Packing light for cruise+land trip?

When we cruise we add ONE rolling carry on size bag to our normal two backpack style carryons. You can wash out clothing in your cabin -- a cabin with a balcony is a plus but not necessary. But you need the correct material -- no cotton. And there are sneaky ways to dry things if you have things that are slow drying. Just be creative. The ship laundry service will be expensive.

To save lots of packing, consider having hubby rent a tux with all the accessories. Many cruises offer this option. As for washing in the cabin, the hair dryer works wonders. Most cabins have a pull out cord in the shower for hanging washed clothes.
Have fun.

Skip bringing the suit.

I did that for a cruise, wore it twice and lugged it around for the other two weeks of the trip. Just bring a nice shirt with a tie and black khaki pants with black shoes. Leave the jacket at home, no need for it. I find that most cruise ships are really warm and you would just wear the jacket between your room and the dining room.

Most european cruise lines are less formal than other cruise areas.

Also depending on the length of the cruise, the cruise line will offer decent deals for laundry. Even at full price it was worth it.

Just returned from 18 days including a 7 day cruise in eastern Med on Costa. We each had a single carry-on bag. My husband packed a pair of nice khakis and a light-weight silk jacket for the formal cruises but there were lots of people in the dining room without jackets or ties.

Susan

I have cruised on Holland America, Royal Caribbean, and MSC and although they all hold formal nights, it is not necessary to participate. All we ever did was wear nice slacks and a dressier shirt and blouse. As long as you look neat and clean, there shouldn't be a problem. We like the fact that HA have self service laundries on its older ships - something ALL ships should have in my opinion.

Yes, I'd suggest leaving the suit at home. I went on a cruise a few months ago and its formal dinners were nice, but you won't get any problems if you just have on a shirt, tie, and some khakis. I don't own a suit and all I brought with me were nice looking tennis shoes, and that was no problem. In fact, one person at our table was wearing shorts and sandals on one of the formal nights.

Just returned from a 7 day E. Med cruise.

Hubby brought a suit, which I think is a mistake. I wore the same formal outfit both formal nights.

I frequently washed out clothing & hung it in the shower overnight. Then I hung it on the balcony furniture (in port) to finish drying & keep it out of the attendant's way.

Don't be too self-conscience about this. Our table mates who were several cabins down from us admitted to it as well. Joked about stretching a long line of laundry over our balcony rails as we sail into port.

Frank is not exaggerating about the cost of laundry service.
RCCL wanted $8 per shirt.
They offered a $20 one time laundry special for socks & underwear. This was a plastic bag stuffed full.

Check out cruisecritic.com for other ideas. Our trips to Europe have always included a cruise. We allow each person 1 check-on suitcase and backpack we also pack a duffle bag for the extras we purchase. My husband now rents a tux and that has worked for him. Happy trails & cruisin'

We are on a 12 night cruise and we are planning to take a carry on each plus a small tote bag (each)that fits under the plane seat. Hubby knows his suit will fit in his LLBean canvas backpack/carryon (no longer being made) Can't depend on the airlines to not lose luggage!

Thank you all for your comments. I had no idea that dress code enforcement would be so lax -- I wonder if it varies by cruise line? We'll be on Celebrity and they stress the suit/tux for formal dinners and sportcoat/tie for informal. I checked into tux rental and we can get one for $85 for the entire trip; it might be fun to dress up, and $85 for 3 wearings doesn't sound too bad. My husband likes the idea of no suits/jackets at all but he is a bit leery of being underdressed. So we're still deciding, but appreciate all the suggestions. Nice to know that I can bring my Rick Steves clothesline and hang laundry on the balcony!

I'm booked on Celebrity and asked my tour organizers about the dress code. They have been on many Celebrity cruises, said it's fun to see how the people in their group dress up, but it is optional. I understood that "business casual" would not be out of place. I plan to pack a blouse and nice slacks. I guess it will be a nice change for my shipmates to not see me in tees and jeans.

I'm in a quandary about shoes, though. My planned footwear: hiking shoes and hiking sandals - not at all attractive, but great for walking in the heat. Do you think anyone will look at my feet under the dinner table?

Shalom Chani! The only people who might be looking at my feet under the table are the only people whose opinion of my wardrobe I could not care less about. Bad sentence construction but that's my 2 cents. We have taken many cruises. There is hardly room to bathe in a cabin bathroom let alone do real laundry. The ships' laundry services are fast and essentially reasonanbly priced. And, there are lots of options for alternative dining if you don't want to carry dress clothes. Just avoid jeans which are pretty much nowhere to be seen in the evenings on board any ship I've ever taken.