as we did add ice then Both times we had it full of canned beverages. You can not put ice or ice packs in it. It must be dry to go through the security scanners. DD has type 1 diabetes and we needed packaged snacks availalble for all port excursions. Had no problem bringing fruit snacks, granola bars etc onboard. Packed them in our suitcase and juices in the carry on.

This has changed and no coolers, soft sided or otherwize are permitted. People have had them confiscated before boarding.

To the OP, no you can not bring ice or ice packs either. There is a fridge in the room (Dream and Fantasy) and cooler boxes (Wonder and Magic) You can have ice delivered by your stateroom host, and ice is also available at the drink station on the pool deck. You should have no issues with keeping things cold.

[ctc917]

When we cruise we usually arrive in Orlando a few days early so i end up bring a soft sided cooler bag(small one) to keep our drinks cool in the rental car so I will have one in my luggage, if DCL finds this bag will they hold it for me to pick up after our cruise? and if so where do they hold these items that they hold?

thanks

ctc917

[lanejudy]

Originally Posted by ctc917

When we cruise we usually arrive in Orlando a few days early so i end up bring a soft sided cooler bag(small one) to keep our drinks cool in the rental car so I will have one in my luggage, if DCL finds this bag will they hold it for me to pick up after our cruise? and if so where do they hold these items that they hold?

thanks

ctc917

If they confiscate it, it will be held for you to claim after disembarking. A small "lunch bag" style is not likely to be confiscated, especially if it's packed within your checked luggage. It might be challenged in a carry-on. As a PP mentioned, DCL has gotten very strict about the "no coolers" rule just this fall.

Enjoy your cruise!

[Weedy]

It can be tough with children with food issues, but Disney Cruise will do a great job in trying to find something your child will like. You can speak with the chief's when you board and they will try and help you out. Have a great cruise.

Also here is an old thread about food issues

http://www.www.disboards.com/showthread.php?p=46024478

See post 65 about one Mom's experience.

[disney 2010]

Originally Posted by mickeyfan1

This has changed and no coolers, soft sided or otherwize are permitted. People have had them confiscated before boarding.

Good to know.....I have family leaving in a couple of weeks and will let them know to pack the cooler bag if they want it and carry drinks on in the carry on bag.