Royal Caribbean Cruise Packing List
Last week, I went on my very first cruise ever onboard Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas. Both of my parents (and one of my step parents) have milestone birthdays this year, so we planned trips to mark the occasion. To celebrate my mom and step dad, we went on a cruise! It was the first cruise for almost all of us. I didn’t know what to expect, so I spent a LOT of time researching everything prior to the cruise. We ended up having a great time! I thought I would hate it, but I’d actually be open to going on another cruise. Korri loved it, too!
Our Royal Caribbean cruise on Allure of the Seas started in Galveston, Texas, and took us to the Western Caribbean over 7 nights with stops in Roatan, Honduras, and Costa Maya and Cozumel, Mexico. When it came time to pack for the cruise, I referred mostly to my Cabo packing list with some modifications. It’s important to bring all the right things for your cruise to make sure you have the best cruise experience possible, and I racked my brain to make sure I didn’t forget anything (and I still forgot things, haha). Below, I shared my Royal Caribbean cruise packing list to help you make sure you have all the essentials you need on board!
Royal Caribbean Cruise Packing List
Everything I packed for the cruise fit into two carry-on bags, but it was a tight squeeze and I really tested the limits of both bags and their zippers, lol. Korri and I both had a carry-on roller bag and a personal item (mine was my new Dagne Dover Landon carryall that matches my Ace fanny pack). We used a canvas tote I packed to carry on the drinks we purchased. On the way home, Korri had to check his roller bag because he bought alcohol, and I used the canvas tote as another carry-on to alleviate some of the weight from the other bags.
Below is everything I packed for our cruise (along with a few things I forgot but recommend and a few things I didn’t end up using and noted those)! The first day and the last day of our cruises were the coolest of the trip, temperature-wise, but it warmed up as the ship headed south. It was HOT and humid at our port stops, and it was especially hot and humid on the ship out on the water. I definitely recommend packing for mid-80 temperatures, but I also recommend bringing lightweight layers and long pants for evenings, dinners, and those days that may be cooler on the bookends of the cruise (check the forecast to be sure!).
Clothing, Shoes, and Accessories
Two tank tops (ivory and black)
One short-sleeve tee (white)
One long-sleeved cropped top (ivory)
One sweatshirt (olive green; wore on plane)
One cardigan (beige; UV protection)
Three pairs of shorts (one lounge, one bike short, one linen)
One pair of linen pants
One pair of jeans
One pair of leggings
One pair of joggers (wore on plane)
Two pairs of sandals (one flat, can go in water; one nicer pair with wedges)
One pair of sneakers (wore on plane)
One dress (black)
Three hats (two baseball caps, one sun hat)
One pair of earrings
One fanny pack
One packable puffer coat (still winter in Boise; wore on plane)
Other Wearables
Two one-piece swimsuits
One two-piece bikini
One beach kaftan/cover-up (white)
One pair of flip-flops
One pair of sunglasses
One large canvas tote
One sports bra
Three sets of pajamas (two PJ dresses, one bamboo set)
One pair of cozy socks
Underwear + bras + ankle no-show socks
Outfits/items for theme nights (e.g. 70s night; my mom brought my outfit and Korri packed his)
When I got on the ship and unpacked my bag, I also noticed that I had inadvertently packed a long-sleeved Heattech top (from Uniqlo)—no clue how that managed to get in! Haha. Out of everything I packed, and other than that rogue top, I didn’t wear the sun hat (it got stained before I could wear it), the sports bra, or the cozy socks. I wore the joggers for flights and embarkation and the leggings for debarkation. I liked having my flip flops, but I couldn’t wear them after the first couple of days because of pain in my big toe. The Royal Caribbean cabins include small closets with hangers and shelf space, and I highly recommend unpacking everything (or everything except undies) and keeping your bag(s) stashed under the bed and out of the way.
Miscellaneous cruise Necessities
Passport (and a copy of your passport to bring with you at port stops)
A credit card or two with no foreign transaction fees
A debit card for emergencies
Cash (I recommend $200-300 USD per person in a variety of bills; you need to bring your best-looking bills with you to Roatan because they don’t take faded or torn bills)
First aid kit with seasickness medication/wristbands/patches and other meds (Pepto Bismol is a good one to have on hand just in case)
Sunscreen and bug repellent wipes (we did not use our wipes but they are recommended if you spend time in tropical foliage)
Rain poncho
Personal fan
Magnetic hooks (walls and doors are magnetic)
Reusable sandwich-size bags to carry snacks/bring dessert back to your room
Deck(s) of cards/other travel games
Headphones
Kindle or other e-reader (or books!)
Camera, lenses, memory card (did not bring due to space)
Charging cords for electronics (note that surge protectors are NOT allowed)
Anything you need for shore excursions (snorkel set, water shoes, dry bags, waterproof phone cases, etc.)
Two 750 mL bottles of wine (per stateroom)
12 16.9-ounce bottles of soda (per stateroom; Korri brought 6 Coke Zero bottles and I brought 6 Canada Dry ginger ale bottles)
A few things to note: I forgot a copy of my passport, so I brought my actual passport with me when we debarked at ports. I was glad I had it with me in Roatan because there’s a passport stamping station at the port. We didn’t use the rain ponchos but was glad to have them just in case; the only time it rained was for a minute when we were in Cozumel and that was it. We also didn’t use the personal fan but kept it hanging on the wall to see how much the ship was swaying, lol.
We used the magnetic hooks to hang the fan and other items (baseball caps, wet swim suits, my fanny pack, etc.) to keep them out of the way. There’s not a lot of counter space in staterooms and bathrooms. I also kept forgetting to bring my reusable bags with me to dinner. I brought cookies back to our room a couple of times. I also forgot my water shoes (but purchased my own snorkel set and dry bag and remembered those) so I wore my Salt Water sandals while snorkeling.
What to Wear on a Royal Caribbean Cruise
Like I mentioned above, most of the days on our 7-night Allure of the Seas cruise were warm and called for your typical warm weather/beach/tropical wear. It can get QUITE humid at each of the port stops as well as over the water, as you may expect (though it was the most humid when we were headed back to Galveston on the last night and there was fog everywhere!).
As far as cruise activities goes, there really is something for everyone! There are so many things to do that you should cater your outfits to what your plans are (use my free Weekly Outfit Diary to help you plan your outfits). My plans were to do a whole lot of nothing, but I ended up walking around the ship exploring more than I was expecting. We were also constantly headed from one place to another for shows and events. Definitely bring comfortable walking shoes that you can wear to walk up/down stairs and all around the ship!
I brought activewear just in case I was inspired to work out, but I never did, LOL. I brought bathing suits, which came in handy at the ports for swimming and snorkeling. I brought loungewear (for travel days). I also brought some “nicer” clothes since the dinner dress code in the Main Dining Room most nights calls for smart casual (see theme nights below). Everything I packed was super comfortable, and everything went together, so it was easy to build outfits.
Allure of the Seas Theme Nights:
Day 1: Casual
Day 2: Formal
Day 3: 70s Night
Day 4: Caribbean Night
Day 5: White Night
Day 6: Dress to Impress
Day 7: Casual
Daytime Outfits: Outfits 5-9 in the collage above were my daytime outfits. I wore outfit 7 on a port stop. The outfit below was worn at a port stop as well.
Evening Outfits: Outfits 1-4 were what I wore to dinner on the various nights. Can you pick out the main differences between my daytime outfits and evening outfits? There are two, haha—I wore my wedges and didn’t wear a hat. Outfit 1 was my “formal night” outfit; I just tied up my cardigan so it looked more put together and defined my waist. (Korri wore a collared shirt on formal nights.) Outfit 2 was my casual night outfit and I wore it to dinner on days 1 and 7. Outfit 3 was my Caribbean and white night outfit. (No shame in being an outfit repeater! No one is paying that close attention to what you’re wearing.) Outfit 4 is what my mom packed for me for 70s night!
Shop My Cruise Packing List
How to Pack for Royal Caribbean Cruise
The first step in packing for a Royal Caribbean cruise is to figure out what exactly will fit in the bags you plan to bring! If you are flying to your cruise, you are more limited in what you can bring onboard the plane versus if you are driving. I personally prefer to fly with carry-ons only as much as possible, so I couldn’t pack as much as my parents who checked their suitcases. At the cruise terminal, you’ll see a variety of travelers: some light travelers with only carry on bags, some travelers who pack as much as possible and check all their luggage with a porter who then deliver it to their stateroom, and some in-between travelers.
I packed all my clothes, shoes, snorkel set, dry bag, and extra tote in my carry-on roller bag. I do not own packing cubes but lots of folks find those helpful when keeping a suitcase organized. In my large tote, I packed everything else: makeup bag, toiletries bag, rain ponchos, Kindle, headphones, first aid kit, fanny pack. Be sure to utilize pockets to corral small items, and keep your passport and any other documents easily accessible.
The night (read: hours) before our trip as I was furiously packing, I had to make some decisions; I ended up pulling out another swimsuit and cover-up because I simply could not close my suitcase! It was really difficult to zip it up in the end, and I still forgot things like my water shoes. If I had planned better, I would’ve laid everything out and made sure I had what I needed. Be sure to double and triple check (and don’t be like me and leave packing to the last minute, haha).
Once you have your luggage sorted, be sure to print out and attach luggage tags! They’re essential if you check your luggage with porters at the terminal. That’s how they know which room to deliver your bag in the ship.
I hope these packing tips help as you plan for your next cruise vacation! Have you ever been on a cruise before? What are the items you must have with you?
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