Duct tape

[2013Cruiser]

We always fly to the cruise port and stay in a hotel the night before the cruise. Before leaving home I always place clear packing tape over our cruise luggage tags. Before we leave the hotel I loop the luggage tags around the suitcase handle and tape the ends together using duck tape from a mini roll , I never bring a full sized roll. I also roll some blue painters tape around an ink pen I keep in my wallet. I use it to keep snack packages closed. Good for cruising, camping or road trips. Happy cruising!!

[griffy116]

Had a problem with a suitcase zipper and our cabin steward took it to someone on the ship and they fixed it. I had asked him if I could get a piece of duct tape. He said he could get it for me, but let him try to get it fixed first. The only time I can think of that it might have come in handy was during a really bad storm. The drawers kept rolling open and SLAMMING back into the drawer, making a horrible loud sound that made it hard to sleep.

[pris993]

How many of you pack duct tape for a cruise, I just put a roll in my luggage for tomorrow's cruise and this is why.

 

In September we took a cruise on Carnival Liberty to the Caribbean, we booked an inside room and from day one I complained to the cabin steward that the room was extremely cold even after setting thermostat to warmest setting, she called maintenance and we couldn't tell if anyone came to take care of the problem, next day I again complained with the same results, near the end of the cruise I got ugly with her and finally a maintenance man came in to adjust the damper, made no difference so finally after he left I took the grill down and shoved a towel in it and took care of my problem (I removed it on debarkation day). Now I'm prepared if it happens again I'll duct tape the sucker up.

 

BTW a cruise in August on the same ship the balcony room was hot.

 

Glad you removed when you left, we had a cabin we could not cool down, it was like a spa... turned out the vent system had two filters in it probably used to assist another passenger with a problem before us. Once the 2n filter was removed then we did not have a problem.

[pris993]

Forgot to answer your question, yes we always travel with duck tape, often use to seal our suitcases, just in case and makes it harder for anyone to get inside that is not suppose to.

[iheartbda]

How many of you pack duct tape for a cruise, I just put a roll in my luggage for tomorrow's cruise and this is why.

 

In September we took a cruise on Carnival Liberty to the Caribbean, we booked an inside room and from day one I complained to the cabin steward that the room was extremely cold even after setting thermostat to warmest setting, she called maintenance and we couldn't tell if anyone came to take care of the problem, next day I again complained with the same results, near the end of the cruise I got ugly with her and finally a maintenance man came in to adjust the damper, made no difference so finally after he left I took the grill down and shoved a towel in it and took care of my problem (I removed it on debarkation day). Now I'm prepared if it happens again I'll duct tape the sucker up.

 

BTW a cruise in August on the same ship the balcony room was hot.

Sorry but that was just plain rude and uncalled for. A problem like you had should have been dealt with through Guest Services/Hotel Director if there was no resolve when you first asked.

Edited November 2, 2014 by iheartbda

[jamessemaj]

A roll of duct tape crushed flat is kept always in a small pocket of my bag. Baggage mangling by the airline is so common it is best to be prepared if you check baggage.

 

Some have mentioned gaffer tape being better, I am not familiar with that and will look for it.

Edited November 2, 2014 by jamessemaj

[OctoberKat]

Read on here how it was a "Must Pack". Took it once and never used it. Now it stays home with the over the shoe rack, the bungie cord, the highlight marker, the post it notes and everything else that everybody says you "Must Pack".

 

Hah!

[slidergirl]

A little flat pack of Duct Tape always travels with me. I don't always end up at a ship or a big hotel where you may be able to ask for, and receive, some tape. I've used it to do an emergency hem job on clothes, fix a leakage issue on a pair of boots, taped a zipper pull to keep cheeky monkeys from opening the tent (yes, they learned how to open zippers!!!), temporarily fix sunglasses, … other things. My little pack of tape can fit in one of those Altoids tins with space.

If you have a camera or smartphone with an automatic flash and you can't figure out how to disable it in places that forbid flash, take a little bit of Painter's Tape with you. Works great to cover the flash and doesn't leave any residue. My team at races where flash photography could be fatal to the athletes (blinding them even for a second is dangerous) would cruise the crowds, handing out the tape...

[Tapi]

On a variety of CC posts, you'll find recommendations to carry....cameras (with apologies to camera afficianados)...Modern cell phone/tablet does it all.

 

 

Agree with everything except with the camera comment. I purchased a DSLR camera (read clunky with that big lens) last year specifically for our Alaska cruise. The photos that I brought back were simply spectacular (and I'm as close as an amateur photographer as anyone can get!). They were so amazing, that now I don't go on any vacation without it. It's a must.

 

A cellphone may take photos and they may be OK to forward to friends or post on FB, but they will never come close to what a good camera can do.

 

 

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[sparks1093]

Just a word of caution. Covering vents that are not intended to be covered can create a fire. Restricting airflow will overheat a system. You don't want to do that, specially on a ship or airplane. In my line of work, this practice is prohibited and grounds for termination because of how dangerous it is.

 

Please don't do that. A cabin that's a bit drafty is a smaller inconvenience than a ship on fire.

 

 

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Yep. In the Navy one could end up at Captain's Mast for doing something like that to a vent.

[emski83]

Is there anything extra i should b packing?

First cruise in Jan next yr

[OCruisers]

It seems to be a RULE: Must take Duct Tape!

Never used it ( 80 + cruises ) but so take a small blister pack just in case!

Always better silly than sorry. :D

LuLu

[sparks1093]

It seems to be a RULE: Must take Duct Tape!

Never used it ( 80 + cruises ) but so take a small blister pack just in case!

Always better silly than sorry. :D

LuLu

 

Boy scout motto- Be prepared.:)

[MrsPete]

Agreed. Have never needed any of those "must haves". We are looking for ways to pack less, not more.

Yep, I have to agree. Whatever you bring is probably going to be the wrong thing for the "crisis" you have, and whatever you do need is going to be available on the ship.

[Zach1213]

I'm truly amazed at what cruisers pack. I travel for a living and have never once had to repair a bag with duct tape. The idea of hauling around a roll of duct tape is crazy to me.

[MrsPete]

Agree with everything except with the camera comment. I purchased a DSLR camera (read clunky with that big lens) last year specifically for our Alaska cruise. The photos that I brought back were simply spectacular (and I'm as close as an amateur photographer as anyone can get!). They were so amazing, that now I don't go on any vacation without it. It's a must.

 

A cellphone may take photos and they may be OK to forward to friends or post on FB, but they will never come close to what a good camera can do.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Thing is, this is not a "yes" or "no" question; rather, it's a matter of what you consider good. Or good enough.

 

I teach photography, so you'd probably guess that I own multiple cameras -- DSLRs, point-and-shoots, I even have a few film cameras on the out-of-reach top shelf. Every one of them takes a better picture than my cell phone. BUT that's because I care about my pictures, and I'm perusing them for quality. A whole lot of people don't: They just care that they have an image of the person or place. If the lighting is poor, the image a bit blurry, maybe even the top of the person's head is cut off -- okay. They have a picture.

 

I see this at the high school where I teach: In the past, our seniors bought big packets of pictures from the photographer -- they were really nice, though expensive. Today more and more are having their "casual senior pictures" made by their aunt who has a nice camera, and when I look at them, I can clearly see that they're amateur quality. (Of course I don't say that to the kids.) But they're happy with them.

[Sandy Sails]

I always packed a very small roll of duct tape on cruises and used it once to repair broken glasses (after losing a contact lens the day before). However, duct tape tends to leave a sticky residue that doesn't come off. Perhaps the blue painters tape would be better. It really doesn't take up that much space if you pack it right (i.e. rolled around a pen or something).

[slidergirl]

I'm truly amazed at what cruisers pack. I travel for a living and have never once had to repair a bag with duct tape. The idea of hauling around a roll of duct tape is crazy to me.

 

Apparently it's because cruisers buy cheaply made bags from Walmart, Kmart, Target, TJMaxx….;)

 

I've never had to fix a bag with duct tape, either.

 

I don't carry a whole roll; it's maybe 3 ft, rolled and flattened. I can certainly see how some people would bring the whole roll, especially when they're told it's a must along with the over-the-door-hanger, whiteboard, door decorations, highlighters…It's not entirely intuitive some some people that you can take certain items and just bring a little of it, not the whole thing.

Oh - one of my "must brings" is a bandana. A basic bandana. WAAAAAY too many things that that little piece of cloth can do!

[greatam]

I ALWAYS carry duct tape-in the car, all my semi trucks have rolls and rolls, in my suitcase.

 

Just like slidergirl, used it on a ripped dress, torn out hem, handle back on luggage, wrapped AROUND the suitcase twice because I had stuffed it so full coming back to the Middle East from Bangkok. Put my UGGS back together when the soles started coming apart after repeatedly getting wet when I went to Antarctica. Looked kind of ugly but they were easily fixable at the shoe repair when I returned.

 

I can't tell you the amount of uses there are for duct tape. My dear departed DH even had a T shirt that said "what do you need me to fix" with a picture of a roll of duct tape below it. Just last night I taped a piece of foam board over the bathroom window of my motor home because it was leaking air so bad, I about froze when I got out of the shower. NICE WARM bathroom now.

 

Just recently, I found out the new Gorilla tape actually holds better than 200MPH NASCAR tape (same maker as the add you see on TV for Gorilla Glue). One of my semis got the fender, headlight and turn signal assembly ripped off two weeks ago by a careless driver in a truckstop. BIG (expensive) decision-fix it in NJ or try to patch it back together and get it to the body shop in LA. 4 rolls of Gorilla tape, a bunch of baling wire to hold the headlight and turn signal together and my truck made it back LA where he was home (no motel bills for me) and it went to the much cheaper body shop to be fixed.

 

Blue painters tape doesn't hold much but it doesn't leave residue on items. But the residue from duct tape is easily removed with products like Goo-Gone. But only use it on hard surfaces or something you don't care that much about-it does leave a somewhat oily residue. Hot vinegar and a drop of Dawn dishwashing soap took all the duct tape residue off my expensive Hartmann suitcase when I wrapped the thing up with Duct tape because it was so over stuffed with flip flops and gauzy cotton shirts.

 

I wouldn't be without duct tape anyplace.