Happy ks

Compare insurance costs both ways. You may be surprised that there may not be a whole lot of difference for the insurance to cover all costs.

If the rate goes up a bit, we can eliminate things that can be canceled with no penalties, like hotel rooms or rental cars. We can't afford to just eat the cost of flights and cruises.

Years ago I realized we needed all the same items (toiletries, makeup tools, hair brushes, razors, first aid kit, etc…) for every trip, land or cruise. Over the course of a couple years, I purchased all those items so it is always ready, no need to search or remember to pack anything, the stuff is always packed.

It works well for us. I refill bottles and check expiration dates for OTC meds prior to packing. Most of the time the only purchase I make is new bottles of sunscreen.

All we need to do is select clothing/shoes/accessories for the trip. I will buy new clothing sometimes, but it has to fit into my daily life at home, no "cruise clothes". I'll make my selections and my husband his, tomorrow (Sunday), we leave next Saturday. There is no spare closet or bedroom in our house, so we assemble a rolling rack downstairs. The best parts of packing this way are there are no last minute choices packed (that never get worn), I can see where I could possibly cut down and nothing gets left behind. All the folded stuff is stacked neatly under the rack, all the costume jewelry in small drawstring bags hanging with evening outfits. I will pack it all Friday afternoon, we leave early Saturday morning.

When I used to pack in our bedroom next to the closet, many extras went in. If I packed ahead of time I would forget what was in the case and, more than once, discover I had way too much during the trip. We came home every trip with clean, never worn clothing. I just got weary of hauling and organizing too much stuff. I want all the clothing dirty when we get home.

We pack for 5 days/nights no matter how long the trip will be (5 days or more :p ). Laundry/dry cleaning can always be sent out or, on Princess, there is a laundry room. It takes very little effort to do a load or two, we can cut way back on underwear, shorts and clothing that way. Laundry/dry cleaning costs are less than paying for overweight or extra bags if flying and we want to be able to handle our own bags.

The first time I "under" packed was scary, we were both used to having "choices" on what we could wear. But it all worked out and absolutely no one has said anything about us wearing the same items of clothing more than once. I doubt anyone on these large ships would even know I wore the same shoes to all of the casual nights, that I only had one pair of flip flops, one bathing suit.

I don't know why people want to participate in "cabin crawls" and have everyone know which cabin they are in. Just doesn't make good sense to me. We wouldn't give our room number out to strangers in a hotel on land, why do it on a cruise ship?

I've only had a couple incidents. One, after embarking I witnessed a person from our roll call being very rude to staff, not once but twice. I knew who it was since they had their screen name emblazoned on their carry on. I didn't go to the M & G, it was a small ship and I didn't want to be associated with her. Unfortunately, I didn't get to meet the people I wanted to meet and found out after the cruise she didn't attend the M & G either.

Another time I met up with the two women who organized the roll call stuff. I wouldn't give out my cabin number, they weren't happy about that, oh well. By the end of the week, those two had gotten into a fight, hated each other and wanted everyone to know about it. I got cornered and heard all the gossip each time one of them would see me. Not what I want to listen to on my vacation. Was I ever glad I didn't make my cabin number available :p

I will go to the M & G, meet a few people and say Hi! during the week, but unless something really clicks, we pretty much stay to ourselves and the family/friends we are cruising with.

The very few times over the years when I have had conflict with another CC'r, it has never been on a roll call. I typically don't get too involved in any type of altercation. Many times people misunderstand a post and some are really a little too sensitive. You can't read tone in postings, I have found when people may use humor there are always some who get offended. When I do disagree, I try my best to not get personal.

I can't imagine leaving behind old underwear would save much space in a suitcase :confused:

Old underwear gets tossed into the trash at home on a regular basis. Unwanted clothes go to the Goodwill. I don't want to wear old, holey, badly stained or elastically challenged underwear just to save a tiny bit of space. I plan our clothing carefully when packing and want to look nice on a luxury vacation (we do not go out and buy new clothes for a cruise, we wear what we already have). I don't care to wear clothing I don't like, or that is ready to be thrown out.

Toiletries, mostly travel sized refillable bottles. What is not refillable can be tossed, but it doesn't make that much difference in the suitcase.

I think that since we are not souvenir shoppers and have little extra to pack for the return home trip makes the biggest difference. We may buy the kids a keychain and one Christmas ornament. We also don't pack a lot of what I consider to be pretty useless items. We don't pack laundry hampers, coolers, shoe holders, insulated cups, extra bags, etc...

It's amusing that people get so passionate about one particular food item on a cruise :D

I can take it or leave it. We've had great lobster in Maine and New Hampshire (12 miles of coastline!). We've had wonderful seafood along the west coast and in Hawaii. All on land. The only time we've had really good lobster on a ship was, oddly enough, in a specialty restaurant on an NCL ship in Hawaii. My husband had that and I had a wonderful steak the same night. That was the only good food we had all week, with the exception of one other night we went to another specialty restaurant.

We don't cruise for the food and would never get excited about having lobster in the dining room. We really prefer not going to formal night at all and going to a specialty restaurant those nights. I know that many prefer the inclusive food in the dining room and will not pay extra, but we have found that for $20-25 extra per person we can have a great meal, not just a mediocre meal. Well worth it, to us. It's great that we now can all have a choice.

One thing I learned years ago was to carry a purse just large enough for my own stuff. Let the others in your party carry their own stuff. I am not a pack mule for others. It doesn't take long for them to learn what is important and essential for the day. Or…what they will accumulate throughout the day.

Sure, I'll put the bottle of sunscreen in my bag, but that's something I need too.

IMO that article was clear that unless you are a fashionista, thin, never wrinkled .... you just don't belong on a cruise!! :eek: I am SOOOO not going to fit her requirements!!!

You do realize Kelly didn't write the article, just made comments about what was already written? I hardly read any judgement from her, more like common sense for the most part.

I agree with most of what the article says, to a point. For instance, personally I hate to see a man in a speedo, even one in very good shape. But many people like them, even women.

The fanny pack thing. When my kids were small and I took them to Disneyland, it came in handy to be hands free. That stopped as soon as I purchased my first cross body bag more than 15 years ago. The one the model shows is cute, but you could hardly put anything in it (I'm thinking kids, amusement park, convenience). There are so many nice cross body bags now, it's weird to see someone still using a fanny pack.

I would never, nor would my husband, wear a logo T shirt. But they are so popular people think of them as souvenirs. I don't look at them as sloppy, just super casual. I also wouldn't wear something not laundered or cleaned before the first wear…that has an ick factor to me.

I would not go out of the stateroom in my robe, period. Even to the spa. I wear my bathing suit cover up. We were at a B and B one year, one of my sisters (one who rarely travels) came to breakfast in her pajamas/robe/hair a mess. I think she was astonished that she was the only one not dressed. The B and B was a large one, probably 10 rooms, so there were a lot of people in the breakfast room.

I have a BIL who wears only tropical shirts all year round. I'd be shocked if he didn't wear them on an Alaska cruise.

I've been to the buffet and had to flag down a staff person to clean the chair of a sunscreen butt print. The last thing I want is an oily stain on the back of my pants, I think everyone has to agree with this.

The rest of it, string bikinis on a water slide, expensive jewelry on an excursion, etc...that's just common sense. Perhaps a mistake a person will make once and never again.

One thing I rarely see any longer (hopefully out of fashion and never to return) is women's evening gowns with glitter. The glitter leaves a trail, sticks to everything and if you happen to sit on a chair they have occupied, good luck getting the glitter out of your clothing :roll eyes: Year ago you would see staff vacuuming chairs in lounges, showrooms, atriums, trying to get that stuff off the furniture the next day. Repeat after formal night #2.

I am confused??? I haven't been on a cruise before. Our first one is a gift. You said carrying around a bag for the pool on the ship is a newbie mistake? How so? When I go to ANY pool in the world, I ALWAYS bring a bag with my stuff in it. Please explain? Maybe I misunderstand the situation?

Thank you!

Some people don't want to carry a bag and some do. Individual choice. I don't think it's a newbie mistake, I've been on more than 20 cruises and I will carry a purse at times, sometimes I use my pockets. It depends on what you want to have with you.

I've read some posts over the years you can always tell a newbie by new sneakers. Just not true. My husband likes to get new sneakers shortly before we leave, he's been on more cruises than me. People just shouldn't make general assumptions about others.

Yep, I absolutely notice shoes, as well as bags, jewelry, clothing, etc. I'm a people watcher. It's about the only thing I like about being in crowds:p

 

Just because I *notice* what you're wearing doesn't mean I'm judging you badly for it! I wear clothing that is comfortable to me, clean & neat, and fits my style. I would hope that everyone else does the same - and our styles are not going to be the same, nor would what "comfortable" means to us be the same. How dull would that be:D

Another people watcher here! I love to see people having a good time. There are times I see what is eye catching when I have to wonder about choices, but usually it will be the woman barely able to walk in 5 inch or higher platform shoes. But then I remember I wore 5 inch platform shoes in the 70's. I'd never do that to myself again :p

To the OP, your shoes will be fine.

The first few cruises we went on, it was exciting to get the docs. Then after a few years I would take out what I needed to keep and throw the rest in the recycle bin. I remember wondering if I could request that they not send all the excess to me.

I'm completely happy with printing our own docs and luggage tags. I'm also happy to read whatever I need to read on the computer. If I think it needs to be printed out, I can just print out one page rather than a whole booklet. I even will print on both sides of the paper to cut back on waste.

Now, if I could only get the junk mail to cease. I read my mail next to the recycle bin.

Thanks for your response, I do appreciate it:)

I have a couple Soma bras, they look almost identical to my Wacoal bras but there is a difference between the two. The Soma bras, the straps slip off my shoulders, not so with the Wacoal bras. My Wacoal bras are so much more comfortable, the new one that Lois recommended has been great. They are the same size, so perhaps I need a different size in the Soma brand, but why mess with what works best?

I'm more interested in the Winemakers dinner than anything else. We are a group of 6, 4 of us enjoy wine a lot, the other 2 enjoy wine, but not like we do. I'm not a connoisseur by any means, but I enjoy a good bottle.

We're planning on getting a number of bottles from Total Wine prior to boarding (we do not mind the corkage fee, happy to pay it to select our own wines) and we had thought if we went to the dinner one night, we could eliminate several bottles.

Would we be better off avoiding the Winemakers dinner? How was the food in comparison to the dining room food? The description of the dinner makes it sound like a pairing, so I'm a little disappointed to read this.

I've never had a blow dryer on a ship or in a hotel work for me as well as my own travel dryer. I've been very disappointed in some of them, especially the wall type on the Princess ships that I've been on. Hardly any air and what there was was not very warm…all 3 Princess ships and different cabins I've been on. Not on any cruise line for that matter. Celebrity was one step down as their wall mounted dryer was in the bathroom, the only thing it was good for was clearing the foggy mirror.

A travel dryer can fold up small and weigh less than a pound. I'd rather give up an extra outfit or a pair of shoes than take a risk on using a supplied blow dryer.

But, I style my hair with round brushes as I dry, I don't just aim air at my head and blow the hair around. I need a directional nozzle to concentrate the air, those little dryers in hotel rooms can really get hot and dry out/burn your hair.

I don't have special 'cruise clothes".....I take what I would normally wear at home...so, don't purchase specifically for the cruise! Make sure whatever you buy, you'll be able to use as normal wardrobe!

Good luck to you....fire or not, it sounds horrendous!

I'll have to agree with this. You may have something special for formal night, but otherwise buy things that you can use.

I will add, whatever you buy, wear it a few times before your trip. Make sure you really like the item and it is comfortable. We've all purchased clothes that we think we love, only to have it be scratchy or too tight/loose/longer/shorter than we would prefer and don't find this out until the first real wearing. I made that mistake when we cruised the Med…bought a pair of those pants that zip into shorts. I hated them, I had only tried them on at home prior to leaving. Those went directly from the suitcase to the Goodwill bag.

If you're serious about the workout clothes (the fact you state you might not use them) take one outfit, leave the other 2 at home.

Six tops is a lot for a 5 day trip, especially when you will be wearing a swimsuit/coverup a couple of those days. You could leave half of those home.

Add a couple pair of shorts to go with those tops.

You really only need one pair of flip flops.

If you're serious about traveling at least once per year, invest in a travel sized dryer. It may take a couple more minutes to dry your hair, but it's half the size and weight of a regular dryer. Mine is years old and I've used it plenty. There are models that come with a diffuser, or better yet, a diffuser sleeve. There are several on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_24?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=travel+hair+dryer+with+diffuser&sprefix=travel+hair+dryer+with+d%2Caps%2C276

I wouldn't be surprised if you follow your packing list that you bring half of it home (or more) unworn. Not that that's a bad thing, just that (for me) I don't like carrying home clean clothes, I want everything worn and dirty, no extras.

I haven't decided what to take on my next cruise, but my list will pretty much follow this (7 night cruise, one night pre and 2 nights post):

One pair black slacks, one pair white slacks for evening.

Two dressy tops, three casual tops for evening. One pair evening shoes. Two of the three tops will be worn twice, the pants laundered a couple times each.

Three pair shorts, one pair capris, five tops to mix and match all. One pair sandals. Two sundresses.

One bathing suit, one cover up, one pair flip flops.

Underwear, bras.

Toiletries, small first aid kit, travel blow dryer (I have never used one in a hotel or on any cruise ship that I found acceptable), camera, iPod. Cell phone, turned off, only used for emergencies. There are a few odds and ends in my carry on, stuff that is always packed and ready to go. I pretty much have everything I use on a daily basis (toiletries, makeup tools, alarm clock, etc..) in travel sizes. It beats having to gather all that stuff every time we travel.

Tote bag for travel on top of a small carry on for the plane. 24" suitcase, checked onto plane. One day use purse (cross body, doubles as wallet), one evening purse, one folded fabric beach bag.

I pack one outfit into my carry on, I cross pack at least one outfit into my husbands checked bag and vice versa. If a case goes on a different vacation, we'd have at least 3 outfits that way.

Forgot…my pajamas and lightweight robe, I will not wear the heavy waffle weave or terry cloth ones provided. I'd be a sweaty mess. I also do laundry at mid point, or send a few things out for laundry. Or, I even will hand wash a couple things, no biggie.

Gathina, love the shoes…please don't be fearful of wearing them. I have a couple pair of shoes that (I felt) I paid way too much for. But, I figured I needed to get my money's worth out of them. Both have been worn so much you would think I'd be tired of them, but no, I still love them and weirdly enough, still get compliments on both pair. I've had them for over 5 years, I swear I wear each pair at least twice a week. That's about 520 wearings each so far and they're still going strong :) So, the shoes have been a great value, much more so than less expensive shoes that were barely worn.

I've been watching some YouTube videos from Gayle Goddard, a professional organizer. I like what she has to say, especially about sentimental items and how to get started on sorting through your clutter and "stuff".

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Gayle%20Goddard&sm=3

I think I'm lucky that I'm not a sentimental saver. Sure, I have a few things, but you don't walk through my home and see the past life of parents, grandparents, etc… What I do have is in photo albums or neatly folded onto the linen shelf.

Edit: yesterday I went through 2 drawers and got rid of 3 nightgowns, fairly new and were gifts. They have lace at the neck and I hate the feeling of lace. Two pair of jammie shorts that I haven't worn in a couple years. A workout bra that doesn't really fit all that well. About 5 tank tops that have seen better days (I have tank tops in every color you can imagine). I still need to go through the shoes…that is going to be the hardest part for me. Not because all these beautiful shoes don't fit, but because with nerve damage I just can't wear even the lowest heel any longer.

There are a few things you can try. Avoid using shampoo every day, just rinse through your hair. I don't use a lot of conditioner on cruises, I find the soft water makes my fine hair too soft. A leave in conditioner is always good.

Wet your hair with clear water prior to the ocean and especially the pool. Your hair will not absorb as much water from these sources if already wet. I slather on conditioner onto my wet hair and sunscreen into my scalp while in the sun.

I won't recommend brands as I can't see or feel your hair. Read labels and match up to your hair type when you shop.

Edit to add, personally I avoid getting my hair into chlorinated water as I find it very damaging. If I do get chlorine in my hair I rinse as soon as possible with clear water.

They would be crazy not to read these boards.

I'm sure they get a pretty good chuckle out of some of the assumptions people make. Such as, they can identify passengers by screen name. Or some of the tip threads. Or booze smuggling and how serious some people can be.

This is one of those instances where no one can absolutely guarantee you will make your flight. It's possible…but… If something goes wrong you could miss your flight.

Last year we were off the ship, through customs, cab, check in, security etc… and waiting at our gate at FLL by 8:15 am. We did self disembarkation (I hate that!). It was a real drag as our flight wasn't until 12:30 (then delayed 45 minutes). My husband was worried about making it to the airport on time. He got lots of dirty looks from me around 11:30 am when others from our cruise were casually strolling into the gate area.

There are stories abounding on CC both ways, yes and no.

It's been years since we purchased cruise/air. Our first cruise was before they had Choice Air, EZ Air or other cruise line programs. At that time, we had a red eye flight outbound, torture. The first 2 days of the trip were really hard since we all had to catch up on sleep. So much for 3 days at Disney World. Plus, we were not seated together, they split us up from our kids, 6 and 9 at the time, that was astonishing. Some very nice strangers agreed to change seats so I could be close to them, my husband was about 5 rows ahead of us. Our 9 year old son was in the row behind me, at least I got to sit next to my (very shy) 6 year old daughter. It did not make for good memories, the seating arrangements were this way both directions. The flight home was at 4pm, yes we had transfers from the ship…we sat at the airport from 10 am to 4 pm.

I always check the cruise lines airfare to compare. This next cruise, purchasing our own air was $150 less per person for the same flight.

There have been times when the the cruise line comes close, and there is the fact that many times it includes transfers. But I think it is a better personal choice for us to have more control over seat assignment, ground transportation, etc… We always fly in the day prior to a cruise and we like to stay over a day or two if we can.

How do you suck them down when you get ready to leave the ship?

I have the kind that you roll to expel the air. I don't use them for anything that I mind getting wrinkled, such as underwear, pj's, swimsuits. When we're not traveling I will use them for storage of seasonal clothing. The quality is great with the Eagle Creek, I have used cheaper brands in the past only to find they leak within a few uses. Zip top bags are good to use as well, they just don't compress like a compression bag does. I use those for damp or smelly clothes for the trip home, as I don't want to have to discard my good compression bags.

http://shop.eaglecreek.com/packit-compression-sac-medium/d/1063

There is a video to watch on the above link.

Edit to add, I prefer the medium size bags, the large are just too large and take up lots of suitcase space.

Coq au vin is typically made with chicken thighs and legs, sometimes whole cut up chicken. I can't imagine it made only with chicken breasts. Chicken breasts don't have as much flavor.

However, I have avoided poultry on cruise ships for years. It always tastes re-heated to me. My husband will order poultry at least once on every cruise, no matter the line, and he's always disappointed. I have no idea why he keeps trying. We do not cruise for the food. I keep reading how food has degraded over the years...it's never been all that great to me.

Although, we never go hungry ;) We cruise for the overall experience, especially being on the ocean.

We always toss the remote control into a zip lock baggie.The remote isn't going to be germ free with a wipe down. The thought of the previous naked passenger guy laying in bed watching TV and scratching his crotch really does stick with me :eek: so this is why I do this.

 

 

Any wiping down is going to get ruined when the room attendant comes through with a reusable cleaning rag anyways :(

Thanks for the giggle…real life! I'll admit it, my sense of humor is still quite juvenile ;)

No, we don't disinfect anything. I've thought about it in the past, but I always forget the wipes at home. Perhaps lucky, never have gotten sick on a cruise or any other vacation. Oh, I did catch a cold while we were in Italy, started coming down with it on the flight home. So I could have caught it onboard, although we'd been onboard for 13 days prior, wiping down the cabin would have had no effect there.

My carry on with toiletries, first aid kit, some electronics are packed all the time. This is stuff that is taken on every trip, land or sea and for any length of time.

My clothes/shoes/accessories, I usually decide what to pack the Sunday prior to leaving, then hang it/fold it underneath a rolling garment rack. I pack away from the closet to avoid packing extra.

The day prior to leaving, I check off everything to make sure nothing is missing. I do that before packing anything into suitcases as I have packed so early in the past that I find I have 2 of some things when we arrive and unpack. I hate it when I overpack.