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Not your average cruise list. This is the stuff that saves space, avoids headaches, and makes your trip feel easy from day one.
Cruises are one of my favorite ways to vacation because once you’re on board, life gets simple. Food’s handled, entertainment’s built in, and you wake up somewhere new without hauling your suitcase around. But packing for a cruise is its own thing. Cabins are smaller than hotel rooms, stores onboard are pricey, and some everyday items are straight up not allowed.
So instead of giving you another basic list of socks and swimsuits, I’m sharing the extras I always bring. These are the things that make cruising smoother, especially if you’re traveling with kids, sharing a cabin, or just want to feel organized.
First, a quick cruise packing truth
Cabins are cozy. Even on big ships. There’s usually a small closet, a couple drawers, and maybe a few shelves. So if you pack like you’re going to a resort with a walk in closet, you’ll feel cramped fast.
The goal is simple:
Pack light on basics, smart on helpers.
Space saving items that are worth it
- Shoe bag for bathroom – Hang one on the back of the door and use the pockets for toiletries, hair tools, sunscreen, meds, and random small items. It clears the counter instantly.
- Sweater bag for closet – Perfect for kids’ clothes, pajamas, swim coverups, or anything you want to grab without digging.
- Soft sided luggage – Hard suitcases eat up floor space. Duffels or soft rollers slide under the bed once you unpack.
- Packing cubes – Not fancy, just a simple way to keep outfits grouped. Great for separating shore clothes from ship clothes.
- Collapsible laundry hamper – Dirty clothes pile up fast. A pop up hamper keeps things contained and makes repacking easy.
- Tip: ask your cabin steward for extra hangers – you can hang a ton of stuff up, but there isn’t a lot of room in the drawers – hang your bulkier items and use the drawers for your smaller items.
Smart cruise items you’ll be so glad you packed
None of these are “you must bring this or you’ll cry” items. But they make everything easier.
- Non-surge power strip – Cruise lines ban surge protectors because of fire risk, but a plain power strip is usually fine. Double check your line’s rules, but make sure it does NOT say surge protected.
- Magnetic hooks – Cabin walls are metal. Stick these up to hang hats, lanyards, bags, or wet swimsuits.
- Lanyard with card holder – Your cruise card is your room key, payment method, and ticket on and off the ship. A lanyard keeps it from vanishing into the bottom of your beach bag.
- Disinfecting wipes or spray – Quick wipe down of high touch spots makes the room feel fresh.
- Stain remover pen or wipes – Someone always drips salsa on a white shirt. Always.
- Poo Pourri or small bathroom spray – If you’re sharing a cabin, this is a friendship saver.
- Plastic clothespins or towel clips – The wind on deck is no joke. Clips keep towels on loungers and swimsuits on the line.
- Zip top bag – Great for snacks on shore, wet swimsuits, keeping sunscreen contained, or tossing a phone in if you’re headed to a splashy excursion.
- Small soft cooler bag – Nice for grabbing a few drinks or snacks for port days. Many lines allow this as long as it’s empty when you board.
- Especially for tropical ports. You’ll be happy you tossed it in.
- Waterproof phone pouch – Shore days are wet. Even if you don’t plan on swimming, it rains, boats splash, and phones slip.
Carry on must haves for embarkation day
Here’s what I always keep in my carry on because checked bags can show up late.
- Swimsuit – Sometimes luggage arrives after dinner. You will want pool time right away.
- Change of clothes – Even one clean outfit feels great if you’ve traveled all day.
- Meds and basics – Never check prescription meds. Add pain reliever, stomach stuff, allergy meds, and a few bandaids too.
- Travel documents – Passport or birth certificate, boarding pass, confirmation emails, and travel insurance info.
- Phone charger and portable battery – You’ll use your phone a lot for photos, apps, and schedules.
A few newer cruise rules to know before you pack
- Some items people used to bring are now a problem.
- No surge protectors or extension cords -Even if you brought one before, many lines confiscate them now. Use a non surge strip instead.
- Be careful with CBD – Even if it’s legal where you live, some lines and ports ban it completely. Guests have been denied boarding for CBD gummies.
- Skip loud Bluetooth speakers – A lot of lines don’t allow them, and honestly, you don’t need to be that person on the pool deck.
- Check the cruise line app -Most ships now run daily schedules, dining, messaging, and port info through their app. Download it before you leave home
And there you go, everything I pack to make cruise life feel simple and stress free. If you toss a few of these smart extras into your suitcase, you will save space, skip the overpriced ship shops, and feel settled the second you step into your cabin.
If you have a favorite cruise must have that I did not mention, tell me in the comments. I love stealing, I mean borrowing, good ideas. Have the best trip and enjoy every minute of that floating vacation bubble.
I read a ton of lists before our first cruise and unfortunately none had this one item on them: STAIN remover or Stain wipes!!! After our carnival cruise, my 3 youngest kids had either chocolate ice cream stains or pizza stains on every piece of clothing they wore!!!! Also, being from Louisiana, we should have brought seasoning. The food great, but was bland for our tastes. One useful item I did bring was plastic hangers, the kind you get when you buy shorts at wal mart. At night I would hang up our wet clothes in the shower to dry.
Things to take on cruise trips:
Sun visor
Small tote (for maps, etc.)
Bar soap (most hotels now have body wash dispensers).
Small thermos, to take coffee with you after eating at restaurant (no to-go cups available, presumably because people are apt to throw them overboard when finished).
Probably not necessary to purchase tour excursions in advance ā many companies at ports available to take you, except at Victoria where it is limited. However, difficult to see much (in Victoria) because of late arrival, and most places are already closed.
Flashlight.
great suggestions! thank you!
Question
Going on our first cruise to Alaska, Celebrity line,
We are Sr Citizens….
No IPads or Cell Phones Allowed?
We have new hard side luggage, is there storage for luggage, or should we bring Soft duffle style?
Any suggestions Would be Appreciated, going with a Group of 8 Sr Citizens….
They usually elevate the beds on more cruise lines so you can store your luggage under there. I always pack in duffles, so we don’t really have to worry about it fitting – I think a quick call to the cruise line and they can tell you how much space is under the bed for luggage. You can bring your iPads and Cell Phones and get service through the cruise line, but it is super expensive and often very slow connections (for wifi). Again, if you call the cruise line, they can provide you with the actual cost.
(whisper voice… go on vacation and leave the devices at home – be unplugged and enjoy!!)
I really love all of these ideas!! I don’t want to sound rude or anything but I think you should go through and check spelling on somethings..you wrote color instead of cooler. š
Not rude at all, Brittney! Thanks for the catch – my spelling suks….. I mean sucks!!
I believe you meant to say “some things” instead of “somethings”. Just saying …
Instead of the motion sickness meds (which can make you have double vision) I did, is to use ginger. My son had to take it for flying lessons until he got use to the motion and it works.
Next on the cruise ship my son got to do a Tshirt and they provided everything as an kids project.
At the time I carry a back pack, and put everything it, that way I don’t sit it down and forget something I already purchased when I go to purchase something else, I keep my wallet in the front small pocket. It can get heavy but least you know everything is in one place. I once lost something I purchased prior at WDW and had to write to them and they have so many items people loose that they had no problem giving me one that I had lost. I set it down to pay for the other item and left it behind.
I probably could say more because I have been on lots of cruises, but not any in the recent years. They are fun, you get to see more places than if you fly to one place, so much fruit and great food, I never gained one pound. I love them ….just don’t know about the problems they have had in the past few, sickiness, and going off course. However, they were good experiences for us.
Great list! You may need an adapter as well. I went on a cruise in Australia but all of the outlets were American because it was an American cruise liner š
GREAT suggestion, Emily!
2 way radios are also good to have to communicate with family on your ship and at destinations.
Yes…. radios are always a great idea!
I just wanted to thank you for this list. I have looked at several and I really like some of your tips/tricks.
Thanks SO much, Jessica! SO glad you are finding it helpful!
As a nurse, I would discourage taking antibiotics. Antibiotics are not “one size fits all” medications. Unless you know what you’re infected with (gram positive or gram negative bacteria) AND you know which meds work for for each, you’re liable to do more harm than good. Not to mention, they’re useless for viruses which is a far more likely contagion to pick up.
Great point, Pat! Thanks so much!
I carry a small wind up flashlight- don’t have to worry about batteries if there is a power outage on ship!
Also a power booster for my cell for emergency calls. Small baggies of nuts. Hand wipes and some plastic bags.
Zip loc bags to store cell phone or iPods in for beach day.
My next cruise I’m taking these collapsible bottles .
An small extension cord. And always take antibiotics!!!!! There have been a few times we’ve needed them.
Great post!!
1. A watch. I don’t wear a watch normally at home because I have my cell phone with me. No cell phone on the ship!
2. Clorox wipes to wipe down the entire room. (Germ-freak but minimize getting sick!).
3. Extra antibiotics (if you can score them) in case you get sick. The trips are too expensive not to pack it.
4. Packing tape (for luggage mishap). We have had luggage bust open at the airport….ugh.
5. A few of your business cards. Not that you will get business from them per se, but if you make friends on the ship, you can give them your business card so you can connect on facebook/email later to share some pics. This has worked out well for us several times!
6. Small bills ($1’s and $5’s) for easy tipping off the ship.
7. Small battery operated alarm clock (since most rooms don’t have clocks…and most people use their phone for their alarm)
8. Lip gloss with sunscreen. You won’t forget sunscreen but you might forget chapstick/lipgloss with sunscreen.
9. Take more than you need in your “carry-on the ship” bag. Yup, it stinks to have to carry it all day. However, there are a few people with horror stories about luggage getting put onto the wrong ship when 2 ships are docked….so I always pack an extra set of clothes, PJs, essential items (makeup, meds, etc).
10. As many other people have said, decorate your door! Bring a magnetic whiteboard so others can leave messages about where they are going. Do some theme if your family/friends span multiple rooms….so all your rooms are together.
11. The Disney ships have “wave-phones” which are Nokia phones (circa 2001) that work on the ship. They are included and work marginally well re: reception. There is no charge for them (unless you lose them). Non-Disney ships don’t have this. However, we have brought some walkie-talkies which have been helpful….although the reception isn’t always great, it does help to have a connection to your other family members!!!
HAPPY SAILING!
Brooke – GREAT suggestions!!!! Thanks so much for sharing!!!