Christmas 2018 Planning – Cruise Packing

Since this was our first cruise we had absolutely no idea what to expect. The amount of storage in our room was unknown. We were unsure what temperatures to prepare for either. Leaving NYC in December, we expected cold, but wasn’t sure how much time we’d expect to spend outside and how sheltered the outdoor space really was. Inside would of course be climate controlled. We knew things would be warmer in Florida and the Caribbean in ports, but what about at sea? Would it be cold there as well because it gets windy offshore?

There wasn’t much information online especially about winter cruises from NYC, but common sense said we should prepare for colder temperatures and hope for warmer ones. Shorts don’t take up much space anyways! Having multiple layers would also add versatility for a multitude of weather conditions.

Storage

We watched nearly every video of the ship we were going to be on, the Norwegian Escape. It seemed like there was a decent amount of storage in almost every room type and from some online posts it seemed likely that we could store our suitcases under the bed. Video tours usually don’t show under the bed. We planned to have one large suitcase, one carry-on rollaboard, and we would each have a backpack. The suitcases would be full and the backpacks would be targeted mostly for overflow.

From our research we knew there would be closet hanging space for our jackets there and worst case we could put our suitcases in the closets if they didn’t fit under the bed. Packing is one of my few true skills so I was able to get everything we needed into the suitcases and into the car for the drive to New York. We had a separate rollaboard we would dedicate to the clothes we’d need for our days after the cruise in NYC before heading home.

Gadgets

There are endless videos and articles suggesting things to pack for a cruise. I found most of the suggestions too be a little over the top. I’m not one to decorate my door in order to find it more easily. That’s why the put numbers on them. I don’t need magnetic clips to hang things on the wall, or a closet organizer to make sure my shoes are neatly aligned. We weren’t bringing THAT much stuff and it was only a week. How messed up could it get? Maybe we travel differently than other people or we’re just more used to travel. Maybe I’m just a cynic!

I packed some books and magazines that had been piling up on my to-read list over the last few months. Having some forced disconnected time was something I was looking forward to.

Even though we had the internet package it wasn’t an unlimited access package so we would only have occasional connectivity. The nature of our day jobs is that we sometimes have to deal with emergencies at work so we need to bring our laptops when we travel and check in somewhat regularly. Our teams at work knew we wouldn’t be readily available for this trip but we expected to check in a few times to see if anything required our attention. It’s not ideal but it’s pretty standard practice for any trip we go on. We try not to let it distract us from our travel, but it does happen from time to time. This trip we were going to be much less available than others and our workplaces were aware we were in the middle of the ocean.

For my laptop bag I cleaned out a lot of the extras and duplicates doodads I had collected since my last purge. I limited the number of extra cables/dongles/connectors/power supplies/etc. in order to lighten the bag. I think I shaved a whole pound off. Not nearly as much as I had hoped, but it did feel more roomy and easier to find things with it organized again. For this trip I did bring a portable battery which can be used to power our laptops in a pinch or charge our phones. I brought headphones and chargers as I would for any trip as well.

We downloaded some Netflix/Amazon content to the iPads just in case, but didn’t plan to watch any of it on the ship. I also downloaded some training courses for work in the off chance I felt bored. We didn’t end up watching any of that content during the trip.

Medicines

On any trip I always have the basics including Advil/Tylenol and chewable antacids. We bought some more sunblock as our supplies had dwindled since the summer.

Since we didn’t know if any of us were going to get seasick, we asked around for some advice. A few people recommended getting Sea Bands which are pretty popular online. They work by pressing on pressure points on your wrist in a way they claim can help reduce motion sickness. They aren’t expensive so I got a pair for each of us just in case.

I also brought some children’s Dramamine and two different brands of motion sickness pills for adults. My thinking is that if one didn’t work then we could try the other Since they had two different active ingredients. With luck we wouldn’t need any of them, but we were prepared in case we did.

We even remembered our toothbrushes, which we commonly forget. We usually have to ask for ones at the hotel front desk, but not this time!