Cruising to Alaska with Knives

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JohnnyO

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Sep 1, 2002
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Hey gang, Anyone have experience with taking knives (4-5" fixed blade) on cruise ships to Alaska? Another kicker is, I'm sailing out of Vancouver Canada. I was thinking about taking a midsized fixed blade. One that is not too expensive, in case it gets stolen by the airlines. Shouldn't be a problem with customs in Canada if it's in my packed luggage, I don't think.....
 
Royal Caribbean? I did that cruise a few summers ago with my family. I carried my Spyderco Dodo most of the time and didn't get a second glance while on the ship. It was when we stopped in various ports that the only friction occured; on my ship they had us go through a metal detector and run our bags through an x-ray machine when getting back on. The knife wasn't confiscated, but I got the feeling that they really didn't like me having it. If I go again, I'm just going to carry a SAK when we go ashore. Also, if you happen to be stopping in Juneau, there is a kickass little knife shop along the main drag.
 
You don't need anything more than a SAK with a corkscrew on one of those trips. Save your money and buy yourself a ulu instead (a native kitchen knife). Anchorage has a good knife shop or two and Fairbanks has some good makers.
 
Go to Alaska Gun In Anchorage. High end custom 1911s and many custom knives.
 
JohnnyO said:
Hey gang, Anyone have experience with taking knives (4-5" fixed blade) on cruise ships to Alaska? Another kicker is, I'm sailing out of Vancouver Canada. I was thinking about taking a midsized fixed blade. One that is not too expensive, in case it gets stolen by the airlines. Shouldn't be a problem with customs in Canada if it's in my packed luggage, I don't think.....
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I did almost the exact same trip last August (actually, it might BE the exact same trip:eek:). What cruise line?
I'm always afraid of getting a blade stolen so what I did was only pack my Leatherman and had it wrapped in my socks then inserted into a boot in my luggage. I didn't feel I needed anything bigger (If I did I'd have nabbed a steak knife:cool:). The security on the ship is rather tight, believe it or not. I just stuck it with my camera gear so it didn't look out of place and never got hassled about it. If I had a fixed blade, it'd probably be gone though. Bottom line: hide it well, don't bring something you don't want confiscated or stolen, and don't make a fuss if it gets confiscated.
 
USSR said:
Royal Caribbean? I did that cruise a few summers ago with my family. I carried my Spyderco Dodo most of the time and didn't get a second glance while on the ship. It was when we stopped in various ports that the only friction occured; on my ship they had us go through a metal detector and run our bags through an x-ray machine when getting back on. The knife wasn't confiscated, but I got the feeling that they really didn't like me having it. If I go again, I'm just going to carry a SAK when we go ashore. Also, if you happen to be stopping in Juneau, there is a kickass little knife shop along the main drag.
Click to expand...

We also did a RC Alaska cruise, 7-day out of Seattle, in August 2006 -- just for kicks, I did some experimenting with the ship metal detector sensitivity with each shore excursion, increasing the amount of metal each time I'd go through the detector. I never triggered it, and my peak metal carry was a Spyderco Endura, SAK Deluxe Tinker, SureFire A2, thick belt buckle, and an all-metal Luminox watch. Carried my Sebenza with me as well, but it went on the conveyor belt with my Nikon D200 camera (metal body) upon entering the ship, and was never detected. On my specific cruise, security was pretty loose.

I agree -- the knife shop in Juneau was a good stop. I picked up several Ulu knife/board sets for souvenirs.

Happy cruisin'. You'll love it!
 
Thanks for all the tips guys! I'm sailing with Celebrity Cruise Line. Should be a blast.

Only cruised once, so I had forgotten about going through metal detectors upon boarding. Maybe one of my SAKs will be the best way to go. We are planning several hikes during off shore excursions and I was initially thinking of taking a fixed blade, but guess that's not a good idea.

I'll definitely check out the knife and gun stores. Love knives and 1911's. Can't get enough of them.

Appreciate the advice:thumbup:
 
Been a cool summer up here in Alaska. I hope you have a lot of sun...although its been rare. I know off the boat you can carry anthing short of a switchblade without a second glance except from tourists...and you can carry a firearm concealed without a permit. Irrelavant since your on a boat however.
 
Know what you mean. I've been watching the weather. Looks like most areas we'll be docking at are hovering in the mid 50's. I plan to bring layers and rain gear. Kinda get use to that here anyway. Weather can vary quite a bit throughout the day.
 
I too am cruising in less than a week! Princess I think, and gift from Grandparents. I've been considering if I should take my Griptilian or not. Looking forward to knife shops!
 
South of Anchorage is the location of Campbells Custom knife shop.....Had a great visit 2 years ago....He showed how to grind a blade vertical................carl
 
Did Alaska 2 yrs ago on the Diamond Princess. No problems while carrying a small Case lockback. Great trip. Hold on to your credit card at the gun and knife shops.
 
Went to Alaska on Norwegian Cruise line a couple of years ago. We received a notice up front that no knives or weapons of any kind were allowed. I still carried a Swiss Army in my day pack without problem through the metal detectors and x-ray. Believe it or not, security was handled by contract Gurkhas!
 
I just got back from a cruise in Canada. Had a Wenger SI. Got hasseled. I wouldn't go with a fixed blade. Besides, there is really not much need for it on a cruise ship anyways. They might ask you to check your tacticals and fixed blades.

God Bless

Have fun.
 
maybe you should get a nightshade from cold steel and just keep it in you pocket no just kidding it would work though i recomend a SOG Field Pup
 
Aside from bylaws that can vary from municipality to municipality, the only things that you can't carry in Canada are switchblades and gravity knives. The kicker is that "gravity knife" has been taken to mean a knife that can be flicked open. So, the trick is to tighten a pivot on any folder that can be opened with a snap of the wrist.

It's also important to remember that in Canada, knives are tools--if anyone asks. If you're carrying it for self-defence, you can get in trouble.
 
My neck knife was confiscated at boarding and returned to me with no problems at the end of the cruise. The lockback I was carrying had a longer blade than the neck knife. The steward said fixed blades of any sort weren't allowed. He didn't think the rule made much sense either.
 
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