Odd things we sometimes like to bring with us on a cruise

[Nicole&Pete]

Just now, damiross said:

The opinion express below does not reflect the view of Cruise Critic, my wife, the government, or possibly anybody else in the universe but it's mine and I'm sticking to it.

 

I think people bringing wipes with them everywhere they go indicates they are somewhat paranoid.  Yes, there may be germs or viruses on surfaces but in 99.9% of cases the germ or virus will not make you sick.  

Look - life is for living.  How can you live if you think everything you touch is going to kill you with the alleged germs or viruses on it

To be fair I only wipe on the first day just in case the person in the cabin before me had some kind of virus they have left on surfaces. I think a quick wipe is worth it. I don’t know if il go as far as wiping the walls though, lol.
 

I do this in all places I need to be paranoid, plane tray tables and cruise ship cabins being the most obvious two places. Every air hostess will tell you that they don’t clean the tray tables between flights so you should definitely wipe it yourself.

[Nicole&Pete]

Just now, SargassoPirate said:

We/I have carried wipes for years.  We used to get some sidelong glances when we'd get on a plane and wipe down the armrests, seatbelt buckles, and tray tables.  In hotels/ships we would wipe down the light switches, the remote, and door handles.

 

Since 2020 we are mainstream.

 

But, we don't get sick and haven't for years.

I used to get funny looks on planes too, now I get looks of “isn’t that a good idea”, oh how times have changed!

[Nicole&Pete]

Just now, SargassoPirate said:

Sounds like a bunch of experienced cruisers here.

 

Ok, other than She Who Must Be Obeyed, the oddest thing I have taken on a cruise was a folding camp chair in a bag   Since Princess pulled the barrel chairs out, if I have an opportunity to buy one near the port, I'll carry it on.  More comfortable than sitting on the bed in my cheap Luxury Inside Suite.  At the end of the cruise, I donate it to the crew.

 

 

Bringing your own furniture must win as the oddest thing to take on a cruise!

[travelin.sisters]

the 3 Stanley bears (& their wardrobes & accessories)

 

 

after them, many of the things mentioned here: fuzzy blanket for napping, orthopedic pillow, good chocolate, fan & alarm clock w/thermometer, room & door decorations, magnets, collapsible storage bins to organize all the things we bring, crafts...the last cruise it was a queen-sized quilt that I needed to finish for an upcoming wedding (but we live only miles from the port so we can always just add another bag if there are last minute things we decide to take)

[JG&Lcruisingnewbies]

An odd thing. Or maybe not. I think it might depend what side of the pond you are on tbh 😂 

 

i hate the UHT milk they put in cabins with a passion. Makes my PGTips (which I’ll bring with me) taste mouldy. This means I go without tea as soon as I wake up and that makes me moody. No one wants that, trust me!

 

so I get real milk from the buffet tea station & store in cabin fridge.

any clever tips on what to store it in though? Something with a lid. I’ve just been using a mug but I have nothing to cover it with unless I start taking clingfilm. Which might be even odder 😂

 

also- was wondering what size Tupperware will fit those fridges? So I can store whatever goodies I’ve smuggled from the cafe or buffet. The fridges always seem so shallow 🤔

[We_like_to_cruise]

 

This is now on our "must bring" cruise list -

 

 

 

[cjpj]

15 hours ago, Nicole&Pete said:

Does anyone take a stapler with them for luggage tags?

Used to borrow one at the hotel, but I ordered reuseable plastic tag holders from Amazon and just pop those in the luggage til  needed.

[SargassoPirate]

4 hours ago, Nicole&Pete said:

Bringing your own furniture must win as the oddest thing to take on a cruise!

I agree, it is odd, but I don't have to sit on the bed or use the desk chair to watch TV and it folds right up and stores easily when not in use.  At Port Everglades I picked one up at Publix.  I usually spend a night or two in the departure city before the cruise, so it's easy to find one.

 

So far the room stewards always seem appreciative when I tell them I'll be leaving the chair for the crew to use.

[avonlady6390]

I do not store food in those fridges I don't think they are cold enough for food that's a good way of getting food poisoning.  And that would include cream or milk.

[terrierjohn]

4 hours ago, Nicole&Pete said:

To be fair I only wipe on the first day just in case the person in the cabin before me had some kind of virus they have left on surfaces. I think a quick wipe is worth it. I don’t know if il go as far as wiping the walls though, lol.
 

I do this in all places I need to be paranoid, plane tray tables and cruise ship cabins being the most obvious two places. Every air hostess will tell you that they don’t clean the tray tables between flights so you should definitely wipe it yourself.

The air hostesses don't, but the cleaning staff that service each aircraft between flights should do so as part of their cleaning regime.

[terrierjohn]

3 minutes ago, avonlady6390 said:

I do not store food in those fridges I don't think they are cold enough for food that's a good way of getting food poisoning.  And that would include cream or milk.

The fridges in P&Os Royal class, Britannia, as well as the new LNG excel class, certainly keep drinks and my Kit Kat bars well chilled. So I hope the Sky Princess ones are as efficient for our  July cruise.

[larrybritt]

14 hours ago, BabySarge said:

We use these instead - find them on Amazon of course. -

We just got these to use for the first time as well.

[SargassoPirate]

16 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

The air hostesses don't, but the cleaning staff that service each aircraft between flights should do so as part of their cleaning regime.

Should being the key word.

 

People should wash their hands after using the restroom and before eating.  Many don't and thus they spread disease.

 

That's why we take precautions to keep ourselves safe and don't depend on others to do the right thing.

[larrybritt]

I always like to bring my own bar of soap too. There is just something about getting more later from a bar soap even though princess provided plenty of shampoo and soap.

 

My wife would love to bring Alexa with her. She must ask her 10 times a day what time it is and what temperature it is. I imagine sometime in the future as internet and AI progresses that will be the future. 

[Expat Cruise]

20 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Many people have commented that they do not like the "new" motion sensor lights on the nightstand and in the "hallway" outside the bathroom.  It can be quite annoying for the person still in bed if the other gets up in the middle of the night.  Take a short length of blue painters tape wrapped on a pen or any other type of item that packs easily.  Tear off about 3-4 inches for each motion sensor.  Blue tape removes very easily and will not harm the sensor at all.  I carry this wrapped on a popsicle stick and carry it in my little "emergency" toolkit (a very small plastic pouch with things like ty-wraps, tiny/medium screwdrivers & anything I can think of that might get you out of a bind.)

 

 

Every housekeeping department on every Princess Cruise has tape and will tape over the sensor. They know about this issue and your cabin steward will take care of it for you. We do not fix or change anything in our cabin, we do not want the responsibility or the liability for what is done. 

 

You may have heard about a cruise ship cabin fire and the balcony in flames a few days ago. It has been reported they are investigating the guests. Never give the cruise lines or any business a way to blame the customer for a problem. 

[PacnGoNow]

5 hours ago, julie3fan said:

I always bring a big soft fluffy pair of socks to wear in the cabin, instead of slippers.  Sometimes DH has the cabin a bit cold and it's easy to slide the socks on to warm my feet up.  

 

I also bring a highlighter to use on my Patter.

Disposable spa slippers work. Or, Dollar store slippers.

[Yehootu]

16 hours ago, Nicole&Pete said:

I knew someone would mention a laundry hamper!

Dollar store, cheap and fold flat for outside pocket of suitcase.

[Yehootu]

5 hours ago, Nicole&Pete said:

Bringing your own furniture must win as the oddest thing to take on a cruise!

We had an extended balcony and I brought on a Coleman lounging chair for my wife to use on our balcony. That way she didn't have to worry about getting a lounger after the hogs had been out. I almost used to sleep on as the Crowns mattresses were broken down horrible.

[PacnGoNow]

12 minutes ago, Yehootu said:

We had an extended balcony and I brought on a Coleman lounging chair for my wife to use on our balcony. That way she didn't have to worry about getting a lounger after the hogs had been out. I almost used to sleep on as the Crowns mattresses were broken down horrible.

You can ask for a new mattress, if in stock…or a mattress topper.  
Ours was worn on one side on the Crown also.

[cheriberi]

16 hours ago, Nicole&Pete said:

Does anyone take a stapler with them for luggage tags?

Instead of purchasing luggage tag holders, I always just laminate mine, punch a hole in the top, then bring small zip ties to attach them to my bags. There is no way the tags will accidentally come off.  

[Nicole&Pete]

Just now, SargassoPirate said:

I agree, it is odd, but I don't have to sit on the bed or use the desk chair to watch TV and it folds right up and stores easily when not in use.  At Port Everglades I picked one up at Publix.  I usually spend a night or two in the departure city before the cruise, so it's easy to find one.

 

So far the room stewards always seem appreciative when I tell them I'll be leaving the chair for the crew to use.

That sounds like a good plan. My luggage needs to be bigger after this thread I think!

[Nicole&Pete]

Just now, terrierjohn said:

The air hostesses don't, but the cleaning staff that service each aircraft between flights should do so as part of their cleaning regime.

You hope but I have always found dirty tray tables. Therefore I wipe, I get funny looks and little sniggers from people around but I don’t care, it makes me feel safer even though it’s probably done nothing!

[Nicole&Pete]

Just now, cheriberi said:

Instead of purchasing luggage tag holders, I always just laminate mine, punch a hole in the top, then bring small zip ties to attach them to my bags. There is no way the tags will accidentally come off.  

That is genius!!!!

[CaptainPedantic]

14 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

Sounds like a bunch of experienced cruisers here.

 

Ok, other than She Who Must Be Obeyed, the oddest thing I have taken on a cruise was a folding camp chair in a bag   Since Princess pulled the barrel chairs out, if I have an opportunity to buy one near the port, I'll carry it on.  More comfortable than sitting on the bed in my cheap Luxury Inside Suite.  At the end of the cruise, I donate it to the crew.

 

 

Love this! Also could be a great solution to the problem of sunbed-hoggers on sea days 🙂 

[MissP22]

1 hour ago, Expat Cruise said:

You may have heard about a cruise ship cabin fire and the balcony in flames a few days ago. It has been reported they are investigating the guests. Never give the cruise lines or any business a way to blame the customer for a problem. 

I believe they determined the problem to come from a deflective TV.