Must haves for long cruises.

[Duffysmom]

Hi All, we are taking a 28 day cruise on the Crown to Hawaii and the South Pacific, the longest cruise we've ever taken. An earlier post talked about taking a DVD player and some cables, etc. and that got me thinking about what special items experienced cruisers take with them on such a long cruise. What are some of your must haves when away from home for so long and what helps to makes living in such a small space comfortable? Thank you, we're beyond excited.

[Kamloops50]

Batteries , sunscreen and extra money.

[Who Knew]

We took some collapsible, lightweight storage bins to keep things tidy. My travel friend and I are generally neat, but after a few days things can get kind of messy and we are both used to living alone, so having a few of those bins in different sizes, kept each of our things out of the other's way. :) It's also easy to move small items if they are in some sort of containment. :D

[Pam in CA]

I don't do anything extra for a longer cruise other than bring more toiletries and some extra tops and maybe a couple of pants. You'll find that there are a lot of things to do on sea days so unless you really like to stay in your cabin, I wouldn't bring a DVD player and cables.

[Husky61]

We don't bring anything extra. If we need toiletries or anything else, we purchase it on the ship or in a port.:)

[shredie]

Enough medications.

[Tweedy]

Hi All, we are taking a 28 day cruise on the Crown to Hawaii and the South Pacific, the longest cruise we've ever taken. An earlier post talked about taking a DVD player and some cables, etc. and that got me thinking about what special items experienced cruisers take with them on such a long cruise. What are some of your must haves when away from home for so long and what helps to makes living in such a small space comfortable? Thank you, we're beyond excited.

 

One of those shoe door pocket thingies. It definitely helps with organizing sunscreen, other toiletries and cords that seem to end up strewn throughout the cabin. Also, a fully loaded e-book (although not much reading gets done but it is good to have just in case).

[paul929207]

We will be with you on the Crown in October.

 

I will bring my Kindle with lots of books loaded.

[Alessandrina]

I like to bring my favourite ground coffee and a small French Press as well as my favourite tea bags.

 

I do this on every cruise.

 

Cheers.

[GUT2407]

Enough medications.

 

 

Yep and for more conditions, for a week or two I may not take some medications for a month or more I will take a greater range as well as more of any I need regularly.

[fishywood]

My longest on the same ship was 22 nights. Didn't think at all when packing about bringing along any comforts of home, and when I got home the only thing I realized I missed was a relatively quiet toilet :o.

 

Best thing to bring is a go-with-the-flow attitude. If a certain public room is too cold or too crowded, or the elevators are too slow, or the coffee station on one side of the buffet is never well stocked, that's the way it will be for four weeks so don't let it worry you the same way it might on a seven day cruise. And don't even think about caring about been seen in the same clothes twice--every one else is in the same boat! Unless I spilled something on it it went right back onto the hanger every night; thank goodness the stuff-a-bag laundry special came at the perfect time.

[GUT2407]

Funnily enough I don't spend a lot more on a month long cruise than on a week long one.

[PescadoAmarillo]

We tend to take much longer cruises (stringing together multiple cruises in a row). Our longest was 150 days, and we definitely pack differently for that than we would for 7 days. It's not that we bring a lot of extra clothes...we don't. But we do plan for a couple of clothing items and shoes to get ruined, because things happen over the course of a longer cruise that won't likely happen in a week.

 

We bring things to make our cabin and lives more comfortable (the items below would be for a beach-y, warm weather cruise):

 

http://pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com/2013/02/things-i-couldnt-cruise-without-for-120.html

 

http://pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com/2013/02/things-i-couldnt-cruise-without-for-120_26.html

 

We also travel with our iDevices fully loaded with maps, guidebooks, videos, music, books and magazines:

 

http://pescadoamarillo.blogspot.com/2014_10_17_archive.html

 

Regarding toiletries, there are plenty of things I can do without for a week or two (manicure accessories, special face and hair hydration) that I can't do without for a month or longer. And I end up using more toiletries than at home because I shower more often than at home, usually 2-3 times a day. So deodorant, etc. doesn't go as far. I either need a replenishing plan (not always possible) or to take everything I'll need for the duration of the cruise.

 

It's a bit more planning work, but so worth it.

Edited August 5, 2015 by PescadoAmarillo

[Thorpe]

My first ever cruise in 2011 was 53 days , so since then they have been reducing in length. But the 3 things I took then that I take on every cruise are ; a laundry hamper that folds flat into the bottom of suitcase (great for carrying to self serve laundry) ; an over door 'shoe organiser' ( jewellery , makeup etc) ; and some magnets for hanging paperwork, tickets , patters and lanyard (on back of cabin door, so I see my keycard on way out) [emoji3]

[nojoke]

just want to mention while thinking about e-books. I subscribe (free) to BookBub.com. You tell them what genre of reading you are interested in.

Every day they offer books from Free to $2.99. If you’re a reader, it’s a good bargain and allows you to store quite a few books at very low cost.

[Colo Cruiser]

We pack a few extra pieces of clothing shoes etc.

If we need something we will pick it up along the way if possible.

The last thing I would ever think about bringing is a DVD player or any cables.

Just not a priority. There are movies available on the ship both in cabin (TV) and at times in the theater/lounge.

[GUT2407]

just want to mention while thinking about e-books. I subscribe (free) to BookBub.com. You tell them what genre of reading you are interested in.

Every day they offer books from Free to $2.99. If you’re a reader, it’s a good bargain and allows you to store quite a few books at very low cost.

 

 

Not a fan of reading off screen, I find it hard on my eyes. but I do use book bub and find some great books, that I then try and get as real books.

[paul929207]

just want to mention while thinking about e-books. I subscribe (free) to BookBub.com. You tell them what genre of reading you are interested in.

Every day they offer books from Free to $2.99. If you’re a reader, it’s a good bargain and allows you to store quite a few books at very low cost.

I love Book Bub. I get a couple of free books every day. Not all are great, but I get enough to just chuck the ones I don't like.

[hollydog]

On every cruise, no matter the length, we take the aforementioned magnets, as well as several medium-size Command hooks (the kind you can remove without wall damage). Two hooks on the wall near the cabin entrance make for a great place for a jacket, lanyard with cruise card, etc. One magnet is for a spreadsheet which we set up with a line for every day of the trip. On it we list excursions, lecture times, anything we want to remember the time and location. One glance and you know exactly what's in store for that day. The spreadsheet is especially helpful on longer cruises when it's easy to forget what day it is!

[Grayce]

We brought our tablets with books, TV shows and movies. This year I am also bringing a kindle because reading off a tablet is hard on the eyes. We brought a small baggie of laundry powder so we could do laundry on the ship.

 

One unusual thing we are bringing this year is a small container of maple syrup. The horrible syrup served by the cruise ship ruins pancakes and French toast for me. Not a big deal for a short cruise but really missed the good stuff on a long one. We searched around and found a small 250 ml plastic jug that we are bringing along. :-)

[susancruzs]

I was onboard the Emerald Princess for 25 days last fall, didn't bring anything special, an extra puzzle book, counted cross stitch for the TA portion, soap and shampoo because I am allergic to heavy scents, never travel without my own.

 

However, I've never been one to bring any of the "must haves" I read on lists posted here at Cruise Critic. The things people bring for a 7 day cruise absolutely amaze me.

 

I sail single so naturally I have more space but I have sailed for 14 with a friend and we did not bring organizers, shoe holders or anything. Those were the days when you really dressed up for formal nights. I remember traveling with shoes and purses for every evening outfit!

 

I would pack like you would for say 10 or 14 days, do some laundry (or send it out), you should be good to go! :) I brought tops to go with my slacks and skirt, maybe 10 or 12 then repeated, didn't care if I wore them twice to dinner. I buy silky, gauze type stuff, which roll up easy. A must for me is, even being gone a month, one 26" suitcase. My days of a big Pullman plus my rolling garment bag are over!!!

[Colo Cruiser]

One unusual thing we are bringing this year is a small container of maple syrup. The horrible syrup served by the cruise ship ruins pancakes and French toast for me. Not a big deal for a short cruise but really missed the good stuff on a long one. We searched around and found a small 250 ml plastic jug that we are bringing along. :-)

 

 

Yum! :D

[Thrak]

Our longest so far has been 15 days and we have a 17 day coming up in September. I make sure I have enough meds (and extra Ibuprofen) and enough books on my phone and tablet for the sea days. Other than that, if I were taking a 28 day cruise I might take an extra shirt and pair of pants and shorts for more variety but that's about it.

 

A world cruise might entail more - maybe an extra camera card? - but I don't think it really has to. There are laundry facilities onboard. A world cruise might require an umbrella or poncho or some other minor thing but the ship pretty much provides everything I need.

 

NOTE: If it was allowed I would take more wine and would also take some good Scotch or Irish Whiskey but, as it isn't allowed, that's kind of a moot point.

[jamiski]

On every cruise, no matter the length, we take the aforementioned magnets, as well as several medium-size Command hooks (the kind you can remove without wall damage). Two hooks on the wall near the cabin entrance make for a great place for a jacket, lanyard with cruise card, etc. One magnet is for a spreadsheet which we set up with a line for every day of the trip. On it we list excursions, lecture times, anything we want to remember the time and location. One glance and you know exactly what's in store for that day. The spreadsheet is especially helpful on longer cruises when it's easy to forget what day it is!

 

 

Love the Command hook idea! Definitely going to get them for our Alaska trip later this month. There are never enough hooks!

 

We always bring laundry detergent pods, I usually put them in one of the cheap ziplock-type plastic containers. Keeps the moisture out, and prevents squishing.

 

 

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[OCruisers]

On the other side of the coin ... I seem to need as much "must have stuff" for a 7 day as I do for a 21 day cruise. :o

 

LuLu