Packing light with RCL's recommended attire for dinner

[Artemis908]

Last cruise we were on we took 2 suitcases for a 10 cruise, but since we were leaving out of NY and not flying it wasn't that big of a deal besides disembarking on our own and carrying them down the stairs.

 

This year we are going on a 7 day cruise and spending 5 additional days in Europe. We're going to be moving around a lot between getting to hotels, the airport, and ship, so I am thinking I'd like to try to smash everything into one suit case.

 

I would typically change to a more dressy outfit for dinner even if it wasn't formal night but I am thinking of forgoing this and wearing whatever I am wearing that day unless it's formal night. I would also usually bring full sizes of shampoo and conditioner with me but I am thinking of finding travel sizes instead to take up less room.

 

So does anyone have any space saving tips that will allow me to wear the appropriate attire for dinner per RCI's recommendations, but not require two pieces of luggage?

[pcur]

I have a black chiffon open jacket that can be worn over just about any type of top, and weighs about 4 oz. If you take black knit pants, then any jersey or knit top with the chiffon jacket looks great for formal night. I also have a few other chiffon tops with a little bling that are good for dressier nights.

 

At Walmart you can buy empty travel containers that are 2 oz. You'd be amazed at how much can fit in those; plenty for a 10 night cruise. Downsize all your toiletries into those containers, and you save a few lbs. I use the rest up after I get home.

 

I also went to Payless Shoe Source and bought inexpensive leather flats and dressy sandals for my cruise evenings. They are attractive, I wear them only on cruises, so they don't get worn out, and they weigh a lot less than my usual shoes.

[Sequim88]

We are also debating this. On top of the land parts we also have three formal nights to plan for. We had planned for just one suitcase and a couple max alowable size carry-ons but just found out that for flight back from Rome each gets one checked item at no charge. DW was planning on black pants or skirt and several formal tops but really wanted formal dresses so may get to do that if we do two suitcases. I can mix/match ties and two shirts with suit to that is easy. I was able to pick up some nice dress shoes at discount shoe store for $12.50 so those are getting ditched in Rome to make room for items coming back. In fact a lot of items are getting ejected there.

 

We are buying all the toiletries at port city to save weight. Those are often the most heavy items. But then we are 15nts cruising so need larger than travel size.

 

Biggest space saver is packing only minimum amount of clothing really needed and re-wearing often or sink washing and re-wearing. Toughest issue is packing for varying weather so solution there is layers. Light waterproof jacket and if cool out we can wear sweater under. Might even skip sweater and wait and see if cool and get sweatshirt onboard.

 

Bottom line on two suitcases is not stuffing both. :eek: I would rather have two lightly packed than one monster heavy one to lug.

[reallyitsmema]

Last cruise we were on we took 2 suitcases for a 10 cruise, but since we were leaving out of NY and not flying it wasn't that big of a deal besides disembarking on our own and carrying them down the stairs.

 

This year we are going on a 7 day cruise and spending 5 additional days in Europe. We're going to be moving around a lot between getting to hotels, the airport, and ship, so I am thinking I'd like to try to smash everything into one suit case.

 

I would typically change to a more dressy outfit for dinner even if it wasn't formal night but I am thinking of forgoing this and wearing whatever I am wearing that day unless it's formal night. I would also usually bring full sizes of shampoo and conditioner with me but I am thinking of finding travel sizes instead to take up less room.

 

So does anyone have any space saving tips that will allow me to wear the appropriate attire for dinner per RCI's recommendations, but not require two pieces of luggage?

Are you talking one suitcase each or one for the two of you combined? If you are bringing one each, you should be able to bring everything you need for a 7 day cruise and just have some things laundered on the ship towards the end of the week so you will have clean clothes for your time in Europe. If you are talking one suitcase for the two of you, I would never consider doing that even if I had to pay baggage fees. I wouldn't want to spend all that money on a wonderful trip to skimp on baggage fees.

[Blue Darter]

Last cruise we were on we took 2 suitcases for a 10 cruise, but since we were leaving out of NY and not flying it wasn't that big of a deal besides disembarking on our own and carrying them down the stairs.

 

This year we are going on a 7 day cruise and spending 5 additional days in Europe. We're going to be moving around a lot between getting to hotels, the airport, and ship, so I am thinking I'd like to try to smash everything into one suit case.

 

I would typically change to a more dressy outfit for dinner even if it wasn't formal night but I am thinking of forgoing this and wearing whatever I am wearing that day unless it's formal night. I would also usually bring full sizes of shampoo and conditioner with me but I am thinking of finding travel sizes instead to take up less room.

 

So does anyone have any space saving tips that will allow me to wear the appropriate attire for dinner per RCI's recommendations, but not require two pieces of luggage?

 

Take a look at PackingLight.com. There's a video on their front page you might find useful. My wife has done week-long international business trips with only a carry-on and we both somehow managed a 17-day trip to Ireland with only a carry-on and small backpack each. You have to acknowledge going in that you'll have to do (or pay for) a bit of laundry, but we now swear by packing as little as possible.

 

Andy

[cruiseguy1016]

DW and I just did a 7 night cruise with one regular size (not huge) suitcase and one carry-on. We did not bring formal attire but did have nice clothes for dinner. We took advantage of the laundry special on day 4.

[SingingPixie]

I want to echo what PPs said above about mix&match and layering. I try to stay in the same color family, especially for my evening attire, so that any dresses can go with the same pair or two of shoes, and the same cardigan or wrap. I wear a lot of sundresses for dinner with a cardigan, as long as it isn't formal night. These are small/easy to pack, don't require lots of bulky pieces, and can be worn during the day or as a swimsuit coverup. The only thing I bring enough of to only wear once is underwear!

[Artemis908]

We are not worried about having to pay for luggage, we each can check one piece of luggage for free. It's more wanting to pack lighter so it's not so cumbersome. And it'd be just 1 suitcase for two of us. The biggest issue though is bringing home souvenirs! I collect Christmas ornaments from each country, my husband collects shot glasses. lol and I kind of wanted to pick up some wine since we are going to a winery in Sicily (I know I will have to turn it over when I go back to the ship).

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Put everything in zip lock bags ...

[reallyitsmema]

We are not worried about having to pay for luggage, we each can check one piece of luggage for free. It's more wanting to pack lighter so it's not so cumbersome. And it'd be just 1 suitcase for two of us. The biggest issue though is bringing home souvenirs! I collect Christmas ornaments from each country, my husband collects shot glasses. lol and I kind of wanted to pick up some wine since we are going to a winery in Sicily (I know I will have to turn it over when I go back to the ship).

Weigh it all out in the suitcase and see if you can do it. You won't have the weight of toiletries coming back but you will have the heavier wine bottles in its place. If you can keep in under weight, go for it. Otherwise, I would pack two 26 inch suitcases and keep them under weight by about 10 pounds each. This will allow lots of space for souveniers and wine for the flight home.:)

 

Edit: Make sure you have a luggage scale with you too so you can weigh things before heading to the airport. You don't want to be stuck in Heathrow or whereever trying to move stuff around so you don't have a huge overweight charge.

[jonbgd]

If Im only checking one bag than pack all the light stuff like clothes and such in my checked bag than I put heavy stuff like shoes in our carryons.

Shoes are the heavest part of our clothes

[herbanrenewal]

I am used to traveling with a carry-on only for any length trip. It's a lesson learned the hard way from trips with missing luggage.

 

Some specific suggestions

Ask at your favorite cosmetic counter for sample sizes. Ive found that almost all sample sizes last for a few days to a week. My Estée Lauder rep supplies me with enough. The MAC line has tiny sample size containers that don't have all the dead air space that others have. They look about the size of contact lens carriers but hold a half ounce.Great for moisturizers and foundation makeup.

 

The tiny shampoo containers usually hold just 1 to 2 ounces. But you can easily find 3 ounce containers I use one per week with my short hair. Longer hair would require more. And I refill from home so reuse my favorite containers each trip.

 

A 3 ounce container of concentrated laundry detergent will do hand laundry for more than a week. I wash out underwear and light tops and use suction cup hooks in the shower to hang them to dry. I try hand laundering tops at home before choosing what to pack, so I can be sure to pack items that will dry overnight and not need ironing.

 

I use my laundry coupons for slacks and jeans.

 

I can pack enough 3 ounce or smaller containers to last 3 weeks in one tsa approved baggie. Usually the only thing I need to buy after flying is sunscreen, and I make a run to get that before going to the pier since it costs about 3 times more on board.(some folks make a wine, liquor, or soda run before boarding-I just need my cvs stop for sunscreen!)

 

Prescription drugs need to be in labelled containers, but if you ask your pharmacist they can print up labels to stick on small containers or small plastic bags ... You don't need your 90 day sized containers but DO need your meds

 

Bring small containers of emergency medications for diarrhea, constipation, headache, antacids, etc...enough for 1 or 2days. If you need more you can usually find a pharmacy in port, but basics take little room, and can save the expensive trip to the ships infirmary.

 

This sounds strange, but I wear a pair of Croc sandals for slippers, beach or pool footwear, and Formal footwear. Obviously I'm not the most footwear-fanatic person in the universe, but no one ever notices, or if they do, they don't mention it.

My walking shoes for excursions Double for gym.

Footwear takes a lot of space if you can't feel comfortable being a minimalist.

 

Sparkly tank tops and black slacks work very well for formal night.

 

Add a few silk scarves to change basic color tops to look like a different outfit.

 

Wear your heaviest bulkiest choices n the plane -jeans, walking shoes, sweater.

 

Use your pockets! I've a light weight rain resistant jacket with lots of pockets. I use them for my iPod,headphones, blackberry, kindle, camera, plugs and rechargers, inflatable headrest pillow. Everything I need or want in the plane. I keep wires and chargers in a ziplock back to pull out of pockets to go through the scanners at the airport so they can easily see contents.

[Artemis908]

That's some really good advice, thank you!

 

I am used to traveling with a carry-on only for any length trip. It's a lesson learned the hard way from trips with missing luggage.

 

Some specific suggestions

Ask at your favorite cosmetic counter for sample sizes. Ive found that almost all sample sizes last for a few days to a week. My Estée Lauder rep supplies me with enough. The MAC line has tiny sample size containers that don't have all the dead air space that others have. They look about the size of contact lens carriers but hold a half ounce.Great for moisturizers and foundation makeup.

 

The tiny shampoo containers usually hold just 1 to 2 ounces. But you can easily find 3 ounce containers I use one per week with my short hair. Longer hair would require more. And I refill from home so reuse my favorite containers each trip.

 

A 3 ounce container of concentrated laundry detergent will do hand laundry for more than a week. I wash out underwear and light tops and use suction cup hooks in the shower to hang them to dry. I try hand laundering tops at home before choosing what to pack, so I can be sure to pack items that will dry overnight and not need ironing.

 

I use my laundry coupons for slacks and jeans.

 

I can pack enough 3 ounce or smaller containers to last 3 weeks in one tsa approved baggie. Usually the only thing I need to buy after flying is sunscreen, and I make a run to get that before going to the pier since it costs about 3 times more on board.(some folks make a wine, liquor, or soda run before boarding-I just need my cvs stop for sunscreen!)

 

Prescription drugs need to be in labelled containers, but if you ask your pharmacist they can print up labels to stick on small containers or small plastic bags ... You don't need your 90 day sized containers but DO need your meds

 

Bring small containers of emergency medications for diarrhea, constipation, headache, antacids, etc...enough for 1 or 2days. If you need more you can usually find a pharmacy in port, but basics take little room, and can save the expensive trip to the ships infirmary.

 

This sounds strange, but I wear a pair of Croc sandals for slippers, beach or pool footwear, and Formal footwear. Obviously I'm not the most footwear-fanatic person in the universe, but no one ever notices, or if they do, they don't mention it.

My walking shoes for excursions Double for gym.

Footwear takes a lot of space if you can't feel comfortable being a minimalist.

 

Sparkly tank tops and black slacks work very well for formal night.

 

Add a few silk scarves to change basic color tops to look like a different outfit.

 

Wear your heaviest bulkiest choices n the plane -jeans, walking shoes, sweater.

 

Use your pockets! I've a light weight rain resistant jacket with lots of pockets. I use them for my iPod,headphones, blackberry, kindle, camera, plugs and rechargers, inflatable headrest pillow. Everything I need or want in the plane. I keep wires and chargers in a ziplock back to pull out of pockets to go through the scanners at the airport so they can easily see contents.

[herbanrenewal]

We are not worried about having to pay for luggage, we each can check one piece of luggage for free. It's more wanting to pack lighter so it's not so cumbersome. And it'd be just 1 suitcase for two of us. The biggest issue though is bringing home souvenirs! I collect Christmas ornaments from each country, my husband collects shot glasses. lol and I kind of wanted to pick up some wine since we are going to a winery in Sicily (I know I will have to turn it over when I go back to the ship).

 

Have you considered a foldable bag that can fit in you bag and serve. As a emergency backup carry on if you need more space?

Something like this

http://www.ebags.com/product/baggallini/zip-out-shopping-totebagg-large-rip-stop-nylon/18648?productid=66083

 

Tote outlets usually have something similar...obviously can't hold up as checked bag but works great for bringing home things you didn't have when leaving home. Before I decided that my souvenirs would be my photos a few trips ago, I used something similar.

[Host Faith]

If you're cruising in a warm region, you may want to pack lightweight dresses for evenings. I found that having a couple jersey dresses take up less space (since the whole outfit is just one piece), and can be rolled tightly (since they don't wrinkle). Brought a pair of sandals, and a pair of heels that could go with the dresses. For formal night, I brought a cocktail dress instead of a gown. On my last cruise I wore a dress every night, and it saved me so much room in my carry-on.

[north29]

With 14+ days after a transatlantic. WOW, but fortunately we have learned to travel light. We can easily do a, NOTE Caribbean, 7 day cruise with a carry on and a mid size back pack for each of us. On the Last 7 day cruise I actually took a dress jacket, slacks, dress shirt,(did not wear) and a black designer dress T shirt. Note with a little laundry we could have easily done a

B2B

I use only black sports t shirts for top under wear, they can be used as deck, and even off the ship wear as well. Two pair of pants(actually 3 counting the ones I wear over, if not shorts, shorts are a combo bathing suits, and two nice shirts, and several POLO style shirts. I have to add that we are not formal night people, but dress, very, very, very nicely. We always eat in the MDR

The Transatlantic is a bigger challenge, due mainly to weather and different clothing needs, and unknown other issues, on this trip our luggage is taken care of so size other than Airline restrictions are no problem.

Remember no one remembers what you have on the bottom, it only the TOP that most see notice, and then no one remembers what you wear anyway or really cares except the fashion police. ONly exception is some lovely lass in a short, short dress LOL but that is soon forgotten as well. Another exception might be from the OLD RC joke just because they make it in you size, maybe you should not wear it.

Pack lite for more fun.

[scooter6251]

The biggest challenge for the 2 small suitcase approach is my suit for formal night. Ladies can pack lightweight items dressy enough, but men don't have much choice except a suit, etc. How do you folks that travel so light handle the bulk & weight of a man's suit & accessories? Skip formal night in the MDR ?

Thanks for your input

[allpak1]

We always arrange for the tux and shoes rental. So convenient and saves lots of room in his side of the suitcase by omitting just the shoes alone !

[waterbug123]

This year we are going on a 7 day cruise and spending 5 additional days in Europe. We're going to be moving around a lot between getting to hotels, the airport, and ship, so I am thinking I'd like to try to smash everything into one suit case.

 

1. Since your concern about reducing your luggage seems to be more about making it easier to travel than saving money on airline bag fees, plan on sending some things out to be laundered. Your hotels may have self-serve laundry facilities, and the cruise ship prices are really not that unreasonable. And some things can be easily rinsed in the sink and hung to dry.

 

2. For evening, jersey knit is your friend. This is the material you can roll in a ball and when you unpack there are no wrinkles. A black jersey knit skirt and/or cocktail pants can be worn several nights; pair with dressier and/or more casual tops for both casual and formal nights.

 

3. Basic black or brown capris hide dirt, can be worn for sightseeing during port calls or in Europe, and are also fine at night on the ship for casual nights. Limit the number of bottoms and mix it up with a couple mix and match tops that go with each of the bottoms.

 

4. A lot of people bring just a couple bottoms but lots of different tops, but you can limit the number of tops too. Nobody will care (or remember) if you wear a top to dinner, and wear the same one again a few nights later. And again, if something gets dirty, take advantage of laundry options.

 

5. Make sure everything you pack is color coordinated around 1 or 2 colors to make it easier to mix and match all your pieces, AND it will limit the number of pairs of shoes you need to pack. Shoes take up a lot of room, so the fewer the better. I could easily go on a 7 night cruise with nothing more than a single pair of black heeled sandals (wear every night w/ mix & match black and white separates), and a single pair of flip flops for day.

[Linda41]

The biggest challenge for the 2 small suitcase approach is my suit for formal night. Ladies can pack lightweight items dressy enough, but men don't have much choice except a suit, etc. How do you folks that travel so light handle the bulk & weight of a man's suit & accessories? Skip formal night in the MDR ?

Thanks for your input

 

This is the exact problem we're facing. We are taking B2B cruises (21 days total) followed by a 9 day land tour. The flight overseas is not a problem with suitcases for the cruises but on the land tour we are restricted to 1 suitcase each plus a VERY small carry-on (tote bag size, not rollaboard size). There will be 6 formal nights on the two cruises and I really don't want to have to eat in the buffet for all 6 nights. My dress clothes don't take much space as I follow what many have written--1 pr of black dressy knit pants with 2 or 3 lightweight sparkly tops. It is the suit for DH that is the problem. Sure hope someone has a good solution!!!

 

Linda (and C. D.)

[Sequim88]

The biggest issue though is bringing home souvenirs!

 

As Herbanrenewal suggested a fold up bag as the second checked item coming home. We use a sports duffle sort of bag and stuff it full of all the dirty clothes so we can use the sturdier real suitcase for fragile items. You can get gym bags fairly cheap that are strong enough for dirty clothes and fold up really compact for the trip over.

[Sparky74]

There will be 6 formal nights on the two cruises and I really don't want to have to eat in the buffet for all 6 nights. My dress clothes don't take much space as I follow what many have written--1 pr of black dressy knit pants with 2 or 3 lightweight sparkly tops. It is the suit for DH that is the problem. Sure hope someone has a good solution!!!

 

Hire a tux - problem solved!:)

[jonbgd]

The biggest challenge for the 2 small suitcase approach is my suit for formal night. Ladies can pack lightweight items dressy enough, but men don't have much choice except a suit, etc. How do you folks that travel so light handle the bulk & weight of a man's suit & accessories? Skip formal night in the MDR ?

Thanks for your input

 

I now bring one suit and 2 different ties. I also get it cleaned/pressed first night of cruise so not worried about packing it nicely.

[Linda41]

Hire a tux - problem solved!:)

 

My DH really doesn't like tuxes and it would cost $260 for tuxes for both of the B2B cruises and I KNOW he wouldn't like that since he's not fond of them to begin with! :D

 

Linda (and C. D.)

[linkerbink]

I've found that the usual travel size toiletries last about one week, so for a longer trip I just take 2 or 3 travel sizes of the same thing.....still FAR less weight and volume than one regular size one. Then you can just throw away each one as you empty it.