There are some people who LIVE for cruises. We all know them! I have some flight attendant friends who go on about 5-7 cruises a year. While a cruise seems like a great adventure, it isn’t our usual go-to means of exploring the world.
Last year, we went on a 4 night cruise departing from Singapore with some friends. It was the very first cruise for both of us so we weren’t exactly sure what to expect. There were so many things we packed that we didn’t need and things we didn’t pack, but we needed. We figured we would compile all of our must haves for our next cruise that will be going on our packing list for an abroad cruise.
Our experience with the cruise was okay. The idea of swimming in spectacular pools with slides, dressing up for fancy dinners, always having tons of choices of food around the clock seemed perfect for a laid back vacation, but we didn’t really experience that. We found our particular cruise on a popular travel deal website for aviation employees so the cost per night was crazy low. At the time that seemed great, but you get what you pay for! The food was okay. It seemed like there was so much of it during the meal times, but none of it seemed appealing. They also had snack stations throughout the day where you could get a hot dog or ice cream, but they didn’t look too appetizing.
We didn’t end up getting the drink package which I feel like was a huge mistake because the only two options for beverages were water and lemonade. We were so sick of lemonade after the first two days! We “snuck” (aka just had a bottle in our suitcase that they didn’t confiscate) of vodka on to the cruise, but didn’t end up drinking any of it. I think next time we cruise we will probably end up splurging a little and at least get the soda package! But I did come up with a way to get around the water only rule – bring your favorite Mio or flavor packets! Mio even has sweet tea flavor. Those would have come in handy!
We spent most of the cruise running around tracking down when and where they played bingo. Unlike most cruises that have a ton of options of activities throughout the day this particular cruise had maybe two activities to choose from. We had fun playing some trivia and bingo though! One of our friends even won a bottle of champagne in a game!
What are your favorite cruises to go on? Is there a particular time of year when you like to go? Let us know in the comments below! We plan on taking some cruises next year so let us in on some of your favorite secrets!
Our Top Ten Must-Have Items on our Packing List for A Cruise Abroad
- Pepto/Tums/Picot – I cannot stress it enough: always make sure you have something to soothe an upset stomach or heartburn when traveling. Nothing is worse than ruining a vacation simply from some food that you didn’t agree with (or didn’t agree with you!). When you travel you are always introduced to foods or drinks you aren’t use to and you can never be too sure how your body will react. Our favorite is Picot because of the taste and how easily packable it is. Raul introduced it to me – it is basically alka-seltzer it just doesn’t have the awkward salty taste to it that makes me cringe.
- Water Flavoring – We didn’t splurge on the drink package for our cruise, but we also didn’t realize we’d only be limited to water and lemonade. Sometimes you just want a flavor! We recommend bringing some water flavorings like Mio or Crystal light to spruce up your water. I would recommend using the powder instead of traveling with the Mid liquid containers. The pressurization of the cabin when flying sometimes causes the Mio to squirt out uncontrollably after you’ve landed and you’re more likely to have leakage or spills with the liquid. If you choose to travel with liquid make sure you put it in a baggie (we love to travel with these super durable silicone baggies!).
- Pool shoes – I am not frequent flip flop wearer I usually have one or two sandal type shoes for the summer so I brought those on the cruise. This was a big mistake. I hated leaving them out of sight and was always nervous someone was going to steal them (I’m paranoid I’m not sure why haha!) and when I was out of the pool the moisture made them so hard to walk in back to my room. I recommend bringing two pairs of the inexpensive flip flops to use by the pool side.
- Yeti/Hydroflask/Insulated cup – We wish we had one of these SO bad on our cruise. Our ice would melt SO quickly and drinks would get watery and hot within minutes. It is such a good idea to have these types of containers while traveling. This is by far our favorite refillable bottle – we use it on a daily basis (we call it our Contigo Amigo!).
- Snacks – We had no idea what the food would be like going on a cruise abroad. I’m a pretty picky eater (meaning I’m just not usually a huge fan of food in general) so for me I made sure to pack snacks that I love. I even have my go to cheese crackers with peanut butter nicknamed my “emergency crackers” and I’m not kidding when I say these are stashed everywhere – my purses, my jeep, my parents house, etc. You also never know when you will get hungry and there might not be snacks available 24/7.
- Dramamine – I don’t know of many people who have gotten seasick on a cruise, but hey – it could happen! Being seasick is miserable and will completely ruin your time on the cruise so I’d say its better to be safe than sorry!
- Research your ports – There is no cell signal in the middle of the ocean! We made the mistake of just thinking we would get to the port and figure out what to do, but once you dock at the port you only have a certain amount of time there. You should research and know what you are going to do at each port and how to get there (what is the best option for transportation? Ubers, Grabs, taxis, etc.). This will save you a lot of time and stress!
- Copy of your passport – When we arrived on the cruise ship they took all of our passports. With all of us being flight attendants we were totally freaked out. Our passports are vital to us and not having it or knowing where it was put us on edge – especially when we got off the boat at each port. If we would have had a copy of our passport I would have felt more at ease when we were exploring each port or just in general!
- Collapsable/Packable Backpack – We always travel with this backpack it is by far our favorite travel necessity. You don’t just want to leave all your stuff out in the open. We were able to put all of our things like the hotel key card, sunscreen, sunglasses, refillable cups, etc. in our backpack to better keep track of it. It is a life saver when you realize all the stuff you want to take to the pool with you!
- Dry pouch for phone – You don’t want to ruin your phone during a cruise! Get a dry pouch for your phone! Like I said there is no cell signal in the middle of the ocean, but some cruise lines have a messaging system that you can use to contact other people on the boat. This was so convenient for our group traveling together because our rooms were all over the place. We would message each other through the system about where we were meeting and when – it was really convenient! You might not think about a dry pouch for your phone because you won’t be in the ocean during the cruise, but you will most likely be by the pool frequently and when you dock at a beachy port you will likely be enjoying the waves.
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