Our cruise is less than 2 weeks away! I can’t believe it! I have made a lot of progress on the packing. I like to start early so that I am not hurried and stressed right before we leave. Plus, I still pack for my 3 girls for a trip this long and packing for 4 people takes time. Some of you have asked to see my packing list for this trip so here is my best attempt. I like to divide my list into 3 sections: the kids’ stuff, general items, and my stuff.
The Kids’ Stuff
Let’s start with the girls. I am trying to pack light for once (I am a notoriously heavy packer). Since doing laundry on a 14 night cruise will be inevitable, my thought is that I can get away with bringing fewer clothes and hopefully fewer suitcases. I don’t normally like to do laundry on vacations, but most of us don’t have that many clothes or underwear so it’s gonna have to happen. I set a goal to get each of the girls’ things into 1 carry-on suitcase and 1 backpack each, so that they can carry all of their stuff on the plane. I am happy to report that I have reached that goal. Yeah for no luggage fees!
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Here is my youngest daughter’s pile:
Each of the girls has a set of packing cubes in a different color which helps keep things nice and organized. The older two have these packing cubes which come in a set of 3. The pink ones shown above are these, which come in a pack of 4. Since she only needs 3, I use the largest one for myself. If you want to read about my love for packing cubes, you can do that here. I was able to get all of her clothes (except for 2 fancy princess dresses, more on that later) into the 3 packing cubes, as well as a pair of dress shoes. The clothes in front are what she will wear the day we leave the house. The smallest and largest cubes are in the suitcase. The medium one is in her backpack, along with a pair of water shoes, a pair of flip flops, and her goggles:
The day we leave, I will add her book and iPad to the backpack.
FYI, I will put a full list of all of the contents of the packing cubes later in the post.
My middle daughter has pretty much the same setup:
Travel day clothes are in front, largest and smallest packing cubes in the suitcase (the small one is hiding under the large one), and medium packing cube in the backpack with dress shoes, flip flops, water shoes, and her emoji goggles.
I’ll add her book and iPad to the backpack later as well.
(Just a note, you won’t see me pack their toiletries in their bags because I am going to put them in my checked suitcase so that I don’t have to worry about sizes of liquids.)
My oldest daughter’s stuff is not quite so far along. She doesn’t have nearly as many clothes as her younger sisters (because she has no hand-me-downs and she hates shopping) so I can’t pack as early for her as I can the others. I did set aside as much as I can, which is pretty much just swimming stuff, pirate outfit, and formal/dressy clothes. Her stuff will eventually be organized just like the others though.
Now that you’ve seen how I’ve organized it, here is the list that I worked from for each of them:
2 swimsuits
1 rash guard
1 swim cover-up
goggles
2 princess dresses (youngest only, will be packed in space bag in my suitcase)
1 pirate outfit
5 casual outfits
5 casual dinner dresses/outfits
2 fancy dresses/outfits
1 dressy cardigan (in case they get cold at dinner)
1 warm outfit (jeans & long sleeve shirt)
1 pair of pajamas
1 pair of flip flops
1 pair of water shoes
1 pair of dress shoes
underwear & socks
toiletries
1 book
ipad & charger
lanyard & pins (oldest only)
1 outfit + tennis shoes to wear the day we leave
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General Items
Now I’m going to move on to what I call my “general” packing list. This is the stuff that we need to bring that is not clothing, shoes or toiletries. I am going to try and fit all of this stuff, as well as all of my stuff, the girls’ toiletries, and a space bag with 2 princess dresses into 2 large suitcases (to be checked) and 1 backpack (which I will carry on the plane). If you can’t figure out why I am bringing along some of this stuff, you might find the answer in my posts “My Top 10 Disney Cruise Packing Tips” or “10 Things I Always Pack for a Disney Cruise“. I have some of this stuff sort of gathered together right now (along with some of my personal things), but not officially packed. This is what it looks like right now:
See that gray grocery bag above? That’s my fancy way of making sure the sunscreen doesn’t get all over everything if it explodes mid-flight. There’s like 4 layers of protection there so fingers crossed!
Here is the list that I am working from:
all travel documents
passports in passport wallet
cash envelopes (you can read about my envelope system here)
Disney gift cards
video camera & charger
waterproof camera & charger
extra memory cards
phone & charger
wallet
hand santizer (this spray version is my favorite)
Wet Ones wipes
medications
air freshener (this type is my favorite for cruising)
ziploc bags
trash bags
small flashlight
suction cup hooks
hanging toiletry bag
Tervis cup
waterproof watch
small bag for pool (I’m taking this one that I made)
jellyfish sting relief (you can read about our jellyfish incident here)
suncreen (this type is my favorite, especially the face stick)
bug spray
sunglasses
small purse for carrying around the ship
laundry bag
That is everything on my “general” list right now, though I will undoubtedly see things lying around the house over the next week, decide I need them, and throw them in the pile.
My Stuff
Now onto my packing list for my personal stuff. I have pulled out a few things already (which you can see in the photos above), but not much. That is high on my to do list for today and tomorrow. This is the list I will work from:
3 swimsuits
2 cover-ups
pool flip flops
1 pirate outfit
5 sets of casual clothes
3 casual dresses
2 formal dresses
1 warm outfit (jeans & long sleeve shirt)
1 cardigan
1 pair dressy shoes
1 pair nice sandals
1 pair flats
pajamas
undergarments
jewelry
visor
toiletries
flat iron
book
the girls’ toiletries
space bag with 2 princess dresses
My goal is to have all of my packing done by the day before we leave. I always try to be finished early so that things aren’t so hurried and stressful, and also to allow time for any unexpected things that pop up and must be dealt with. I hate starting a vacation stressed out!
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I’m curious, why not use the KYSS bag as your carry-on?
That’s a great idea! Duh! Makes so much more sense. Thanks for pointing that out!
Oh, haha! I thought you had a specific reason. 🙂 But that’s what I did on my cruise this past November. I did also take a small backpack that I could use as a day bag (like for walking around when I didn’t need swim gear). But it was fantastic at Castaway Cay! I have the large size so it held a ton of stuff but wasn’t so full that I couldn’t fit it under the airplane seat.
I have the large size too, so I think it will work perfectly! I was already planning on taking a small bag for a day bag, so between that and the KYSS bag I think I should be good. One less thing to take! Plus, each of my kids is taking a backpack so if we really needed one to carry in a port, we could empty one of theirs & use it. Thanks again for the great idea!
You’re welcome! Have a fantastic trip! (I’m jealous!)
Im very excited to hear about your Panama Canal cruise. We are booked on the same trip in April 2018….and I’m already thinking about how I need to plan for a 14 day cruise…I’m thinking we will have some different needs, but I don’t know yet what they will be.
You are going to love it!!!! Be sure to read my trip report once I get back for some helpful tips.