I want to thank a couple Youtubers for inspiring this post and providing insight into items I hadn't thought of before.
Life Well Cruised has a '50 Genius Cruise Hacks' post that's not only for cruisers. Some of my best ideas came from her.
Gary Bembridge from Tips for Travellers has a '21 Unusual But Essential Items' post for Cruisers that is geared towards cruisers but I found it also helpful for other types of travel. I like him a lot because he immediately dives into the list and there isn't any advertising or jibber jabber.
MiChelle Scrimpsher - After submitting deposit, she bought Carnival Gift Cards through the AARP site. They are discounted 10% and Carnival lets you apply them to your deposit (as of May 2021)
My List: I set up a table a few months before we leave and when I buy something new for the trip it goes on the table. I also use a packing checklist starting about 2 weeks before.
Note, I'm not monetized through any of these links. I've copied some from other sites and they may be monetized.
- Air Freshener - I personally like the plug in ones from Bath and Body Works. The room smells nice when you come back from a long day of adventuring.
- **Anti Chafing Gel (like Bodyglide or Monistat) if you do a lot of walking
- **Carabiner
- **Carmex
- Clips; magnet, towel clips, binder clips
- Ear Plugs
- Fabreze - casino trips
- **First Aid Kit - see list below
- Flashlight
- **Hand Sanitizer
- Head Phone Splitter
- Highlighter
- Ipod (yes, I still have one of these and I still use it) and Speaker
- **Lanyard
- Laundry detergent sample size
- Laundry bag - drawstring mesh bag
- Light, magnetic, motion activated, battery operated -: https://amzn.to/33eMEqP
- Magnetic hooks and clips
- **Microfiber Towel
- Over-the-door shoe organizer (see Life Well Cruised post at 7:30 for packing ahead of time idea)
- Packing Cubes. Life Well Cruised has a great reason for packing these and that is you can put the entire cub in a drawer and save packing and unpacking time
- **Pencil
- Pillow and lavender pillow spray
- Poo-pourri
- **Pony Tail Holders
- *Power Strip
- Sewing Kit
- **Sharpie - black
- Stain Stick (like Tide)
- Tea bags
- **Tote Bag - large for day trips or to the pool
- Trash bag for wet clothes
- Umbrella or **Poncho
- **Water Bottles - colored (see Tips for Travellers at 2:30)
- **Wet Wipes
- **Ziplock Bags - Multiple Sizes
First Aid Kit
- **Antibacterial cream
- Antihistamines
- Anti-nausea
- **Band-Aids (cloth, flexible, and waterproof types)
- Cough drops
- Dramamine
- **Imodium
- Moleskin
- Nail Clippers
- Tweezers
- **Tylenol
Cruise Specialty Items;
- Dental Repair Kit (Gary Bembridge post at 2:02) (Walmart $2.68)
- Business Cards (for new friends)
- Clothes Line Pins
- Deck of Cards
- Dice
- Duct Tape
- Fan - battery or handheld
- Gift cards; old ones can be used to keep the power on in a room with controlled lighting (so you can keep charging devices)
- Hooks - Command strips and Magnetic
- Identification Bag Tags
- Luggage set (connecting!): https://amzn.to/2QZ7sQm
- Media - some people download movies, games, and books to their devices before they leave so they arent reliant on wifi
- Post It Notes
- Rubber Door Stops (added protection for your hotel or cabin door)
- Rug - for the bathroom
- Screwdriver - tiny toolkit
- Shower Caps (from the dollar store, for dirty shoes)
- Travel scarf/sun shawl: https://amzn.to/3gZYoWd
- Walkie Talkies
- Waterproof pouch for your phone
- Wedding ring - fakes and leave the real ones at home
- Before you leave, take pictures of your Kids, Luggage, Passport, Travel Immunizations, Prescriptions, and any other valuables in case they get lost
- Pack MORE bras and underwear and LESS other clothes than you need
- If you are cruising, opt for an upgraded room and spend less on a booze package. You will generally spend more on a liquor package than you would have had you purchased them individually. AND, if you get stuck in your room, you will appreciate the space.
- Eat lunch in the Main Dining Room (MDR) on your first day. Its hectic and Ive heard things close early on the first day.
- Be flexible on your dates (and hotels and cruise lines) and compare costs
- *Wine - you can generally bring 1-2 bottles of wine per person on cruises. Some cruise lines will store your wine and bring it to you at dinner. You can also get wine glasses from bars but you should bring your own screwdriver and I think it needs to be in your carryon. I mean who would check a bottle of wine right?
- Consider bringing clothing that has a few wears left and then leaving it behind
- There are multiple benefits (dining with the captain, behind the scenes tours, free non-alcoholic drinks, etc). This is called 'Royalty Perks'. RC has onboard credit.
- I'm hearing you need to be a stockholder AND mention it at the time of booking?
- If you manage your 401k or Roth accounts, you can purchase stock through them at no extra cost.
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