I love finding new things I can bring on my cruise to make it better, and I think I found a few on Amazon that are now permanently on my packing list.
Before I took my latest cruise on Utopia of the Seas, I went to buy a float to bring to the beach that I had meant to purchase for a long time. I noticed in the title, it specifically mentioned being useful on a Royal Caribbean cruise and that got me thinking what other items are marketed specifically towards cruisers.
After a bit of searching, I came across 10 items I could buy and test out.
I guessed a few of them would almost certainly not be that useful, but I didn't want my own preconceived notions to prevent me from trying something potentially useful out.
I added them all to my cart, hit checkout, and $170.09 later, I had them all on their way to my house.
After trying them out on a 3-night Bahamas cruise, I was pleasantly surprised when three of them instantly became favorites.
This float is a gamechanger for the beach
I had seen another passenger use a 4-in-1 pool hammock float a few years ago, and it's been living in my head rent-free ever since.
Royal Caribbean doesn't allow you to use floats in their ship pools, but the rules are looser on land.
Unlike a regular float, this can be modified to use in multiple ways without being bulky or require a pump. It's essentially two small inflatables attached to a mesh liner.
The genius is you can sit on it like a chair, rest your arms on it like a ledge, lay on it, or theoretically use it for exercise. The last one is admittedly ridiculous, but I can attest to the other three forms.
This float solves the situation where you're socializing in the ocean or pool in a height that's too shallow to stand up, so you end up either kneeling or doing a half-squat.
Instead, you sit down in this float and you're so much more comfortable hanging out.
I was surprised how enjoyable this was, and because it all folds down quite small once uninflated, I would definitely bring them on future cruises.
- Waterlife 4-in-1 Pool Hammock for $17.78 on Amazon
Possibly the most useful item solves the small cruise ship bathroom problem
I was genuinely surprised just how useful a magnetic toothbrush holder could be, but it's a must-have for me now.
No matter what room you book, the counter space in a cruise ship bathroom is always limited. There doesn't seem to be a fair way to share the space, so we end up living out of our toiletry bags for the most part. Best case scenario, the older ships have plastic cups that we use to store some things.
Instead, this wall-mounted magnetized toothbrush holder can be attached almost anywhere in the bathroom and it's perfect for toothbrushes, razors, toothpaste, and other travel-sized toiletries.
It was so nice freeing up the counter so we weren't inadvertently knocking things over or having to jockey for position. To say it felt liberating might be too strong of a description, but it really felt that way.
- Magnetic Toothbrush Holder for $7.99 on Amazon
Putting a fan on the ceiling is great for sleeping
Bringing a rechargeable fan on a cruise isn't a new idea, but one that goes on the ceiling is so smart.
I'm used to sleeping with a ceiling fan at home, and you'll never find one on a cruise ship. Heck, they're rare in hotels too.
This particular fan is battery powered (rechargeable via USB) and has a strong magnet on the bottom, so you can stick it on the ceiling.
I put mine right on the air conditioning vent, which pushed the air coming out directly towards me. It felt so good having directional cool air.
Plus, it has four speeds. This not only allows for the right amount of air flow, but also creates white noise on its higher speeds.
Anyone used to sleeping with a fan on at home will find this as an added bonus.
- Magnetic cruise approved fan for $24.99 on Amazon
I tried two soda cup holders, but I felt too weird wearing them around the ship
I've never been a fan of carrying a soda cup around the ship, so a drink cup sling sounded like a good idea.
I found two of them, but they both suffered from the same problem.
Both slings worked as advertised. Put your Royal Caribbean soda cup in them, and now you have a hands-free way to carry the cup around the ship.
First, it felt like the soda cups were too top heavy for the slings, so the cup was always tipping over when being carried.
Second, I really thought I looked especially dorky wearing it. I don't generally care what other people think of what I wear, but I have some standards in attempting to look presentable.
Some viewers on YouTube suggested I should have worn it as a cross-body sling, instead of as a BabyBjörn carrier.
If I had to pick one, I think the full cup sling was better because it had an extra pocket to put a SeaPass card or cash inside.
- Cruise Ship Essentials Cup Sling (2-pack) for $14.99 on Amazon
- Adjustable Drink Cup Sling (2-pack) for $15.99 on Amazon
I tried bringing a thermometer, but it might have been useful on an older ship
I recall reading some people bring a battery-operated thermometer for their cabin and thinking, "why?" but then realizing it might actually be useful.
The idea is on cruise ships that still have a dial for adjusting the air conditioning or heat, it's a bit of a game to find the right temperature.
If you're like me, you're used to customizing the temperature at home precisely. On older ships, it's just a game of "more" or "less" cold.
The idea is put a digital thermometer above the controls and you can more easily pinpoint the perfect setting that you're used to at home.
This wasn't necessary on Utopia, because new Royal Caribbean ships have digital thermostats. But when I go on my Alaska cruise next month, this might be worth bringing along.
- Indoor thermometer (2-pack) for $6.99 on Amazon
I tried using towel bands on chairs, but they seemed useless
I've never thought towel bands or towel clips were that useful an idea, but I was willing to give it a try.
I brought a 6-pack of them to the Royal Beach Club Paradise Island because this new private destination is set up on a barrier island, which means it gets a lot of wind.
Sure, it kept my towel in place. But I don't think it improved my experience at all. Perhaps if it had been extremely windy, sure. But then I thought I would have put almost any other belonging I had with me to keep the towels from flying away.
Honestly, I associate towel bands with chair hogs more than a truly useful item.
- 6 Pack Towel Band for $8.49 on Amazon
A drink caddy is a smart idea — if you're going to volunteer to get everyone drinks often
I was skeptical, but willing to try bringing a drink caddy so I could make a Starbucks run and be the family hero.
Since we were staying in a Star Class suite, Starbucks beverages are included with our fare and I knew we'd be ordering plenty of lattes and Frappuccino's during our trip.
The drink caddy is perfectly proportioned to carry up to 4 beverages, and it's clearly designed for coffees.
Not only is it difficult to carry more than two coffees at once, but I don't want to risk spilling it on me or anywhere else.
While the drink caddy works exactly as advertised, I still question how useful it really is because even with complimentary Starbucks, we never made that many runs that it was necessary.
I suppose if someone in your family is willing to be a trooper and make coffee runs, this would be very helpful. Better yet, buy it because you can use it at home and then bring it on your cruise too.
- 4 Cup Drink Carrier with Handle for $14.99 on Amazon
I never got to use two of the things I bought for my cruise
I failed with two of the things I bought for different reasons.
I bought drink cup holder clips because I thought they would work really well with pool loungers.
But when I got to the Royal Beach Club, the loungers didn't have any piece that was thin enough to latch them onto because the clip wouldn't expand enough.
I also purchased a snack box so that I could bring it to the Windjammer and then bring back snacks to enjoy the room later. I always lament that the Windjammer closes by 9pm and then I want a snack later that evening. When my kids were younger, having snacks in the room was always a struggle.
Unfortunately, I never found time to try this idea out. I think it absolutely could work, although my wife forbade me from putting Indian curry in it to enjoy later because it would have been a nightmare to clean.
- Drinking Cup Holder Clip (2-pack) for $15.99 on Amazon
- Snackle Box Container for $12.99 on Amazon
