Anyone know if it's allowed or not (my guess is not) to bring your own food on DCL? Reaching in the fridge for dinner just now I found a beef stick and nice hunk of smoked cheddar that would be nice to have for munching on the ship.

I know, I know, all the food's provided, but I'm talking about sitting on our verandah, having a glass of wine and some nice relaxing food without having to pay extra for it.

Also, are there fridges in the rooms automatically, or do you have to request one? Can you request one without a medicine-necessary reason?

Thanks! Karin

I don't think they'll confiscate it if you bring on snacks -- of course, room service is free and you can get most food items until the wee small hours of the morning. There is no charge for a fridge (I used ours to cool some Key Lime Pie I bought in KeY West).

You can bring on packaged food - make sure they are still sealed before boarding so that there are no problems.

As for the 'fridge', it isn't a fridge. It is a cooler - designed for drinks. It doesn't get that cold. They do have fridges available for special circumstances.

You can always order a cheese and fruit tray from room service - it's free (plus a small tip to the delivery person) And if they are making chocolate chip cookies, those are good too!

AVP

We brought snackie food with us (granola bars, pudding cups) since we'd just spent three days at WDW. We didn't want to just throw it away so, we packed it up in our luggage and didn't have any problems with it.

On our cruises we always bring packaged food and water. Many times people at their ports of call will buy food and bring them on the boat. You might want to try cruisecritic.com or cruisemates.com to see reviews and articles regarding tips about your trip, etc.

Some ships have limited room service menus that may not fit your cravings and I remember that DCL didn't have that much to chose from comparing it to the NCL one we went on. But you dont' want to bring to much as well because all cruises do feed you enough that you'll be wanting to go to a gym immediately afterwards ;)

A couple of years ago the ship stopped in KeyWest instead of St. John, there was a convenience store at the port and we got a couple of packages of soda for our in-room fridge and some snacks. I don't think they said a word about it.

WOW! This has all been so helpful. Thank you everyone. A couple of last questions:

Is this "cooler" standard in the room or do you have to request one?

If it's not standard, do you have any recommendations as where to keep it so it doesn't eat up too much of the valuable and precious little space that is there to begin with?

Is there a good way to try and keep things cool? I was thinking specifically of the afore-mentioned beef stick and smoked cheddar cheese. Or should I scrap this whole idea and just go with room service?

Much grass!

WOW! This has all been so helpful. Thank you everyone. A couple of last questions:

Is this "cooler" standard in the room or do you have to request one?

If it's not standard, do you have any recommendations as where to keep it so it doesn't eat up too much of the valuable and precious little space that is there to begin with?

Is there a good way to try and keep things cool? I was thinking specifically of the afore-mentioned beef stick and smoked cheddar cheese. Or should I scrap this whole idea and just go with room service?

Much grass!

I wouldn't bring any perishable items initially. Its always better to bring other snacks that don't require refrigeration. I'd stick with the room service since its already included.

Every room has a "cooler," but just remember it's tiny and about as efficient as an ice chest. Without the ice.

AVP

The cooler is best described as a really weak fridge. It keeps things cool, but not cold. It worked well for baby bottles and lemonade. I assume it would work well with wine and cheese too.

I know, I know, all the food's provided, but I'm talking about sitting on our verandah, having a glass of wine and some nice relaxing food without having to pay extra for it.You will probably need to check with the cruise line about the wine part. I don't know about Disney, but Holland America does have restrictions on passenger-supplied alcoholic beverages. What those restrictions are, I don't recall, as they don't apply to me, but I do remember reading them in the "before you board" booklet.

They have a per-person bottle limit, I believe. (I think it's two per person) I only remember this in the context of someone counting their children's bottle allocation towards the case of wine they brought on board.

AVP

I brought snacks, baby formula powder, bottled water & bottled pop on board no problem. But exiting the boat we were instructed we could only bring "sealed" food off and no flowers. I was told I could make baby bottles to bring off, but could not bring the rest of my Similac baby formula (powder) since it was in an open can. So I made like 4 bottles for the plane ride and left the can of formula powder.

Wish I would not have, since they did not check my bags once we got off the boat...and I had to stop and buy more powder on the way to the airport. I knew my son would be going nuts if he we ran out & on a plane is not the best place for this fit to take place.