What have you forgotten to bring?

[Esjohnso]

What is the most important thing you have every forgotten to pack, and how did you cope? I think the worst thing I have forgotten is DH's underwear. Yep, I thought he packed it and he thought I did. Luckily, our first stop was in Key West. So we found some at a drugstore there. I think he forgave me. Eventually. :rolleyes:

[5326jan]

What is the most important thing you have every forgotten to pack, and how did you cope? I think the worst thing I have forgotten is DH's underwear. Yep, I thought he packed it and he thought I did. Luckily, our first stop was in Key West. So we found some at a drugstore there. I think he forgave me. Eventually. :rolleyes:

 

We've done that before..:rolleyes: I never have understood the desire to go commando. DH was able to find some too.

 

The most annoying thing we forgot was DH's sunglasses. He rarely wears a hat, so he didn't bring one. He squinted a lot that cruise. Live and Learn!:)

[cb at sea]

Hubby's dress socks....I told him he should have put out his own stuff!!!!

[Happy ks]

My contact lens case a couple cruises ago. I usually have one always packed in my lens kit, I don't know how it happened, I probably "borrowed" it from myself. Weird because I have several extras in my vanity drawer.

 

The ship's store had none...I ended up buying a pill of the day case and stored them there until I could get to an onshore drug store. That little oversight ended up costing $16, not a fortune but annoying since I should have spent nothing.

 

Other than that, bandaids once and cough syrup another time. I've never missed clothing, shoes or any "things" mentioned on the packing lists found on CC. I have packed plenty of those "things" in years past which were totally useless.

 

Make a list! Check off your essentials before leaving home! Don't take lots of extra "things" that are not essential!

[Martini Mom]

I pack so much that it almost never happens. But, once I forgot DH's black dress socks. He just bought a pair from the gift shop. Problem solved. :)

[sjsontag]

My passport. It never even made it to the list. We were traveling within the US (with a short stop in Vancouver) and flying domestic from CA to Alaska. Mom used her passport as a photo id at the airport and my heart just sunk. It never occured to me to put the passport in with the important documents. Who takes a cruise without a passport? No one.

Luckily we live close to the airport so DH was able to retrieve it, get it to the airport and still not be late for work.

[Hoyaheel]

My passport. It never even made it to the list

 

I bet it's on your list now :D

 

I've forgotten things I've wanted, but right now- I can't think of any time I've forgotten something crucial, like OC or a passport.....Any time I take a trip that's longer than 2 nights and/or requires flights, I use my standard packing list that has EVERYTHING written on it (I delete items as I personalize for the individual trips - I mean, my list has stuff like "set email out of office response" and "hold mail" so I guess it's more a travel prep list than just a packing list, but still.....It helps me to have everything in one document)

[luvscruising2007]

I forgot shampoo and conditioner and suntan lotion. We were staying in Miami pre-cruise but didn't know where a drugstore was. Bayside Mall had nothing except some expensive sun tan lotion.

Bought shampoo in the ship store and had to get conditioner at the spa. A very expensive and needless omission on my part.

[sail7seas]

For some reason, I've forgotten hairspray more than once. I have no idea how I forgot it but it's easy enough to find it in most ports. Thankfully, each time I forgot it we had a pre cruise hotel stay and I found a brand I could manage with in the hotel gift shop. It is now one of the first things I pack. :D

 

[carhopsrock]

Was cruising with my mom and son and all three of us forgot our deodorant. It cost us 8-10 each and the ship only carries the most basic Secret.

[Goldygolfer]

DH and I did a 31-day cruise from Istanbul to Singapore about 15 months ago. Suitable clothing for 31 evenings, with airline baggage restrictions to consider, certainly posed a problem. I thought I was quite brilliant in deciding to take a pair of black crepe pants, a black "floaty" skirt and a number of tops that would "go" with either.

 

Imagine my horror when dressing for dinner on the first night to find that I had carefully chosen and packed all the tops - but no pants or skirt !!

Then to be informed that it was a 4-day holiday in Turkey and the ship was sailing in 2 days.

 

Luckily the holiday finished at sundown the next day and we were able to go shopping on the day of sailing (ate into our sightseeing time). Anyway I found an excellent pair of black crepe pants in a shop just outside the Grand Bazaar for about half the price I would have paid at home. They fit perfectly. I can wash them in the machine and never need to iron.

 

I then found a really nice black "floaty" skirt in the ship's shop. It was much more expensive than the pants, but we had a rather large OBC.

 

I love both my new pants and skirt, but I now make a packing list and meticulously tick off every item only when it actually goes in the suitcase.

[CactusGirly]

A sweater or wrap for the chilly MDR and theater. I thought (on my first cruise) that since we would be in tropical climates it would be warm inside the ship too... silly me.

[Ehpride]

We forgot nail clippers once. The ship's store had some luckily but they were not cheap.

 

Luckily, we go down a couple days before so if we forget anything, we usually discover it before getting on the ship.

[JanineM]

• Hubby's dress socks (that seems to be a common thing!)
  
• Hose -- I have horrible spider veins and am uncomfortable going bare legged. The ship's shop had only XS. Really? Look at the average woman on a cruise and you'll see that few of us are an XS. :confused:
  
• Belts - again for DH. Perhaps he should pack for himself???
  
• Hairspray -- another common item! I wound up paying $21 in the spa and then forgot to put it in my checked luggage so the TSA made me throw it out when we flew home. :mad:
  
• Cell phone recharger ---- I was looking for a job at the time and needed to be able to check messages when we were onshore. Had to buy a recharger on one of the islands & it cost me about $35.
  

[Seago2]

Deep conditioner! Can't recommend that highly enough. My hair gets wild at sea- the tepid hear dryers, the wind, the salt water, it's crazy.

 

Now I always bring a jar of deep conditioner and use it every time I shower.

[TracersQQ]

Sunglasses! Not just me, but DH, as well. He realized, on the plane, that he forgot his. I didn't realize, until we landed in Miami, that I didn't have mine. I can't go without sunglasses, so I always, keep mine in my car, so I never forget them when I go out. We always drive my car to the airport, so I always remember them because I have them on in the car. This time, we took an airport shuttle and was picked up, at our house, at 4:30am and it was pouring down rain - needless to say, I was thinking about sunglasses. When we got to Miami, we were able to find a store and buy sunglasses. There is no way I could have stepped on that ship without a pair, I would not have been able to ever go out on deck or get off in the ports.

[Happy ks]

Deep conditioner! Can't recommend that highly enough. My hair gets wild at sea- the tepid hear dryers, the wind, the salt water, it's crazy.

 

Now I always bring a jar of deep conditioner and use it every time I shower.

 

I'm the opposite. Ships use water softeners and my hair is limp and lifeless if I use conditioner! I barely use any at home, but a few times I forget when on a ship and my hair just goes flat as a pancake with just a smidge used. I use extra hold hairspray and firm mousse, plus a texturizer and I just started using a sea spray...all to get my hair looking kind of average.

 

Lists seem the way to go! I have everything I need duplicated, so I don't have to remember anything the last minute. It's all set aside a few days before packing. I've found that if I pack a little, then go back a few days later and pack more, I never remember what's in the case. I prefer to do it all at once, off a list, out of the bedroom.

 

Edit to add, alone, so my husband isn't bugging me about what he needs to pack...more than once he has made me lose my concentration and then I'll forget what I was doing.

[jilllofalltrades]

I bought a beautiful pair of strappy black sandles. I tried them on but did'nt walk around in them for very long. Formal night on the cruise after five minutes my feet were killing me. I ended up wearing my flip flops with my formal dress.:eek:

[CateW]

This is fresh in my mind since we just retured from the Silhouette; I forgot my make-up bag (and it was a 12 day trip). $200 later at the ships Clinique counter and I was good to go. At least these are items that won't go to waste.

[01 Cobra]

On our trip last year-3 days in San Juan and 7 night cruise, we forgot a belt for our son. Picked up one a black leather Polo belt while shopping..paid $40 for it, but it is really nice and he is still using it a year later.

 

About 4 or 5 years ago.... we woke up early one morning to drive to my mom's house and our son was about 8 I guess. He was still asleep so my DH picked him up out of bed and put him straight into the truck and when he woke up...and we were halfway there (5 1/2 hr drive) he asked for his glasses! :eek: OMG...we forgot his perscription glasses at home on his dresser! This was an expensive mistake...we went to the vision/optical center nearest to my parents...had his perscription faxed...new glasses same day was not cheap! We should have went back home....live and learn... :o

[Hoyaheel]

alone, so my husband isn't bugging me about what he needs to pack...more than once he has made me lose my concentration and then I'll forget what I was doing.

 

I have to do the same thing - let my husband pack first and ask me all the questions he will....Then I'll pack. I'll set things aside in the guest room that I want to take ahead of time, but won't pack the suitcase until I do it all at once, checking off the list as I go.....

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

One cruise I somehow managed to get on board with only the one bra on my back! That entire cruise I had to wash and wear that same bra over and over. I often had to dry it with a hair dryer if I needed it right away.

The bra was black, so I couldn't wear my white shirts or pastel shirts. As a result, that impacted what I wore during the cruise. I will NEVER make that mistake again.

 

Another cruise I packed my Advair inhaler without checking the number of inhalations left. Here I was on an eleven day cruise and discovered I had only enough inhalations for half the cruise! What I did was use the inhaler anyway and survive on fumes. I never made that mistake again either.

[Jan_In_Maine]

One of my formals - slacks, sparkly top and a jacket had to have the jacket and the slacks hemmed - took them to be done last minute - I got them back and packed them --- unfortunately I forgot to pack the sparkly top. I ended up wearing a dark tee-shirt under the jacket. Not quite the same, but it was ok. Jan

[Happy ks]

I bought a beautiful pair of strappy black sandles. I tried them on but did'nt walk around in them for very long. Formal night on the cruise after five minutes my feet were killing me. I ended up wearing my flip flops with my formal dress.:eek:

 

I bought a gorgeous pair of Kate Spade pumps last year when Saks was closing a store nearby, got them for $40 :). The shoes fit fine in the store, I wore them at home several times, walked in them, up and down stairs, etc... Then, formal night comes and the shoes are too big for my feet, falling off too big!

 

I have really big feet (10 wide), so I don't know how this happened, the shoes are a size 10. Anyway, since I only pack one pair of formal night shoes and wear them twice, I had to make it work somehow. My solution was extra hold hairspray, I sprayed it into the shoes, then put the shoes on and stood in place until they were dry. Believe it or not, it worked, the shoes stayed on my feet :p

 

I tried on these same shoes recently and they are too big for my feet. I am going to buy insoles and heel pads for them. I work with special needs kids and we always say we can adapt anything!

[shipgeeks]

DH's underwear. They were on the list, but I did a last wash, hung them in the laundry room to finish drying... and there they stayed for two weeks.

Another time, I missed packing his cufflinks and shirt studs for tuxedo shirt. Luckily, his brother found a pair of his before he drove us to the port, and sister-in-law found four brass push-through pins (used for binding notebook paper), which he inserted into his shirt.