Packing Idea's

[Angel59920]

I am starting my packing list and I would like to know what you wished you would have packed for your kids that you forgot or didn't have....I have never taken them on a cruise and needs ideas on what they will need that I wouldn't even think about.

[KirkNC]

Lay everything you think you need on the bed and than put 1/2 of it back in your drawers. We travel for a month with one medium suitcase plus one small bookback each.

 

Kirk

[seashell36]

Your packing list really depends on the age of the children you're cruising with.

 

In general you need to make sure you have something that will occupy the little ones during dinner - if they tend to get fidgety.

 

Make sure you bring any medication that your children might need - for fever, cold, allergies, if they are prone to earaches - that med, sunscreen, sunburn relief spray plus a first aid kit.

 

I've given my kids backpacks before each cruise and told them that whatever items they "can't live without" (stuffed animal, book, small video game - that kind of thing) needs to fit into those backpacks. They are responsible for them. I carry a tote or backpack with the ipods, camera, cell phones.

 

If your kids bring anything that needs charging (ipod, Nintendo DS, camera) don't forget the chargers.

 

Oh, and one thing I learned the hard way - bring a pair of long pants and a sweater or jacket for everyone. Even in July it can be chilly onboard the ship.

[rebeccalouiseagain]

Bring a portable DVD player or laptop for the plane and stateroom.

 

Since it is your first cruise you'll probably want to do the MDR. After 20+ cruises under my belt, I now just do casual dining with my son. Some cruise lines are better than others for this. I find that I can pack fewer clothes if we just do the buffet at night. It works well for us but might not be desirable for everyone. This way we don't need dress clothes for the kids. I do bring along a couple nice outfits for dressy nights (when it is required) because you don't want to look like a slob on formal nights if you are going around the ship. Investing in dress clothes is worth it for adults but not for kids who probably will never wear them again. Collared (polo) type shirts will suffice for boys. I buy clothes that my son will wear to school in the fall and that sort of thing. This way you aren't having to bring dress shoes, etc.

 

Flip flops and coverups (day), school type clothes for evenings.

[Angel59920]

Thanks so much everybody for your ideas. My kids are 10 and 6 yrs old. I didn't think about bring anything for them to do at dinner so that was a great idea.

 

Do they show cartoons on the tv? I don't remember seeing any on the tv when we went.

[INeedAMaiTai]

We put a few movies and shows on our ipods to show the kids if they started getting crazy during dinner.

 

Again, it does depend on the ages of your kids. I traveled with a 3 year old and a 6 month old and a few things that we made sure to bring were clippies to hold a napkin on as a bib, plenty of things to color on, movies, their lovies, a few books, dish soap and sippy cups, little toys (anything light and that didn't take up too much room); we did laundry on the ship so we didn't pack TOO many clothes.

 

One thing that I will do always is take a back of the door shoe holder to hold any random things that we needed to store. Whether it be toys, hair brushes, cups, etc.; it's great to have a place to stick things so the flat surfaces in the cabin aren't too cluttered.

[cb at sea]

Yes...there is a "kids" channel, with cartoons and kiddy shows/movies.

[Angel59920]

Yes...there is a "kids" channel, with cartoons and kiddy shows/movies.

 

 

Thanks so much, my kids can't sleep without a tv on and if there was no cartoons or movies for them we might have to bring a computer or something for them to watch there movies on.

[Angel59920]

Does anybody bring juice boxes? Or do you get the soda package?

[Kerry's Girls]

Re-fillable water bottles - great to have on board and in port. I bring packaged snacks and treats for the ports to avoid whining while we're on the go. One thing that I love having is my pop up hamper - which we actually use to toss all their stuff in before we leave the cabin so it's not laying all over.

 

Best,

Mia

[Angel59920]

Re-fillable water bottles - great to have on board and in port. I bring packaged snacks and treats for the ports to avoid whining while we're on the go. One thing that I love having is my pop up hamper - which we actually use to toss all their stuff in before we leave the cabin so it's not laying all over.

 

Best' date='

Mia[/quote']

 

 

Thanks Mia for the hamper tip. That is a good idea too. We always just used the couch but now that the kids have to sleep on it, I guess that is out.

[crzgrl66]

I'm not sure of your kids ages, but this was an idea I that I got from a kids travel site years ago that worked great for my kids when they were 6 & 8. I put together outfits for each day with shirt, shorts, socks, & underwear and then put each set in a gallon sized ziplock bag. It saved a huge amount of time when we were getting ready, because they would just choose a bag. Much less mess of them rumaging through the suitcase and they dressed themselves, but the clothes matched.

 

The bags were perfect to reuse for many things and the dirty clothes just got tossed into a collapsible hamper until the last day when I filled one suitcase with just dirty clothes.

[Angel59920]

Does anybody remember what kind of shampoo and soap they use on RCCL? What all coming in your bathroom on these ships?

[cruisinbanddirectors]

I'm not sure of your kids ages, but this was an idea I that I got from a kids travel site years ago that worked great for my kids when they were 6 & 8. I put together outfits for each day with shirt, shorts, socks, & underwear and then put each set in a gallon sized ziplock bag. It saved a huge amount of time when we were getting ready, because they would just choose a bag. Much less mess of them rumaging through the suitcase and they dressed themselves, but the clothes matched.

 

The bags were perfect to reuse for many things and the dirty clothes just got tossed into a collapsible hamper until the last day when I filled one suitcase with just dirty clothes.

 

I read that suggestion before our last cruise, which was the first with our DS who was 2 at the time. At that point I thought it was a bit extreme, but I tried it, and boy did it turn out to be a lifesaver!!!

 

Also, you might look, there are several sample toddler/infant packing lists out there. I just read over several and combined, edited for ours.

[Katiebug430]

It depends on the age of the child(ren) but for those of us with infants/toddlers I read a great suggestion on this board a while ago for packing consumables. Basically if you buy your diapers in the big "club" pack boxes, use one of them to pack your diapers, wipes, baby food, formula if applicable, and other consumables of that nature. Tape it up with packing tape and slap a luggage tag on it. Everything is in one contained and relatively small space in your cabin - there's no searching through bags to find the disposable bibs or the sippy cup because all of the baby stuff is in the diaper box. Then by the end of the cruise anything you're taking home with you can be tucked into your suitcases and you just ask your cabin steward to throw away the cardboard box.

 

We are doing the Ziploc bag for each outfit on our cruise next month. I don't want to have to sort through a suitcase full of baby clothes in search of a top that matches shorts, or the diaper cover that goes with a dress.

 

Also for little ones, the disposable bibs have been recommended. We use a plastic Baby Bjorn bib at home but I don't feel like washing it. There are several brands but a friend swears by Pampers Bibsters.

[AandBmom]

Does anybody bring juice boxes? Or do you get the soda package?

 

When considering the soda package you might want to check out how many sodas they would have to consume per day to make it worth while. I think it works out to at least 2 per day or else it's cheaper to just pay per drink. It's never worthwhile for us b/c I don't want my kids drinking that much soda.

 

I'm not sure about RCCL but I do know that Carnival has lemonade, iced tea or juice available around the clock so we just bring our own reuseable water bottles and fill them to take into ports. Around the ship the kids fill up cups from the buffet with water, juice or lemonade. Those drinks are mostly sugar too, but it's kind of their "treat" while on vacation.

 

As for other things to pack, we always bring a small LED battery operated digital clock. I like to know the time, especially in the middle of the night and I my kids know if they wake up before anyone else is up to check the clock and make sure it's at least 7am before they're allowed out of their beds.

 

The cabins can be very dark at night, especially inside cabins so I like to pack a small light for the bathroom. The little battery operated votive candles work well. They light up the bathroom just enough to see in the night and you can then avoid flicking on the big light and waking up the rest of the family. On CArnival there is a shelf in front of the vanity mirror where one sits perfectly and then the light reflects in the mirror too which is the perfect brightness IMO.

 

We love taking our kids to the MDR. We find they get to experience different foods and learn the lifeskill of eating in a nice restaurant. We don't allow them to bring electronics to dinner. They enjoy colouring the activity pages provided by Carnival and if they get bored of that we play "hangman" on the back of the paper or "tic tac toe". If you eat fairly early the dining room experiences tends to move quickly enough in our experience. We usually pack one or two pairs of khaki pants for each child and a few nice shirts for dinner. We always pack running shoes for the kids as they are usually the most comfortable for walking around ports and they can wear their running shoes at dinner.

 

As for other suggestions for packing, if your kids like playing cards pack a deck, also books to read, hand held video games, music player, movie player, activity books, etc. We like to have some indoor quiet activities on hand for those down times (first thing in the morning before everyone else is up, that down time between swimming and dinner, a rainy day, etc.) they're also good for the plane ride and shuttle to port. We always pack extra bathing suits b/c sometimes they swim more than once a day before the other suit can dry, or you may end up on a beach and get one sandy. You don't need swimming towels as they're provided.

 

If your youngest can't swim you may want to bring water wings as the pools are often quite deep. Consider bringing a backpack to carry your stuff into port.

 

Toss in some packaged snacks too for port or transition times (flight, shuttles, etc.)

 

We don't bother w/ a laundry hamper b/c we find space is at a premium already so we just use an empty suitcase under the bed for dirty clothes. You have to pack the stuff to take home anyway, so if it's already in a suitcase, you're half way there.

 

Sunscreen if of course a must. You may also want to bring a lanyard for your kids to wear their cruise card around their neck.

 

That's all I can think of for now.

[SadieN]

Carnival's soda package includes all juice that is available at the bar.

 

Carnival allows non-alcoholic drinks, including boxed juices to be brought onboard, does Royal? I have heard that Royal's policy is no drinks can be brought onboard. If I'm wrong someone will correct me.;)

[AandBmom]

But the juice is available on the buffet so why spend extra for a soda card just to drink juice???

[SadieN]

But the juice is available on the buffet so why spend extra for a soda card just to drink juice???

 

On Carnival juices are available during breakfast on the lido. Orange and PasoGuava. Other times it is Lemonade. Royal might be different.

 

If you drink more than a few juices a day it is well worth the money. I don't like the idea of having juice stay out all day. The fridges in the rooms are more like coolers.

[AandBmom]

On Carnival juices are available during breakfast on the lido. Orange and PasoGuava. Other times it is Lemonade. Royal might be different.

 

If you drink more than a few juices a day it is well worth the money. I don't like the idea of having juice stay out all day. The fridges in the rooms are more like coolers.

 

I think the "juices" on Carnival keep pretty well, even sitting out b/c they're mostly sugar and preservatives - not much actual juice. Often times you can get juice in the MDR at other meals besides breakfast.

[jlrn366419]

Love the ideas, especially the battery operated candle for the bathroom and packing the clothing in individual zip top bags.

[Angel59920]

Thanks everybody for all the great ideas. I am trying not to pack that much stuff and overdue it like I usually do.

 

What kind of stuff do you take with you to the ports? Do you pack snack stuff and if so do you bring it from home or take it from the ship? Do you take sand toys? ect...

[seashell36]

"Carnival's soda package includes all juice that is available at the bar."

 

The juices that she's talking about are the ones that are used as mixers for other drinks - pineapple, cranberry, tomato, and grape juice are the ones that come to mind. You can get these in the MDR on Carnival. But, they're not available in the buffet area.

 

They change the passo-guava juice out for ice tea in the buffet area after breakfast. If you really like this juice take a refillable cup or water bottle and fill it up at breakfast.

[seashell36]

What kind of stuff do you take with you to the ports? Do you pack snack stuff and if so do you bring it from home or take it from the ship? Do you take sand toys? ect...

 

Our first cruise with the kids I brought snack foods from home - their favorite fruit and cereal bars, goldfish crackers. The kids decided that they liked the little boxes of cereal or yogurt more. So, we don't pack snacks to take on the cruise anymore. I do take them for the trip to the port - saves money when going through the airport or on the drive.

 

We don't bring sand toys. But DS usually ends up using a cup to scoop sand to make a "mountain" or a moat. He spends more time looking for shells, coral, or cool rocks than swimming or building sand castles. If you know your kids love to make sandcastles then I might pack a small shovel and bucket set.

[mitsugirly]

Not sure if this was mentioned to you yet...but just a "general" packing tip all together.

 

When you pack for a cruise, IF you are taking an airline, a good tip is to take everyone's clothes going and pack a few outfits each in EVERY bag. This is just in case a suitcase would get lost on the plane and not make it to your room, then everyone would have clothes to wear. It might not be much or your favorite outfit that might have been in that bag that didn't arrive, but you will have clothes.

 

This is something I have never thought of prior to last years cruise (or any vacation) and thought it was a wonderful idea. (Instead of just my husbands luggage showing up and mine didn't or vice versa). :)