What cruise packing mistakes should you avoid in 2026? — featuring Life Well Cruised

0:00 Unfortunately, we're hearing from even experienced cruisers who are sharing that cruise lines are cracking down, including what you can and cannot bring on a cruise in your checked luggage. In today's video, I'm sharing the cruise packing mistakes that real cruisers have made that can actually ruin your cruise.

0:24 Hi there, I'm Elena [music] from the website lifewellcruise.com. Welcome or welcome back to my channel. Now, I'm going to be sharing the item that a cruise traveler shared with me that was confiscated from her check luggage that she did not get back. She was quite upset about it. And I'm also going to

0:43 share a recent story of a friend of mine that I just met who told me about one item that was also removed from her check luggage. Now, I'm actually a little bit concerned because I was planning to bring this on my upcoming cruise in just a couple of days, but this video is definitely going to be

1:02 helpful because I'm also going to include some of the cruise packing mistakes that real cruisers have shared that they've made that actually did really impact their cruise. And of course, this is all with a goal that you won't make these same mistakes and you'll of course have a better

1:18 experience. Now, before I get started, I did want to mention that if you like this video, if you find it helpful, informative, or enjoyable in any way, then please do give this video a big thumbs up. I really do appreciate it. And please subscribe to the channel if you haven't done so already. Let's get

1:31 started. Mistake number one is packing the wrong items in your checked luggage. Now, I think this confuses a lot of people because the rules for what you can pack in a carry-on bag are completely different on a cruise than when you are flying. and in particular the liquids rule. So, what did the

1:50 person who wrote to me to tell this lesson share? Well, what she did is she packed her wine in her checked luggage. Now, just to let you know, most cruise lines do allow adults to bring one bottle of wine per person on board in your carry-on bag on imbarcation day. And cruise lines now, it seems, are

2:11 getting strict about this. Now, you can find this rule actually on the cruise line website. However, in her case, what happened was her wine was not only confiscated from her checked luggage, but she was really disappointed because she said it was actually discarded and never given back to her at all. Now,

2:31 cruise lines do have rules and restrictions. And while in some ways they are not as strict as the TSA when you're boarding a flight, more and more we are hearing from cruisers who are saying that the security is actually being more vigilant. And now speaking of another cruise packing mistake that I

2:51 don't think happens very often, but when it does, it can certainly impact or even ruin a cruise. Now, I actually met a couple as I was disembarking my Holland America cruise recently, and they shared with me that they did not get their luggage until 4 days after the cruise started. Now, what happened? Well,

3:11 somehow their luggage ended up on the wrong ship. So, be very careful that you do have your luggage tags printed and placed on your luggage. Now, my advice always to make sure that these don't fall off is to use the plastic reusable luggage tag holders. They are available on Amazon. They're very inexpensive.

3:30 I'll leave them along with some other great recommendations down below in the description of this video as well as a pinned comment. Now, you might be wondering, why did it take 4 days to get back to them? Well, it is because they needed to wait until those cruise ships were in the same port. Big mistake.

3:45 Please let me know if anything like that has ever happened to you. Now, this leads me to the next mistake, and this is something that I do when flying because I think that potentially this is where you may have more of an issue. So, make sure that you do pack one outfit at the very least in your spouse or

4:06 partner's suitcase. It's a good idea just to mix the outfits a little bit because if anybody's luggage is misplaced, at least you won't be stuck without any clothes. Now, something that I do is I always pack one or two extra outfits in my carry-on so that if we do board the cruise and if by chance there

4:26 was any delay of my luggage getting there, at least I can mix and match between two different sets of clothing. Now, I use a compression packing cube. So, something like this. And then I just place my husband's and my clothes, including underwear and socks and one extra pair of shoes in my rolling

4:44 carry-on luggage that I bring on board on the first day. Now, I've been using Level 8 luggage for about 3 years now. In fact, I've done 17 cruises over the last 2 years, and my Level 8 Voyager collection luggage has gone with me on almost all of them, which is why I'm partnering with Level 8 luggage on

5:05 today's video. Now, this is a Level 8 Voyager collection, which happens to be my favorite. Now, something you'll notice is this wide trolley handle. It's not only practical on the inside, but it's really solid and easy to maneuver and balance as you're walking through airports, cruise terminals, and even on

5:22 sidewalks and streets. The four 360° spinner wheels are whisper quiet and move effortlessly across surfaces. Now, on the inside of the luggage, the wide trolley handle means that you get more space inside your luggage to stay organized and pack everything you need. Now, you have an interior compression

5:42 system, which is great for those of us that are not light packers, and a mesh as well as a dry wet separation pocket, which is great on the last day of your cruise when you might just have a bathing suit that is still wet. Now, the luggage is not only stylish, I have it in the yellow and black, in the seladon,

6:00 which is so beautiful, as well as the solid black color, but it's also solid, light, and durable. In fact, as we've traveled recently, we've had Uber drivers, porters at the hotel, and even a cruise line shuttle bus driver tell us how easy it is to lift and maneuver these pieces of luggage. Now, the set

6:21 that I have is the 26-in check luggage as well as the carry-on size. And by the way, the carry-on size is what I use as my imbarcation day luggage on the first day of my cruise. And that means I can bring everything that I need from that extra change of clothes to my medication to my valuables and more. Now, I'm going

6:41 to leave the link to the Level 8 website as well as an awesome discount code down below in the description of the video as well as a pinned comment in case you want to check it out. Now, another cruise packing mistake that some people make is not checking the cruise line dress code. And while cruise lines have

6:58 definitely become more casual in terms of their regular dayto-day dress code, there are still some rules that apply and several cruise passengers said they definitely made some mistakes that you probably wouldn't consider. Now, one of them has to do with shoes. You actually want to make sure that you have closed

7:17 toed shoes to do some of the activities, not only on board, but even some of the excursions that you might book might require closed toed shoes. even if it is for insurance purposes. Don't forget to pack for cruise theme nights. Now, different cruise lines have different theme nights, and while they're not

7:36 obligatory, they're definitely a little bit a part of the fun. Now, as an example, if you go on board Virgin Voyages, they have Scarlet Night where almost everybody, I'd say pretty much everybody, does dress in red. So, make sure that you do pack for that. If you go on Holland America, they have an

7:53 orange night where everybody dresses either in orange completely or at least with an orange accessory. And no matter what cruise line you are on, it's always a good idea to pack something white as there may be a white or a globe party. Now, don't forget to pack restaurant appropriate clothing. Now, I know a lot

8:13 of times people think if I'm going on a Caribbean or a Bahamas cruise, maybe I'm going to live in bathing suits and cover-ups. But unfortunately, some cruisers have found that over the last year or so, some cruise lines are being more strict when it comes to what you can and cannot wear on the restaurants

8:30 indoors as well as the dining rooms. So, you cannot go into a dining room in just a cover up. And in some cases, you can't even go in in shorts. So, men, make sure you bring at least one pair of pants or dark jeans. And it's also a good idea to have at least one polo or collared shirts as sometimes the specialty

8:52 restaurants do require that. Now ladies, when it comes to swimsuit coverups, the mesh swimsuit cover-ups are absolutely fine for next to the pool, but often times when it comes to the interior restaurants, even if you're going in for lunch, something solid might be required. Not using a good cruise

9:11 packing list. Now, this is a mistake that a lot of people say that they've made because I'll give you an example of some of the things that people have shared that they have forgotten to bring on their cruise. Underwear, yes, you might need some bathing suits, a belt, dress pants that went with the suit

9:27 jacket or blazer that stayed on the hanger at home, and a sweater or sweatshirt. Now, this is something that you might not think that you need, especially if you're going on a warm weather cruise, but trust me, I have not brought this before, and I have regretted it. Those sweatshirts are

9:43 going to be twice the price if you buy them in the cruise store. The good thing is you are going to get a souvenir. But something to be aware of is that even Caribbean cruises, that Caribbean breeze can be quite cool at night or even at Sailaway. And the AC on the interior of the cruise ship can be quite cool. So,

10:01 it's a good idea to bring a sweater, a cardigan, or a light wrap. Now, by the way, if you're planning for your cruise and you're trying to stay organized, I do have the LifeWell Cruise Ultimate Cruise Planner. Now, the Lifeall Cruise Ultimate Cruise Planner is a 47page downloadable printable cruise planner

10:16 that you could use from the time that you book your cruise all the way through imbarcation and through disembarkcation. Now, it includes cruise planning forms, including checklists and packing lists. And the great thing is that you could print out only the pages that you need for as many cruises as you go on. Now,

10:34 I'll leave all of the information about the Lifeball Cruise Ultimate Cruise Planner down below in the description of this video, as well as a pinned comment. Okay, hair tools. Now, this is what actually happened to my friend. And by the way, on the most part, hair tools are allowed on cruises. I am going to

10:50 share a couple of banned items that especially new cruisers would be surprised about coming up next. But first, let's talk about hair tools. Now, my friend Becky from MEI Travel, and by the way, if you are looking to book your cruise, MEI Travel is our travel partner. They are absolutely wonderful.

11:09 I'll also leave their information down below in the description of this video, but she shared um she just went on her Disney cruise and her hair dryer was confiscated. Now, it turned out that had something to do with the amount of voltage of her hair dryer. And I looked that up and Disney is actually quite

11:29 strict. And Becky did share with me um that when she did go pick up her haird dryer, which was given back by the way at the end of the cruise, um that there were many Dyson hair dryers on um the table. So if you do have a Dyson Air Wrap, be quite careful with that and do look into the cruise regulations. I did

11:49 do some research on this and while it seems like a lot of other cruise lines are not necessarily banning the Dyson Air Wrap, there are some anecdotal stories of people sharing that their Dyson did not work on their cruise ship. So, that is something to be aware of. I probably would leave my Dyson at home,

12:07 but I have this hair dryer and I'm a little bit concerned because I'm going on the Disney Destiny um in just a couple of days. So, I'm hoping it's going to get through. So, I will share that in the comments below to let you know common travel items that you might normally bring on a trip, but you cannot

12:27 bring on a cruise. Now, this is not an extensive list, but this is certainly a few very common items that you might find on the confiscated items table. Irons and steamers, you cannot bring them on a cruise. Now, something else to watch for is surge protected power cubes. These are not allowed on a

12:45 cruise. Now, most cruise ships are going to allow non-s surge protected power cubes and travel adapters. However, if you are cruising on Royal Caribbean or Celebrity, they are more strict and they only allow multi- USB charging outlet hubs. Forgetting prescription medication. Now, keep in mind that once

13:04 you're on your cruise ship, you are no longer in the United States. So, while you might be able to normally pick up your prescription medication from another pharmacy, it is very challenging if you're on a cruise. You really want to make sure that you have packed all of your prescription medication. Now,

13:20 beyond prescription medication, packing first aid items and over-the-counter medication is important as well. These are items you can actually get on a cruise, but you may need to buy them in the cruise line store. that is going to be much more expensive or even worse potentially you may need to make an

13:39 appointment at the medical center which can mean a significant bill. Not preparing for the what-ifs. Now I know a lot of times when it comes to packing we don't want to pack too many just in case items but there are a few just in case items that can be quite helpful. One of those is if you are using eyeglasses

13:57 bring an extra pair with you just in case or an eye repair kit. Now, there are some cruisers who say that they bring a dental repair kit as well. Now, I'd love to hear from you. Please let me know of any confiscated items. If that has ever happened to you or any other cruise packing mistakes that you might

14:13 have made, let me know, please, down in the comments below. And I am going to leave the link to the Level 8 website as well as that discount code down below as well. Now, I hope that you enjoyed this video. If you did, please do give it a big thumbs up. I really do appreciate it. And please subscribe to the channel

14:27 if you haven't done so already. Bye for now and happy cruising.