Your cruise cabin quickly becomes your home away from home, but this month, I splurged on decorations to make our cabin feel even cozier for Christmas.
The holiday season is always magical with twinkling lights, Christmas trees, and seasonal decor everywhere you look. My husband and I look forward to decorating our house each year for the Christmas season. Once November hits, our home stays festive through January with decorations!
Because we were jetting off to Australia for a 12-night cruise to New Zealand, I decided to stop by my local dollar store to pick up some seasonal decorations for our cabin. It might seem frivolous or unnecessary, but my husband and I are huge fans of the holiday season.
More importantly, we’ve spent multiple Christmases apart over the years because of my husband's military deployments. So, we truly cherish the time we’re able to spend together during the holidays.
I figured the dollar store would have plenty of inexpensive options to bring onboard for decorations, and I was right! Our local Dollar Tree was filled with holiday decor, and I was pleased to find many lightweight, easy-to-hang items that would work perfectly in a cruise cabin. Some items were more than $1.25, and I also purchased other cruise-related essentials to bring along.
My plan was to bring the decorations aboard, enjoy them for the duration of the cruise, and leave them behind at the end of our trip. Because everything was so affordable, I didn’t mind parting with it at the end of the cruise. But, in the end, I gave our Blu hostess a bag filled with decorations and Christmas goodies for her to enjoy.
In addition, leaving the decorations behind meant freeing up extra space for shopping on the way home. I love bringing back treasures from my travels, so I knew that space would be put to good use.
Here’s how I spent $40 at the dollar store to decorate our cabin and get into the Christmas spirit during our cruise.
First, Celebrity Edge was decorated beautifully for the holidays around the ship!
If you’ve ever cruised during the Christmas season, you know cruise lines truly deck out their ships from head to toe in holiday decor. Throughout December, you’ll find beautiful displays, festive garlands, and massive Christmas trees placed all around the ship. It's pretty much impossible to forget that it’s the most wonderful time of the year, even on a cruise ship!
The Grand Atrium on Celebrity Edge was covered in garland and warm, glowing lights when we boarded. I was so excited to see that the decorations were already up when we boarded right after Thanksgiving.
Walking into the ship immediately felt festive and cozy, which set the tone for the entire cruise, despite the hot Australian heat! It truly felt like we were in the Christmas spirit from the moment we boarded.
In addition, there was a huge Christmas tree in the atrium, decorated with beautiful ornaments and twinkling lights. It quickly became one of our favorite spots onboard.
The massive Christmas tree made the perfect backdrop for happy hours or after-dinner drinks while enjoying live music in the atrium. I also loved seeing it lit up in the mornings when we stopped by Cafe al Bacio for our daily coffee, making our early mornings feel special and festive.
As the cruise went on, even more holiday displays appeared around the ship. Toward the end of the sailing, a beautiful, over-the-top gingerbread display popped up outside of Eden. The display included intricately detailed gingerbread houses and spectacular Christmas decorations. Almost every passenger walking by stopped to admire the display and take a picture!
We booked an AquaClass Infinite Veranda stateroom for our cruise, which gave us plenty of space to decorate.
For this sailing, we decided to splurge on an Infinite Veranda cabin with AquaClass perks. We booked cabin 9268 on Deck 9 aboard Celebrity Edge, and it turned out to be a great location. Our cabin was quiet and tucked away from heavy foot traffic. In addition, it was conveniently located on the ship so we never felt far from restaurants, lounges, or elevators.
Our stateroom included a couch, vanity, king bed, and the Infinite Veranda space. The bathroom was also surprisingly spacious, and we were impressed by how much extra room the Infinite Veranda added to the cabin. Unlike a traditional balcony, the Infinite Veranda features floor-to-ceiling windows and a small sitting area that blends seamlessly into the living space.
This layout made the entire cabin feel open and more spacious than a standard stateroom. Because the walls are magnetic, I packed my magnetic hooks to hang Christmas decorations and lightweight items around the cabin.
I also brought a few heavy-duty metal clips from the dollar store for extra flexibility, knowing we’d likely have more to hang on the walls than normal. My husband was surprised these heavy-duty clips were from the dollar store, as he was impressed by the quality.
I decorated our cabin after unpacking our suitcases and immediately wished I had brought even more decorations.
On embarkation day, I was eager to unpack my belongings and get settled in our stateroom. After unpacking my clothes and feeling organized, we started decorating the cabin for Christmas.
For decor, I packed tinsel-style Christmas trees to hang around the stateroom. They were simple, but lightweight to pack and festive for our stateroom. Because they weren't expensive, I didn’t worry about them getting damaged.
I actually purchased even more decorations to pack, but I decided not to bring them since they didn’t fit well in my suitcase. Some decorations already looked bent before packing, so I didn't trust they'd survive the flight to Australia! The tinsel pieces ended up being the easiest and most practical option.
The first thing we added was a large red Christmas bow on our cabin door. I didn’t bring Christmas magnets for the door, although that would have been another easy option. One of our neighbors used magnets on their door, which I thought looked really cute.
We loved having the big red Christmas bow on our door because it made our cabin easy to spot in the hallway. The glittery bow felt festive without being too much. I used a heavy-duty clip from Dollar Tree to hang it, and it stayed in place for all 12 nights without any issues.
Inside the cabin, we placed a small snowman near the entrance, so we were greeted by him every time we came back. Across from it, Edge-class staterooms have a small cubby with a built-in light that usually holds a piece of decorative art. We swapped that out for two small Christmas trees that fit perfectly in the space. With the light above them, they added a nice little holiday touch.
I also brought Christmas window clings to decorate the mirror. They weren’t traditional stickers, which was important because I didn’t want anything that could leave residue or damage the cabin. If you plan to decorate your cruise cabin, it’s always worth double-checking the rules and sticking with removable options.
That said, the window clings didn’t hold up very well. They slowly fell off throughout the cruise, and after putting them back up several times, we eventually gave up and tossed them.
We added two more tinsel Christmas trees to the main wall of the cabin, hanging them with magnetic hooks. Because they were so lightweight, one hook per decoration was enough. If you plan to bring anything heavier, you’ll probably want stronger or extra hooks. I loved waking up each morning and seeing those little Christmas trees on the wall.
When you’re cruising in warm weather, especially during summer in New Zealand, it’s easy to forget that it’s actually Christmas. Having a few simple decorations in the cabin helped it feel cozier and a bit more like home.
I also packed a few other Christmas-themed cruise essentials from the dollar store.
Before every cruise, I make sure to bring a handful of must-have products I rely on. One of my non-negotiables is a bottle of liquid hand soap for the bathroom. I absolutely hate using a bar of soap to wash my hands on a cruise, especially during a longer itinerary.
Liquid soap just feels cleaner to me, and bars of soap tend to get mushy after a few days. It’s a small upgrade, but it makes a noticeable difference in your cabin experience.
While shopping at the dollar store, I found an adorable bottle of liquid soap shaped like Santa. It was a fun change from my usual Softsoap and fit right in with the Christmas theme in our cabin. And for $1.25, it was a steal! We ended up using most of the liquid during the cruise and tossed the bottle before disembarkation.
The dollar store is also a great place to pick up self-care items. I like bringing face masks and body scrubs to make evenings in the cabin feel a little more relaxing. Instead of spending a lot at the spa on a facial, I’d much rather do a face mask at night while watching a Christmas movie.
In addition to face masks, I packed these seasonal winter berry shower fizzies for the cabin. They're similar to a bath bomb, but dissolve on the shower floor instead and release a light scent as the steam builds. This is an easy way to make a standard cruise ship shower feel a little more luxurious! I’d use one at the end of the day after dinner, and it was a nice way to wind down before bed.
Similarly, I always stock up on these $1.25 antibacterial wipes from Dollar Tree by Biopure. They come in a pack of 40 and are surprisingly good quality for the price. The small pack is easy to travel with, so I keep it in my bag at all times. I bring them on excursions, to the buffet, to the pool deck—basically everywhere!
My dollar store had some fun seasonal scents that I couldn’t resist. I picked up the sugar plum and cherry pie scents, which were a nice change from the regular wipes!
I’ve even written a full article about why these wipes are a cruise must-have. For example, these wipes contain aloe and vitamin E, so they don’t dry out my hands like some sanitizers do. Studies have also shown that sanitizing wipes can be more effective than hand sanitizer alone, especially when handwashing isn’t available.
I was determined to stay healthy on this cruise, and I made it home without getting sick. I honestly credit those wipes for doing their job, and I loved the festive Christmas scent as a bonus.
I loved decorating our cabin for Christmas, and I would do it again!
I didn't plan to decorate the cabin to look over-the-top, but we appreciated having a cozy, festive space that felt like home during our 12 nights aboard Celebrity Edge. Coming back to a festive cabin after a long day in port or a sea day made it feel more personal and relaxed. This truly became our home away from home!
I liked that everything was inexpensive and easy to pack from the dollar store. I didn't feel bad leaving it behind at the end of the trip. In fact, our hostess at the Blu restaurant was excited to use the decorations for her cabin! The extra space in our suitcase was quickly used for the many different treasures we purchased in New Zealand.
I spent around $40 on everything at the dollar store, including some other cruise-essentials like toothpaste, sunscreen, and hand sanitizer. While it might seem unnecessary, bringing Christmas decorations brought us extra joy during our cruise without adding stress or clutter.
If you love the holidays and you're planning to cruise in December, I'd highly recommend adding a few basic decorations to your cabin as an easy way to make the experience feel even more magical.
