TOP 10 THINGS newbies forget to bring on their 1st Cruise...

we do bring the popup hamper, all contact supplies we will need (after having to buy some once), and fruit/cracker snacks to throw in our bag for shore excursions or airport delays! we always bring more $1 bills than we need (but use them up in the casino the last night). one time had to buy a new carryonbag because we bought too much!

have a great trip.

Beverly

I think the tips above are just great. I always like to read these lists to see if there's something else I should be taking!

With all the electronics and batteries that need to be re-charged these days, a power strip is a must and I strongly "second" that recommendation. There just aren't enough outlets in most cabins.

Also, we've typically traveled with a regular size laptop, but we bought a new, smaller netbook for traveling and just brought it on our first cruise in January. It fit easily in our large, Pac Safe purse, is incredibly light, and was perfect for the trip.

We also bring an ethernet cable for our laptop or netbook, as many ships have wired internet access in the cabins. It takes up no room and saves having to get one from the ship.

Re digital cameras: since memory cards are so cheap now, we bring a different one for each port (and keep the ones we've already used locked in the cabin safe). This way, if something happens to a card (or the camera), we haven't lost all our pix. Also, we upload the pix pretty regularly to our netbook (or laptop), which is another backup. On our most recent cruise, I also had a USB thumb drive (tiny, small, cheap) and downloaded pix to that as well.

Other misc stuff: a Swiss Army knife (or clone) (DON'T put it in your carry on!); small hand sanitizer bottles (I like to keep one in my pocket, particularly in ports), and....

... like a number of other posters above, I always take a bunch of drug supplies and related items on any trip -- imodium, headache stuff, neosporin, regular bandaids, blister bandaids, vaseline, cough drops, Alka Seltzer, a small pair of scissors, tiny sewing kit, duct tape. . .

Depending on where you are going, a travel size roll of toilet paper is a real must. (In Egypt last month, it was the best thing we'd brought!)

Happy cruising to all!

If you are flying wouldn't a swiss army knife be confiscated at security?

Sounds like if I brought everything on all these lists I'd have to hire a Sherpa and some Llama's to haul it all.

I'm a very light packer. I'll have one big bag for the week.

If you are flying wouldn't a swiss army knife be confiscated at security?

 

My tip on this subject, in the post immediately above yours, verbatim:

"Other misc stuff: a Swiss Army knife (or clone) (DON'T put it in your carry on!)"

Irons are not allowed on ships. We once met a woman who was called to the naughty room to claim her luggage because they spotted the iron. They took it away and returned it at the end of the cruise. It was her first cruise and she didn't know they weren't allowed. She was very embarassed. That said, I admit I did take an iron on a few of our early cruises without a problem, but I found I rarely used it. I now take a travel steamer, which is allowed, and it works very well. But something has to be very badly wrinkled for me to even bother. I'm on vacation :D.

 

Have fun!

We always bring a small travel iron with us. You can request an iron and ironing board from the front desk as well.

Your cabin steward will bring you as many hangers as you need - not necessary.

 

DON

We always pack extra wire hangers because even though we know the cabin steward can bring us more hangers, he/she is very busy on embarkation day and we often don't even see him/her until most or all of our unpacking is done.

Also, since the cabin stewards are so busy on embarkation day, we don't like to take their time to bring us hangers when it's so easy to carry some wire hangers in our luggage.

We leave them in the closet when we disembark the last day.

Look at "FAQ" on NCL's Website. Below is what I copied and pasted.

What can't I bring onboard?

Passenger is not allowed to bring on board the vessel any intoxicating liquors, or beverages, firearms, weapons of any kind, ammunition, explosive substances or any goods of a dangerous nature, nor animals of any kind, except service or guide animals, provided the passenger notifies Carrier prior to the cruise of his intention to bring such animal and agrees to take sole responsibility for any expense, damage, injuries or losses associated with or caused by such animal.:cool:

My tip on this subject, in the post immediately above yours, verbatim:

 

"Other misc stuff: a Swiss Army knife (or clone) (DON'T put it in your carry on!)"

Ah, sorry. I skimmed the post before having my morning coffee. :)

Where is this list (what can't be brought on board) located? I cannot find it on NCL's website.

Thanks,

Glenn, 6 days.................just 6, then it's my turn.

I think it's under a 'prohibited items' label.

I know of a few things that aren't allowed:

Hibachi grills

Lawnmowers and lawn mowers. (weird, huh?)

Rocket launchers

Unattractive spouses

Irons

Knives

Candles

We always bring a small travel iron with us. You can request an iron and ironing board from the front desk as well.

Fellow pax with thank you if you'll refrain.

The iron isn't the problem per se. It is the wiring inside the walls and the power drain that the iron has. It's dangerous.

In addition to all the helpful items everyone has posted, i'd like to add a reusable water bottle. I drink a lot of water so I used it all the time on my first cruise last year. On the spirit, I refilled it at the juice machine near the bar that had a water option. I hope to be able to do this on my upcoming cruise on the jewel. Also, it was nice not having to buy water while out off the ship.

On our next cruise, we'll be bringing case of soda. It sounds like many people have done this in the past and was able to bring it aboard.

I'll also second the suggestion of an air freshener for the cabin.

just my 2 cents.

I absolutely need a collapsable soft-sided cooler. I buy the bucket/helmet of beers and have the room steward fill the cooler with ice each day. I can keep my beers very cold while sunning on deck, or catching rays on the balcony.

I would add, if cruising to a southern region, remember you have sunscreen all over your body, but your scalp is exposed. Make certain to bring a cap/hat/bandanna to wear. Also SPF lip balm or chapstick is a must!

If you will be snorkeling, buy your own snorkel and mask. (Leave the fins at home, too heavy to pack in your suitcase if flying) I don't like to think about how many sets of teeth have previously bit down on the snorkel provided by the excursion company. A set can be purchased for as little as $35.

Remember to take the time to say "good morning/afternoon/evening" "thank you" and SMILE to the employees. I believe that what you put out comes back around. If you are a little bit better behaved than the average cruiser, you will likely be treated a little bit better. Maybe this could account for differences of reviews of the same cruise; one guest had a wonderful time, and the other guest thought everything was just okay?

We bring a small sound machine with white noise and rain settings. I started with mine at home to drown out my hubby's snoring but we all love it in hotels and cruises because a few trips have had noisy neighbors, we turn it up and it helps us sleep. Conair - WalMart

We also bring small battery LED candles from the dollar store and keep by the bed better than nightlights because you can carry them like a flashlight but they aren't as bright. They can also be romantic! I also have a door hanger with little pockets for our sea cards, makes them easier to keep up with.

We bring a small sound machine with white noise and rain settings. I started with mine at home to drown out my hubby's snoring but we all love it in hotels and cruises because a few trips have had noisy neighbors, we turn it up and it helps us sleep. Conair - WalMart

We also bring small battery LED candles from the dollar store and keep by the bed better than nightlights because you can carry them like a flashlight but they aren't as bright. They can also be romantic! I also have a door hanger with little pockets for our sea cards, makes them easier to keep up with.

I personally really like your suggestions. I've been on 3 cruises and these would have been nice. take you MP3 player or iPod with portable speakers. You can then have music in your room.

Empty or nearly empty suitcase. I can't tell you how many vaca's we've been on that we've had to purchase a small but expensive suitcase because we ran out of room. I know that airlines are charging more and more for extra suitcases, but they are also charging crazy high prices for overweight suitcases, even if it's only by a pound. DH and I have found it's cheaper to bring one from home for "extras" than to get double-wammied.

We have a devoted hardcase suitcase for all of our toiletries that I never unpack. I just restock it after every vaca. This way it's one less thing I need to worry about when packing for our next vaca. Definitely have a separate case. Plan on TSA going through it. On our last trip to St Thomas it was checked three times on our return trip. (They put initialed stickers on it.) If your toiletries get left behind, at least you still have your clothes.

Hi,

I actually went off to write about what to pack for the Bahamas cruise. Here is what I believe you will want to pack but may forget:

· Waterproof camera

· Waterproof containers (will be expensive at resorts)

· Walkie talkies

· Power strip

You can read the complete list on my site:

http://www.ehow.com/how_6013460_create-cruise-vacation-atlantis-bahamas.html

BEST OF LUCK!

What everyone said was great! Some absolutes for us to bring, is a VERY good box of chocolates and a couple battery operated candles for a glow in the room at night and my Ipod and the little portable speakers...Nice for a little romance...We eat our chocolates, have a drink and...well, ya know... whatever happens next is up to you...;)

A watch so they don't miss the sailing from Aruba. :D

All of list are fantastic. Before we go away I always make my list and compare it to all the others to make sure I have all the essentials.

There's two things I always bring with me that I noticed were not on these lists.

1. Wipes

2. White vinegar (an amazing home remedy for sunburn).

My first cruise was on the NCL Seaward in 1995. (These were the days prior to Freestyle cruisin, where you were joined by your Captin at dinner). I was terribly sunburned and was approached by our Captin who wanted to know how my day at the beach went. LOL.

When I returned to my room, I was greeted by our steward with a bottle of white vinegar. "Compliments of our Captin" he said. The directions were as follows:

Soak a towel in cold water with white vinegar. Wring it out (leaving it slightly wet) place on the sunburned area. INSTANTLY takes away the pain and soothes the burn. ;)

Always bring a hat but not for the obvious reason. At the end of the day you can put your room card, wallet etc in the hat. That way the next morning you're not trying to figure out where you put your stuff.

One thing I like to bring are those in-the-shower suction hooks that you can pop on any surface and then just remove. We use these mostly for hanging up the beach towels. Nice for hanging something you want to spritz with wrinkle release too!

OK, so I didn't expect so many posts! After much review, as promised, here is my own personal "Top 10" list. Thanks so much for all the ideas, like I said this is my own Top 10 - please don't be offended if I don't list your great idea... this just happens to be the Top 10 things I would have forgotten. Others can feel free to make their own.

TOP 10 THINGS CXXVIII WOULD NOT HAVE THOUGHT TO TAKE ON A CRUISE:

10. Bag 'O Meds (esp. Motion Sickness)

9. Lots of $1 Bills & Rolls of Quarters

8. Walkie Talkies

7. Binoculars

6. Bubbles for the Balcony (Kids will love this...)

5. Night Light

4. Post-It Notes

3. Shoe Bag to Hang on Door

2. Power Strip/Extension Cord

And the #1 thing I would have never thought of:

1. Birth Control.

Too funny. (Runner up goes to the "Post of the Apocolypse" which included most of my household belongings, with my personal favorite, "Walkman and Cassette Tapes", gonna be tough to find that one...)

We started bringing a small IPOD dock/recharger that has an alarm clock for double duty. We like having the music in the room. They are very small and run on batteries if needed. We also bring very small flashlights for each person.

The clothes you will actually wear, the book you will actually read, the camera you will actually use, and the usual personal hygiene stuff everyone needs plus your own meds. (Don't forget your IDs and personal funds/credit cards.) Maybe, just maybe one or two of the things suggested here that you actually think you will need.

Then take everything, cut it in half. After that, further cut it down so it fits in one suitcase and one carry-on per person, making sure it's no more than a 60-40 split between you and your spouse.

Pack clothes and accessories that can be mixed and matched and reworn, and that will work well for different occasions. Leave behind anything that can only be worn once, except possibly that special outfit to dress up in one night. Use accessories that can go with everything you bring (belts, purses, shoes).

Wow. If I took just half the stuff here I would need 3 suitcases. Not very reasonable for traveling. So look through this and figure out what the essentials are that you will likely need. Don't overpack! Lugging around the extra suitcases and filling up your stateroom with unneeded stuff is a sure way to make someone unhappy.

OK, so I didn't expect so many posts! After much review, as promised, here is my own personal "Top 10" list. Thanks so much for all the ideas, like I said this is my own Top 10 - please don't be offended if I don't list your great idea... this just happens to be the Top 10 things I would have forgotten. Others can feel free to make their own.

 

TOP 10 THINGS CXXVIII WOULD NOT HAVE THOUGHT TO TAKE ON A CRUISE:

 

10. Bag 'O Meds (esp. Motion Sickness)

9. Lots of $1 Bills & Rolls of Quarters

8. Walkie Talkies

7. Binoculars

6. Bubbles for the Balcony (Kids will love this...)

5. Night Light

4. Post-It Notes

3. Shoe Bag to Hang on Door

2. Power Strip/Extension Cord

 

And the #1 thing I would have never thought of:

 

1. Birth Control.

 

Too funny. (Runner up goes to the "Post of the Apocolypse" which included most of my household belongings, with my personal favorite, "Walkman and Cassette Tapes", gonna be tough to find that one...)

Just off the Dawn and a few things we found invaluable: clothespins, garbage bag, zip lock bags and a watch (which i forgot and had to keep asking DH for the time). The clothespins are small, cheap and easy to pack. There is a retractable clothesline in the shower and you can hang wet clothes. We also found we could clip our wet bathing suits on the back of our balcony chairs to air dry. The garbage bag went into the closet and is where we put our dirty clothes. When we packed at the end of the cruise, we just picked up the bag, closed it up and plopped it right in the suitcase. We packed clothes and other items in the zip lock bags initially and then used them when we bought rum in Barbados for the trip home....put each bottle in a zip lock, wrapped that in some of the dirty laundry and put those bundles in amongst all the other dirty clothes in the garbage bag. No need for bubble wrap and if the bottle(s) should break, there are several layers to hold all that mess and the garbage bag will protect the rest of the suitcase. We have flown A LOT and have always used this system to pack breakable items and have never had a problem.

Oh..and the watch...I bought one of those $10 "specials" they offer in the gift shop, put it on, congratulated myself on being such a thrifty shopper and within 3 hours it literally fell off my wrist as I was reading. Went back to the gift shop and the response..."yes, well it was a $10 watch"...but she did allow me to exchange it for a pashima shawl. I told my DH that I suspected that watch was going to go right back on the table for another thrifty shopper to buy!