How to Pack for Your Next Cruise
My stylized guide to a successful packing experience for a summer Alaskan cruise.
This is for you, my passengers. For the ones who love to travel, but don’t get to often. For the ones who will soon be going on their first trip. And for the ones who want to glide across the globe.
We can all agree that the hardest part of packing is figuring out what to bring, and organizing our bag to fit all of our belongings. As an overpacker, I struggled a lot with this. It was always a last minute battle between all my items. Constantly panicking till the minute before I have to leave for the airport. Still deciding if I should bring my green dress, or my red one. Maybe both of them? You never know. What about my shoes? Should I pack my white sandals or brown ones? After practically shoving my whole closet into a suitcase, I place my favorite bathing suit on top before I close it, even though it’s a winter trip. “Just in case”. So I have for you, the ultimate packing checklist for a cruise trip.
Clothing items you pack will vary by the destination and route of your cruise. I took one from Canada to Alaska this summer so I had to pack both summer and winter clothing. On the cruise ship and in Canada, the weather was mostly summer-like and I wore lightweight breathable clothing; shorts, tees. However, in Alaska, the air was chilly and winds blew making me layer clothing. Sweaters and jackets helped me to keep warm in the slightly colder weather. So keep in mind your packing list may look slightly different depending on your travel plans, and be prepared to juggle multiple weather types on your vacation
In general, make sure to check the weather of the locations you will be visiting on your trip and pack versatile clothing. Pieces that you can layer, style up and down, as well as wear for comfort will help to minimize the number of items you bring.
Here is my list of essentials for your next cruise trip! Specifically, a summer cruise vacation to Alaska.
Swimwear & Outerwear
Swimwear
bathing suits for the pool
Outerwear
lightweight jacket
raincoat
warm jacket
Footwear
waterproof shoes for the pool
Casual
Tops
t shirts (tight and loose)
sweaters
tanks
long sleeves
Bottoms
jeans
shorts
sweatpants
leggings
Undergarments
pack extra, more than you think
Footwear
comfortable shoes
Dressy
Dressy outfit ideas
dresses
skirts
blouses
fancy pants
nice pair of shoes (heels, flats)
jewelry
cardigan
Toiletries & Medication
Toiletries
skincare
makeup
toothbrush
toothpaste
contacts/glasses (products that go along with it)
hair products
Medication
for motion sickness: motion sickness patches, motion sickness bands
any medication needed
Personal Items & Electronics
Personal items
cash & cards
passport
hats
small personal belt bag
Electronics
phone
laptop
iPad
portable travel size charger
regular charger
Get Organized
After you’ve finally decided what to bring with you, it’s time to somehow jam everything into your suitcase.
This used to be the part I dreaded the most. To be honest, I still struggle with this step sometimes. But learning how to organize my suitcase made it way easier to pack and unpack.
Using packing cubes made a huge difference and it was way easier to find my items in my suitcase later on. I can organize my suitcase into categories as listed above; swimwear, outerwear, bottoms, tops, etc. No more digging to the bottoms of your bag to find something. Another big tip for having organized bags is to never have any loose items. Loose items tend to scatter around and create a big mess. It begins to be hard to find items and takes up more space in your bag. Use pouches and containers for toiletries, medication, and personal items.
So now you know how to pack your suitcase and organize everything, but what about your carry on bag? What kind of bag are you even supposed to use?
Personally, I think that bags with pockets are a great choice. Bonus points if it has waterproof compartments! This tote bag is one of my favorite carry-on bags because of its lightweight material and sturdy zipper. Its water resistant fabric makes it completely waterproof and all the pockets allow me to easily pull out anything I need. I can easily fit all of my toiletries, extra pants, granola bar, kindle, phone, tablet, and necessities for the flight.
Premium trick of mine: store all the liquids you will bring in your carry on bag in a clear ziplock bag or toiletry bag. This was a game changer for going through TSA. Every time the security guards told you to take out all liquids and put them into the tray, I would dig through my bag and individually take out each one. Now, I can simply take out one ziplock bag with all my liquid products and keep my bag organized! Make sure your ziplock bag closes so nothing spills!
