So without further ado, here are 42 things to pack for a cruise across the following 5 categories:

• Packing
• For Your Cabin
• At The Pool
• General Items
• Off The Ship/Going Ashore

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PACKING

1. PACKING CUBES

Packing cubes can make packing much simpler, fill up the cubes and then arrange them in your suitcase in the most compact way possible.

They can also help with unpacking as each cube can often be dropped into a drawer and simply unzipped. Not only that, but each cube keeps all its items together, meaning fewer wrinkles in clothes and fewer items finding their way into every nook and cranny of your suitcase.

If packing cubes aren’t for you, then compression bags might work, they squeeze all the air out of your clothes making them take up less room in your suitcase.

2. WRINKLE RELEASE SPRAY

For those times when the packing cubes didn’t keep all your wrinkles out of your garments, wrinkle release spray can save the day.

Many ships don’t have facilities for passengers to use an iron and the ships laundry can be very expensive, so this is a cheap and effective alternative.

Other items you could bring in a similar vein are a lint roller and static cling spray.

3. JACKET/HOODIE

The hotter it is during the day, the quicker it can become chilly in the evening, so a light jacket or hoodie can mean you aren’t shivering once the sun goes down.

Something a little warmer can also help inside the ship, with ice-rinks onboard now, the ice-shows are well worth watching but can be colder than you expect.

And if you are heading to the bow of the ship to recreate that iconic moment from Titanic, it can be surprisingly breezy when the ship is moving.

4. LUGGAGE TAGS

The luggage tags you need to attach to your suitcase for a cruise are not the same as the ones airlines use. They are just pieces of paper, folded and generally stapled to your case.

If you are flying in, you shouldn’t attach them until you arrive, leaving you needing a stapler.

These luggage tags solve those problems and mean you can attach your tags with ease just before you leave for the ship.

5. WINE & ACCESSORIES

Most cruise ships allow you to take a small amount of personal alcohol onboard with you.

If you are putting this in your luggage, make sure that you put it into a leak-proof bag for transport, otherwise, if the worst happens, you’ll have wine all over your clothes as well.

Also, don’t forget a small corkscrew for opening the wine in the privacy of your cabin and perhaps a couple of wine glasses to complete the experience.

FOR YOUR CABIN

6. DOOR TIDY

Whilst modern cruise cabins are virtues of organisation and good use of space, it never hurts to have more options for storing your stuff.

A door tidy that hangs on the back of the bathroom door can give you options for storing shoes and other items in a convenient way.

7. MAGNETIC CLIPS

Most cruise cabins walls are made of metal, which means you can often use magnetic clips to attach papers and other light items to the walls of your cruise cabin.

This allows you to keep things like your cruise planner out of the way, but available and easy to reference at all times.

8. SHOWER HOOKS

Shower Hooks allow you to hang wet swimsuits up in the shower after use, allowing them to dry.

They can also be used in the wardrobe for hanging items up if you are short of hangers.

9. LAUNDRY BAG

With your suitcase hopefully stashed away under the bed, a collapsible or fabric laundry bag gives you somewhere to put your dirty clothes as you’re finished with them.

On the last night, you can then quickly put the whole bag of laundry in your suitcase.

10. SUCTION CUP TOOTHBRUSH HOLDER

One of the places where space is at its most premium is in the bathroom.

A suction cup toothbrush holder is a clever little device that allows you to cover the head of your toothbrush AND keep it off the counter, freeing up a little extra space for other items.

11. POST-IT NOTES AND PEN

If you are cruising with friends or family, then post-it notes allow you to leave messages of where you are or will be quickly and easily.

Another option is a magnetic dry-wipe board you can attach to your door or wall.

12. HIGHLIGHTERS

With cruise ships offering ever more activities to entertain you each day, a highlighter to mark the things you want to do on the cruise planner you receive each day can make finding and remember those things later on much easier.

You can even use multiple colours for different cruisers if you aren’t all doing the same things.

13. EARPLUGS

With cabins squashed in as many as can be fitted, you will no doubt have neighbours just a few feet away.

Though cruise cabins are pretty well insulated from each other, a snorer next door, or a noisy neighbour could mean you can’t fall asleep when you want to, earplugs will allow you to block most of any noise out and give you the calmness you seek

14. NIGHT LIGHT

Cruise cabins can be surprisingly dark, especially if you are in an interior room. A nightlight will provide enough light to see things, before you bash your foot into them when needing to head to the bathroom at 2 am, without disturbing your sleep.

We recommend a battery-powered option so there is no risk of not having the right plug socket or a socket that is convenient to use, don’t forget to take some spare batteries.

15. CABIN FAN

Though your cabin will almost certainly be comfortable and have ac, there will generally be little airflow within the room, and even if you have a balcony, you probably can’t leave the door open AND have the ac running.

A cabin fan can move the air around the room, leaving you much more comfortable.

16. ALARM CLOCK

Your ship will determine what timezone you are on at any time and it won’t always match the timezone of the port you are heading too or away from.

This means your phone may not be set to the same time as the ship, meaning you could miss an event, or worse, be late back to the ship and find it has sailed without you. This is especially true if you sail close enough to land for your phone to pick up a signal and set your clock to the time zone of that place.

An alarm clock can be set to ship time and be relied on wake you at the required hour without these risks.

17. POWER ADAPTER

Depending on where your ship sails from, the sockets in the cabin may not take your plugs without an adapter.

Just as with travelling abroad at other times, it’s best to bring an adapter with you to ensure you can plug your devices in without any problems.

18. BLUETOOTH SPEAKER

For the times when you are in your cabin, whether relaxing or getting ready for dinner, a little music could be just the ticket.

With a Bluetooth speaker connected to your phone, you can play your music easily and fill your cabin with the music of your choosing. Do make sure your music library is downloaded or you are using the ships WiFi and not being streamed over a foreign data network though!

19. MULTI-PORT USB CHARGER

With us carrying ever-increasing amounts of electronic devices, most of which can be charged from USB, these days, a multi-port charger means you can charge your phone, tablet, kindle, camera and the Bluetooth speaker all at the same time.

If you want to save having to unplug all the cables at home to bring with you, packs of spare cables, micro USB, USB type C or Apple Lightning can be purchased cheaply and kept with the multi-port charger.

AT THE POOL

20. POOL SHOES

Rather than walk around the ship barefoot, a pair of pool shoes offer extra grip and allow water to drain out quickly and easily.

This makes moving between your cabin and the pool area much more comfortable and allows you to pop to lunch without needing to get changed or go barefoot.

21. TOWEL CLIPS

Though cruise ships are fairly well protected from sea breezes, it only takes one when you are away from your pool chair grabbing a drink or a snack to take your towel off the chair.

These simple towel clips will keep your towel attached to the chair until you decide to remove it.

22. SWIMSUIT COVER-UP

A swimsuit cover-up is a great thing to bring to allow you a little modesty without having to get changed when you leave the pool to go for lunch or go elsewhere on the ship

23. WATERPROOF PHONE COVER

With most of us inseparable from our smartphones, even on vacation, a waterproof cover (if your phone isn’t waterproof anyway) is a worthwhile investment to stop you destroying your phone in a momentary lapse of concentration.

GENERAL ITEMS

24. THERMAL MUG

A thermal mug is a great thing to take whenever you travel, it will keep cold drinks cold and hot drinks hot for hours. We’ve had ice still in drinks the following morning and had to drop some ice into coffee to make it a drinkable temperature because otherwise, you’ll be waiting too long for it to cool.

We are fans of the RTIC brand as they perform well at a good price. You can also buy handles to make the mugs even more convenient.

25. ZIPLOC BAGS

A few Ziploc bags of different sizes have a multitude of uses for keeping items together to keeping items dry or breaking a big bag of trail mix into smaller units for trips off the ship, and a multitude of other uses.

26. BINOCULARS

Binoculars can be a great thing to have to hand whilst cruising, especially if you have a balcony room.

From peering at other ships or ports, people watching to maybe seeing some sea life out on the ocean wave.

27. LANYARD

Many cruisers keep their cruise pass on a lanyard around their necks to keep it safe and secure.

Ships will normally punch a hole in your card to make it easy to attach to your lanyard or you can buy ones with a clear pouch you can slide the card into.

28. HAND SANITISER

Despite hand sanitiser being readily available on ships these days, it can still be useful to have a small bottle you can keep in your pocket for if you need it.

29. MINI FIRST AID KIT

Though ships have well equipped medical facilities, a graze or small cut can be easily dealt with yourself if you have a mini first aid kit in your luggage.

30. SEASICKNESS REMEDIES

If you suffer from seasickness it can easily ruin a cruise, so its best to take a remedy with you that works for you.

if you are a first-time cruiser and don’t know if you will suffer, taking a couple of options gives you the best chance of not letting seasickness take the shine of your vacation.

31. SAFETY PINS

From repairing a broken strap on an item of clothing to holding towels onto a railing to dry, safety pins take up so little room in your case that they are a great thing to pack and have with you when you need them.

32. DECK OF CARDS

A deck of cards is a thousand games in one and most of us have our favourites.

If cards aren’t for you, then there are many travel-size versions of popular games to keep you entertained.

33. HEADACHE TABLETS

Having your preferred brand of headache tablet with you when a headache strikes can be the difference between feeling better or ruining your evening.

Your brand of tablets may not be available on the ship or even in ports of call.

OFF THE SHIP/GOING ASHORE

34. FLASHLIGHT/TORCH

If you are heading on an excursion where you explore ruins or head anywhere it might be dark, a flashlight/torch or a headlamp can be a great thing to have so you can explore.

They can also come in handy on the ship if it’s dark, or worse there is an emergency onboard. Don’t forget some spare batteries.

35. MICROFIBRE BEACH TOWEL

You can take towels off the ship, but if you love the beach, then a microfiber beach towel provides a softer feel with a greater surface area.

Being microfiber, they will roll up small so that they don’t take up too much space in your suitcase.

36. SNORKEL

If you have an activity booked that includes snorkelling or are heading to the beach where you could try it, then a full face snorkel like this offers significant benefits over ones that mean you can’t breathe through your nose and allow salt-water to splash down the breathing tube and into your mouth. Some even come with a mount for your Go-Pro.

37. WATERPROOF DRYBAG

If you are off to do water activities, then a waterproof drybag like this can keep your valuables and anything you don’t want to get wet dry, even if submerged in water.

Just be sure to secure it properly!

38. INSECT REPELLENT

If you are heading anywhere on an excursion that means insects could be around, then a good insect repellant could save you from getting bitten, which could mean not having a nasty bite that itches for days to not catching something more serious.

39. SNACKS

Food on the ship is plentiful, but when heading off on an excursion, you might not have the same access to food.

A few granola bars or some trail mix in a Ziploc bag can be the difference between enjoying your excursion or getting hangry (angry because you’re hungry)

40. WATERPROOF CAMERA

If you want to capture those water-based activities, then a waterproof or underwater camera is essential.

Whether you want to go all out on the latest Go-Pros to capture action activities and take pictures and video of sea life, or a more traditional camera for taking pictures underwater or even a case for your existing camera that converts it into an underwater camera, all options mean you can take even more pictures of your cruise.

A great extra to avoid losing the camera if you are unfortunate enough to drop it in the water is a flotation strap to making it bob to the surface.

41. PORTABLE BATTERY

If you want to make sure your phone, tablet, e-reader or other device lasts the day when you are off the ship, then a portable battery can be your saviour.

They come in all manner of sizes, bigger meaning you can recharge more devices more times.

Look for one that can output 2A or more on both ports to have your devices charged as quickly as possible.

42. UMBRELLA

The weather can be changeable even on those tropical islands where you think it is sunny all the time.

A small umbrella can be the difference between getting soaked and staying dry and comfortable.

Those are our 42 things to pack for a cruise, but maybe we missed something you think is essential? Let us know what you always pack in the comments below and maybe we’ll add it to our list…

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