Compulsive cruise prep

[smillerholmes]

*stands up* My name is Jenni and I am a compulsive cruise prepper. *group hug* :');p:');p:')

I do a lot of the things mentioned here. My husband doesn't appreciate it until we are on board and I know what's going on and he doesn't LOL.

He often tells me "Relax, Francis"

 

LOL - OMG - I love this thread!

[sprint180]

My family doesn’t realize things go so smoothly because I do all the planning I do a head of time. But I love every minute of it.

 

 

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[mytern2]

Get a little first aid kit together with band aids, and some over the counter meds you might use. They are very expensive on the ship!

I don't do a spread sheet, but make lots of lists, like what outfits I will wear on what day. I agree, planning is half the fun!

 

We just gave out 1st Aid kits as part of our company summer swag. :D:D:)Can never go wrong with those.

[twoznuff2]

Another OCD cruise planner here. Can anyone relate to causing a cruise companion anxiety due to TMI?

 

I'm over 20 cruises now & traveling with a "newbie". Thought I was being helpful with all my suggestions but figuring out that some folks just like to wing it -or rely on the cruise planners to do all the thinking :rolleyes:

 

 

 

Oh I can relate.. [emoji23]

 

 

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[twoznuff2]

[bTW, I am in Rochester NY!]

 

As promised, Here's a link to the excessive preparations that I share with my friends on our roll call.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1Hr3ItuE9WGjIqcnSANSOBZ43dXRsAQjv

 

There are several versions of the itinerary such as port schedule with ships in port with us, and a sailing legs itinerary,

and average temperatures, and more. There a list of links to weather forecasts for closest location mid day each day and marine forecasts, and ocean buoy wave conditions. Also I show what you will likely be able to see on each side of the ship and there is a sailway guide for NY/NJ for our NCL Breakway cruises. I also do a currency conversaion chart for any local currencies, and a language guide for Mexican Spanish for those ports. Oh and a list of drinks to try with the unlimited beverage plan when we have it on NCL.

 

My own personal itinerary is much like the rest of you - daily plans and options. I copy/paste all possible excursions I am interested from the cruise line and local, until we finalize our choice and then I delete what I don't need. I also copy in local maps and info on food and shopping I can find in each port. Oh, and the location of Starbucks, if any, so I can get a hit of good coffee!

 

I also have a document for my travel to my embarkation port (Train to NYC), food options and local maps for NYC, and the same for my 2 days in New Orleans after the cruise.

 

And I'm not done yet... must find more to do...

Oh and you are all welcome to steal or adapt any of my stuff. There are PDFs for some of the spreadsheets but not all files have PDFs yet.

 

 

 

You are so my people. My DH thinks I am crazy. I plan at least a year out and I live on the internet scouring for more information [emoji23].

 

 

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[BigNance]

32 days for me.

 

 

3 days and 4 minutes..........

But who's counting;p;p;p

[twoznuff2]

You guys/gals are the best! I have done everything in this thread. My husband thinks I go overboard in planning each cruise, yet he never complains during vacation when everything goes like clockwork.

 

One thing that I do that has not been mentioned. I put my cash in envelopes labeled for what it is for. I separate my tip money by day and by activity. I earmark an amount of money to tip on the ship, porters, shuttles and excursions. Some of the excursions I go on state that they prefer to be paid in cash, so that goes in a marked envelope as well. I try to prepay as much as I can before I leave, but for the things I can't prepay, I have an envelope. All the envelopes go in the safe in my cabin and I get them out as needed each day.

 

Thanks, everyone, for sharing in my planning obsession. I am not alone!

 

 

 

I do this too. It is wonderful when visiting places with multiple types of currency.

 

 

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[twoznuff2]

Hi my name is Cathy and I too am a compulsive prepper.... [emoji16]. (This feels like a support group). I’ve done the spreadsheets, envelopes, lists, etc., etc. I use the OneNote app on my IPad with tabs for each area such as budget, itineraries, packing lists, excursions, etc. with my spreadsheets imbedded right on the tab for easy one stop reference. We just returned from an Alaskan Cruise on the Bliss and it was great to have everything planned beforehand so that I could just relax and enjoy. Something I did this trip as well was to plan outfits for each stop by day and night based on where we were going and what we had planned. I laid them all out including shoes and accessories and snapped pictures. Then using a bulletin board App I did two collages one for day looks and one for evening looks. Then snapped a screenshot of each. I could quickly refer to the pictures and grab out exactly what I needed for the day. I still packed a ton of things but mainly because of needing layers since the weather was quite cool compared to our upper 90 days this time of year in AL. I came home with maybe two items that were still clean and I believe those were a couple of extra short sleeved tops in case the weather was warmer than expected.

 

 

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I am on the Bliss for Alaska in May 2019. Would you care to share your spreadsheets,planning notes, excursion info with me?

 

 

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[twoznuff2]

This spreadsheet is awesome...Just saying!;)

 

 

 

Having trouble getting access to the spread sheet.

 

 

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[Maumau13]

I love this thread! Glad to know I am not the only one. My family and friends think I am crazy with all the planning. But no one complains when everything goes smoothly!

[twoznuff2]

I had the BEST time designing this![ATTACH]426727[/ATTACH]

 

 

 

Wow.. that’s amazing. I wish I was talented on the computer like that. Can and or would you be willing to share something like that, that could be modified for my Bliss cruise?[emoji1303]

 

 

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[twoznuff2]

I’m jokingly referred to as the travel agent of the family. I even complete their online check in! My guy wouldn’t have underwear or a toothbrush when traveling if not reminded.

 

 

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I need a like button for this. My family’s my days the same.

 

 

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[WitnessProtection]

 

Want to see some over the top planning ?? Have a look at the spreadsheet (below) for our roll call set up for October 2019. Port by Port by Port.

 

OMG! I just looked at the spreadsheet for the October 2019 trip and I am in awe. Makes me want to go on the cruise with you all! :) (I would consider it if we weren't already booked!)

[Shoppie124]

378 days left.. not nearly enough time to plan everything.. My husband thinks I'm off my rocker:p

[miaminautigal]

You could diet in preparation of the weight gain!

[sun_lovin!1]

You could diet in preparation of the weight gain!

Oh, take my word for it, I do that!

 

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[klfhngr]

Print out all of your docs, i.e., cruise, car rentals, airbnbs, directions/maps, places to eat, etc! I just printed all if mine, folded them then wrote on the top what docs they are (that way, I don't have to keep unfolding to see what they are!)...

[poohdreaming]

I saw the mini fan a few post back - genius! - A Mexican Riviera is coming up ;) but what is a clothes organizer bag? Which one/s do you like? Thanks!

 

There are different kinds. An example:

Clothes Organizer Bag/Storage bag:

amazon.com/1Storage-Clothing-Organizer-Breathable-Material/dp/B005IT2WZO

 

Not all staterooms have drawers, especially studio lounges. It depends on if you needed one or not.

[cathi007]

I am the same way! Boy do my Amazon purchases go way up near a cruise! May I ask what fan was suggested? I recently bought one that is a USB fan, but would love to know what was suggested. Thanks!

Me too, I'm trying to stop, but it's hard lol

[GA Dave]

There are different kinds. An example:

Clothes Organizer Bag/Storage bag:

amazon.com/1Storage-Clothing-Organizer-Breathable-Material/dp/B005IT2WZO

 

Not all staterooms have drawers, especially studio lounges. It depends on if you needed one or not.

 

We bought collapsible fabric cubes. Fit perfectly on the closet shelves and help keep clothes separated by type, i.e. socks, underwear, tee shirts, etc. They collapse to take up virtually no space in the suitcase.

[Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin]

I am SO excited about this thread! I am also an ultimate planner! Usually have all hotel, air, reservations done six months out (or as soon as the air reservations open up!) Packing starts a month out and usually done by 2 weeks prior...although I have an extra bedroom with drawers that I can start putting stuff in! I keep a tabbed notebook, but have just transitioned to a smaller portfolio that I can put my most important items in (like passports, copies of passports, envelopes with $$ and foreign currencies needed, all printouts of cruise documents, air reservations, etc.) And I keep a spare copy of all these documents at work, so I print out 2. I too, have built a spreadsheet (actually, it is 3 pages....1st page has the basics, like what, where, costs, latitudes rewards list; 2nd page has dates, starting a couple of days prior, so I can highlight things like charging my BOSE headphones and getting boarding pass 24 hours prior, (with color coding for meal reservations, shore time, shore excursions, etc.); and a 3rd page with a listing of all the things I need to do, like make hotel reservations, air reservations, parking, etc so I will have a listing of when I made deposits, when payment is due, any notes, and when complete!

I am SO happy to know that I am not the only one!

[styme123]

Are there any apps or websites that you guys like to use when trying to plan out where/what things are in the port? I'm a visual person, so if I can see it before hand I don't get as lost.

[styme123]

I like Visit a City!

I just checked it out! Love it! Thanks for the heads up :D

[Shellbelle28]

Wow.. that’s amazing. I wish I was talented on the computer like that. Can and or would you be willing to share something like that, that could be modified for my Bliss cruise?[emoji1303]

 

 

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Twznuff:

When do you sail? If there is no hurry, I could try to change it to something less specific to my cruise and send it to you.

[TheGinBoy]

I've read this thread and I just want to say THANK YOU. I'm so glad I'm not alone!!! :hearteyes:

 

We're 14 days out from our Epic cruise and I'm in full logistics mode.

 

I've created and shared with my partner:

 

• Excel spreadsheet: Detailing things we need to purchase before the cruise (excursions, tickets etc), on the cruise (spending on restaurants, gifts, ice bar etc), and in port (train tickets, meals, gifts).
  
• Apple Reminders list: Things to do ahead of the cruise (setting clothes aside for washing (for me to wash, who am I kidding??)), documents to print, gadgets to buy etc.
  
• iCal listings of the port times, disembarkation, and re-embarkation times etc.
  

 

He thinks I'm mad. But if I don't do it we'd either end up not going anywhere or leaving in a blind panic with suitcases full of dirty washing and no idea what we were doing when we got there! :')