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

[jazzinj]

Mine were:

 

1. Lip balm

2. Cough drops

3. Tylenol or Advil (I had a bad headache one night)

4. Hair cream/conditioner

5. Hair spray

 

The salt air must have dried me out, as you can see the main theme was 'moisturizing'. I used the lotion provided, good thing they had that, otherwise lotion would be my number 6.

 

 

J

[penguinscott]

Check your cruise line, some DO NOT allow small irons aboard at all! Fire hazard.

 

I bring battery chargers for my camera batteries and having a power strip or power cube is almost mandatory; my last boat (Veendam) only had one outlet in the room.

 

Powdered lemonade came in ultra handy on Veendam, who didn't provide lemonade at all.

 

Small back pack for on board to carry items around.

 

Business/personal cards to hand out to your new friends!

 

Trinkets/souvinirs from home to give to room attendants (think pens or hat pins). They love little gifts they can take below and brag to friends.

 

Note paper. Journal.

 

Drink container so you can fill up at the buffet and enjoy tea/lemonade poolside and not bother with attendants.

[Scrappinbec]

I bring a folder or large envelope to put our daily navigators and other papers in it. As well as most of the things everyone else here has mentioned.

[bobbyleduck]

These may have been mentioned before, but bring a sense of humor and a relaxed spirit. And, remember that "life happens while we're making other plans," according to John Lennon.

 

Bob

[Luv2CruiseFamily]

My favorite suggestion I rec'd prior to cruising was to bring different color highlighters so each family member could highlight the activities they were interested in on the daily activity sheet, that and a power strip for everyone's electronics!

[Marian Paroo]

The different coloured highlighters is brilliant!

[mrsadm]

I don't go anywhere without a small flashlight in my purse. Ever since a friend of mine was in a hotel during a blackout and there were no emergency lights in the hallways.

[jkatzz]

Something most people don't ever think of packing is the emergency tooth repair kit, incase you loose a filling, it is a temporary fix for around $3 at cvs, buf will get you through your trip till you get home.

[MissKathy107]

If you use contact lenses or eye glasses, make sure you bring an extra pair. A couple years ago, I lost my a contact lens while i was swimming in south beach. I didn't even bring my glasses. I had to run to the store before it closed, call my opthamologist and have her fax the copy of my prescription to get a new pair. ... waste of money and time...:confused:

[Marian Paroo]

Something most people don't ever think of packing is the emergency tooth repair kit, incase you loose a filling, it is a temporary fix for around $3 at cvs, buf will get you through your trip till you get home.

 

 

Absolutely!!!! Best piece of emergency equipment that I didn't use and hope never to use.

 

If you use contact lenses or eye glasses, make sure you bring an extra pair. A couple years ago, I lost my a contact lens while i was swimming in south beach. I didn't even bring my glasses. I had to run to the store before it closed, call my opthamologist and have her fax the copy of my prescription to get a new pair. ... waste of money and time...:confused:

 

My spare pair and script are the first things I put in my carry on!

[nyyhoneybee]

Female products. You don't want to be paying crazy on board ship prices

[mailbroad]

duct tape

super glue

adhesive bandages

mini-power strip or something like that

small binoculars

headache pills of your choice

an extra bathing suit

extra memory card for digital camera

tote bag for excursions and day activities (and a bag to bring to the pool)

$$$

[mailbroad]

If you use contact lenses or eye glasses, make sure you bring an extra pair. A couple years ago, I lost my a contact lens while i was swimming in south beach. I didn't even bring my glasses. I had to run to the store before it closed, call my opthamologist and have her fax the copy of my prescription to get a new pair. ... waste of money and time...:confused:

 

This is a very good tip. Last year I brought glasses that did not have the right prescription in one eye and it was very annoying! Thankfully I mostly wear contacts. Hmm... I still have to get new glasses!

[dixielandings]

Ok - the birth control thing is hilarious!! We have one child and would LOVE another. Maybe our upcoming cruise is our big chance!!

:p

 

As to the OP question, I like to pack light as possible but there are certain things that you will be so happy to have. Most of these have been mentioned but for your top 10 list, here they are:

 

extra lenses

aloe

any and all charging cables (seems like a no-brainer but I can't tell you how many of these we've bought on the road b/c we thought we had them but didn't)

iPod with a good vacation playlist - island music, summertime tunes

small travel iron - if allowed and if you don't want to have borrow every time you need one. *of course, the best idea is take clothes that won't need ironing OR take wrinkle releaser spray

air freshener:rolleyes:

a supply of meds - advil, bonine (our preferred motion sickness deterrant), lozenges, tissues, etc.

 

Finally - this doesn't necessarily go without saying - protect yourselves from the sun. It's brutal. Hats, glasses, and lots and lots of sunscreen!

[MoneyGuy]

We take along walkie talkies. it's the best way to stay in touch on the ship!

[AlFrank]

We take along walkie talkies. it's the best way to stay in touch on the ship!

Walkie Talkies are great if you are traveling with a group. Also, I bring a water container, the kind used at the gym. Fill it with ice before I leave the ship and have cold water on the beach. A travel coffee mug to keep coffee hot or to use it to make ice coffee which ships never seem to have only ice tea.

[palmyrafan]

I would also bring:

 

1) Zip loc (2 or 3) for small trinkets or sea shells from the beach for the kids to take home.

 

2) Safety pins and/or a travel size sewing kit. Great for when you pop a button (and you may if you keep eating like crazy). Notice how the buttons are always popped from the most "inconvenient" places? :eek:

 

3) Extra hearing aid batteries. We were cruising Alaska a couple of years ago and DH hearing aid batteries went "kerplunk". No matter where we went in any of the ports, we couldn't find hearing aid batteries. Luckily he can still hear without his hearing aids, but still......

 

4) Repair kit for glasses.

 

5) Extra shoelaces (1 pair for everyone)

 

These are now the first things that go into our carryon. But as newbies? Live and learn....

[2Cruise4Ever]

I didn't read through the whole thread. So, if these have been posted already, please forgive me.

 

We always bring:

Sticky notes to leave for our cabin steward / butler

Mini-pharmacy (cold meds, pepto, immodium, pain reliever, etc) - ship $ are very high

Duct Tape (for anything we CAN'T think of :) )

Rain ponchos from the dollar store

3-ring binder with the deck plans and other info discovered here on CC (I know we get a pocket size deck plan but it is too small for my eyes)

Aloe Vera

Extra sunscreen

Calculator

Extra batteries (whatever size we might need)

Anti-bacterial wipes (stewards are great at cleaning, but they forget the remote, phone, door handles, etc)

First Aid Kit

Hangers (just in case the ship doesn't have enough)

Bug spray (not for the ship; I got eaten alive by sand fleas on the beach last year)

Shot Glass (If you get the bar setup, this is helpful)

 

If I can think of anything else, I'll post again.

 

BTW, all these things I learned here on CC :D

[msc7363]

This is a great thread!

[2wheels]

We like to take the large size suction hooks and use them on mirrors or other smooth surfaces. We hang hats, scarfs, bags, cameras, and other stuff that would clutter up a flat surface!

[nursebubba]

Leaving on the 16th - great lists.

 

Remember -- most of our cell phones now have alarm clocks built right in. Don't need to bring the alarm clocks anymore.

 

To me the # 1 item to bring -- a power strip. Couldn't cruise without it.

On our last 2 cruises the time on our phones was never right. Verizon and 2 different types of phones. One of us had even done the international plan. So now I always bring a battery alarm

[shelly11]

Thanks for bumping this up, I love this thread! ;) Adding to my list!

[trvllnlite]

Forget the travel iron. Bring a bottle or two of Downey wrinkle release. Just spray, smooth and go! 4oz bottles can be found in the travel sized section of most stores.

[CaryN8V]

Forget the travel iron. Bring a bottle or two of Downey wrinkle release. Just spray, smooth and go! 4oz bottles can be found in the travel sized section of most stores.

 

I've found that water from a spray bottle does just as good of a job as Downey wrinkle release. Why spend the money on that when water is free?

[CaryN8V]

I've found that water from a spray bottle does just as good of a job as Downey wrinkle release. Why spend the money on that when water is free?

 

Ugh. Sorry. I meant that post as a helpful hint, not as a snotty sounding "why spend money on that?" question. I think the negative nellys on some of these CC boards have crept into my head :-(