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My entire life could probably be retraced and pieced together through a series of shopping and to-do lists. Honestly: If I kept them all, they’d probably serve as a pretty robust basis for my day-in-the-life biography. Which somebody’s totally going to write about me when I die. Duh.
Lately, I’ve been fairly obsessed with the cruise packing list. For those of you catching up, we’re embarking on a 7-day cruise after the wedding, through the Eastern Caribbean, stopping at Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, Grand Turk, and St. Thomas. Neither of us have ever been. I’m simultaneously a packs-too-much traveler and a forgets-the-essentials traveler. So I like to turn to handy Google for advice. Today, it was “Cruise Packing List.” Naturally, I found some super long and scary-specific lists. Like this one from Cruise Direct. (Which makes me wonder, what are people doing on their cruises? Krazy Glue? Walkman? DUCT TAPE?)
So, by narrowing out the things we always pack for any trip—meds, toiletries, underwear—I’ve arrived at what I think is a pretty comfortable packing list for the impending honeymoon cruise.
The zinger is that, although the cruise likely has any of these items for purchase, it’s not like forgetting deodorant on a normal vacation and zipping down to the local drugstore. I’m imagining the prices are pretty staggering on board, so I’d rather not forget anything.
Which leads me to ask: What do you really need for a cruise that you don’t need somewhere else? In other words, what do we still need to buy?
My starter list goes something like this:
And that’s pretty much where that ends. So I’m asking you, hive: What are some cruise essentials? What do you wish you’d packed that you hadn’t? And on the flip side (because I could really use some advice on this, too) - what did you pack that you TOTALLY didn’t need?
I got a waterproof pouch on a lanyard from REI for under $15. This was nice when we went snorkeling or were in turks and we both wanted to go into the water. I put cash, room cards, even my ipod in there and swam no problem, no leakage. very worth the money.
SUNSCREEN. Major sunscreen! Also, books. My grandma laughed at me when I told her I was bringing books on my honeymoon, but we really spent a lot of time lounging on deck, lounging on the beach … and I’m glad I brought them.
Sunblock! It’ll be expensive on board. Also, pack a few bathing suits. Maybe it’s just me, but my suits seem to take forever to dry and I hate putting on wet/damp ones.
Do NOT forget sunscreen. I made that mistake on our cruise and the hubby burnt to a horrible shade of red on his knees! We had to shell out 20 bucks for sunscreen and aloe vera on the ship.
I also packed too many shoes, I ended up only needing the following: one pair of flip flops, one pair of sneakers and one pair of dress shoes. All those cute sandals I packed? Never even pulled them out.
However I would suggest packing extra underwear. After sweating all day off shore, the first thing I wanted to do was shower and change before doing anything on the ship each night.
The markup in the cruise ship sundries shop is pretty steep, please remember the essentials 
Now, the one thing I’ll always pack is a power strip: if you’re lucky there are 2 outlets in the room, usually across the room from the bed. We like to travel with laptops and other digital devices (cell phones off on the ship–crazy-expensive airtime fees–but useful in port, so want to keep them charged) so more than 2 plugs are essential.
And I always pack too many shoes, but I like options
I haven’t been on a fun cruise for a vacation but I work on boats for my job, but I highly recommend Bonine for motion sickness. I have taken many different forms and this works for me. I usually start taking it a day before I depart so it works it way into my system. I also usually end up not taking it after being on the boat for a few days since you get used to the rocking motion.
The cruise I went on allowed each adult to bring on one bottle of wine so I took a bottle opener so we could enjoy our wine in-room instead of paying the cork fee table*side in the dining room. And I always always travel with a power strip and/or extension cord.
I would definately suggest nice clothes for dinner… Some people dress to the nines and I felt way under dressed! The other thing is several outfits per day. Ex: Lounge wear for hanging around the boat, excursion wear for the day trippin’, night attire for dinner and night wear for hanging around the boat, yes all for the same day. The beauty is you can use little sundresses or shorts and tanks that don’t take up alot of room. I took a large suitcase and a small suitcase (left medium at home) totally wish I had packed more. I am usually the “packs waay too much and comes back with clean unworn clothes. I was determined not to do this on the cruise (limited space and all) . I was even nervous on how much I took. Then the last day everyone’s luggage is lined up in the hallways to be picked up for departure…EVERYONE had like twice what we had, so don’t feel like you have too much.
Definitely pack sunscreen - you can’t have too much! I would also pack a water bottle so you can refill it during your cruise instead of having to buy water in port.
I am always forgetting a watch (because I rely on my phone as a clock) and end up buying a cheapy $10 watch onboard Every Single Time.
For motion sickness, I prefer Ginger Chews or candied ginger. And Dramamine - sometimes the waves are too mighty and you may just spend a night clutching the bed.
I’d also recommend packing some gallon Ziplock bags. St Thomas has a pretty good duty-free liquor selection and you’ll want to make sure they’re wrapped up nice and tight for the trip home. Anywhere we go, we’re always wishing for Ziplock bags to wrap up liquidy breakables (very hard to find in Greece, btw, to protect all that lovely olive oil).
I second packing extra undies - you’ll want to change into something clean before dinner.
I like to bring my own snorkle equipment rather than renting it. I just can’t get over the fact that the snorkle has been in someone else’s mouth no matter how much they claim to disinfect it…yuck!
An outfit specifically for photo taking on the formal dinner night. We really wanted a nice photo from the cruise and I’d recommend going to a few different photographers to guarantee a great shot. Make sure to plan for excursions you want to do, some of the outdoor activities require long pants.
AMAZING amazing tips, ladies! No doubt I and countless other cruise newbies will find this all indispensable. Keep ‘em coming!
I always pack my kindle!
Check with your cruise line- but a lot of them let you bring a certain amount of beverages onboard. I always find it’s nice to have bottled water, juice, soda etc in my room- that way if i’m being lazy I don’t have to walk all the way to one of the restaurants for a drink.
Bring a sweater, sweatshirt, light jacket, etc- I forgot one last time and had to buy one at one of the ports- $50 for an ugly sweatshirt that says bahamas on it- never wore it after the cruise. I was always cold when we were hanging out on board- even though we cruised to the islands during the summer.
Yes, I echo the sundries recommendation: Sunscreen is a must (nobody wants to pay $20 for a tube of $5 sunscreen, advil/tylenol/aspirin (whichever you like), neosporin and/or cortisone cream just in case, lotion/aloe, a few bandaids, and feminine supplies (my friend came unexpectedly and I ended up spending $25 for a box!).
And I second bringing your own snorkle equipment - big yuck on using stuff that has been in various others’ mouth but usually the rental equipment is marginal at best and never fits correctly.
I just got home from this exact cruise if you are going on Carnival! I highly recommend the Captain Nauticals snorkle in St. Thomas… you get to swim with sea turtles! It was amazing! and the Power Snorkel in Grand Turk was a lot of fun… they take you to a 7000 foot drop off, pretty neat to see!
My tips:
** Bring a surge protector if you plan on charging cameras, using blowdryers, etc. The cabins rarely have more than two plugs!
** bring empty grocery bags so when you pack home you can put any clothes that might still be damp in them
** if it is carnival, pack two bottles of wine in your carry on! You are allowed one bottle of wine per person!
Hope you have an amazing trip and your weather is a nice as it was on our last week!
Not to beat a dead horse, but we had to buy an EIGHTEEN DOLLAR bottle of suncreen on our Jamaican honeymoon a couple of weeks ago. Don’t forget it!
What cruise line are you going on? Those are exactly the same islands we visited on our cruise! Some people are not bothered by the boat at all (motion sickness). I on the other hand could tell the moment I stepped on the boat that it was going to be a long week! Def bring some motion sickness along if you have any doubt. One tip I have is that if you actually want to get a lounge out on the deck while you are out at shore to lay out on wake up very very early and go put a towel out. I hate to be one of “those people” but we learned our lesson very quick! Have fun!!!!
A toiletry case that hangs, there is next to NO room on the bathroom sink and there are many places to hang items.
Purchase before hand or at departure, a neck lanyard thing to hold your room key as everything will be charged to that.
Your own beach bag that can be used off and on shore.
A hat!! to go with that sunscreen!
$$ single dollars for tips
Oh and for shoes…I would suggest a combo of a water sneaker, Sketchers has some fairly cheap for wearing at ports, then if you decide to go tubing or something, you will have a good shoe for walking to the site and during the fun, change into flip flops after.
Hubs and I have cruise 3 times! I would suggest getting a waterproof digital, I got a Fujifilm on Amazon for about $110. Its much easier than the disposables or getting that case for your camera.
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Mrs. Ladyfingers, Saint Petersburg, FL Age and Occupation: 30, Marketing Manager Fiance's Age and Occupation: 33, Sports Writer Engagement Date: December 24, 2010 Wedding Date: November 2011 Venue: Palma Sola Botanical Park About Me: I hail from Oklahoma, he was born and raised in Long Island. Fate brought us together, and now we live in a cute little rental house with our nutty dog, and our aloof cat. We both love to read, watch movies, explore our town, and laugh like hyenas. When I’m not obsessively wedding crafting, I enjoy stalking style and decorating blogs, making collages and painting, napping, thrifting, rearranging our bookshelves, and being a total weirdo with my friends. Hi!
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