What to bring with you

As we were heading to South Carolina for our port there, I leaned over to my friend and asked her if she had remembered her birth certifiate. She had forgotten it! With much panic and some quick thinking we were able to get her birth certificate overnighted to the hotel before we left for the port the next day. We called the cruise line to see what their policy was and she would have not been allowed on the ship without it!

So....once you get your cruise booked--put together a folder. As you come across things you will need--put it in there. You mind will be so busy once you pack you will forget to bring things you need. A passport or birthcertificate is crucial. As of right now, if you have a birth certificate you are fine. However, I strongly recommend a passport. If for some reason you miss the boat (which I have come close once) and you are stranded, you cannot get out of a foreign country without a passport. You can only cruise in and out with birth certificates. It is just a good idea!

Here is a list of handy things that I like to bring with me:

• Travel clock. There are usually no clocks in the rooms. If you are in a dark room it is imposible to tell when morning comes.
• Removeable hooks--the sticky kind. I like to put these up in the closest to hole jewelry, hats, sweaters and such. They come right off when you are done.
• Collapsible laundry bag
• Sweater for up on deck at night
• Hat--it can get really windy outside
• Bug repellent (for shore excursions)
  
• Extension cord or multiplug. They usually on have two outlets.