When you watched Gilligan's Island did you ever wonder why Mr and Mrs Howell had packed so many clothes for just a 3 hour tour? After your first cruise, you'll most likely ask the same question of yourself...

While there really is no restriction on how many suitcases you can bring aboard a cruise ship, the number and size is often dictated on how much you want to carry and pay for if you fly into the port. Typically airlines restrict luggage weight to 50 pounds per suitcase (and they will charge you mercilessly if they're overweight) and you may have to pay extra for carry-on baggage which may limit how much you can bring with you. With that being said, smart packing is critical.

Maximizing your luggage capacity is the top rule of packing for a cruise. Be ruthless when it comes to paring down your belongings to take only what's necessary.  You may want to pick out everything you would like to bring... and then cut that amount in half. We have discovered that we come home with clothes we never wore the whole cruise. You don't have space for indulgences, especially if you want to do some shopping in port. 

Now about that shopping…. Leave some extra space in your luggage, so you can pick up something new from one (or several) of your ports of call. Clothing is a great souvenir, and you can purchase some memorable pieces in port. Given the amount of luggage you're already hauling, you do not want to find yourself forced to buy an extra suitcase to cart your stuff home. (Although if you do, the suitcase itself can become a valued souvenir.) Another option is to pack a foldable tote or duffle bag to bring your finds home. 

At home you may have a difficult time trying to figure out what to wear when you go out to dinner. Now imagine trying to pack clothes for this cruise. While it seems like you would be just fine wearing a pair of jeans or shorts and a t-shirt, there is a lot more to account for when deciding what to wear. On a cruise you won't have the luxury of your complete wardrobe and closet to pick from. Instead, you can only choose from what you have brought with you. And that may be just the start of the confusion when it comes to what to wear and bring with you on a cruise.

You must prepare for a lot of different activities. The big issue is that with cruising you can go through more wardrobe changes in a single day than you might see on an entire week during a "regular" vacation. Take a hypothetical day on a cruise and see how many different situations you may need to prepare for:

• Wake up, put on some jeans, shoes, and a shirt and head to breakfast.

• After breakfast you may decide to workout, so you change into gym shorts and a t-shirt.

• You decide to get a little sun at poolside, so you change into a swimsuit.

• An afternoon sprinkle appears, so you head inside where it is a bit chilly, so you put on some pants and a long sleeve shirt.

• It is formal night, so you get fancied up to go eat dinner.

• After dinner you want to enjoy a movie under the stars so you change into some more casual.

And this is just one day!

Packing for an Alaskan Cruise and Land Tour

Packing for an Alaskan cruise is different from cruising in the Caribbean as you will have to pack much warmer, and thus much thicker, clothing to protect yourself from the cooler and wet weather you may experience in Alaska. You may also want to pack one or two pair of binoculars to better see the wildlife you could see as we are sailing. Trekking poles can also be helpful if you plan on hiking some serious trails. At our age, they do come in handy!

It is highly recommended to dress in thin layers that you can easily put on or take off as required as weather conditions change throughout the day. The amount of cold and wet weather clothing you'll need will vary depending upon the specific weather conditions you may experience on this cruise. The items below should be packed and available to use on this cruise:

1. A waterproof rain coat. Ketchikan gets precipitation, on average, 234 days per year. Expect rain. The raincoat you use should also be breathable so you don't get wet from the inside out.

2. Waterproof hiking pants. So you bottom half isn't resentful of your dry top half

3. Wool hiking socks. Cold wet feet are miserable feet. Do not wear cotton socks because when they get wet, they stay wet and cold.

4. A fleece for layering. There can be fairly dramatic temperature shifts in Alaska, with morning and evenings being very chilly and afternoons during July getting very warm. Pack and wear items you can layer and shed as needed depending upon the weather. Men's and women's options to consider.

5. A warm hat. To keep your head warm and if you have longer hair, to keep it manageable in the wind. It is also suggested that you bring a baseball hat or a hat with a brim to wear when it is raining to help keep the rain off of your face.

6. Waterproof hiking boots. Hint: break them in advance of the cruise.

7. A packable puffer coat. Even during a July Alaskan cruise you'll want to pack a warm coat for out on the deck for your scenic cruising days. It can get cold. A puffer coat can be jammed into a little bag when not in use.

8. Waterproof touch screen gloves. This will help keep your hands warm while you're snapping glacier selfies. Here is one choice, and here is another option

9. Base layer clothing. Since it is advisable to dress in layers, it all starts with a comfortable base layer. A base layer servers as a way to keep warm when it is chilly, without having to wear many layers of bulky clothing. A fabric with moisture wicking properties will help as temperatures change throughout the day. One pair of tops and bottoms do just fine for this trip. We ordered some lightweight Merino wool base layers to help keep dry and cozy.

10. Patience. There is no Amazon link for this item but we recommend you take it with you wherever you are in Alaska. We may experience some wet and cold weather and perhaps some rough seas on this voyage. However, it is advisable to not let bad weather dampen this adventure. Put on a raincoat and bundle up and enjoy the scenery. If you go into this expecting bad weather and instead it is sunny and warm then that is a bonus to the scenic views we will encounter. 

It is also advised to pack a few N95 masks for yourself in case their is a volcanic eruption which may cause a massive ash cloud that may make breathing difficult and dangerous. Also eye masks if you are going to attempt to go to sleep before the sunsets which is much much later in Alaska (another advantage of an interior stateroom). Bear spray may also be advisable to purchase once you get to Alaska (some airlines do not want you to pack this item in your luggage).

Some lip balm is so small and simple, but easy to forget to pack. With the wind and the sun, it is easy to get chapped lips on your cruise. Bring some lip balm, and a couple of spares, and carry them with you at all times.

While it may be rainy it may also be very sunny so remember to pack your sunglasses and sunscreen. We think a good raincoat and pants will keep you drier than an umbrella. Bug spray is also advised to have for some hikes or excursions.

A backpack to carry extra clothing or discarded clothing is also helpful and also provides a place to carry snacks and water bottle plus the essentials listed above. A lightweight collapsible backpack, upacked, takes up barely any room in your suitcase. However, it can unfold to hold a variety of things from changes of clothes to sunscreen and more. Best of all, this particular backpack is just $20 on Amazon or you can choose an even higher rated backpack on Amazon for around $12!

An insulated coffee mug is also nice to help keep your coffee warm as you are out on the decks admiring the scenery of the glaciers. 

While your cellphone camera can take nice photos, the beauty of Alaska is better captured with a good DSLR camera with a telephoto lens to help you capture the scenes and wildlife we may experience. I am planning on borrowing my sons camera to better capture these moments.

Princess Cruises may recommend daily dress codes -- casual, smart casual, or formal. Daytime is always casual. Normally, on a 7 day cruise, you can count on two formal nights and the rest of the evenings being "smart casual", that take effect in dining venues from 6 pm onward (buffet and deck areas excluded).  

Formal: When formal nights are held, formal attire should be worn in the Main Dining Rooms or Specialty Restaurant venues. Formal attire for men is tuxedos, dinner jackets or suits, although we have seen many men in slacks and dress shirts, with or without a tie. For women, an evening gown, dress, or pantsuit for formal attire. Keep in mind, even on formal nights, when a casual mood calls, you have plenty of dining choices. Whether it be the World Fresh Marketplace Buffet, the Slice Pizzeria, Salty Dog Grill, or 24-hour room service, you’re able to choose how you dine. While you do not have to dress too formal, we do enjoy the experience of getting all dressed up in a suit and tie or nice dress to enjoy a nice evening dinner. (Disclaimer: I wear the suit and tie, my wife wears the dress). However, we have read that Alaska cruises are much less formal than other cruises so I am not planning on packing a suit for this cruise. For more tips on what to wear during "Formal" nights click here.

We can expect 2 Formal Nights (typically held on Sea Days) and 5 Smart Casual Nights on this cruise based upon the Princess Website information.

Smart Casual: Guest attire should be similar to what would be worn to a nice restaurant at home, which includes pants and open-neck shirts for men and skirts, dresses, slacks, capris, and sweaters or tops for women.  We have read that Alaska cruise are much more informal and relaxed than other cruise destinations. 

Items such as shorts, pool wear, and baseball caps are not permitted in the Main Dining Rooms or Specialty Restaurants; shoes must be worn at all times. Jeans are permitted as long as they aren't fraying and don't have holes, although we typically did not see many people wearing jeans.

If you're eating breakfast or lunch in any of the Main Dining Rooms the dress code is normally much more lax.

In the buffet areas pretty much anything goes, although cover ups are generally used for bathing suits and shoes or sandals are always required to walk into or through the buffet area. 

Around the pool area, you will find most people in shorts and t-shirts or bathing suits during the day. If you feel self-conscious in a bathing suit, don't think that you will be the most out of shape person lounging around the pool decks. Most of the guests onboard are 50 to 70+ years old. Consider bringing more than one swimsuit if you plan to be in the water on consecutive days, as it will give one time to dry while you wear the other. 

You should also consider packing clothes for excursion days; Comfortable walking shoes, a hat, a sweater or light jacket in case of less-than-perfect island or sea days. Going too casual (tank tops, scruffy jeans, any kind of athletic garb) is considered disrespectful in some ports of call. On active shore excursions, ultra-casual is just fine. Since the weather in Alaska can be cold and/or rainy during the summer, it is advisable to pack appropriate clothing and jackets so you are comfortable.

If you're a light packer and would want to reuse some of the clothing you have already worn there are laundry facilities on each deck for your use. Princess Cruises also offers laundry services if you want to let them do it for a fee.  Click here for some tips on how to pack wrinkle free for a cruise.

There are also clothing shops onboard where you can purchase clothing, shoes or accessories you forgot to bring. Perhaps they have limited selection but their prices are very reasonable considering they have a trapped consumer.

We do suggest that you plan on packing one suitcase for each of you, which you will leave with the porters at the embarkation terminal. These suitcase must be properly tagged with the Princess luggage tags which directs the luggage handlers and your room steward to deliver them to your stateroom. (See the embarkation page for more details).

If you would like a pdf of the packing list above click here.

Cruise Carry-On

It is also wise to pack another small knapsack, or something you can lug around for a few hours with you during the embarkation day as a cruise carry-on. In this knapsack you will have your passport, money and credit cards (wallet), (any valuables you don't want lost or stolen, your cellphone (with a charger), and any expensive electronics. If you have prescriptions you need to take daily, do not let them out of your sight, pack them in your carry-on! This daypack can also be quite useful during the cruise for carrying cameras, books, bug spray, sunscreen, water bottles and other items around the ship or in port. You may also want to pack an extra set of clothes or a swimsuit in case you want to lounge around the pool during these first few hours onboard. Toiletries, glasses, sunglasses and anything else you cannot do without for the cruise should be in this bag. This is in case your luggage somehow gets lost or misplaced during the mad shuffle of bringing everyone and everything on board in a few hours. Your suitcase may not be delivered to your stateroom until late afternoon so it is better to have what you absolutely need with you. This same small knapsack may also be useful on shore excursions.

You might be able to get into your stateroom soon after boarding the ship and be able to drop this cruise carry-on there.  However in case your stateroom is not ready you may have to lug this luggage around for a few hours so make it a size you are comfortable with handing during this time.

Another thing to remember to bring is some cash, some of it in smaller bills, for tipping porters, tour guides, and your stateroom steward (usually at the end of the cruise). How much you tip depends upon their level of service and what you can afford or feel comfortable giving.

We pack a travel document holder that houses our passports, a print out of our travel insurance information (hopefully never needed), and other important documents and cash for embarkation. This holder, along with our wallets, are then placed in our stateroom digital vault until the end of the cruise. Your Ocean Medallion will be used for all onboard purchases so there is no need to carry cash or a credit card with you while onboard the ship.

One item to consider is a thumb drive that holds electronic copies of your passport, driver's license, airline e-tickets, cruise documents, hotel confirmations, travel insurance documentation, credit cards (front and back) and medical records. In the event of an emergency -- like a stolen passport or wallet, or an illness -- you'll be able to access important information easily. Just find a computer, and pop in the drive. I have taken photos of all of these items with my phone so I always have them with me. If you do this, just be sure your phone is login protected so only you can access this data in case your phone is lost or stolen.

Sure, we've all got our contact numbers stored in our cell phones these days, but what if someone else needs to make a call on your behalf and your phone requires a PIN or thumbprint? Or what if the phone is missing or the battery is dead? Having a hard copy of all your emergency contacts in your wallet or stored in your in-cabin safe could turn out to be a lifesaver. 

Travelers and their gadgets seem to go hand in hand these days. You'll likely bring your smartphone, but you might also want to bring a tablet or your laptop, DSLR camera, GoPro, portable game player or book reader. Don't forget to check about international and onboard roaming charges before you turn your phone on mid-cruise otherwise you may discover a huge cellphone bill upon your return home; Since many cabins have limited electrical outlets, we have brought small power strips to give us more ability to charge all of our phones, etc. However, do NOT bring one that has surge protection on it. It might sound weird that they aren't allowed. Recent studies by the US Coast Guard show that they can mess with the ship's electrical system, increasing the potential for a fire. Instead bring an outlet tap with multiple plugs and no surge protection. You order one for $8 on Amazon.

If you bring a laptop or plan on accessing WiFi, consider pre-purchasing the Princess MedallionNet WiFi package for your cruise. The MedallionNet internet claims to be the best WiFi at sea and we were very impressed with its speed and reliability on our last cruise. You can purchase internet access for one or up to four devices. 

The Princess Wi-Fi package is currently included in the  Princess Plus  and Princess Premier promotion.

On a lower tech side, you may want to bring along some books or magazines to read while you lounge around the pools on sea days. Princess Cruises used to have libraries onboard but they have now discontinued the practice because people didn't bring the books back! You may want to consider an e-book reader as a travel companion on this cruise as it will save you vital luggage space. Small games are also an option to consider. One great thing about the Sapphire Princess compared to the Royal Class ships is that it has a library where you can borrow books to read and games to play while on the cruise!

An interior stateroom can be quite dark when you turn off the lights so we have either brought a small night-light with us or turned on the TV and set it to view the ship's forward looking bridgecam. At night it shows very little but it is like having a stateroom window as in the morning the sun greets you from your slumber. However, with the extended sunlight in Alaska this option may be too bright for you to fall asleep.

On most of the other Princess ships they have updated the staterooms by adding motion sensing lights to help you find your way around in the dark. Unfortunately, this feature has not yet been done to the Sapphire Princess so an interior room will be very dark.

You may also want to consider a small alarm clock so you don't miss an early port excursion. Especially with an interior room you may have no idea what time it is. And while your cell phone can also work as an alarm clock, even in airplane mode, but you might have to reset the clock manually to get on ship time. If you just want to sleep the morning away bring some ear plugs.

You can NOT bring a power strip that has a surge protector onto the ship. However, you can bring an extension cord. We found it helpful to pack an extension cord for our cruise on the Emerald Princess as their were no American style outlets near the bed so in order to charge our phones and have them near the bed (to use as an alarm clock, etc) we needed to run the extension cord from the desk area to the bed area. However, when the ship was last in dry dock (2023) Princess added new lamps next to the beds which include USB charging ports to charge your phone! If your cellphone requires a USB-C for charging you may want to consider purchasing some USB to USB-C convertors to use on the flight to Alaska and while onboard the ship.

If you can fit them, up to 12 cans  (plastic bottles are not allowed) of soda can be brought onboard with you unless you have purchased a beverage package. The Princess Premium Beverage Package is currently free during the Princess Plus and Princess Premier promotions. However, you will have to carry them around with you before you are allowed to go to your stateroom.

Princess Cruises will provide soap, bodywash, and shampoo, but if you're picky, pack your own. The same goes for hair dryers. Princess Cruises recently updated the hair dryers on the Sapphire Princess with an 1875 watt hair dryers so this is probably equal, or better, to what you may have at home. 

Medications to consider bringing with you: Non-drowsy motion sickness tablets, aspirin, or other common medications you may need. A small first-aid kit stocked with items like Band-Aids, alcohol swabs, antibiotic ointment, cold pills, cough drops, painkillers, and medication for heartburn and upset stomachs doesn't take up much room and you may not always find these items onboard or in port. 

Don't forget to bring disinfection wipes and anti-bacterial gel. Wipe everything down the first time you step into your stateroom to help sanitize it and wash your hands often throughout the cruise. Make this a habit.

Hopefully COVID will be a thing of the past and we won't have to wear masks any more but you may want to consider bringing some along. Soon after COVID was a thing cruise masks were not required for quests but if you needed any, Princess would supply you with them as needed.

Wrap your shoes in cheap plastic shower caps to prevent dirt from your shoes getting on your clothes. Your shoes are now happily wrapped up, but they're bulky and take up so much room in your suitcase. There's no way to reduce shoe bulk (unless you only pack flip-flops or ballet flats), but you can put them to use. Fill that footwear with all the little items that clutter up your suitcase -- chargers, small toiletries, even socks, underwear or ties. The bigger your feet, the more space you have to fit loose items. 

Do you like to keep things organized? Consider bringing an over the door type shoe holder with pockets, hopefully you do not bring enough shoes to require one, but instead use it to store and organize things such as your personal toiletries, etc. so you can readily see and access them. You can find them for cheap on Amazon.

Clip or hook magnets are another idea to consider. Did you know that most stateroom walls are made from metal? You can use these clip or hook magnets to hang light items or papers, such as the "Princess Patter" a ship newspaper that is delivered to your stateroom every evening by your room steward and outlines the events and information about the upcoming cruise day. Hanging items on the wall can be a nice way to keep your desk uncluttered. If you're old school, you may want to pack a highlighter pen to mark the events you want to do the next day on the Princess Patter, however the MedallionNet App allows you to browse and bookmark these events. The magnetic hooks are ideal for hanging your wet raingear and hats to allow them to dry after a wet excursion day. You will be thankful for having these options.

To keep your towel attached to your deck lounge chair bring along some beach chair towel clips ! This helps avoid the wind from blowing your towel off of your chair and more easily identifies the chair as yours if you step away from it for a moment.

There is no need to bring your own beach towels as Princess Cruises will let you use as many as you want. Even if you're planning a day on a port excursion Princess will allow you to take their beach towels off of the ship (just remember to bring them back!). Some cruise lines have very strict limitations on how many beach towels you can use each day.

Pack a small waterproof bag or zip-lock bags to keep your phone or valuables in if you are enjoying a day in port and its raining. 

Among the chaos that ensues when people pack for a cruise, it's easy to forget one of the most essential items for any traveler -- duct tape. In addition to repairing broken suitcases, mending torn hems and affixing cruise lines' print-at-home luggage labels, there are many other reasons you'll want a roll of this handy fix-all when you're on the go. 

Need a bathrobe? Ask your room steward to provide you one to use during your cruise!

While we can suggest things you may want to consider to bring with you on this cruise, we also strongly suggest some things that you do NOT try to bring onboard, as they will be confiscated upon boarding. You are fully responsible for either storing these items ashore or disposing of them prior to embarkation. See the list under "prohibited items" at this link. 

Here is another article listing some surprising things that are not allowed to be taken onboard the ship.

Your luggage will most likely be X-rayed and perhaps inspected before being put aboard the ship. Prohibited items will be removed. In addition, your carry-on bag, both during embarkation and every time you reboard the ship after a shore excursion, will be run through an X-ray machine and you will be required to pass through a metal detector to help assure that you are not try to smuggle any prohibited items onboard.

Click here for 10 signs you've done a terrible job packing for your cruise, plus 10 tips to help you avoid those mistakes in the future. 

Click here for another article of useful things to consider packing for your cruise.

Ilana, from Life Well Cruised, shares a lot of packing ideas on her website

Packing List

Here is a link to a packing list you can print out for yourself.

Tips for Travellers host Gary Bembridge says 75% of cruise passengers say they pack wrong for a cruise. The video below explains the packing process he has developed to become more efficient at packing for a cruise. He also offers to share his packing list which you may find helpful.