12 suitcases and more....!?

[ed01106]

On 2/4/2021 at 4:21 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

 I did not have complimentary laundry at that time and hated to waste time sitting in a ship's laundry room doing small batches of clothes.  

I am not a fan of sitting in laundry rooms, but I am not worried someone is going to steal my clothes either.  Typically the front desk knows how long a  cycle takes.  I set my alarm for 5 -10 minutes shorter than that depending on how far from the laundry room I am hanging out and typically arrive back at the laundry room a minute or so before it is done.  There is nothing wrong with leaving clothes unattended, just don’t leave clothes tying up a washer or dryer for hours, forcing others to either remove you clothes or wait.  I always make sure I get back BEFORE the load is done.

 

Only exception was in two hotels where the wifi was strongest in the laundry room.  I stayed even after my clothes was done.

[Porky55]

5 hours ago, ed01106 said:

I am not a fan of sitting in laundry rooms, but I am not worried someone is going to steal my clothes either.

The time a cycle takes in both a washer and dryer is usually posted on a sign in the laundry, in ships I have been on anyway 👍

Edited February 8, 2021 by Porky55

[Porky55]

5 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

 

Sounds like you are doing the 2nd half of the Princess R/T Sydney WC. In 2015, we did the entire R/T on Sea Princess and complimentary luggage shipping, or even a negotiated discount was not a service provided by Princess.

 

The included luggage shipping is normally associated with the Premium/Luxury Lines - Viking, Oceania, Regent, etc.

 

You could ask the cruise line that if you contracted with Luggage Forward, or one of the other vendors, would the ship accept the delivery and send the bag to your cabin. 

Heidi13 - thank you, this is as I thought. Capalaba is doing the full WC on Coral Princess while we are doing the 1/2 from Dover as you guessed. 
 

You answered Capalaba's question though and I didn’t think Princess did the luggage forward service, particularly NOT from Australian ports. They will either need to do something privately ( for $ anything is possible) or pack less 😉

 

This could explain why, on Cunard boards in particular, they think Aussies are under dressed 🤔 We can’t bring very much luggage!!
 

And trust me 99% of us have to fly on a restrictive weight Domestic Service to even get to our embarkation ports. 23kg (50lb) limit per passenger before being charged excess on most airlines.

[rkacruiser]

9 hours ago, ed01106 said:

I am not a fan of sitting in laundry rooms, but I am not worried someone is going to steal my clothes either.

 

Neither am I concerned about such.  But, I have met fellow guests whose clothes were dumped onto the floor when either cycle was done and someone wanted the washer or dryer.  

 

Another "irritant" I have about laundry rooms:  when the ship supplies laundry baskets, there aren't ever very many of them.  OK.  But, the very tardy return of those baskets by other guests is not appreciated by me.  

[Porky55]

12 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

But, the very tardy return of those baskets by other guests is not appreciated by me.  

Always take my own (wash basket/bag) - store the dirty laundry in these, then divide into colours / items. These bags then get tightly closed and go into the washer and dryer as is. Saves lost socks & undies as well.
Trick is to not overfill when they go in the wash and they work brilliantly and take up NO space in cases when empty.
Love being self reliant and not depend on the ship for things if I don’t have to.

Edited February 9, 2021 by Porky55

[rkacruiser]

7 minutes ago, Porky55 said:

Always take my own (wash basket/bag) -

 

I also have a dirty clothes bag that I use to take the clothes to the laundry.  Being fabric, it would be washable.  Never thought about throwing it in with the socks/underwear.  Thanks.

 

Don't want to jam clean shirts or slacks in it, however.  

 

 

[Porky55]

3 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

Don't want to jam clean shirts or slacks in it, however.  

That’s why you have more than one - simple 👍 Socks maybe on their own, slacks and casual tops in one, undies on their own (2 sml bags?) blouses in its very own bag. You can sort in your cabin then just toss the bags that are in the same colour group into the washer. 
 

I do however send heavier things, jeans, men’s shirts casual pants to ships laundry if a wash is needed. Never send anything delicate (tho don’t do too much ‘delicate’ these days) handwash these in room.

 

Im sure everyone has their own routines but just thought I’d share some of mine - to fill the waiting before our next cruise ……………… whenever 🙄

[rkacruiser]

8 minutes ago, Porky55 said:

Im sure everyone has their own routines but just thought I’d share some of mine - to fill the waiting before our next cruise ……………… whenever 🙄

 

It's always interesting to learn what other cruisers do.  

 

I have had very good success with the ships' laundry.  Once, there was a pair of pants that they shrunk.  (No, it was not due to too much Prime Rib, Lobster, etc.).  The advantage of loyalty status with any cruise line that includes "free laundry" is a benefit that is well worth (and expense) to obtain it if one is a frequent cruiser.  

[ed01106]

52 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Neither am I concerned about such.  But, I have met fellow guests whose clothes were dumped onto the floor when either cycle was done and someone wanted the washer or dryer.  

That is the fault of the person who did not return in a timely manner to deal with their wash.  I have never known of someone interrupting a wash or dry cycle.  But once the cycle is done and 15 - 20 minutes has passed, it is perfectly reasonable to remove the items.   I know of people who have not returned for an entire day and were upset that someone removed their items.  Thinking you can tie up the machine for 12 or more hours is selfish.  I make a point of returning before the cycle completes.  

[Heidi13]

5 hours ago, Porky55 said:

Heidi13 - thank you, this is as I thought. Capalaba is doing the full WC on Coral Princess while we are doing the 1/2 from Dover as you guessed. 
 

You answered Capalaba's question though and I didn’t think Princess did the luggage forward service, particularly NOT from Australian ports. They will either need to do something privately ( for $ anything is possible) or pack less 😉

 

This could explain why, on Cunard boards in particular, they think Aussies are under dressed 🤔 We can’t bring very much luggage!!
 

And trust me 99% of us have to fly on a restrictive weight Domestic Service to even get to our embarkation ports. 23kg (50lb) limit per passenger before being charged excess on most airlines.

 

We learned about Qantas baggage restrictions when we flew from Dubai to LHR. We had a BA Code Share, but since we checked in with Qantas, we only got 2 bag in Business, not the 3 that BA provide.

 

You can check the prices, but without the discount that Viking Ocean negotiate, Luggage Forward is pricy. On our 2020 Viking WC, we got 1 case pp for embarkation and a 30% discount, if we wanted to ship them home on disembarkation.

 

Although we no longer sail with Princess, the Coral and Diamond were our favourite ships. Enjoy the cruise.

[vslparis]

On 2/8/2021 at 7:33 PM, Porky55 said:

Always take my own (wash basket/bag) - store the dirty laundry in these, then divide into colours / items. These bags then get tightly closed and go into the washer and dryer as is. Saves lost socks & undies as well.
Trick is to not overfill when they go in the wash and they work brilliantly and take up NO space in cases when empty.
Love being self reliant and not depend on the ship for things if I don’t have to.

What a great idea ! So you would put 2 or 3 of these bags in the machine at a time ?

[Porky55]

1 hour ago, vslparis said:

What a great idea ! So you would put 2 or 3 of these bags in the machine at a time ?

Yep, no problems. Light coloured - or darker colours in a wash, the bags just separate things.
Or one big one, fill it up and throw it in. The ones I have actually have zips as these stay closed better. 
Try Etsy for “mesh laundry wash bags”. 
 

Edited February 10, 2021 by Porky55

[MaineYachtClub]

15 hours ago, vslparis said:

What a great idea ! So you would put 2 or 3 of these bags in the machine at a time ?

Do you dry them in the bag also?  If so, does everything dry in a normal cycle time?

[Mich3554]

I actually bought a set of these mesh bags when I lost 4 socks and only brought 6 pair on our last cruise.  I had to go back to the laundry room and some guy just was loading up the dryer I had just emptied.  All 4 socks were there, so lucked out.  I never though5 about washing all of our clothes in these bags though, I was just going to use them for socks an$ underwear.

 

FWIW, a sent a delicate linen sweater to the laundry.  Not only was it returned in excellent shape, but they got out the chocolate stain down the front when I missed my mouth.  

[Porky55]

12 hours ago, MaineYachtClub said:

Do you dry them in the bag also?  If so, does everything dry in a normal cycle time?

Yes, straight out of the washer into the dryer. 
Note though, I got the best results when the bags weren’t overfilled. 

[Porky55]

6 hours ago, Mich3554 said:

FWIW, a sent a delicate linen sweater to the laundry.  Not only was it returned in excellent shape, but they got out the chocolate stain down the front when I missed my mouth

Agree, haven’t had any problems with anything I have set to ships laundry (usually larger items - denim etc.)

But ……… if I was to have something damaged by washing - it would just be an excuse to buy something new at the next Port stop 😉

[Roger88]

I remember surfing the internet looking for some good traveller's  bag deal just to have everything packed in one place. Unfortunately all those bags lack one thing or the other. Its better to watch travel blogs and pay attention to what they are using 

[Mich3554]

11 hours ago, Roger88 said:

I remember surfing the internet looking for some good traveller's  bag deal just to have everything packed in one place. Unfortunately all those bags lack one thing or the other. Its better to watch travel blogs and pay attention to what they are using 

About 15 years, I bought a 22” Victornox expandable carry on from Tuesday Morning.  That bag now has more miles on it than all my FF accounts combined and it has been sufficient for travel up to a month.  It’s pretty beat up, but still serviceable.

 

For our WC, I know both DH and I are both going to need a second bag, so have been looking and not liking what I see in the 25-26” range.  It is hard to buy luggage online as I want to see the inside.  Locally, luggage choices in the store aren’t great.  We have time, but don’t want to wait until the last minute.

[rkacruiser]

13 hours ago, Porky55 said:

haven’t had any problems with anything I have set to ships laundry

 

Once, returning to Los Angeles after a long cruise on the Volendam, I sent a pair of wash n' wear slacks that I intended to wear home on my flights to be laundered.  For some reason, after the slacks had been returned on the day before disembarking and I had already put my luggage in the hallway for the crew to pick-up that night, I decided I ought to try the slacks on.  😲 !  They had shrunk!  Very tight around the waste!  I quickly retrieved a bag from the hallway in order to get another pair of pants to wear, thankful that the crew that was at that time picking up luggage had not yet gotten to my cabin (they were just down the hall).  I would have been miserable if I had to have wear those shrunken pants.

 

That is the only mishap with ship laundry that I have experienced and I use them a lot.

[Roger88]

On 2/11/2021 at 10:43 PM, Mich3554 said:

About 15 years, I bought a 22” Victornox expandable carry on from Tuesday Morning.  That bag now has more miles on it than all my FF accounts combined and it has been sufficient for travel up to a month.  It’s pretty beat up, but still serviceable.

 

For our WC, I know both DH and I are both going to need a second bag, so have been looking and not liking what I see in the 25-26” range.  It is hard to buy luggage online as I want to see the inside.  Locally, luggage choices in the store aren’t great.  We have time, but don’t want to wait until the last minute.

the best bag I could come up lately was a laptop bag from the riva case priducer. It fits all things I always take with me and + it hold my laptop, tablet and a cellphone very nicely. I think this is the kind of bag we I needed all this time

[ed01106]

On 2/11/2021 at 4:23 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

Once, returning to Los Angeles after a long cruise on the Volendam, I sent a pair of wash n' wear slacks that I intended to wear home on my flights to be laundered.  For some reason, after the slacks had been returned on the day before disembarking and I had already put my luggage in the hallway for the crew to pick-up that night, I decided I ought to try the slacks on.  😲 !  They had shrunk!  Very tight around the waste!  I quickly retrieved a bag from the hallway in order to get another pair of pants to wear, thankful that the crew that was at that time picking up luggage had not yet gotten to my cabin (they were just down the hall).  I would have been miserable if I had to have wear those shrunken pants.

 

That is the only mishap with ship laundry that I have experienced and I use them a lot.

Are you sure the laundry room was to blame and not the dining room?

[GUT2407]

I doubt we have enough clothes to fill that many suitcases, on a 35 night cruise we took one suitcase and one carry on each, a garment bag between us for formal gear and a largish camera bag, as long as you are prepared to do some laundry can’t imagine needing much more, other than perhaps a bag for all the medications I need.

 

Though I would consider taking a second wheelchair, either one that packs into a suitcase or Mrs Gut may need to ride on board.

[West Coast Gal]

On 2/1/2021 at 8:44 PM, Capalaba said:

I have read that story of the lady with the 12 bags - amazing.

You deserve a medal for 8.

Do you remember where the story is of this lady, I would enjoy reading it!

Edited February 25, 2021 by West Coast Gal

[West Coast Gal]

On 2/8/2021 at 6:49 PM, Heidi13 said:

Although we no longer sail with Princess,

Wondering why you no longer sail on Princess?  We are booked on a world cruise with them in 2023, and even though we are elite, we have not been on a Princess ship since 2015

[West Coast Gal]

On 2/11/2021 at 12:12 AM, Roger88 said:

I remember surfing the internet looking for some good traveller's  bag deal just to have everything packed in one place. Unfortunately all those bags lack one thing or the other. Its better to watch travel blogs and pay attention to what they are using 

Do you have any suggested travel blogs to look at?