What should I bring with me on my cruise?

What should I bring on a cruise?

• I will be going on a cruise in November and i want to know what to pack. I mean i have a idea of what i have to bring, but what would you bring? This is my first cruise and inexperienced, so i would love the help. Thanks!

• Answer:

  You asked the same question twice so I'll answer it the same way. Pack for the various activities of the cruise including exercise wear, swim wear, formal wear, casual clothes for the daytime and sports/resort casual clothes for after 6:00 PM. After you pack look at what you have and try to eliminate as much as you can; think mix and match tops and bottoms and plan to wear each piece twice; or do laundry on ship (or use the laundry service). Don't over pack because you will spend most of every day in swim wear and/or shorts. Plan to wear each piece of clothing at least twice. On formal nights you can go all the way formal in a party dress or just wear your Sunday best. Pack shoes for the various activities like beach shoes, sandals and/or flip flops, sneakers and good walking shoes, and shoes to wear sports casual and formal. Take at least two set of swim wear so what you wear one day will have time to dry completely before you wear it again. If you like to style you may want to bring three sets and 3 or 4 pairs of shorts and tops. Prepare a carry-on bag: MP3 player and its charger and headphones, camera and its charger or extra batteries, a books or two; a large insulated cup with a seal-able lid. Plan carefully what you want to wear when you board the ship because the ship's photographer will take a boarding photo which you may want to purchase and you will be in those clothes all day and evening. Your luggage may not get to your cabin until about 5-6:00 PM. Take a small carry-on bag for the last night of the cruise. On the last evening you will be required to put your luggage outside your cabin by about midnight to 2:00 AM so that they can start taking it down to the lower deck for offloading the next morning. So you will need a small bag for your toiletries and your clothes that you sleep in. - If you are taking your cell phone, laptop, MP3 player or other item that needs to be plugged in take an extension cord as the plugs in the cabin are generally not in the best places and there are usually only one. Your cabin will have towels and soap provided, including pool and beach towels, and a hair dryer. It will also have a generic hair shampoo so you do not need to bring that unless you like a specific brand. Don't bring an iron, its a prohibited item and it will be confiscated until after the cruise. You can bring your flat iron or curling iron.