I have a confession to make.聽I am an OVER-packer!聽There, I said it. I admitted it. But in my defense, I simply have a need to be prepared for every possibility. And, to help me stay organized, I make a chart.聽聽Really, I make a chart on my computer and print it out to help with聽packing and with letting everyone know what they are wearing on each day.聽My family simply adores my chart!聽They follow it to the letter 鈥� especially my teenagers!聽Okay, so it never works out the way I planned for anyone but me, but I do it as an act of love.聽It isn鈥檛 my fault if they don鈥檛 see it that way.
Packing聽less works for me鈥ometimes.聽When we go on a normal, one-outfit-per-day trip, I can manage.聽It really only becomes a problem when we go on Disney Cruises when I need multiple outfits for multiple activities each day.聽You can鈥檛 wear the same thing to swim, to do Disney Trivia, to work out and to eat!聽Throw in a trip like our summer vacation last month to Alaska where the weather ranged from shivering cold at the glaciers to rainy and cool in Ketchikan to sunny and hot in Vancouver and my聽packing聽spirals out of control.
So, how do I suggest you聽pack聽effectively?
First,聽pack聽clothes that are versatile.聽Black pants are a great idea for us ladies!聽Taking one pair of black pants for dinners along with two or three different tops stretches out your wardrobe choices with less room needed in the suitcase.聽The same principle works for shorts.聽One pair of khaki shorts works great with multiple tops.聽Have a dress you can wear as cruise-casual but can then take a fabulous pair of earrings and necklace and voila, you are set for semi-formal night?聽Bring it! Guys are even easier. My husband can make one of pair khakis and one button down work for multiple nights.
Second, if you are cruising for longer than three or four nights, plan on doing a load or two of laundry mid-trip.聽The person you meet on day two of your cruise will not remember you were wearing the same shorts and tee on day six.聽Trust me!
Each Disney ship is equipped with multiple 24-hour laundry rooms scattered around the ship.聽The Wonder and Magic
each have three laundry rooms and Dream and Fantasy each has seven laundries.聽I suggest doing laundry late at night or early in the morning when the facilities are less busy.聽You use your Key the World to purchase detergent, softener and wash/dry cycles.聽Be sure you鈥檝e downloaded the Disney Cruise app so you can receive a handy text message letting you know your wash or dry cycle has ended.聽It is always best to quickly move your clothes or you risk being the recipient of ugly stares from guests waiting to use a machine.
Final confession: This is really a 鈥淒o as I Say, Not as I Do鈥� article.聽If you see me in an airport with more than my fair share of luggage, be kind and just smile.聽Now go have some BIG fun in our Small World!
Be sure to also check out our handy packing list here.