Packing

[TeamNOJO]

I am one of those packers...the ones that has a packing list in a spreadsheet complete with a separate list for each traveler in my family. We pack off this list and it makes it much easier for everyone to check their luggage for everything they need.

 

I have never left anything behind - that wasn't on the list. However, I have found that I have to edit the list from time to time.

 

We even have a cruise bag that stays packed most of the time with things we only use while cruising. Like everyone else says like magnets, pens, highlighters, tape, small scissors, night lights. etc. We even have pouches that I made that carry our sea pass cards. These stay with our cruise stuff because this is the only time we use them.

 

Everyone is different but we like to start early. It builds the excitement and anticipation of a great vacation!

[kerryincork]

My regular cruise companion washes & repacks her suitcase ready for next cruise as soon as she gets home 😕 she says she only uses those clothes for her holidays so it's easier just to store those in her suitcase, it works for her, mostly! She did manage to pack odd shoes once😯 she had to buy a pair of flipflops or she would have had only her travel shoes & evening shoes 😁

[Gallivanting Souls]

She did manage to pack odd shoes once😯 she had to buy a pair of flipflops or she would have had only her travel shoes & evening shoes 😁

 

The she thing is not that hard to do. My DH has a pair of brown dress shoes that look (very) similar. One Sunday we were at church. I happened to look down and notice that he was in fact wearing to different shoes. I shouldn't have said anything. I'm sure no one else would have noticed. We had to leave as soon as the meeting was over. He now makes sure to store them in two different spots. I am no better though. It wasn't that long ago that I was at work and a coworker asked me why I was wearing my scrub pants backwards?:cool: I guess I need pants that fit better or more better friends? I told her she was my new best friend, because how many other of my friends had seen me for like 6 hrs and not said anything? :eek:

[NMLady]

When is too soon to start packing? We are less than 30 days till cruise time. Is it to soon to start I am ready.

 

I start to edit our packing list the day I book the cruise, tweaking it as the days go by.

I guesstimate and list what will fit in each of two suitcases and two carryons.

We take long cruises so I start making sure hubby will have enough meds.

A couple weeks before the cruise I start stacking stuff in the guest bedroom.

Three days before I pack as much as possible to make sure it will all fit.

The day before we leave I do a last load of laundry and pack the rest of undies.

That night I pack more toiletries, finishing that job the morning we leave.

Edited September 24, 2015 by NMLady

[GrannyFlamingo]

Vacation toiletries seem to be the thing we always screw up. We always forget them when leaving vacation. Fixed that. New vacation only toiletry bag full of trial size products, now if I forget it, it doesn't matter.

[NMLady]

Vacation toiletries seem to be the thing we always screw up. We always forget them when leaving vacation. Fixed that. New vacation only toiletry bag full of trial size products, now if I forget it, it doesn't matter.

 

About a month before our cruise I order lots of travel size items from http://www.minimus.biz/ and put them in the suitcases when they arrive. I also have our current ones on the packing checklist so those don't get forgotten.

Edited September 25, 2015 by NMLady

[NewSalt]

Before we started taking cruises and would drive to locations that were approximately the same climate as ours, I would do laundry the night before and remove my clothes from the dryer and put them in the suitcase. DD, OTOH, would begin to select and fold his vacation clothes three weeks before we left. Guess who always forgot something. Hint: it was not I. (Once it was a belt, once hairbrush, once tee shirts for the beach, etc.)

 

I have a storage container that holds our travel needs, over-the-door cosmetic bags, travel journal, travel curling iron, luggage tag holders, etc. that comes out a day or so before we leave, and I select what I want to bring

 

For winter cruises to warm locations, I select what I want to pack as I'm putting my summer clothes away, and store them in one container marked "Cruise." The day before I only have to pack underwear, medications and cosmetics and the like.

 

For summer cruises, I pretty much follow the dryer-suitcase method I've always used. The exception is OTC meds, toiletries and prescriptions, which I line up a week or so ahead if time. It's much harder to get a cold or allergy pill on a ship than it is on a vacation on land in the States. One $20 bottle of $10 sun tan lotion taught me that.

 

If I pick up any items specific to our cruise, like a book or toy for our DGSs, that goes in the guest bedroom.

 

I have separate packing lists for DH and me so we can each check off items as we pack them. Clothes are grouped by categories, casual, formal, with the appropriate accessories in each, like the afore-mentioned belt. There are separate lists for toiletries, meds, electronics, and miscellaneous. It's up-dated after each cruise. I looked at several on-line lists and modified them to suit my needs.

[Getaway Girl 73]

I'm cruising in January so when I washed my sun dresses for the last time this summer, I threw them in the suitcase with a fabric softener sheet. I also threw my shorts, swim suits, cover ups, and flip flops in there. These are things I don't need now anyway.

 

Things like band-aids, extension cord, hand sanitizer, over-the-door shoe organizer, extra unused plastic bags and ziploc bags, night light, and sunblock I left packed in my beach bag because these are for cruising.

 

I don't think it's ever too early to throw something in the suitcase you know you'll want to take with you.

[illybell]

There's never a too early, only a too late!

 

I'm half packed for my January cruise (thanks to putting away summer clothes) so don't feel too bad about a month lol

[CCLCruiser4321]

We have a vacation suitcase that's packed. We get free wash and fold service so everything clean and bagged from the last vacation.

[GottaKnowWhen]

When is too soon to start packing? We are less than 30 days till cruise time. Is it to soon to start I am ready.

 

 

I pack 2-3 days before. Clothes - no big deal. I have a section of the closet and dresser that are for travel/cruise clothes, washed and ready to go. Toiletries - also no biggie. I have a separate set of everything set aside for travel, just need a few minutes to verify that the containers are topped up. Computer gear, camera gear, that takes a bit more planning, but I revisit my lists of gear frequently as I work through the upcoming itinerary.

[wmwmarmstrong]

About a month before our cruise I order lots of travel size items from http://www.minimus.biz/ and put them in the suitcases when they arrive. I also have our current ones on the packing checklist so those don't get forgotten.

 

Thank you for that! I will be ordering a couple Grandma Goodie Boxes for our next cruise.

 

I leave some items in suitcase for the next cruise and as I buy new clothes for the cruise, I wrap them in tissue paper and keep in suitcase as well.

[smyliecruising]

I always set my bags out for at least a week and add things when I think of it. If you don't pack it you can't go to Walmart and get one and the cruise shops don't have certain things like strapless bras and such that are easy to forget.

[smyliecruising]

I start my packing checklist when I book my cruise. I use shipmate checklist. I edit the list to include what I want.

[Chocolatemom2]

We leave on the 9th October and I already have the bags out, packing list done,

And I'm collecting stuff in the guest room. I will actually pack next weekend. Except the stuff we will need before we go.

 

Hubby thinks I'm nuts, really I'm just ready for a cruise!

 

I've found a packing list to be a great way to decrease the stress of trying to remember everything to pack, for all our travels.

 

I say start your list and enjoy it!

[maywell]

I've been packed since last year but that's only because I keep my Caribbean wardrobe separate from my other clothes. :D The only thing I have to do is buy some of my remaining toiletries for my 12 day trip in the beginning of November or day of embark since its not a rush nor alot for me this time around (plus its NYC, there's Walgreens / Duane Reade / CVS on every other block in Manhattan:p).

[perditax]

Long-term planning produces endorphins for some of us. I suspect those of us who like to pack and repack early are getting that endorphin rush of thinking about the upcoming cruise.

[tipsygirl]

My packing suggestions are much like others.

 

We travel frequently,so have a packing list on our computer with all the things we need for comfortable travel, as well as a list of the things we need to do before leaving (stop the paper, contact neighbors, change the air filter, etc.) Toiletries, gadgets, and medications are constants on the packing list, as are some clothing items. Have blank rows on the chart to fill in clothes & shoes specific to the trip.

 

I have a clothes rack that I set up in the guest bed room about a month ahead of the trip. We begin putting clothes on the rack, making adjustments until about a week before the trip. Then we finalize, make sure everything is clean and ready, and complete the clothes section of the packing list.

For toiletries I keep a tray loaded with travel size items. I use Nalgene leak proof containers for liquids. When we return from a trip and have another one within a couple of months I refill everthing before putting the loaded tray away in the guest room closet. For packing toiletries we purchased two medium size hang up toiletry bags which I load about a week before departure, checking off items on the list as I pack. These go in checked luggage. Nice to have these all in one place when we reach our destination.

 

I am a "layer and fold" person where packing is concerned. Also use cubes for packing tops and shirts. Will do the clothes packing 2 to 3 days before departure.

 

I pack 2 checked bags and 2 carry on bags for the 2 of us, plus a small personal bag for each of us. For checked bags I pack half my items and half of my husbands in each of the 2 bags. One carryon bag is packed with shoes, underwear, and hats. The other is packed with all the nonliquid medications, toiletries, brushes. The personal bags contain cords for charging electronics, phones and iPads, 3oz. side liquids of all our "hard to find at destination" toiletries and liquid meds, travel documents, and some snacks.

 

A couple of items I have started packing in the last year: a shoe organizer that hangs in the closet and some air freshener bags or sachets for the closet and to put in smelly shoes.

[Getaway Girl 73]

Long-term planning produces endorphins for some of us. I suspect those of us who like to pack and repack early are getting that endorphin rush of thinking about the upcoming cruise.

 

Lol-that's true too! But I ALWAYS forget something when I pack last- minute. I really like having everything ready by time to go. I'm also a little anal about it; I will have my outfits sorted by day, port and activity by the time I leave. 😎

[crabbymomma2000]

My father in law always says to lay out all the clothes you need for a cruise, and then only pack half of them. Every Cruise we have went on, we have forgot something, and we always survive. Make sure you have the most important things on your list--medications, etc. and don't worry too much about the extras....it is a vacation after all!

 

One trick i have discovered is to go with a color scheme. Last cruise was brown. I packed one formal outfit--wore it both nights--once with a jacket, and once without. 2 pair brown slacks for evenings with 3 different dressy tops in brown/gold/orange tones (figured I could repeat 2 of the nights) plenty of shorts, and some day shirts, but knew we would buy tshirts in ports, so held back there. We also take some Tide hand wash packets incase we need to rinse out a few things.

 

Thsi has worked for us on our 3 past cruises, and will for our upcoming one too. Just remember to have fun, it is a vacation...you can drive yourself crazy worrying whether you packed enough socks for a week...

[Willow45]

I start packing a week out with the toiletries, medication and then lay potential clothes out on the spare couch 3 days before and after going through and adjusting a few times I put them in a suitcase the night before. My youngest daughter does something like me AND after much reminding, my eldest daughter throws some clothes in a bag the morning we walk out the door or late the night before. All good but our previous holidays are camping which are pretty rough and casual.

 

So a bit worried for our first cruise as husband and I fly out 5 days before the girls join us and it's a two week cruise and the weather could be cool and then warm. So they will need a bit of a range of clothes. I think I will have to leave a packing lift on the fridge before I leave.

Edited September 30, 2015 by Willow45

[LuvBNatC]

A few cruises ago, I started packing in various sized cubes I got on ebags.com. One cube for bathing suits & covers, one for daytime tops, one for evening tops, one for bottoms, etc.

 

I pack by category, one cube at a time, which doesn't feel as daunting as stuffing everything into a big suitcase. Once the cubes are full, I fit them into the suitcase like puzzle pieces.

 

Bonuses: Clothes wrinkle less because they don't shift. Because the cubes have mesh tops, I can see what's inside and take out whatever I need without disturbing anything else. I can also pack more because I roll most items and stuff the cubes to the gills, so there's no wasted space.

 

Once in the suitcase I can wedge shoes and other small stuff around the edges.

 

I'd never cruise again without my cubes.

Edited September 30, 2015 by LuvBNatC
typo

[Hopalong60]

I always dress for dinner, both formal and casual nights. It adds to my experience and I don't care if anyone else does. I started

putting these outfits together, along with jewelry, about 6 weeks early to give me time to buy what I needed. This time I made a list of the pairings which made it easy to replicate on board. I bagged up each jewelry set in snack size ziplock bags. I also chose one skirt to wear with all most all the tops and took only one pair of dress shoes. I created a handwritten list that I added to as I thought of things. I like the idea of a what to bring next time list but I wouldn't have had one this time. I ended up with more space in my suitcase going home, even with buying souvenir shirts!

 

One thing I found on Amazon were luggage tags sized for the cruise lines' bag tags. They have a wire cable that screws together, so no lost bags this time when a tag came loose. They are reusable, so a good investment. I gave them away as presents to my group, too. A useful Bon voyage gift!

[Hopalong60]

Oh, yes - forgot to add putting your tubes of soaps, etc into ziplock bags just in case one decides to leak all over. I had one tube of shower gel this time that would have been a huge mess if it wasn't in one.

 

Pack a tube of Woolite and wash your clothes in the sink. I used our balcony more for clothes drying than sitting. I could wear my favorite shorts several times that way.

 

Check the airline to see if the plane has power and keep your charger handy to keep your phone powered up to access maps, etc , once you land.

 

I took 3 swim suits on our Caribbean cruise so I always had a dry one to wear on excursions or to the hot tub. Don't forget a long sleeved UV shirt for the sun!

[Irene225]

Suggestion.

 

We have two lists in our cabin for every cruise:

 

1. A list of what we packed but didn't really need.

 

2. A blank sheet of paper where we list everything we wish we had packed but didn't. Listing these things when they come to mind during the cruise is far better than trying to remember those things back when you get home.

 

These lists come in handy when we're getting ready for the next cruise.

 

 

This is so smart - I am copying this for my next trip! Thank you!