Packing for Med. Cruise

[caggfamily]

We will be on the Equinox out of Istanbul in July and I am struggling with how to pack for dinner. We have been on many cruises, mostly in the Caribbean and my husband and I usually pack a variety of casual and more formal attire. The problem is we will be in Italy with our family for almost 10 days prior to the trip and need to pack very light. With evening chic, my husband decided to forego the jacket and just pack nice pants, dress shirts and ties. But what about shoes? I can get away with wearing low heeled sandals for day and evening, but what about for men? Shoes take up more room than anything else, especially's men's shoes, so we don't to bring anything that he would only wear at night on the cruise. Any suggestions?

[iancal]

We had exactly the same challenge when we retired and started to travel for longer periods of time. Prior to that we often used to skip formal nights on some cruises. I wore a suit every day so wearing one on a cruise vacation was hardly a thrill.

 

So now we only pack casual and dine in the alternate venues. Don't even bother with dress shirt, slacks, let alone a jacket. We take 2 pairs of shoes, the pair on our feet and on pair in our bag. In my case the second pair is a pair of very light sandals. We have pared back everything to the point where we only now do carry on. At first it was challenging. Now DW is the biggest fan. The only downside is that well into a longer trip she gets a little 'tired' of her clothes. But not tired enough to pack more.

Edited May 5, 2016 by iancal

[bigbenboys]

I wear leather style boat shoes. I have them in black and blue. I normally bring the blue pair for they can go with khaki or blue jeans.

[CYNSport]

My husband wears nice sneakers on the plane and packs one pair of lightweight Rockport-like lace up shoes that resemble dress shoes, plus a pair of Crocs. That is all he takes.

 

I don't take any dress shoes at all. I wear Sketchers on the plane and take two other pairs of Sketchers in different styles or colors. I have small feet (6), so my shoes don't take up much room.

 

Happy sailing!