5 things you must pack for a cruise to help keep your stateroom organized
Hey cruisers!
Did you know that we’ve been sharing cruise tips & tricks for nine years? Yep, we started CruiseTipsTV back in 2013. We’ve shared a lot of cruise tips since then, and we have no plans to stop. So today I want to share five things that we think you must pack for a cruise to help keep your stateroom organized.
These are items we’ve been packing & using for nine straight years, which means if you’ve been here before, you may have seen these tips before. If you’re new, these are the things that cruisers like us never, ever, ever leave at home. These are things that are going to make your state room more functional, more comfortable, and they’re going to make you look like you’ve been cruising for years. Who doesn’t love that!?
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Supplement the power…trust us on this one.
The first rule of cruise cabin contentment is to get supplemental power. Without fail, there are never enough electrical outlets in your cruise cabin. You could buy a USB hub or a non-surge protector power strip, but you’ll definitely need something. Get whichever you like, but our favorite is this cool combination of an AC and USB power strip from a brand called OneBeat (affiliate link). What we love about this thing is the fact that it has a combination of three AC and 3 USB plugs, along with a bonus USB-C plug.
Some models only have the standard USB plugs. It also has a really nice braided cord with a flat angled plug. It’s super groovy. I have never been on a cruise ship that had enough power outlets or places to charge my phones & cameras. So this thing always comes in handy, and we think it is a “must pack for a cruise” item.
Oh, and by the way, most of these “must pack for a cruise” items are available in our cruise store, which can be found at Amazon.com/shop/cruisetipsTV Go straight to the Stateroom Essentials section and you’ll find all of the stuff in there.
- 【Power Strip with USB Charge for All】 - Power strip with 3 AC outlets(1625W/13A), + 3 USB-A ports(5V/2.4A) + 1 USB-C port(5V/3A), provides ultimate convenience for your appliances and mobile devices. It compatible with 100~240V worldwide voltage, perfect for cruise ship, office and home etc
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Packs flat, pops up!
Another thing we think you must pack for a cruise is a pop-up hamper. Pop-up hampers are so great. They don’t take up much space in your suitcase, and when you get on the cruise, you simply pop it open and put it in your closet. VOILA! All of your dirty laundry will be neat, organized, and out of the way. When you go to pack things up, all the dirty laundry is in one place. So this is just a really good hack.
Stick ’em up!
Another thing I always take with me on a cruise (and this makes me a huge cruise nerd) is sticky notes, but not just any sticky notes. I like these jumbo double wide sticky notes (affiliate link). You can leave notes for your state room steward and for your cabinmates. Maybe you’ve gone to get a morning coffee, and you want to let them know where you’ve gone – however you use them, these are great. Just stick ’em on the door, the mirror, or whatever is convenient. Don’t forget to pack a pen to go with them. Sticky notes and a pen are definitely “must pack for a cruise” items.
Mighty Magnets 😉
Next up is something that we talk about all the time here at CruiseTipsTV.com. We’ve been talking about this product for so darned long, but it’s still an absolute favorite. That’s right, it’s super-strong magnets. The reason that we pack magnets is because stateroom walls just happen to be made of metal. That means that a magnet will stick to them, and you can maximize your storage space by hanging stuff on these. We buy the hooks, but these also come as clips.
Our favorite brand is Learning Resources (affiliate link) because they’re really super strong and they just hold up really well for us. Hang your hats, stateroom lanyards (to hold your key card), and other lightweight essentials by the door for easy “grab and go” access.
Timeless Classic
Another thing I always take on cruises is a few clothespins. There’s so many different things you can do with clothespins. I use clothespins to hang laundry on the shower wire in the shower for drying swimsuits and other beach or pool gear. This just gives the clothing you’re hanging up there just a little bit more stability.
Another great use for clothespins is light blocking. Sometimes, bright sun floods through the curtains in your cruise cabin, but fear not! Take a clothes pin to pinch those curtains together just a tiny bit. You don’t need many of them to make a huge difference.
Bonus Time
I’m gonna throw in a sixth bonus tip for you because this is more of a packing essential for us, but it also really helps with your stateroom organization. Using packing cubes to pack your stuff is an absolute must for us. When you unpack your clothing all you have to do is leave these packed and slide them onto the shelf or into the drawer on your cruise ship.
With packing cubes (affiliate link) things just stay so tidy and organized. You can buy different colors or prints for every member of your cruising party to help keep things separate. You’ll be so glad that you did.
We hope you’ve enjoyed these six cabin organization tips. We know that a lot of these tips may be familiar to you – and we take a lot of the same stuff all the time, but why would we change? This stuff just works.
What are some of your favorite cruise stateroom organization essentials? What do you like to pack for a cruise? Pop over to Facebook or Instagram and DM us your tips!
Thanks for reading!
Sheri & The Boys
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