If you’re new to cruising, knowing what you need to bring is an important part of planning. It may even be causing you stress. Fear not! I’m here to help you prepare for your cruise.
As I prepared for a recent cruise I realized how many everyday household items I pack to make cruising a little more comfortable, especially in our cruise cabin. So grab a basket and let’s gather up some household items for your next cruise. In this post, I’ll share 16 household items to pack for your cruise.
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Your cruise is booked and you’re ready to start packing. You may have some ideas about the clothing items to pack. If not, you can check out my packing tips page.
There is so much more to think about other than clothing. A cruise offers great ocean views and some unique experiences that you can be prepared for just by grabbing a few items from around your house or snagging a few inexpensive items from Amazon or your discount store like Dollar Tree.
Here are 16 Household Items to Pack for Your Cruise
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- Let’s get this one out of the way… Poo-Pourri. Cruise cabins are pretty small and cruise cabin bathrooms are even smaller. Do yourself and your travel companions a favor by grabbing your trusty Poo Pouri. Bonus points for bringing the “Ship Happens” scent. 😉 I love these travel sizes which tuck right inside my toiletry pouch.
- Clothes pins – Many cruise cabin bathrooms have a clothesline in the shower, toss a few clothes pins in your bag and you’ll be able to line dry more items.
- Ziplock bags – Storage bags are another household item with many uses while on a cruise. You can use ziplock bags for wet swimsuits, and muddy shoes or to separate/store souvenirs.
- Dry-cleaning bags (or tissue paper) – My mom swears by this trick. Place dressy items in dry cleaning plastic and lay them as flat as possible in your suitcase or fold and place tissue paper between the folds and between items. Give it a try!
- Febreze -This item may not be critical but it’s helpful. In any small space, sweaty clothes and damp towels can lead to a less-than-fresh room experience. Give the items and your room a few sprays of Febreze and get an instant refresh.
- Wrinkle release – Who has time for wrinkles or an expensive onboard pressing service? Spray on a little wrinkle-release spray while you’re in the shower and you’ll be ready for dinner in no time.
Pro tip: For Fabreze and Wrinkle Release buy a travel bottle once and then refill it using your larger bottle from home. Doing so is more economical and has less product waste.
Are you finding any of these items around your house?
- Magnetic hooks and magnetic clips – Grab those handy chip clips or my favorite hooks. Most cruise cabin walls are magnetic! Use that vertical space by hanging up important paperwork with a magnetic clip or your purse or beach bag with a magnetic hook. These are my favorite because they are super strong yet compact for easy packing.
Pro tip: Hang them from the ceiling for an even stronger hold.
- Folded shopping bag – This item has not only saved me on cruises but just shopping around our local town. It tucks in my purse and no more plastic bags for me! I ordered several and gave them to family and friends as stocking stuffers!
- Phone case with card holder – If your phone has a card slot, you are in luck. While onboard you won’t need to carry around many necessities other than your ship card. However, many of us use our phones for taking pictures, and videos, or chatting with family or friends. This option sticks to your current phone case. Simply use a little alcohol to get the stickiness off if you choose to remove it after your cruise. Ladies check out this one for or this one that sticks on your current phone case a cute and hands-free experience.
- Your go-to health remedies – Not only is it important to pack your daily prescription medication but also your standard over-the-counter favorites as well. Consider pain relievers, allergy medication, motion sickness meds, and tummy relief such as Immodium or Miralax.
Pro tip: I use a combination of Bonine and green apples if needed during rough seas. Just ask the dining staff for green apples!
- Shoe organizer – This can be especially handy if you are traveling with kids and need to maximize space. You may already have one in your closet or your kid’s closet. You can roll up outfits for your little ones and tuck them in the pouches, and use the organizer to store swimwear, socks, and yes, even shoes. So many good uses.
- Pop-Up Hamper – One of my personal favorite household items for a cruise is the pop-up hamper! We have taken this hamper for years and it’s really holding up well and makes the room so much tidier!
Pro-tip – spray a little Febreze in your hamper daily to keep your room nice and fresh! In fact, I keep the bottle in the handy side pouch.
- Collapsible bins – You may already have a couple of these around your house. Maybe they are currently storing magazines or all of those random chargers we can’t escape, but collapse that bin for your cruise. This bin takes up very little suitcase space and can corral a load of sneakers, flip-flops, water shoes, and more.
Pro Tip: It’s convenient to order on Amazon but these are usually available at Dollar Tree for less just keep quality in mind.
- Personal fan – I was surprised to learn that many cruisers travel with a small fan. Whether it’s to keep cool or provide white noise for sleeping, a mini-fan is a great idea. I found this easy-to-pack and chargeable option that you could even attach to your chair on the pool deck or use on your balcony.
- Travel alarm clock – cruise cabins do not have clocks. While you’re on vacation you are certainly less pressed for time. However, I like knowing the time when I’m getting ready for dinner or a show…or for an early excursion. Yes, we can check our phones but in my experience, these little clocks are quite handy.
- Multi-port charger – If you have a family charging hub, that is a great item to bring for your cruise. Just make sure it doesn’t have a surge protector. Outlets are limited in cruise cabins so be prepared. I like this multi-charger that has a cord. It’s perfect if the outlet you want to use is located in a tight space.
- Let’s get this one out of the way… Poo-Pourri. Cruise cabins are pretty small and cruise cabin bathrooms are even smaller. Do yourself and your travel companions a favor by grabbing your trusty Poo Pouri. Bonus points for bringing the “Ship Happens” scent. 😉 I love these travel sizes which tuck right inside my toiletry pouch.
If you aren’t traveling with many devices or as a family, consider bringing a small European adapter. Cruise cabins have both European outlets and US outlets. This gives you one more spot to utilize and it has a couple of USB ports as well.
There you go – 16 Household Items to Pack for Your Cruise.
If you need help planning your cruise wardrobe check out my other packing posts and subscribe to the blog for access to my helpful printables.
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