Packing Tips for 3 Ladies on 7 Night Cruise

[Ashley24]

We have gone on 3 of the Wonder cruises but this will be our first Magic Cruise. My head is just spinning when I think about all the clothes I will need to pack for the evenings! Can someone give me some helpful tips about what to pack, how much to pack, and the best way to pack it. I am primarily interested in knowing how myself and two dds will get all our dresses packed! On the three night cruise we had to pack 9 dresses! And then of course dh's suit coat, pants, dress shirts, etc. I plan on renting him a tux that will be delivered to our stateroom to free up some space....how many nights do you think he could wear it (2?). The girls and I could buy tropical dresses on St. Martin but that still leaves a bunch of things to be packed! HELP!
Ann

 

[jlmcantwait]

Hi Ann,
I am probably in the minority with my opinions on packing.........
My opinion is.....what is the difference if you check 3 bags or 5 bags? Once you make the choice to check a bags(instead of carrying on) then you still have to go to baggage claim. So you get a cart and pile 'em up! HAVING SAID THAT!!!! LOL

I have the best luck with garment bags. If you get a couple good ones you can pack all of your dresses, they will stay pretty neat, and you husbands things. I hang all of Johnnys shirts on 1 hanger (kind of layer them on top of each other)put that on the topside of the garment bag, then put his pants folded in 1/2 on the other side. In my opinion....you should bring an outfit for every night. I bring a bunch of stuff for day activities too. I am just not the kind of person that likes to hang all day in a bathing suit. What I did do for the first time is put all of my "stuff" (shampoo, first aid, hair products ect) in a 24" roller bag and I will carry it on board. You would be surprised how much space that frees up in your suitcase and no fear of leakage.

I wear a uniform to work so when I go on vacation I like to wear different things each time I dress up to go out. I guess thats just my thing! It sounds like there is plenty of storage space in the cabins so you shouldn't have a problem there.

Good luck! OH YEA!
Shoes....whada 'bout da shoes....different pair for each dress.....ONLY KIDDING!!!! Laurie

 

[Ginny]

Dear Ann -

I simply relegate DH to swimwear and gym short and use all his leftover space!!

Seriously, I am also of the "use your alloted luggage quota" school but have found that for us on the cruises, I didn't use all that I brought and it's a pain to repack so I've cut back. Here are my suggestions:

#1) We enjoy dressing up so I bring one long formal, one dressier dress (semi-formal night) and I also bring a Tuxedo pantsuit. Those and DD's (8 y/o) dresses for Formal and Semi-Formal nights go in a hanging bag. Over each of our individual dresses I hang a separate plastic dry cleaners bag which helps a lot with decreasing wrinkles.
#2) The rest of the dinners I wear dressy or casual pants depending on theme with different sweaters for mix and match. I can also wear the pants during the day just by wearing a different shirt or sweater. I dress them up or dress them down depending on the sweater and jewelry. The pants and sweaters fit nicely in the suitcase.
#3) I pack one large suitcase for DD and one for me with outfits pre-planned for each day and/ or evening. Sometimes, it's just a pool coverup and swimsuit or shorts and a tee-shirt. It sounds funny but doing that cuts way down on the amount of clothes we bring. Most importantly, this method successfully leaves room for new purchases!!
One note: I ALWAYS bring "little girl plastic hangers" and adult hangers along and then we maximize use of the closets and store nightgowns, underwear, bathing suits, cover-ups etc in the drawers. I also leave the adult hangars from the dry cleaner on the ship for more room on the return trip.
#4) I take the minimum # of shoes (just cause I hate packing them): Dressy black pumps, simple black leather heels, one pair of Sketchers and pool shoes. I find that I wear the Sketchers and pool shoes through most of the trip but running shoes with a long formal just don't work for me.

If you enjoy dressing up, I think you are very smart to rent the tux for DH. It works well and saves a lot of room. I don't think DH will wear it more than two nights (Formal/Semi-Formal) unless you would like him to wear it to Palo's. From what I have seen, most men didn't wear tuxes on Semi-Formal night but my DH did and he was very comfortable. And, to be honest, our pictures from Formal night were simply awful and the ones from Semi-Formal were great so we are glad he wore it the second time.

Have a wonderful cruise.