Helpful Hints for Comfortable Cruising

3. Magnet Hooks for hanging things: ships are built of metal and steel, so most room walls are magnetic.

4. A personal fan: Whether your temperature runs hot, you like noise when you sleep, or your travel partner stinks up the bathroom, little personal fans are handy especially for inside cabins.

5. A filtered water bottle: Cruise ship water is safe to drink from the tap. But a water bottle with a filter adds that extra bit of security and taste.

6. A battery-operated tea light: When you choose an inside cabin, the 3:00 AM toilet space can be quite dark. We found a tea-light with a 4hr and 8hr shut off timer.

7. Mini Flashlight: Though we didn’t need it for an emergency, we did use the mini flashlight to find an item we dropped.

Cabin Stewards are amazing at making your cruise comfortable. More than just cleaning the room and providing new linens, they often have access to comfort items which cruise lines reserve for special requests. You can make a request at the beginning of your cruise for these types of items. They may not be available on all cruise lines, but asking never hurts to ask.

1. Mattress topper

2. A personal teakettle or coffee pot

3. A cozy bathrobe

4. A personal fan

5. An extension cord

Before we took our first cruise in 2025, we scoured the internet to best understand what we were signing up to do. We read stories and watched videos to learn about meals, etiquette, hacks, and restrictions. Some of the most valuable information to us was what to bring and how to find comfort on a cruise ship. For our trans-Atlantic cruises, we found these hints to be the most helpful.

1. A keycard holder: Since your room key must be on your person all the time, find a comfortable way to carry it. Neck lanyards are the most common.

2. An expired credit card or throw-away plastic card: Cruise ships and hotels are moving toward energy-saving technology to reduce waste. They are equipped with key-card holders to turn on/off the lights and air-conditioning units when you leave the room and take your key with you. There are times though, when you need an extra card to place in the holder.