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Mainstream Cruise Line

Carnival Alcohol Policy

What you can bring aboard, the corkage rules, drink packages, and the drinking age on a Carnival cruise in 2026, verified against the official policy.

Quick answer

Carnival lets you bring some of your own alcohol aboard at embarkation. It sells a drink package. The onboard drinking age is 21, though it can vary by sailing region.

Bringing your own alcohol

Allowed, with limits

On embarkation day only, each guest 21 or older may bring one sealed 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne in carry-on luggage. All other liquor, beer, and alcohol is prohibited in both carry-on and checked bags and will be confiscated and discarded. Port, vermouth, sherry, and other fortified wines over 15% ABV are not allowed. On back-to-back cruises the same allowance applies per cruise; extra bottles are stored and handed back as each cruise begins.

Corkage fee

$15 per bottle

A $15 corkage fee per 750 ml bottle applies if you drink your wine or champagne in the main dining room, a specialty restaurant, or a bar.

Drink packages

Offered

Cheers!

Price per day
$69.95 per person
Service charge
20%
Per-drink cap
$20
Non-alcoholic package
Bottomless Bubbles $11.99 per day
Everyone in the cabin
Every adult must buy it

CHEERS! costs $83.94 per person per day bought before the cruise, or $89.94 on board, each including the 20% service charge. Every adult 21+ in the stateroom must buy it, and it allows up to 15 drinks per day.

What's included and the rules

Cheers! covers spirits, cocktails, and beer and wine by the glass priced at $20 or less on the menu, plus sodas, zero-proof frozen cocktails, energy drinks, specialty coffee, hot tea, 500ml bottled water and other non-alcoholic bottled drinks. It is capped at 15 alcoholic drinks per 24-hour period. Carnival also sells an unlimited soda package, Bottomless Bubbles, and a non-alcoholic Cheers! Zero Proof package at $29.99 per person per day.

Cheers! starts at $69.95 per person per day when bought before sailing, which is $5 per day less than buying on board, and a 20% service charge is added to drink package purchases. Every adult in the stateroom must buy it, and it covers onboard venues only, not port stops or private destinations such as Celebration Key. On sailings from Texas, New York, and Norfolk it starts on day two.

Minimum drinking age

21

Guests must be 21 or older to buy or consume alcohol in the bars, lounges, and gift shops, and to use the carry-on wine allowance. Carnival may ask for ID. This is the policy for cruises from the US.

Good to know

Water, sodas, and other non-alcoholic drinks in glass or plastic bottles may not be brought aboard. On embarkation day each guest may carry on up to 12 sealed cans or cartons of non-alcoholic drinks, 12 oz each or less. Small coolers no larger than 12 by 12 by 12 inches are allowed as carry-on; large coolers are prohibited.

Frequently asked questions

Can I bring my own alcohol on a Carnival cruise?
Yes. On embarkation day only, each guest 21 or older may bring one sealed 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne in carry-on luggage.
What is Carnival's corkage fee?
$15 per bottle. That is what Carnival charges to serve wine you brought aboard yourself.
Does Carnival have a drink package?
Yes. Carnival sells Cheers!, plus a non-alcoholic package, Bottomless Bubbles.
How much is Carnival's drink package?
CHEERS! costs $83.94 per person per day bought before the cruise, or $89.94 on board, each including the 20% service charge.
Does everyone in the cabin have to buy Carnival's drink package?
Yes. Every adult of legal drinking age in the same stateroom has to buy the same alcohol package.
What is the drinking age on a Carnival cruise?
Carnival's minimum drinking age is 21 on sailings from the US.

More on Carnival

Alcohol policies on other cruise lines

C
Caden Sorenson

Travel data researcher and publisher

Caden Sorenson runs Travel Vient, an independent travel research site built on a verified database of airline baggage rules, airport connection times, cruise line policies, and eSIM plans. He built the verification pipeline behind it: each record is read from the company or government page that publishes it (connection times: OAG data via ExpertFlyer), stored with that source link and the sentence it came from, and re-checked on a schedule. He is a senior staff engineer with 15+ years building software, a Computer Science graduate of Utah State University, and based in Logan, Utah.

Figures link to the source they were read from and show the date last checked; some cite a travel publication or aggregator rather than the company.

Sources

Facts, costs, and travel details in this guide were verified against the following sources. See our research methodology for how we vet and update data.

If a figure looks wrong, email hello@vient.org, see how we handle corrections, or browse past fixes in our public changelog.

Cruise lines change alcohol policies and prices without notice. Confirm with the line before you sail.