Photo: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, 2025
A modern cruise ship can carry well over 4,000 passengers, which results in an equivalent number of luggage pieces (about 1.5 per passenger). During boarding, luggage is collected at the terminal’s check-in area, scanned, and sorted by deck and cabin. They are then loaded onto trolleys and brought to the cargo doors by forklifts. These cargo doors are usually at pier level, which facilitates cargo operations but requires them to be watertight. Then, the trolleys are going to be rolled unboard onto decks, sections, and cabins. Luggage handling takes place at the front and back of the cruise ship to minimize the intra-ship movements of luggage trolleys. The same applies to stores that are brought on pallets.
During the unboarding process, luggage is collected by cabin section, loaded onto trolleys, and unloaded by forklift at the cargo doors. The luggage will then be brought to the pickup area at the terminal, where passengers retrieve it by deck and section.