What have you bought, brought & then never used on board?

[OCruisers]

Good Grief! If we brought everything people often suggest, we wouldn't have room to pack the clothes we actually do need. :D

 

LuLu

~~~

[ducklite]

Clothes. Even when I went to Europe for three weeks in a carry on, I still had something I never wore--total waste of packing space. My first and second cruise I don't think I wore half of what I brought.

 

This time around I have the greatest challenge yet. Five days in LA pre/post-cruise, three days in Tahiti pre/post, plus a week long cruise. Where it gets wonky is I have a business meeting in LA, yoga classes in LA, an evening event that I'll want to wear jeans for in LA, and will need a pocketbook in LA, plus a yoga mat. So I have to really think out my wardrobe and how I will pack everything I will need. It's going to be tight, but I'm determined to pack carry on only.

[5326jan]

We bring a half length of the door organizer. That gives us enough pockets for sunscreen, playing cards, $ bills for room service tips, first aid kit, etc. I don't like clutter on the desk or bathroom counter and this is the perfect way to minimize it. The organizer is on the outside of the bathroom door/ inside the closet area (Princess).

 

We have Tervis Tumblers that I bought for a cruise a long time ago, not sure if we'd use them, but found that we use them a lot! Order a pot of tea from room service in the morning and you'll have iced tea all day!:)

[biker@sea]

I'm going to REALLY try and pack light and mindful this cruise. Interchangeable clothing, shoes etc.

 

But I keep drifting over "Packing lists" that ppl post and I think....ok, maybe that. But then second guess saying "I have never used that in the past, what if I buy it, pack it and never use it"

 

So..what have YOU bought, brought and never used?

 

I bought a new necktie that came on 5 cruises unused . Now it stays home .

[SargassoPirate]

I have a little tool kit that I always pack and seldom use, but when I need it, it's been worth it. It contains a small Swiss Army knife with a small pair of scissors and a corkscrew, a small "leatherman" tool that opens into a small pair of pliers, small tube of Gorilla Glue, small sewing kit, one pair of black shoelaces, some large paperclips, a small length of duct tape rolled around a short pencil. Over the years, I've used each and every one of these items for some purpose and was glad to have them.

 

I used to over pack toiletries and shoes. After a couple of cruises, I started keeping track of items I packed but never used and gradually eliminated those items from my packing list. I also started wearing a lot of quick dry clothing and using a mix-and-match method to shake up the color palate some. Now my packing list is the same for a short cruise of 7 nights or a longer cruise - so far my record is a 49 night cruise.

 

Big item I eliminated was formal wear. Cruise lines don't enforce their dress codes anyway, so why bother? On formal nights I wear a dress shirt and tie with some dark slacks. The look I go for is "I just slipped off my jacket while I'm eating dinner" There's always someone in the dining room in jeans and a t-shirt with a ball cap, and others in tuxes, so I run right about the middle of the pack.

[Gunner22aa]

Totally unneeded. If there is an emergency at home there are lots of other ways I can be contacted.

[Happy ks]

Totally unneeded. If there is an emergency at home there are lots of other ways I can be contacted.

 

 

I once left both our cell phones at home (several years ago), since I figured we didn't need them. Wrong. We needed to call the kids at Aunties house. The pay phones at port had line ups with crew waiting to use them, we waited 30 minutes before making our call. Then, when returning home, had to find a pay phone to call our transportation company. That was a hassle. We now take one phone, turned off, in the safe.

 

I eliminated, after the first cruise, the water wallet, water shoes, more than one underwater disposable camera. The over the door thing, insulated cups, too many shoes, half the clothing. Have never taken or needed a bungie cord, duct tape, post it notes, highlighter pen. Many more things that I've seen posted on packing lists.

 

We do take a small first aid kit. We do take our own toiletries (I'd rather give up a pair of shoes than use mystery shampoo and conditioner). I like having an alarm clock that I can see without pushing any buttons, so we have a very small one of those. We use a tap light in the bathroom at night, I don't want the extra light from a nightlight in the cabin. Even more so, neither of us wants to turn on the bright light in the bathroom in the middle of the night.

 

We've perfected the list that works for us. Some of it others may not need at all, and vice versa.

[slidergirl]

Clothes. Even when I went to Europe for three weeks in a carry on, I still had something I never wore--total waste of packing space. My first and second cruise I don't think I wore half of what I brought.

 

This time around I have the greatest challenge yet. Five days in LA pre/post-cruise, three days in Tahiti pre/post, plus a week long cruise. Where it gets wonky is I have a business meeting in LA, yoga classes in LA, an evening event that I'll want to wear jeans for in LA, and will need a pocketbook in LA, plus a yoga mat. So I have to really think out my wardrobe and how I will pack everything I will need. It's going to be tight, but I'm determined to pack carry on only.

 

USPS/FedEx/UPS is your friend;) I've had the occasion to have to do a specific wardrobe for just a few days inside of a long trip. Pack the LA stuff in it's own bag. When you're done, have your hotel in LA ship it back to either a friend, office, or hold for pickup. At my hotel, we're shipping things home for people everyday. Then, just take your carry on with you onward.

[ducklite]

USPS/FedEx/UPS is your friend;) I've had the occasion to have to do a specific wardrobe for just a few days inside of a long trip. Pack the LA stuff in it's own bag. When you're done, have your hotel in LA ship it back to either a friend, office, or hold for pickup. At my hotel, we're shipping things home for people everyday. Then, just take your carry on with you onward.

 

 

The problem is that I need that stuff in both directions. What I am strongly considering is stuffing the things I only need in LA (jeans, handbag, etc.) into a USPS Flat Rate box and mailing it to myself at the hotel we are booked at when we return to LA. I asked the hotel if they would be willing to hold a small box for me for the week but they were non-committal, so I need a back up plan.

[Surfguyxxx]

Gym clothes. I really do have good intentions when I pack :confused:

[BeautifulPlumage]

Gym clothes. I really do have good intentions when I pack :confused:

 

 

Hahaha! Yeah, I gave that up after the first cruise. I do still pack some sort of sneakers for excursions (usually Chucks because they don't take much space). I've finally reached an age where I'm honest enough with myself to know for a fact that I won't go anywhere near a gym when I'm on a cruise ship. :D

 

 

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[Kartgv]

I'm a pretty compulsive 'list maker' so over the years we've refined our lists enough so that we really use what we bring. There have been a few mistakes over the years, but we're getting better.

 

One thing I bought and never used, thinking it sounded like a wonderful idea for hand laundry on a RCI long cruise (no Laundromat), was inflatable plastic hangars. Sounded like a good idea at the time, but they've since gone in the Salvation Army donation basket. We also have taken and never used a multi-plug power board - have just never needed to charge more than one thing at a time; every few days we'll charge the camera battery or our tablet or Kindle, but we certainly don't need to do them all at once. Another thing that disappeared from my list after several years of not using is pantyhose - does anyone actually wear them anymore, even on colder climate cruises?

 

On the other hand, there have been things we desperately needed and didn't have. On several occasions we've gotten bad colds or sore throats early in a long cruise, and really missed our usual remedies from home. On our Australia cruise, we spent several hours in our first few ports searching for a pharmacy, then trying to find the kinds of remedies (Vitamin C, zinc lozenges, decongestants) we were used to. Couldn't even find Tylenol, and their 'equivalent' upset my stomach. A fully stocked medical kit is now standard for any longer cruise. We also truly missed good quality tissues for runny noses and now take at least a few 'pocket packs'!

 

We have used and now always take duct tape (taping cabinet doors and drawers closed in very heavy seas, plus repairing a split seam on luggage), a sewing kit (sewed on a button more than once), travel clock, flashlight (for bathroom trips in the night), an eyeglass repair kit, and ear plugs.

[mrsd912]

I did have clothes I never wore on our last cruise, but we did laundry unexpectedly. I think if we hadn't I would have worn everything I brought. I did bring way too many shoes thought. Three pairs of flip flops, three pairs of dinner shoes, water shoes, sneakers, and birkenstocks. What a waste!

Everything else that I brought but didn't use, I would bring again because I wouldn't want to be without if I needed something like aspirin, band aids, and extra underwear.

[jd07]

Being a bigger guy I tend to bring a lot more clothes as usually it's hard to impossible to find clothes my size. Plus on my next cruise I'm flying back from Honolulu to Australia. So 31 kilo limit for luggage on the American airline. Than 23 kilo limit for Australian domestic airline. So my natural inclination to over pack is kept in line by Aussie airline restrictions :)

 

 

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[SheriAZ]

OTC medicine. I would take it again though. I would hate to not have it.

[marco]

I bought them a few years ago, bring them on every cruise and have NEVER used them. A pair of "water shoes". Not sure if that is the proper name, but those mesh shoes you can wear in the water if the ocean floor is rocky.

[ducklite]

I bought them a few years ago, bring them on every cruise and have NEVER used them. A pair of "water shoes". Not sure if that is the proper name, but those mesh shoes you can wear in the water if the ocean floor is rocky.

 

 

We took them on one of our Caribbean cruises, didn't use them, and haven't worn them since. However we will be bringing them for our Tahiti cruise where they are pretty much required.

[slidergirl]

We took them on one of our Caribbean cruises, didn't use them, and haven't worn them since. However we will be bringing them for our Tahiti cruise where they are pretty much required.

 

This is why I have my Jambu Water Diva shoes. They are nice enough for everyday and evening wear and, if I'm going to walk along the beach or on river rocks, they are able to do this. Double-duty!!! Unfortunately, Jambu has discontinued them, so you have to hunt for them on the 3rd party sites (I did just buy another pair (my 3rd - the other 2 are still fine, but wanted to get a pair for posterity) at the shoe buy site...

[slidergirl]

The problem is that I need that stuff in both directions. What I am strongly considering is stuffing the things I only need in LA (jeans, handbag, etc.) into a USPS Flat Rate box and mailing it to myself at the hotel we are booked at when we return to LA. I asked the hotel if they would be willing to hold a small box for me for the week but they were non-committal, so I need a back up plan.

 

I'm surprised the hotel won't say "yes, we will hold for you." If you are returning, you shouldn't even have to mail it - they should just hold for you. At our hotel, we've kept things for months for a returning guest. Could your business place hold it? I'm just trying to come up with ideas for you.

If all else fails, and you don't mind paying, look into this: http://laxluggagestorage.com/index.html

Found it on the LAX website… You'd pay as much (or more) than taking the luggage to Tahiti, but you wouldn't have to lug it around...

Edited February 23, 2014 by slidergirl

[ducklite]

I'm surprised the hotel won't say "yes, we will hold for you." If you are returning, you shouldn't even have to mail it - they should just hold for you. At our hotel, we've kept things for months for a returning guest. Could your business place hold it? I'm just trying to come up with ideas for you.

If all else fails, and you don't mind paying, look into this: http://laxluggagestorage.com/index.html

Found it on the LAX website… You'd pay as much (or more) than taking the luggage to Tahiti, but you wouldn't have to lug it around...

 

 

I agree, it should be a no brainer to hold a small bag/box for nine days. I wouldn't mind being charged a small fee for the service. Their "well, we won't be able to tell you yes or no until you are here" answer made me consider other options.

 

My meeting is with a supplier out in Riverside, definitely don't want to go trucking out there a second time, not to mention I don't really have enough if a relationship with them to ask for that type if a favor. My other option might be to ship it to myself at a UPS Store. Some will receive packages for you for a small ($5-10) fee.