Cruise essentials ⚓ What to pack for a Caribbean cruise :: Travel packing list

Hi there!

So, you’re getting ready to pack for your first Caribbean cruise.

What to put on that cruise packing list?!

Now, you likely won’t want to take all of the things on the list below.

But there’s a good reason to consider all of them.

For some people, these things could be considered cruise essentials, while for other people, they could be considered completely unnecessary.

It really depends on your travel style and what comforts you like with your cruise vacation… and what you’ll be doing during your cruise!

And, aside for the things on this list, you’ll want to think about things to pack to prevent seasickness and what to wear on a cruise vacation.

Now…

What are some things to pack for a Caribbean cruise?!

There are affiliate links below. You should totally check out some of the cruise ideas

First, possibly one of the most purchased cruise essential?!

Cruise luggage tags

Basically, it can help to make sure your suitcase will be delivered to your room. If the tag gets torn off (which is more likely without these cruise luggage tags) then you might have to go to lost and found on the cruise ship.

Okay, now for what to put on that cruise packing list!

1. Carry-on bag

Maybe you’re driving to your cruise departure port.

Or maybe you’re flying from the north to start your cruise vacation and checking in your all your luggage with your airlines.

Even so, you might want to also pack an extra daypack in your suitcase to transfer some important items into the backpack just before you arrive at the cruise port.

Once you check your cruise luggage in, you may not get it until the evening of the first day of the cruise.

This means that you might want to have a carry-on bag for your cruise, separate from your carry-on bag for your flight, since you might want extra things.

Think about things you’ll want to pack for the first day or the cruise, which really means what you’ll want for the first few hours of the cruise!

Once you arrive on the cruise ship, do you want to head straight to the water slide? Do you want to change quickly into your vacation mode outfit?

You won’t want to pack these things in your checked in cruise luggage!

A daypack can work out well for a day in port too, whether you go on shore excursions or you go to a beach near the cruise port on your own.

Have a look:

Top quality daypack or travel-friendly packable daypack

2. Sunscreen and aloe

What’s a common sight after the first sea day on a cruise?!

A bunch of people with red skin. (Really.)

Don’t be one of those people!

Aside from the health aspect, you probably don’t want to be in pain starting off your vacation!

And, sunscreen can be a finicky thing. You know, like you think you’ve applied plenty, but you discover at the end of the day that you still end up with a little bit of sunburn?

That’s why it can be a good idea to bring along aloe vera anyway to make you feel better in case it does happen.

Have a look:

• Mineral-based sunscreen
• Sunscreen with vitamin E
• Fruity lip balm with sun protection
• Organic aloe vera gel

And if you’ll be going snorkeling, be sure to have a look at Sun Bum reef-safe sunscreen or Neutrogena reef-safe sunscreen.

These types of sunscreen are considered to be more environmentally-friendly to marine life. Sunscreen is such a big issue for snorkeling that Hawaii has a sunscreen ban.

More for what clothes to wear snorkeling if that’s on your list of shore excursions!

3. Highlighter

There are tons of things to do on your first cruise.

A good way to make sure you don’t miss out on all the activities offered on the cruise ship that you want to do is to mark up that cruise activities schedule that you’ll get every day!

4. Walkie talkies

You’re at sea. You have no phone service. How do you communicate with others?!

Well actually, cruise lines have now come up with onboard texting apps so check to see what’s available on your cruise ship.

Otherwise, another way you’ll see people communicating now and then around the cruise ship is with walkie talkies.

Yes, going back in time. 😉

Have a look:

Walkie talkies for travel

5. Travel sandals

There’s a good chance that you’ll be doing a lot of walking during your cruise vacation.

Whether it’s walking around your big cruise ship or walking to and from places to visit near the cruise port, it might be more walking than you’re used to back home.

So a good pair of comfortable shoes or sandals that won’t give you blisters.

If you DO buy new shoes before your cruise, DO make sure to break them in slowly, like with some short walks a few times a week.

And on the topic of shoes, you may consider water shoes too. These could be good for walking around the pool or something to wear when snorkeling if you won’t be wearing fins.

Have a look:

• Top-rated travel sandals for women and for men
• Water shoes for women and for men

6. Waterproof phone case

Whether you’re taking a real camera or not, you may also want to get some protection for your phone so you can take pictures at the pool, going down the water slide, or underwater when you’re snorkeling.

You can get a slightly more expensive waterproof case that’s conformed to your phone that makes it easy to take pictures as normal.

But when you don’t really want to spend much on it, there’s a cheap waterproof phone case too.

It might take a couple of practices to be able to take the pictures as you want to, but once you get the hang of it (and you will after a few tries!) then it becomes a valuable cruise essential when you have water activities scheduled during your cruise!

Have a look:

Easy-to-use phone case or cheap but effective phone case

7. Portable phone chargers

This could possibly be THE most important thing you need to bring along on your cruise! 😉

With listening to music, taking lots of pictures, looking at google maps to figure out where to go when you’re on a new Caribbean island… you might end up using your phone’s battery life a lot quicker.

And of course you don’t want to end up with a dead phone at the very moment you come across a very instagram worthy snap. 😉

Have a look:

Lipstick charger or more powerful charger

HAPPY CARIBBEAN CRUISE PACKING!