What to Pack for a Cruise: Full Packing List and Banned Items

Pack for a cruise in two parts. The carry-on you keep with you on embarkation day holds documents, medications, a swimsuit, a change of clothes, chargers and anything valuable, because your checked bags may not reach your cabin until late afternoon or evening. Your checked bags hold everything else: clothes for the days and evenings, toiletries, a small first aid kit and a few cabin extras.

Then take out what the ship will confiscate. Every major line bans clothes irons, garment steamers, candles and CBD or marijuana products, and most ban some or all power strips. The rules differ more than people expect, so the table further down compares the big lines item by item.

Your embarkation day bag

At the terminal you hand over your checked bags and they are delivered to your cabin later. MSC says bags arrive in the late afternoon to early evening, and the same is true on most large ships. You will be on board, possibly in the pool or at lunch, for several hours before you see them.

Pack a small carry-on that fits through the terminal’s x-ray scanner, with:

• Travel documents. Passport or birth certificate plus photo ID for each person, and your boarding pass or app login. See do you need a passport for a cruise for what your sailing requires.
• All medications. Royal Caribbean asks guests to keep medications in hand luggage in their original labeled containers, with at least three extra days’ supply in case of delays.
• A swimsuit, sunscreen and sunglasses. The pools open on sailaway day and are quietest before the bags arrive.
• A change of clothes for dinner, in case your bag arrives late.
• Chargers and a power bank. Carnival requires power banks to be in carry-on luggage.
• Valuables and jewelry. Never in a checked bag.
• Your permitted bottle of wine, if you are bringing one. Carnival requires it to be in your carry-on on embarkation day.

The first cruise tips guide covers the rest of embarkation day, including why cabins may not be ready when you board.

The full cruise packing list

This is a list for a seven-night warm-weather cruise. Adjust clothing for Alaska, Northern Europe or a winter sailing.

How many evening outfits you need depends on the line. Carnival has one or two “Cruise Elegant” nights per sailing; Norwegian has no required formal nights at all. Our guide to what to wear on a cruise has the dress codes line by line.

Two items on that list are worth explaining. Cabin walls on most ships are steel, so magnetic hooks give you somewhere to hang hats, bags and lanyards in a small room. And inside cabins are completely dark with the lights off, which is great for sleep and awkward for a 3 a.m. bathroom trip; a small plug-in or battery night light solves it. If you are still choosing a cabin, see inside, ocean view or balcony.

Banned items: how the big lines compare

Security at the terminal screens every bag. Banned items are confiscated. Some are handed back at the end of the cruise and some are not, depending on the item and the line. These are the lines’ own published rules as of 2026.

Sources: Royal Caribbean’s prohibited items policy, Carnival’s help center and the Princess pre-cruise FAQ, plus Norwegian’s and MSC’s published lists. Royal Caribbean also notes that items not on its list can still be refused.

Knives are a mixed picture. Norwegian bans blades over 4 inches, Princess bans blades over 2.5 inches, and MSC bans knives entirely. A small pair of grooming scissors is generally fine; a pocket knife is not worth the argument.

The power strip rule causes the most confiscations. Many cabins have only two or three outlets, so people bring a strip, and on Royal Caribbean and Princess it will be taken. A single USB charging cube with several ports and no surge protection does the same job and is not a power strip. Most ships built for the US market have US-style 110-volt outlets, and many also have a European 220-volt socket.

Alcohol and drinks you can bring

• Royal Caribbean: one sealed 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne per guest of drinking age, plus up to 12 cans or cartons of non-alcoholic drinks per stateroom. No beer or liquor. Corkage is $15 if you drink it in a public area.
• Carnival: one sealed 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne per person aged 21 or over, in your carry-on, plus up to 12 sealed cans or cartons of soft drinks per person. Corkage is $15 in the dining room or bars.
• Princess: one 750 ml bottle of wine or champagne per guest per voyage, free if drunk in the cabin; extra bottles carry a $20 corkage fee.
• Norwegian: wine and champagne are allowed, but corkage of $15 per bottle applies even in your cabin, unless you have a drinks package.
• MSC: no alcohol may be brought aboard at embarkation.

Bringing your own wine is the cheapest way to cut the bar bill. Whether a full package makes more sense is covered in are cruise drink packages worth it.

Medications and a small first aid kit

Onboard shops and medical centers sell basics, but at a premium, and a ship’s shop will not have your specific prescription. The CDC’s travel health kit list is a good model for a cruise:

• Your prescriptions in original containers, with copies of the prescriptions
• Motion sickness medicine, such as meclizine, or a scopolamine patch from your doctor
• Pain and fever relievers, antihistamine, antacid, anti-diarrheal medicine and a mild laxative
• Sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher, insect repellent and aloe gel for sunburn
• Bandages, antiseptic, hand sanitizer and a digital thermometer

If you are flying to the port, remember the TSA 3-1-1 rule for carry-on liquids: containers of 3.4 ounces or less in one quart-size bag. Medications are exempt, but larger liquid medicines must be declared at the checkpoint. Our guide to cruise seasickness covers which motion sickness medicines work and when to take them.

Luggage limits

Cruise lines are far more generous than airlines, but they do set limits. Carnival allows one bag per person on three to five day cruises and two bags on cruises of six days or more, each up to 50 pounds and no larger than 16 by 24 inches when lying flat. MSC allows two suitcases of up to 23 kilograms each plus two pieces of hand luggage per person. In practice the limit that matters is usually your airline’s, and the space under your cabin bed, where empty suitcases are stored for the week.

What not to bring

• Hair dryers. Every cabin has one. Royal Caribbean may even refuse some high-wattage models.
• Beach and bath towels. The ship provides both, and most lines lend beach towels for port days.
• Too many formal outfits. Most seven-night cruises have two dressier nights at most, and plenty of passengers dress smart casual even then.
• Large amounts of cash. Everything on board goes on your cruise card, settled by credit card.
• Camouflage clothing if your cruise visits the Caribbean. Carnival warns that it is illegal for civilians in several islands, including Jamaica, Barbados and St. Lucia.

Pack for how you will actually spend the week. Most passengers wear the same few comfortable outfits and bring home clothes they never touched. What you do pay for on board, from Wi-Fi to gratuities, is in how much a cruise really costs, and if you are packing for children, the cruising with kids guide lists what the lines do and do not supply. Before you close the suitcase, check your own line’s prohibited items page one last time: it is the one list that decides what makes it to your cabin.