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**Fun & Useful Stuff For Cruising From the Dollar Tree**


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I was at the Dollar Tree today and i thought id check out what they had that could be useful in cruising, pre-cruise, post-cruise, or in cruise planning.

 

PLEASE note that this is NOT a list of what I am getting/brining! Its just a fun (sometimes silly) list of potenially useful things. Dont make comments saying not to bring all of it, and that none of it will ever be used on a cruise. its just for fun :)

oh, and for the things i actually might use or bring, im marking with a **. my maybies are with *.

 

- rain ponchos (set of 2) (actually on my honeymoon i coulda used these, had to buy em in port)

- glow bracelets, rings, necklaces, sticks (they are a hit these days and you will be too if you bring em to the night clubs)

- baby wipes ** (i always bring these camping and i might bring alittle pack for while in port)

- sewing kit **

- picture frames (for your new pics!)

- cheapie flip flops ** (for spa or around pool or even in shower if your germ phobic)

- suit storage bag (like fancy suit, not swimsuit)

- journal

- flameless tealights (set the moooooooood ;))

- toothbrush travel kit (comes w/ brush, little paste and tbrush cover)

- makeup remover wipes ** (i use these on a daily basis at home, they are much easier than washing your face)

- mini tissue pack

- imitation 'designer' perfume ** (so you dont lose your good stuff. i always buy imitation clinique happy and i only use it on cruises so now the smell makes me think of that and that only)

- any toilettries ** (i do this because when im done with the cruise, ill just toss em b4 we debark. less to carry. lotion, shampoo, shave gel, conditioner, body wash, deoderant etc)

- eye mask (not for me, if you have a balcony and are sensitive to the sunlight and want a nap)

- first aid kit ** (just comes with different types of bandages and cleaning swabs in a little plastic box. its about the size of a pack of playing cards. i will add.....)

- OTC Meds ** (...to add to 1st aid kit. cold medicine [i got a cold on a cruise once and had to spend nearly $10 on cold medicine] tylonol, pepto, antacid, neosporin. just add few of each and it should fit right into the aid kit box no sweat)

- travel size bottles (if you bring your own toilettries and not the ones from the store to toss)

- detergent * (powder or liquid. put some powder into a ziplock to use at the ships laundry facilities... at least on carnival they have em)

- Bottled water *(cheaper than on boat, and can take to ports. ill prolly bring 1 bottle, maybe 2)

- mini hand sanitizer

- batteries

- Soda **

- Ziplock bags (for wet stuff, or dirty undies :p)

- Night Light (a lot of ppl talk of bringing one of these. ive never needed it, we just keep the light on in the bathroom. oh, but they had some really cute designs!)

- Tap Light * (similar to night light but battery powered and you smack it to turn it on. i mayyyyyy do this one. keep it at the bed side)

- watch (i wont be using my cell phone at all,itll be in the safe. so i need a timepiece. i wont get it here, ill get something water resistant but its an idea)

- pedometer (to see how many miles you walk on that boat! skip the elevators!)

- 3 Outlet Converter thingy ** (ppl alwayyyyysss praise the old power strip, but i think its too bulky. so this plugs into the outlet, and has 3 outlets right on it. i think thats easier to pack and use)

- Bungee Cord (for the balcony. not for me, we cruise inside)

- Extension Cord (ppl talk about those too???)

- Lint Brush! (though there are no pets to bless our clothes with their hair on a cruise, there are sure to be residuals)

- Clothes Pins (for hmmmm lets see... oh yeah pinning clothes. and for the shower curtain, or balcony curtains)

- Laundry Bag (to seperate dirty stuff and/or to bring your stuff to the laundry machines on deck)

- Pasties :eek: (ladies, for those outfits where its not so easy to wear certain undergarments...)

- Various Exercise DVD's (for Pre and Post cruise weight loss!)

- Word Search/Crossword Puzzles **(for plane ride or while relaxing by the pool)

- Note Cards (for your extra tips if you chose to do so)

- Post Its (to leave notes for cabin mates)

- Binder (if you are a manic cruise planner, you will want to organize all your info and things you've printed out.... maybe this list :cool:)

- Gift Card Holder (cute tin box that holds gift cards. i know some ppl give room stewards phone cards and this would be a nice personal touch to it.)

 

WHEW! that was a lot longer than i thought it would be! A lot of the stuff is frivelous, but HEY, isnt planning and thinking about your cruise half the fun?? well, it is for me :D

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Great list!

 

I'd add:

 

a cheapy over the door shoe organizer for keeping everything contained and visible! Can't tell you how much it helped us! No bouts of "Hun, where is my spf 30 chapstick!?! Where are my sunglasses!?"

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Great list!

 

I'd add:

 

a cheapy over the door shoe organizer for keeping everything contained and visible! Can't tell you how much it helped us! No bouts of "Hun, where is my spf 30 chapstick!?! Where are my sunglasses!?"

 

 

ive looked for those, but never seen one at the dollar store, but maybe thats just my area though?

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I was at the Dollar Tree today and i thought id check out what they had that could be useful in cruising, pre-cruise, post-cruise, or in cruise planning.

 

PLEASE note that this is NOT a list of what I am getting/brining! Its just a fun (sometimes silly) list of potenially useful things. Dont make comments saying not to bring all of it, and that none of it will ever be used on a cruise. its just for fun :)

 

I understand your proviso, but an awful lot of this can be had onboard for free, without packing anything...

 

Great Idea to bring

- rain ponchos (set of 2) (actually on my honeymoon i coulda used these, had to buy em in port)

- glow bracelets, rings, necklaces, sticks (they are a hit these days and you will be too if you bring em to the night clubs) (often can buy at port stops really cheap - save shipping them in checked luggage)

- cheapie flip flops ** (for spa or around pool or even in shower if your germ phobic)

- eye mask (not for me, if you have a balcony and are sensitive to the sunlight and want a nap) (also good for your long overnight flights -- oddly cheap at the airport)

- OTC Meds ** (...to add to 1st aid kit. cold medicine [i got a cold on a cruise once and had to spend nearly $10 on cold medicine] tylonol, pepto, antacid, neosporin. just add few of each and it should fit right into the aid kit box no sweat) (cough drops too)

- first aid kit ** (just comes with different types of bandages and cleaning swabs in a little plastic box. its about the size of a pack of playing cards. i will add.....)

- batteries

- Night Light (a lot of ppl talk of bringing one of these. ive never needed it, we just keep the light on in the bathroom. oh, but they had some really cute designs!) (on an inside, I'd almost be inclined to bring a timer to turn a light on in the morning)

- Tap Light * (bring a tiny flashlight instead)

- Clothes Pins (for hmmmm lets see... oh yeah pinning clothes. and for the shower curtain, or balcony curtains) I bring office bulldog clips, I find them better

- Post Its (to leave notes for cabin mates) essential

 

Could buy on board; cheap

- sewing kit ** ($2, or grab it from your pre-cruise hotel!!)

- detergent * (powder or liquid. put some powder into a ziplock to use at the ships laundry facilities... at least on carnival they have em) depends on cruise line but it's heavy to pack & I ended up throwing out that bag of white powder at the airport (suitcase too heavy). I wonder what that looked like on the security camera, the guy with the baggie of white powder. On princess it was pretty cheap if you wanted to buy on board

 

 

Can get on board for nothing!

- baby wipes ** (i always bring these camping and i might bring alittle pack for while in port) The casino has these to clean your hands after handling coin

- Bottled water *(cheaper than on boat, and can take to ports. ill prolly bring 1 bottle, maybe 2) (the on board water is pretty darn good. Bring an empty bottle!)

- Soda ** (drink ice tea and lemonade instead, for free!)

- Ziplock bags (for wet stuff, or dirty undies :p) (ask your cabin steward for a couple of small garbage bags)

- Laundry Bag (to seperate dirty stuff and/or to bring your stuff to the laundry machines on deck) ask cabin attendant for a garbage bag

- Bungee Cord (for the balcony. not for me, we cruise inside) string might be more useful overall. I'll bet your cabin attendant can get string for you.

- mini hand sanitizer (sanitizers outside every dining venue on board - I suppose you could fill up your own mini bottle)

 

I wouldn't recommend

- travel size bottles (if you bring your own toilettries and not the ones from the store to toss) a TSA red flag unfortunately

- 3 Outlet Converter thingy/ Extension Cord (ppl talk about those too???)

** (how many things do you really charge at once? - I'm a techy and I've never had to charge more than one thing at a time, and frankly most things charge off USB -hence off the laptop these days)

- watch (i wont be using my cell phone at all,itll be in the safe. so i need a timepiece. i wont get it here, ill get something water resistant but its an idea) every phone displays the ship's time

- pedometer (to see how many miles you walk on that boat! skip the elevators!) I'll just skip the elevators - I don't need to guilt myself on vacation

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...
ive looked for those, but never seen one at the dollar store, but maybe thats just my area though?

 

Okay, I found one last week but it doesn't have any hooks or anything to make it hang over the door (although it does show it on the picture on the outside of the package!) Anyone have any ideas on how to keep it in place and useable?

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Okay, I found one last week but it doesn't have any hooks or anything to make it hang over the door (although it does show it on the picture on the outside of the package!) Anyone have any ideas on how to keep it in place and useable?

 

 

I bought one that didn't have the hangers with it once before, and what I did was just take a couple of shower curtain hooks and put them thru the holes at the top of the holder....just make sure the hooks a fairly wide at the part that will hang over the door....it work great for me...:)

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I recently found 2 CD's at Dollar Tree. One was titled " Spicy Party Music" and had Caribbean themed music on it. Lots of really good artists and songs. The other was " Tiki Party" and had music set for a Hawaiian or Tropical Island Cruise. I found them in the auto accessory asile. The weather here in Indiana is warming up so we have been playing them while using our grill out on the patio. It is getting us in the cruising mood, even though we are still several months away.

 

For our cruise, we will also purchase the shoe hanger. I will just leave it in it's original packaging until we get to our cabin and then throw it away when the cruise is over. They never fold up the same way.

 

Also found a color-by-number poster of a beach scene. It was in the color book section. It is about 8x10 and uses colored pencils not crayons. We are going to decorate our cabin door so I am going to incorporate this some kind of way.

 

Love, Love, Love this thread. Cari in Indy.

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I recently found 2 CD's at Dollar Tree. One was titled " Spicy Party Music" and had Caribbean themed music on it. Lots of really good artists and songs. The other was " Tiki Party" and had music set for a Hawaiian or Tropical Island Cruise. I found them in the auto accessory asile. The weather here in Indiana is warming up so we have been playing them while using our grill out on the patio. It is getting us in the cruising mood, even though we are still several months away.

 

For our cruise, we will also purchase the shoe hanger. I will just leave it in it's original packaging until we get to our cabin and then throw it away when the cruise is over. They never fold up the same way.

 

Also found a color-by-number poster of a beach scene. It was in the color book section. It is about 8x10 and uses colored pencils not crayons. We are going to decorate our cabin door so I am going to incorporate this some kind of way.

 

Love, Love, Love this thread. Cari in Indy.

 

Just an FYI, I have refolded mine over and over. It's the see-through plastic kind. It doesn't fold down as small as it once did, but it does squish back into the side pocked of the suitcase. Also, if you do decide to toss it, leave it for the steward. He/she may find great use for it in his/her small quarters.

I'm going to Dollar Tree tonight to see if they have those CDs. Thanks!!!

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This is great, love the list. I'll be going to the Dollar Tree this weekend. Will pick up just a few things. We have a large storage bin we keep "cruise stuff" in. I buy a little at a time and throw it in the bin. Come time to start packing I'm not buying everything at once. There's a few things on the list that's not in the bin :D

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i find it funny you felt the need to edit the list for the OP!:p here are my edits on your edits :D mine are in green bold!

 

I understand your proviso, but an awful lot of this can be had onboard for free, without packing anything...

 

Great Idea to bring

- rain ponchos (set of 2) (actually on my honeymoon i coulda used these, had to buy em in port)

- glow bracelets, rings, necklaces, sticks (they are a hit these days and you will be too if you bring em to the night clubs) (often can buy at port stops really cheap - save shipping them in checked luggage) these are so small, they hardly take up any room in luggage!

- cheapie flip flops ** (for spa or around pool or even in shower if your germ phobic)

- eye mask (not for me, if you have a balcony and are sensitive to the sunlight and want a nap) (also good for your long overnight flights -- oddly cheap at the airport)

- OTC Meds ** (...to add to 1st aid kit. cold medicine [i got a cold on a cruise once and had to spend nearly $10 on cold medicine] tylonol, pepto, antacid, neosporin. just add few of each and it should fit right into the aid kit box no sweat) (cough drops too) good point

- first aid kit ** (just comes with different types of bandages and cleaning swabs in a little plastic box. its about the size of a pack of playing cards. i will add.....)

- batteries

- Night Light (a lot of ppl talk of bringing one of these. ive never needed it, we just keep the light on in the bathroom. oh, but they had some really cute designs!) (on an inside, I'd almost be inclined to bring a timer to turn a light on in the morning) too involved for me!

- Tap Light * (bring a tiny flashlight instead)

- Clothes Pins (for hmmmm lets see... oh yeah pinning clothes. and for the shower curtain, or balcony curtains) I bring office bulldog clips, I find them better

- Post Its (to leave notes for cabin mates) essential

 

Could buy on board; cheap

- sewing kit ** ($2, or grab it from your pre-cruise hotel!!) why spend $2 when you can spend $1?

- detergent * (powder or liquid. put some powder into a ziplock to use at the ships laundry facilities... at least on carnival they have em) depends on cruise line but it's heavy to pack & I ended up throwing out that bag of white powder at the airport (suitcase too heavy). I wonder what that looked like on the security camera, the guy with the baggie of white powder. On princess it was pretty cheap if you wanted to buy on board once again, why spend more when you can spend $1? and i think at dollar tree you can get small boxes so no baggies or conspicuous (sp?) white substance!

 

 

Can get on board for nothing!

- baby wipes ** (i always bring these camping and i might bring alittle pack for while in port) The casino has these to clean your hands after handling coin do they have these in packages at the casino? OP said for in port, i would like them in a package, not loose.

- Bottled water *(cheaper than on boat, and can take to ports. ill prolly bring 1 bottle, maybe 2) (the on board water is pretty darn good. Bring an empty bottle!)

- Soda ** (drink ice tea and lemonade instead, for free!) i like soda too!

- Ziplock bags (for wet stuff, or dirty undies ) (ask your cabin steward for a couple of small garbage bags)

- Laundry Bag (to seperate dirty stuff and/or to bring your stuff to the laundry machines on deck) ask cabin attendant for a garbage bag

- Bungee Cord (for the balcony. not for me, we cruise inside) string might be more useful overall. I'll bet your cabin attendant can get string for you. i wouldnt bother him, just bring the cord. they are useful at home too

- mini hand sanitizer (sanitizers outside every dining venue on board - I suppose you could fill up your own mini bottle)

 

I wouldn't recommend

- travel size bottles (if you bring your own toilettries and not the ones from the store to toss) a TSA red flag unfortunately even in checked luggage?

- 3 Outlet Converter thingy/ Extension Cord (ppl talk about those too???)

** (how many things do you really charge at once? - I'm a techy and I've never had to charge more than one thing at a time, and frankly most things charge off USB -hence off the laptop these days) as a female, i use a hairdryer and have a straitener heating at the same time, so i like this

- watch (i wont be using my cell phone at all,itll be in the safe. so i need a timepiece. i wont get it here, ill get something water resistant but its an idea) every phone displays the ship's time she wont be using her phone...

- pedometer (to see how many miles you walk on that boat! skip the elevators!) I'll just skip the elevators - I don't need to guilt myself on vacation but hey, its fun to see how much you walk!

 

 

:D:D:D:D

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I recently found 2 CD's at Dollar Tree. One was titled " Spicy Party Music" and had Caribbean themed music on it. Lots of really good artists and songs. The other was " Tiki Party" and had music set for a Hawaiian or Tropical Island Cruise. I found them in the auto accessory asile. The weather here in Indiana is warming up so we have been playing them while using our grill out on the patio. It is getting us in the cruising mood, even though we are still several months away.

 

For our cruise, we will also purchase the shoe hanger. I will just leave it in it's original packaging until we get to our cabin and then throw it away when the cruise is over. They never fold up the same way.

 

Also found a color-by-number poster of a beach scene. It was in the color book section. It is about 8x10 and uses colored pencils not crayons. We are going to decorate our cabin door so I am going to incorporate this some kind of way.

 

Love, Love, Love this thread. Cari in Indy.

 

Hey, Cari, we're in IN too just north west of you in Schererville!

 

We love listening to the CD's while we grill also. I like putting them on throughtout the house while I'm packing too.

 

Clothes pins help too by the pool to hold either your towel or your magazine/book pages in the wind!

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I was in the Dollar Tree last week, and saw the NOODLES for swimming. I was thinking about buying one, bending it and using it as cushioning in the suitcase. And then when we head out to the beach in Nassau use the NOODLE instead of renting a float. I love the Dollar Tree:), but my hubby is always rushing me through.:rolleyes::(

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  • 1 month later...
Cute ideas!

I'll add bubbles for the Sail Away party!

 

Probably not at the Dollar store but if you can find one of those multiple-hole paddles for bubbles--stand on the foredeck or at the front end of the pool deck at sailaway to produce a huge stream of bubbles!

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Wow, I love it!!! Great tips.....I think you forgot the following:p:

 

Umbrella

Air Freshener

tote bags that fold into a ball

 

I'll keep adding as I think of things! Great idea because you can leave almost everything there, leaving room for your take home treasures!

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Also found a color-by-number poster of a beach scene. It was in the color book section. It is about 8x10 and uses colored pencils not crayons. We are going to decorate our cabin door so I am going to incorporate this some kind of way.

 

I wonder if you put it on your door with the box of crayons, if people passing by would gradually colour it in for you?

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Probably not at the Dollar store but if you can find one of those multiple-hole paddles for bubbles--stand on the foredeck or at the front end of the pool deck at sailaway to produce a huge stream of bubbles!

 

 

The 99 cent only store and Dollar Tree both carry the bubbles in the wedding dept. They come in packages of 9 small bottles with the wand in them. They are really cute.

You can also find door hangers that you put a magnet on and decorate for your door. We always get one of the foam frames and decorate it for our door and put a pix of us in it. You can also find dry erase boards there for leaving messages on for other cruisers. We really like them.

Edited by TNGALOHA
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