The Best Princess Cruise Packing List and Tips
Hey, Cruisers!
We’re preparing for a warm-weather Princess cruise, and in addition to making a “pack with me” video, we decided to share our Princess Cruise Packing List in written format. This Princess Cruise Packing list will help you get ready for ANY warm weather Princess Cruise. Headed to the Caribbean for some sun and sand? Check! This list is for you!
Off to Europe, the Bahamas, or Asia in the summer months on Princess Cruises? We’ve got you covered!
We’ll provide you with a FULL Princess Cruise Packing list- from toiletries to clothing, and even stateroom essentials. This list will work well for a 7 night cruise, but can easily be adapted for shorter or longer cruises.
Want to shop this article?
We’ve hyperlinked lots of products in the list below, but our Amazon cruise store covers many of the suggested items listed and will allow you to save time by shopping in just one place, to complete YOUR Princess Cruise Packing List.
You can also find fun Princess Ocean Medallion Accessories in our Princess Accessories Idea List on Amazon.
What’s the dress code on Princess Cruises?
When packing for a Princess Cruise, you’ll likely do things a little bit differently than you would on another cruise line. For example, you may choose to buy some accessories for your Princess Ocean Medallion or pack a few outfits for your elegant or “formal” night! You might even pack some clothes for the “white and gold” theme party being held on Princess Cruises.
The dress code on Princess is casual by day, smart casual most evenings, and “formal” or elegant on a few nights of your cruise.
You can read Princess Cruises’ full dress code here, including how many formal nights to expect on your voyage. Essentially, it says:
“You should dress for a cruise with Princess the same way you would for any stylish land-based resort”.
In other words, you’ll dress casually by day (jeans, shorts, and casual resort wear), and in the evenings, here are two designations for dress codes – Smart Casual and Formal. Here’s how Princess breaks it down:
Smart Casual
“Guest attire should be in keeping with what they would wear to a nice restaurant at home”:
- Skirts/dresses, slacks, blouses, and sweaters for women
- Pants and collared or dress shirts for men
“Pool or beach attire, shorts, ball caps or jeans with fraying and/or holes are not welcomed in the dining room. Shoes must be worn.”
Formal
“When formal nights are held, please observe the dress code in the dining venues for the enjoyment of all our guests.”
- Evening gown, cocktail dress or elegant pantsuit for women
- Tuxedo, dark suit or dinner jacket and slacks for men
Princess Cruises has an “FAQ” section, outlining what to pack for a Princess cruise as well. We suggest taking a look, to cross-check and keep up with their current protocols.
Weather Conditions & Planning Tips
While this packing list is meant to be used for ANY warm-weather destination Princess sails, we do have a very comprehensive Alaska Packing List for you to use when packing for cooler-weather destinations. You can also check out our Alaska Cruise Packing Do’s and Don’ts to find out some common packing mistakes and how to avoid them when cruising to Alaska.
This packing list would be perfectly suitable for summers in Europe, summers in Asia (we’re using it to pack for Japan in August), the Mexican Riviera, Caribbean or Bahamas. Really, this Princess Cruise Packing List can be easily adapted for any warm weather destination.
THE PRINCESS CRUISE PACKING LIST!
It all starts with the proper suitcase & personal items:
Suitcases are kind of a personal thing, IMO. Mine are “tried and true,” but they are old and scratched up, and I gravitate toward them for good reason! They work!
With that said, here are some of my favorite brands and styles of suitcases, weekenders, and full-size rolling luggage:
- This carry-on suitcase is expandable and is sold by one of our favorite brands, Level 8!
- This curated list of carry-on luggage, luggage sets, and personal items will get you started!
- The right personal item bag makes ALL the difference. For the perfect “slides over your carry-on” bag for men and women, try this weekender bag.
- We love this personal item too, as it slides nicely under the seat in front of you on the flight.
- Here’s a selection of our favorite packing cubes to get you more organized!
- If you’re in search of a camera backpack, here’s one we bought for my husband’s gear.
Packing List: Princess Cruise Essentials
- Medallion Accessories are a fun add-on for your Princess cruise. I love the ones Princess sells (especially the comfy wristbands), but if you want to mix it up – you can find an assortment of different types of Medallion accessories here on Amazon.
- This lightweight foldable backpack is excellent if you want a VERY light day bag that won’t take up much space
- This Reusable hot/cold water bottle from Yeti keeps your coffee hot and your ice water ICY! We love it!
- Sleep mask (a must if you’re a “light-sensitive” sleeper!)
Packing List: Toiletries & First Aid
- Start with a TSA-approved toiletry bag– great if flying in the United States!
- Sunscreen
- Travel Size Shampoo & Conditioner
- Haircare items
- Cosmetics
- Comb/brush
- Hot tools (curling iron/flat iron)
- Body lotion
- Deodorant
- Razor
- Shaving cream
- LiquidIV – for hydration & immunity (25% off using this link)
- Medications (pain reliever, cold relief, allergy relief, heartburn relief, antibiotic ointment)
- Foam hand soap for stateroom bathroom
- Toothbrush/toothpaste/floss
- Bandaids & butterfly closures
- Cotton balls
- Q-tips
- Baby powder (for beach days -takes sand off your feet!)
A little note about toiletries: this is personal stuff. The list above just contains examples of what works for us. We don’t always pack ALL of this either, but for the sake of being thorough, we outlined a pretty exhaustive list.
Packing List: Embarkation Day Bag & Flight Essentials
Below are some items you may want to pack in your embarkation day bag. Remember, when you board the cruise ship, you may not have access to your stateroom for a few hours. So, it’s a good idea to keep some essentials with you. As with much of this packing list, you don’t need to pack everything listed. Just use this as a guide, and go with what works for you! Oftentimes, the items you’ll pack in your embarkation day bag will have some crossover with the items you packed in your flight bag.
- Passports – tucked into a neck wallet or combo vaccine card pouch
- Pen (keep near passports)
- Boarding documents (boarding passes, luggage tags, cruise contract, etc)
- If flying: boarding passes and other flight documentation
- Phone, chargers, cables, earbuds (I like to store mine in this handy bag)
- USB Charging hub
- $1 and $5 bills for tipping porters and bartenders
- Wallet, car keys
- Sunglasses
- Sunscreen
- Toiletries (we elaborate on those above)
- Medications (keep these with you at all times!)
- Swimwear for the family (goggles optional if you plan to swim)
- Hand sanitizing wipes
- Clorox wipes for a quick cabin wipe down
- 1 change of clothes for each member of the family (in the event of luggage delays)
- Camera & camera equipment
- Laptop & laptop sleeve (if necessary)
- All of the above “embarkation day items” can be packed into a backpack or a rolling carry-on size suitcase
Embarkation Day Bag: Health & Safety Items
- Clorox or similar disinfecting wipes (for cabin surfaces & door handles)
- Hand sanitizing wipes
- Prescription Medications*! Always keep these with you and NOT in your checked bags. *We recommend packing extra prescription medication in the event of travel delays
Packing List: Clothing & Accessories
- Hat for sun protection
- Socks
- Pajamas
- Swimwear
- Swim cover-ups
- Sun-protective clothing (like rash guards for beach days)
- Undergarments
- Formal wear (2 nights) – for men, slacks collared shirt, tie, and dinner jacket. For women, cocktail attire, dressy pantsuit, or something you’d wear as a wedding guest at a “dressy” wedding!
- Casual dinner wear (5 nights). For me, this means 5 casual dresses. For my husband, 5 casual pants & 5 collared “surf” style shirts. We will re-wear our dinner clothes because usually, we only wear them for a few hours!
- Casual shorts, skirt or lightweight pants (cropped are nice for staying cool)
- T-Shirts & casual blouses
- Workout clothes
- Jeans (1-2 pair only for a warm weather cruise)
- Hoodie or light jacket (just 1)
- Jewelry
- Small travel purse for evenings (to carry lipstick, phone/camera & cruise card to dinner)
- Shoes (Sample list for women: flip flops, athletic shoes or sneakers, formal pumps, wedges/sandals for dinner)
- Shoes (Sample list for men: flip flops, athletic shoes or sneakers, dress shoes for elegant dinners)
Stateroom Essentials
- Wall mount itinerary – here’s a sample you can customize
- Binder to hold paperwork, reservations, etc (optional) – here’s how to make one
- Wall mount magnets (use one to hold up the itinerary on the wall for easy reference). This set of hooks AND clips comes in so handy!
- Sticky notes
- Highlighter pen
- Pop up hamper
- Mesh pouch to hold all of the above!
We hope you’ve enjoyed this Princess Cruise Packing list and found some helpful tips and tips. Below, you’ll find more resources and tools to help you pack like a pro!
See you on the high seas!
Sheri & The Boys!
More Resources
If you’re like me, and you prefer the video version, this Pack with Me video should do the trick. Filmed just before our Princess Cruise we show you many of the items listed below, and talk about why we chose to pack them, and how this cruise was different from others we’ve been on. And it WAS different!
Looking for a printable cruise packing list?
If creating your own Princess cruise packing list sounds like too daunting a task, consider joining the CruiseTipsTV Academy where you’ll have access to printable cruise packing lists and tons of essential cruise tips & tricks to save you time and money. Check it out here*.
If you prefer a printable cruise packing list, our Intro to Cruising Master Class has it all. For $5 off the course, use the code ALLABOARD.
Packing Techniques & Tools
If you’ve been around the CTTV community for a while, you know the virtues of packing cubes! Yes, these little beauties come in every print, color and style you can imagine, and let me tell you, they make packing a BREEZE. Needless to say, we’re using them on this trip. One color for each member of the family and they should ABSOLUTELY become a part of your Princess Cruise Packing List!
That’s a wrap! Your turn!
We hope this Princess Cruise Packing List helped you to get started on your cruise planning! Do you have any packing challenges you still need help with? Check out how we used some of these items in our latest Stateroom Organization video.
We’d love to hear from you! Please feel free to direct message us on Instagram or Facebook with your thoughts, or just check in to see what we are up to on those platforms. We have lots of fun on Instagram, and we have a wonderful welcoming cruising community on Facebook. Be sure to check those out.
Want to shop this article?
We’ve hyperlinked lots of products from our Princess Cruise Packing List, but this “as seen in” list covers so much, and will get you started!
Cruise like a PRO!
Download our shore day bag checklist, and more cruise packing and planning checklists & videos by joining the CruiseTipsTV Academy. We have a special discount code for our readers on this Intro to Cruising Master Class.
To redeem the $5.00 discount on our master class enter code ALLABOARD here, and, welcome to the Academy!
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