Cruise travel tips & secrets

[4CruisingSake]

Why are power strips banned?

 

Power strips are okay. Extension cords will be confiscated.

[medicmel]

I thought so. Took them on last cruise and never had a problem.

[MrsPete]

Another hint: If you putting valuables in the safe, place them in a large ziploc bag. You won't have to dig around the safe for an earring or leave your travel docs in the safe.

Now that's an idea that's new to me -- and I like it! The safe is usually in the closet, and it's not exactly well lighted. This is a great idea.

when I am done I would just sit the plates and covers outside the door for the stewards to collect them.

I suggest you leave your dirty dishes inside your cabin -- either on your dresser or on your balcony. Leave them under the cover, and they aren't going to be a problem to you. The room steward will be along pretty quickly anyway, and he or she will take the dishes away then. Why bother? Because left on the floor, they could be a problem for a fellow cruiser using a walker (or other mobility device) in a narrow hallway.

22.) Have never needed to charge everything at once. We just charge a couple at a time.[/b.

Yeah, I've never understood the idea that people need to charge ALL THIS STUFF at one time. If you're uber-plugged in (I'm not), it's easy enough to charge one item during dinner, another item overnight . . . and you don't need to charge every item every day.

At the several Spanish ports we recently visited I saw no dogs or even inspections.

Well, that's proof positive that no other port anywhere will have such things! Carry on without worrying!

I will know better next time' date=' and at least make sure the nuts are in pre-packaged commercial bags. This will be OK in foreign countries, right?[/quote]Yes, factory-packaged items -- granola bars, bags of peanuts, peanut butter crackers -- are safe. I'm talking, of course, about individual items that are still sealed; don't bring a big bag of Goldfish crackers that you've been munching on the plane. Something that's factory sealed is safe because it's not going to bring in anything bad into the other country.

 

My diabetic husband occasionally need something to eat THIS VERY MINUTE, and nothing works for him like peanut butter, so we always have something along these lines.

I'm assuming because the sodas in the beverage package are all pepsi products. So it would be a conflict of interest.

Nah, they care about whether you bring alcohol -- but they don't care about the name brand of your soda.

 

Forget spending your money on .. Wrinkle release. Just bring a spray bottle, size of your choice. When on the ship spray, wrinkles or creases, with plain old cheap water, takes them right out. Try it at home on one of your items and you'll see the results for yourself !

 

Enjoy your cruise !

Put in just a couple drops of hair conditioner, and shake well.

[t60]

snip... wrinkle release.....Put in just a couple drops of hair conditioner, and shake well.

 

Never seen that suggestion before...thanks...will save on having to take fabric conditioner

 

Sandy in Spain

[Ohiotravelqueen]

I am about to take my 2nd cruise and both times we fly in the day off. I guess I just like living on the edge. LOL

[merlin5353]

I am about to take my 2nd cruise and both times we fly in the day off. I guess I just like living on the edge. LOL

 

Good luck. You're going to need it! We've been on many trips and talk to people who've had weather delays and cancelled flights. We've only flown in on embarkation day once. Once. Always at least a day early.

[One2Stupid]

We take a couple of 2.5 gallon zip-lock bags. If you run out of clean underwear or really want to wear that dirty T-shirt again. Just squeeze a little tide into the bag, add dirty "what evers" and shake it up, have a drink, shake it up, have a drink (you get the idea) Then I take the bag with me to the shower, dump the soapy water and rinse a few times. Use the little "cloths line" that are in most tubs and hang up your clean laundry (it does take a while to dry). Always bring a few cloths pins. They are great for holding the curtians together and keeping the light out when you try to sleep in. Those big bags also come in handy for keeping any thing dry.

 

11 cruises but I'm too lazy to list them

[t60]

snip... Just squeeze a little tide into the bag, add dirty "what evers" and shake it up, have a drink, shake it up, have a drink (you get the idea) Then I take the bag with me to the shower, dump the soapy water and rinse a few times. Use the little "cloths line" that are in most tubs and hang up your clean laundry (it does take a while to dry).snip

 

Once you rinsed the clothes, squeee the water out, plce them flat on a towel and roll up so the towel takes up the excess moisture. hang clothes to dry

 

Sandy in Spain

[ptsaint]

depending on how long the cruise or the trip is I prepare a 'medicine cabinet'

 

it can include

- bite gel

- insect repellent

- aspirins

- pain patch or some kind of icy hot (for muscles)

- band aids

- Imodium

- sea sick pills

- laundry sheets

- tweezers

- cork screw

- crown repair kit (very small but have had to use it - nothing like having a crown come off in a foreign country and trying to get it fixed)

- eyeglass screwdriver and a couple small screws (paper clips will also work in a pinch)

- toothache gel

- tiger balm

- sun burn relief

- sun screen

- mole skin (you can get precut shapes and it sure helps if you get a blister)

- blister block

 

you get the idea - you can buy small 1 or 2 oz of most of these things

 

all of these fit into a small cube (I pack in cubes & envelopes) always mixing our stuff. I have saved both us and fellow travelers

 

adjust how much you bring for the length of your cruise

 

safe travels, happy cruising

 

Patrice

Edited November 24, 2014 by ptsaint

[mickym]

I am about to take my 2nd cruise and both times we fly in the day off. I guess I just like living on the edge. LOL

 

Don't do it!! We missed a cruise a few years ago doing that. That is no fun!!

[Raxter54]

I'm assuming because the sodas in the beverage package are all pepsi products. So it would be a conflict of interest.

 

Royal Caribbean sells Coke products. I've never seen any rules anywhere that limits soda to certain brands.

[KKB]

I am about to take my 2nd cruise and both times we fly in the day off. I guess I just like living on the edge. LOL

 

Not my preference but twice we were traveling with others & this was their choice. Last year it was the only way it worked with work. Never a problem (have done March 2x & December--travel insurance each time) That doesn't mean it WON'T be a problem for you. Just have a back up plan! (and buy insurance)

 

And regarding soda brands--all our cruises have had Coke products (Princess, DCL, RCCL, Celebrity). DH takes on Mountain Dew since there is no Coke alternative--never an issue.

Edited December 20, 2014 by KKB

[Raxter54]

And regarding soda brands--all our cruises have had Coke products (Princess, DCL, RCCL, Celebrity). DH takes on Mountain Dew since there is no Coke alternative--never an issue.

 

I purchased the soda package for DW on our upcoming cruise, she loves her Dr Pepper/Mr Pibb. Only one problem - Mr Pibb is NOT one of the Coke products on the Serenade. So I'll probably have to cancel the drink package and hope they don't catch us sneaking a 12 pack of Dr Pepper on the ship ;)

[cowgrlkirby]

I've carried fruit off the ship several time without a problem. There is not a way they can tell what you are carrying off.

 

Not a good idea to try that in Mexico for sure. The dogs that they have are pretty good at sniffing out an apple..but good luck if you would like to try it...I would not.

[mikeyinny]

My wife and I both use CPAPs, and often there is not an outlet on both sides of the bed for our CPAPs, so we always pack an extension cord. Since this is a medical device, and I keep it with the CPAP, do I need to worry about it being confiscated? Normally power strip have only a 3' or 6' cord so they are not suitable for the CPAP. Is there anything I can do in advance to avoid this issue?

[ExilePA]

Call or email the cruise line beforehand and they will have an extension cord and distilled water waiting in your cabin upon arrival

[pops72106]

My wife and I both use CPAPs, and often there is not an outlet on both sides of the bed for our CPAPs, so we always pack an extension cord. Since this is a medical device, and I keep it with the CPAP, do I need to worry about it being confiscated? Normally power strip have only a 3' or 6' cord so they are not suitable for the CPAP. Is there anything I can do in advance to avoid this issue?

 

I also use a cpap machine and have brought an extension cord packed with my machine on more than 10 cruises, and never had an issue.

[AnchorsAweigh2011]

I am about to take my 2nd cruise and both times we fly in the day off. I guess I just like living on the edge. LOL

 

When we flew in on the day of our cruise two years ago, we were so tired that night that we didn't go to dinner in the main dining room and went to to bed at 8 pm. We felt we had missed out on our first day of our cruise and vowed to never do it again!

[nanacakes]

Saw this tip once & thot okay give it a try. Wrapped couple feet of duct tape around a old gift card. Day 3 of 15 day Panama Canal cruise, the room steward broke my husband's CPAP mask. Duct tape to the rescue. Hate to think what the cruise would have been like if he didn't have it.

[Debbi ha]

We are going on R.C. independence of the seas and wondered if anyone has taken on bottled water?

[A2Mich]

We are going on R.C. independence of the seas and wondered if anyone has taken on bottled water?

 

 

You should post this on the RCI boards for a better chance of an answer. There are tons of water, soda, and alcohol smuggling threads over there.

 

 

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[lovesdietpepsi]

Auto insurance coverage (American)only applies in the U.S. and Canada , no coverage in Mexico or other countries

[estebofarr]

We are going on R.C. independence of the seas and wondered if anyone has taken on bottled water?

 

I've seen cases of water, (with luggage ties) put aside with the luggage. No problem. My daughter brought a case of the little six oz bottles. I always bring a six pack of diet ginger ale.

[14Terry]

We are going on R.C. independence of the seas and wondered if anyone has taken on bottled water?

 

 

Water can purchase water just before boarding the ship during the check-in process.

 

 

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[KSprite01]

Saw this tip once & thot okay give it a try. Wrapped couple feet of duct tape around a old gift card. Day 3 of 15 day Panama Canal cruise, the room steward broke my husband's CPAP mask. Duct tape to the rescue. Hate to think what the cruise would have been like if he didn't have it.

 

Old trick from my days of kayaking in college, when duct tape solves all: I wrap duct tape around a nalgeen water bottle I bring with me. It's much easier to wrap around than a gift card, and I bring the water bottle with me off ship for the day (filled with as much ice as I can make fit, then water) so it's something I pretty much always have around.