How Ship&Play works — door-to-door delivery, carrier routing, the port agent network, and real-time tracking explained.
Guests can book Ship&Play through three equally seamless channels. Each path routes to the same great experience.
Guests visit your co-branded booking URL (e.g., shipplay.com/[partner]). Your cruise itineraries pre-load automatically. Guests select bags, enter pickup address, and pay. Confirmation and labels are emailed immediately.
Guests (or your call center agents) can reach the Cruise Concierge team directly. The team books on the guest's behalf, handles payment, and mails the welcome packet with labels.
Guests can book disembarkation shipments (bags from cabin back home) through your Guest Services desk while on the ship. Ship&Play supplies labels, zip ties, and instruction cards to keep onboard at all times.
From the moment a guest books to the moment their bags are waiting in the stateroom (or back home) — here is every step.
Guests book online at the co-branded partner URL, by phone with the Ship&Play Concierge team, or at Guest Services onboard. After booking, a confirmation email is sent with an order number and tracking info.
Ship&Play mails a Welcome Packet to the guest's home address. Inside: pre-printed shipping labels, luggage tags, zip ties, and adhesive sleeves. Guests can also print labels directly from their confirmation email.
No special containers or repackaging needed. The guest packs normally, applies the pre-printed label to each bag, and sets them out for pickup.
Three options at checkout:
Bags are routed to a trusted port agent near the embarkation port, arriving 1–3 days before sail day. This buffer protects against carrier delays and ensures every bag is sorted and ready for handoff. The guest never interacts with the port agent.
The port agent delivers all bags to the ship on embarkation morning. Bags are sorted by stateroom and delivered before guests board — waiting in the cabin by 9am on sail day.
The guest travels light — through the airport with only a carry-on, no checked bag fees, no baggage claim. They arrive at the port relaxed and board to find everything already unpacked-ready in their stateroom.
Guests choose the option that works best for their schedule and location. All three options are available at checkout.
A FedEx, UPS, or DHL driver picks up bags directly from the guest's home. Available Monday–Friday, 9am–6pm. No extra charge — included in the base shipment rate.
Guest drops bags at any FedEx, UPS, or DHL retail or authorized drop-off location. Ideal for guests who prefer to go at their own time or whose schedule doesn't align with standard pickup windows.
Guaranteed pickup within 1 hour of the scheduled window. Perfect for last-minute packers, guests in dense urban areas, or anyone who wants certainty. Available as a $100 add-on at checkout.
The routing logic differs depending on whether luggage is going to a cruise ship or a hotel.
Ship&Play uses a port agent network for all cruise ship deliveries. Here's why:
Hotel deliveries are simpler — no port agent buffer needed.