One passenger was forced to endure their sailing and return home without something very important: their suitcase.

The guest boarded Royal Caribbean’s Liberty of the Seas on February 6, 2026, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for a weekend cruise to Nassau and Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas. However, their suitcase never made it to their stateroom, and neither did any of the belongings inside.

“My only luggage got either lost or stolen literally on the first day of boarding. I had all my belongings in this luggage and lost everything,”the first-time cruiser lamented on Reddit.

“I also had some significant cash as well in this bag,” they admitted.

The guest felt that their first cruise ever was ruined by the stress of not having access to their belongings and constantly going back and forth with guest services to try to find their bag, or at least replace the essentials.

But other than informing guest services and filling out the Lost and Found form online with Chargerback, there was not much the passenger could do other than cross their fingers.

How Did Royal Caribbean Respond?

Unfortunately, the guest was unsatisfied by how Royal Caribbean tried to help them resolve this situation.

First, the investigation into what happened was limited because the cameras in the corridor near the guest’s stateroom were allegedly out of order. This means that if another guest or crew member stole the bag in a crime of opportunity, the suspect wasn’t caught in the act on camera.

“I hate how Royal handled this situation and even head of security told me that the camera where our room was wasn’t working (Of course it wasn’t),” the guest said.

Read Also: 6 Ways to Protect Your Cruise Ship Luggage

Another guest who was onboard at the same time did chime in to say that they received a letter asking if they had received luggage that didn’t belong to them, which suggests crew members did try to look for the missing suitcase.

“I was also on the Liberty this weekend. We got cards on our doors asking to look for luggage that wasn’t ours on Day 2. I’m wondering if that was your stuff they were looking for,” they wrote in a reply.

It’s unclear if that letter was related to the original poster’s predicament, or if additional guests were also dealing with missing luggage.

While porters and crew members work hard to prevent these unfortunate situations, every sailing comes with thousands of suitcases to organize and deliver, and Cruise Hive has seen this process go wrong in many ways over the years.

For example, Royal Caribbean’s sister brand, Celebrity Cruises, went viral in 2024 after crew members accidentally dropped a woman’s bag overboard and sailed away without it.

Limited Compensation Offered

According to the passenger, Royal Caribbean offered to reimburse up to $300 for the lost suitcase and the items inside, which they felt was too low.

“Long story short, we filled out paper work and they’re saying $300 USD is the most they can do,” the recent guest complained.

Unfortunately for them, Royal Caribbean limits its liability for lost or damaged luggage to a minimum of $300 per guest.

The only exception to this would be if guests purchased Royal Caribbean Travel Protection, which covers up to $1,500 for bags that are lost, stolen, or damaged.

If the guest has their own independent travel insurance plan, they can also submit a claim there for additional compensation.

Could the Luggage Still be Found?

Now that the voyage has ended, the chances of finding the missing suitcase are low. Liberty of the Seas has already completed another getaway cruise to the Bahamas that lasted from February 9-13, and is now on a Valentine’s Day sailing.

Even so, stranger things have happened, so this guest could still get lucky.

For example, Cruise Hive covered the story of a woman who forgot her own suitcase in PortMiami, and Royal Caribbean found the luggage and shipped it to her house.

Looking at Carnival Cruise Line, one family was reunited with their missing suitcase after it disappeared for weeks onboard Carnival Magic thanks to the tracking capabilities of a pair of Apple AirPods inside it.

If this guest’s luggage does miraculously surface, Royal Caribbean will likely mail it back to its owner as long as the passenger is willing to pay the shipping costs.

First-Time Cruiser Outraged After Missing Luggage Never Gets Returned