Help from those who have spent 10 or more days at sea at a time

[flagger]

But I worry about the specialty clothes, like the elephant thong with the trunk where my um junk goes.

[FTLAUDER]

How do you pack for that long? We have a 15 day booked to Hawaii. I think I can amass 15 days or more worth of underwear and undershirts, but how do you pack when there is no laundry facilities on board.

 

It kind of skeeves me out the thought of someone handling our underclothes and on humid days I usually go through a couple of pairs a day. With no laundry facilities on board how do you do it? There are three of us which means two bags each and one carry on for the plane ride, but I wanted to see what you other folks do or have done? Do you ever drop off at a wash and fold in a port? Do you just fold underwear on the outside for the next day?

 

Please share your tricks of the trade!!!

Great question and everyone who suggested using the laundry service is right. Pack for 7 days and wear everything twice. Most cruisers make the same mistake at least once, too many shoes. I try to color coordinate so that I only need one pair of dress shoes, one walking shoe and light flip flops. Leave the shoes home and pack lots of underwear. You'll never regret an extra few undies, but those silver flats can go!!!!!

[Dame Delilah]

I have no problem sending my bras and panties as well as my outer wear to the laundry!:eek: (I'm sure they've seen and handled it all before!) I'm on vacation--let someone else do the work!

 

On all our trips, I always do a lot of mix and match outfits. On our upcoming trip (TransAtlantic, with 4 weeks in Europe and TransAtlantic return) all my clothes (Daytime, Evening, casual, informal and Formal) EVERYTHING(!!) is either Black, White or Red --so everything goes together.

 

I also do a lot of layering of outfits for warmth. :) Have a great trip!

[JLC@SD]

This may sound terrible, but we take kind of worn out undies and throw them away when we are done with them. Enjoy Hawaii.

 

......I had a friend who did that at a hotel in Japan......the hotel thought he left them there by accident........and they mailed them all back to him to his home.......:D

[abridalmaven]

Mix and match is the way to go for evenings. Several pairs of pants and a selection of shirts. You might consider renting a tux for formals so that leaves extra room.

 

The laundry service is a great alternative and I wouldn't worry about it. I have found that I don't use a outfit per day for the daytime wear. Shirts can be reworn when you have only worn it for a couple of hours the day before. Hubby is a t-shirt fanatic so we buy him a new one in each port.

That is the way we do it. If my DH wears one of his hawaiin shirts at dinner, he wears it another day on an excursion, unless of course it got dirty. And some things can be rinsed by hand.

[sandgrand]

I was walking about 3 streets back from the pier in Cozumel and came upon a washateria - I never thought about it and really don't want to wash clothes on vacation but.....I do wear a lot of white shirts and I could have washed and dried them while eating in the restaurant right there....just another option if you don't want to use ships laundry.......:)

[PhoenixCruiser]

This may sound terrible, but we take kind of worn out undies and throw them away when we are done with them. Enjoy Hawaii.

 

YUCK!! The OP is worried about the Steward seeing his "dirty laundry" :p Do you realize how many people actually see and have to sort through your garbage??

 

I like to wear my best while on vacation :D

 

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[Tahoestarr]

My best tips are space bags....check out spacebags.com, and the good old tide stick! Don't leave home without your tide stick!

[Desert Cruizers]

How do you pack for that long? We have a 15 day booked to Hawaii. I think I can amass 15 days or more worth of underwear and undershirts, but how do you pack when there is no laundry facilities on board.

 

It kind of skeeves me out the thought of someone handling our underclothes and on humid days I usually go through a couple of pairs a day. With no laundry facilities on board how do you do it? There are three of us which means two bags each and one carry on for the plane ride, but I wanted to see what you other folks do or have done? Do you ever drop off at a wash and fold in a port? Do you just fold underwear on the outside for the next day?

 

Please share your tricks of the trade!!!

Hello there, had a thought, they have disposable razors, why not under wear. Seriously speaking, I take more then I need in baggies, then squeeze the wittle air out of them. I wish Royal would get the laundry rooms like Princess, except more then 1 per Deck. We have our laundry done on Royal, better then taking dirty clothes home and washing them.

[Desert Cruizers]

Like others here--it's easy to bring some Woolite or travel detergent and do them yourself. We've traveled a lot on ships and otherwise with CoolMax and other quick dry underwear, T-shirts, socks, bathing suits, etc. (even jeans!) from online travel stores like Travelsmith, Magellans and Campmor that are easy to wash in the sink, hang up in the bathroom (RCCL probably doesn't want to see them hanging on your balcony:eek:) and dry overnight (or if desperate, with a towel and the hair dryer) . Very easy.

Les

Hi Les, if we were to hang our clothes outside on the blacony, we might end up with no clothes at all for the rest of the trip. <g>

[Cam6959]

Flagger if your worried about junk just toss the junk away! No worries then! :D :D

[NJGRANNY]

On a 14 day trip, I would take 7 outfits (or less) of casual and 7 outfits (or less) of dinner clothes. If there are two formal nights, I'd take one formal outfit (or maybe 2 dressy tops and one bottom).

 

We wash out our underwear every night. I've also used the ship's laundry if need be.

 

The more we travel, the less we take.

 

Enjoy.

[MariTenor1]

Traveling with a toddler (and we all know they can't stay clean!) we have to struggle to pack all of our stuff into 2 suitcases and a garment bag. (Boy will I be glad when he can lug his own suitcase!:p )

 

We tend to do a combination of previous posters. We try to bring enough undies, but if not, I brink a small amount of laundry soap and rinse it out in the sink.

 

On trips that have stops in St. Maarten & St. Thomas, we drop it off and have it done (it's about $1 a pound) and at the end of the day, pick it up on the way back to the ship.

 

We have also sent things to the ships service. Especially when DS spills on clothes at dinner and we don't want the stain to set before we get to our port with laundry service.

 

We have definitely learned the art of mix & match and wearing things twice. Bringing less is definitely best.

 

While ziplock and travel storage bags are great, they are deceiving. You can get a lot in the suitcase, but the weight adds up quite quickly as well.

 

DH is just thankful I don't require a different pair of matching shoes for every outfit!:D

[flagger]

the nice thing about traveling with a toddler who has her own seat means that we get six bags between the three of us to move the weight around.

[Barb C]

Janice! I do that too! Bring some old undies and pitch 'em.....too funny!

 

I always use the ship's cleaning service. Very reasonable. I hate doing laundry on vacation, and waiting for it to come out of the dryer. And the same people that chair hog do the same in the laundry...(am I right people?) :)

[MilliesMom]

We are on the same cruise and we are taking enough undies to change regularly and then send our outerwear to the ships laundry. I have a RCCL laundry pricelist if you would like to see it. Let me know on the roll call.

 

Would you post the price list. I would like to see it. We are booked on a 14 night Alaska Ultimate cruise. Thanks.

[PhoenixCruiser]

Would you post the price list. I would like to see it. We are booked on a 14 night Alaska Ultimate cruise. Thanks.

 

The price list is available on RCI's website, just check the FAQ Section:

 

Are laundry services provided?

 

Self-service laundry facilities are not provided onboard our ships, but we do offer full laundry and dry cleaning services. We do not provide irons in the staterooms as they constitute a fire hazard.

 

SHIPBOARD LAUNDRY SERVICE

 

* All prices are in US. Dollars and are subject to change without notice.

 

MEN WOMEN

Shirt/T-Shirt: $2.50 Blouse: $3.50

Shirt (dress): $3.00 Dress (wash): $5.00

Underwear: $1.20 Skirt: $3.50

Jeans: $3.00 Nightgown: $3.00

Pajamas: $4.00 Swimsuit: $2.00

Handkerchif: $0.75 Slip: $2.50

Shorts: $2.50 Housecoat: $3.50

Bathrobe: $3.50 Hosiery: $3.50

Pants (wash): $3.50 Slacks: $3.50

Sweatshirt: $3.00

Socks: $1.00

 

PRESS ONLY - 50% of cleaning prices SHIPBOARD DRY CLEANING SERVICES * All prices are in US. Dollars and are subject to change without notice.

 

MEN WOMAN

Suit: $7.00 Evening Gown: $8.00

Pants: $4.25 Dress $7.00

Jacket: $4.50 Silk Blouse: $5:00

Sweater: $4.00 Silk Dress: $8.00

Coat: $7.00 Skirt $4.50

Tie: $2.00 Suit: $7.50

Shirt: $3.50 Blouse: $4.00

Shorts: $3.00 Scarf: $2.50

Vest $2.50

Silk Pajamas: $4.50

 

PRESS ONLY - 50% of cleaning prices.

 

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[MilliesMom]

Thank you. Greatly appreciate it.

 

I hadn't thought to check the FAQ ... searched everywhere else.

[MortgageChick]

Cruise # 18 coming up and I am not a whole lot better than I was 8 years ago when I started cruising. I have been on a 17,15,14,13,12N,11N,10Night and soon to be a 9 night cruise. I am trying this time for one large suitcase each and rolling duffell for our shoes and snorkel gear(due to weight). We have also upgraded to the largest size carry ons allowed. It is the formal wear t hat takes up all the room.

I usually pack my husband 2 jackets and one black suit, then a multitude of ties and about 4 dress shirts. Shorts and T shirts take up little room.

 

Half the time we have a balcony and I wash a tshirt and a pair of undies each day and Hang over the back of the chair. Takes 10 minutes. Since we are usually in our swimsuits in the daytime, don't go through as many undies.

Socks for my DH are only worn int he dining room and only a few hours each day so they can be worn a couple of times. On a 15 night cruise, I would wear my evening wear twice each cruise.

 

Next cruise is Princess and they have self serve laundry so I will likely do a load on day 4 or 5.

[masterbaker]

If you sweat enough to need 2 changes per day of undershirts and underwear, I suggest you get microfiber underclothes. Six of each and you are good to go forever. They are lightweight, wash easily in the sink, and dry overnight. We have taken many long cruises, even a 17 night Panama Canal with just six underclothes changes each, and could have actually brought less if we washed every night, but I didn't want to bother with that.

[MrPete]

We sailed on Carnival, so we did our own laundry half way through.

[exarche02]

I am on a 12 day cruise this June, but then we are traveling around Europe before and after (will be gone a month). So, we're talking 60 pairs of underwear. Its just not feasible to take that amount. I will most likely wash them out in the sink every week or so with some woolite. Anyone ever send their jeans out to be washed, and they have come back shrunk? Something about comercial dryers and jeans - they always come back shorter. I usually line dry my clothes, so I am not looking forward to someone else doing our laundry. :(

[MariTenor1]

the nice thing about traveling with a toddler who has her own seat means that we get six bags between the three of us to move the weight around.

 

you betcha! I can't wait until he can pull a little more than a carryon!

[veryhotred]

Ewww...don't turn your underwear inside out and re-wear it, that is just gross! A good place to store undies is in shoes that you are taking on the trip. Socks also fit in there well too.

 

I hope they disenfect the sinks well on the ships...I do not want my toothbrush falling into a sink where someone was washing their undies..lol...