Cabin Organization Tips?

[MISSREBECCA76]

Ok, so our previous DCL cruise we had two staterooms. This time, because the in-laws wanted adjoining rooms we only have one for our family. There will be 5 of us, my DH, DD8, DD6 and DS4- I feel like I will be really crowded and I am sure some of you have some great tips on keeping thing organized- anyone want to share some ideas with me? Any input is very much appreciated!

 

[MAJPLO]

One of those over the door shoe organizers was awesome for bathroom items and a pop up hamper (or two) for keeping the room a little neater. I think some people bring the hanging fabric shelves in the closet as well. After a while as the laundry started piling up we would take the things we knew for sure we wouldn't be laundering and start filling one of the suitcases under the bed.

 

[Ariel224]

Put the kids in the in-laws' room!

 

[firsttimemom]

When my kids were that age and their clothes were so small, I would pack each days outfit in a big ziplock bag- we saved so much time not tossing things around looking for a shirt or sock. I also bring a pillowcase to use for dirty clothes.

The over the door shoe thing is invaluable for keeping shoes, sunscreen, hair pretties, medicine, etc. from being all over the room.

Hope this helps!

 

[ready123go]

One of those over the door shoe organizers was awesome for bathroom items and a pop up hamper (or two) for keeping the room a little neater. I think some people bring the hanging fabric shelves in the closet as well. After a while as the laundry started piling up we would take the things we knew for sure we wouldn't be laundering and start filling one of the suitcases under the bed.

We do this. We use two shoe organizers - one on the inside of the bathroom door (for bathroom stuff) & one on the outside (for other stuff). I made a chart in Word so I can refer to it when packing. I tried labeling the pockets, but found that any changes where a pain. Changes are much easier in a document. Once the shoe organizer is loaded for my trip, while it is still full, I take it down and lay it on the floor/across the bed. I then fold it in thirds and slip it into a Space Bag. Once I get the air out, everything pretty much stays in place. I just reverse the process in order to hang them. If you fold it from the top down, very little displaces (experiment with this - it takes a couple of tries). On the inside shoe organizer, we had to use a closet hanger turned upside down and placed across the robe hooks. This allowed the bottom of the hanger to form a closet "rod" of sorts (no photo-sorry). We then hung the organizer on that "rod". (This was on Carnival, not Disney, my point is you might have to get a little inventive, but well worth it)

We also use a mesh shower caddy thingy.

We take a few 3M hooks with water-resistant strips and a few power-lock suction hooks and toothbrush & razor holders to use where needed.

 

[Menada1115]

The shoe organizers on the bathroom doors were a huge help! We had all of our toiletries, sunscreen, etc and the kids shoes in them. It was great!
We found our biggest problem was with our empty suitcases...they wouldn't fit under the bed, so we had them just stacked in the room- took up so much space. But, we didn't know what else to do with them. Our stroller took up quite a bit of space also.

 

[kimb96]

Packing cubes! They really helped to keep everything organized and neat in the suitcases and made unpacking really simple. Just take them out of the suitcase, fold the top under and place in a drawer or closet. I got a 3 piece set for all of us and a set of the slim cubes and it fit all of our clothes for 3 people.

http://www.ebags.com/category/trave...nid=31516070&gclid=COHQkIWOmrQCFYuZ4AodQ3IA-g

 

[luv2sleep]

Packing cubes! They really helped to keep everything organized and neat in the suitcases and made unpacking really simple. Just take them out of the suitcase, fold the top under and place in a drawer or closet. I got a 3 piece set for all of us and a set of the slim cubes and it fit all of our clothes for 3 people.

http://www.ebags.com/category/travel-accessories/packing-aids/packing-cubes?sourceid=ADWEX14399&couponid=31516070&gclid=COHQkIWOmrQCFYuZ4AodQ3IA-g

So you got 6 cubes for 3 people? Was that enough for a 7 day cruise? Was that two changes of clothes per day (day/dinner) for 3?

 

[kimb96]

So you got 6 cubes for 3 people? Was that enough for a 7 day cruise? Was that two changes of clothes per day (day/dinner) for 3?

I got each of us a set 3 plus a set of slims...so a total of 12 cubes. It was enough for a 7 nights. I did not pack a ton of stuff. We all wore the same pair of pants at dinner 2 times with different shirts and we did not dress up for semi formal night. We also wore the same pair of shorts a couple of times because we didnt' wear them very long. You spend a good part of the day in your swimsuits. You may need more cubes if you intend to pack 2 seperate outfits for each day. To give you some examples of how much you can fit in them....I rolled the clothes and could easily get 7-8 medium ladies tops in the medium cubes and 7 bottoms in the large cubes. I got 8 of my son's shirts rolled into a size small. We used the slim cubes for underwear. If you search the board, you can find pictures of packing cubes with clothes in them. I found out about them from others on this board and they have changed the way I pack when traveling. I use them for every trip now. It really does make it easy to stay organized when travelling.

 

[amyngary]

We use all of the above suggestions, which we got from the Dis boards. We have 2 large packing cubes/person, and then some of each of the medium and small sizes (I recommend buying different colors for each family member). We do not use ziplocs for Disney trips since we use the packing cubes, but we use them for other trips.

The over-door shoe holder is fantastic and has really saved us time. We even have a pocket set aside to hold single bills for room service tips (DD folds them into origami butterflies).

Before I got packing cubes, I spent hours the first day of every trip unpacking. Now I assign each person a drawer(s) and they grab their cubes and put them in their drawer unzipped so they can easily grab their outfits each time. I highly recommend them. We roll the clothes and put outfits together in the cube to make it easier to match the outfits.

 

[DizDragonfly]

I then fold it in thirds and slip it into a Space Bag. Once I get the air out, everything pretty much stays in place.

How do you pack it back up again to head home?

 

[Plaid Princess]

Not exactly and organizational tip, but I always make sure to pack a power strip so I can keep my electronics all in one place.

 

[woody73]

. . . There will be 5 of us

. . . I feel like I will be really crowded and I am sure some of you have some great tips on keeping thing organized

1. Pack some wire hangers to hang additional clothes. This will relieve some drawer space. You could request additional wooden hangers from your staterom attendant, but they take up lots of room. Leave the wire hangars behind at the end of the cruise, making room for souvenirs.

2. Store items you might use once in the suitcases until you need them -- such as pirate outfits, beach toys and snorkel gear.
​

Woody

 

[ready123go]

How do you pack it back up again to head home?

Same way. You just don't get all of the air out, but enough to keep everything pretty much in place. Not perfect, but close enough. I use it in the hotel, the night before a cruise, so it does get unpacked and repacked.

This is more along the lines of packing organization than cabin organization, but, what I like about doing this is, it distributes the bulky stuff across the suitcase. When bundle packing, I center it in the middle of my clothes.

Of course, YMMV - what works for me doesn't work for everyone, but I love it.

 

[ready123go]

1. Pack some wire hangers to hang additional clothes. This will relieve some drawer space. You could request additional wooden hangers from your stateroom attendant, but they take up lots of room. Leave the wire hangers behind at the end of the cruise, making room for souvenirs.
​

Woody

We've done this, too, and it works great!

 

[Baliezer]

Instead of bringing suitcases, we use large rolling duffel bags. The kind that had wire inserts that you can remove to fold it up. They store easily under the bed. We are then able to store our dirty clothing in them. By the end of the cruise most of our clothing is in the bags and does not need to be packed. Easy peasy!

 

[Weedy]

We use a clear over the door shoe holder. That way you can see what is in each pocket. The 1st time we didn't have a clear one and I thought it was a pain. Each person gets a row, for their stuff, the youngest gets the bottom row and go up as they get older. That way everyone can reach their stuff. The extra rows are for sun screen and such. We put it on the outside of the door because it's seems when ever you need something someone is in the bathroom. I put it over the door of the one (if you have a split bath) with the shower, that way if you need something when you are in the shower you can open the door and reach and get it.

Have a different place for everyone to keep their shoes. My son put his between the couch and the balcony window, my daughter between the desk and the balcony window, my husband and I in the closet. Tripping over shoes drives me crazy!!

As the clothes get dirty put them in a suitcase, it will make packing the last night easier and keep things neater.

Their is a small counter when you 1st walk in. Have everyone put their KTTWK (room key card) there everytime!!! if not you will spend lots of time and energy looking for cards.

No need to bring extra hangers ask your room steward for more if you need them.

Have a great trip.

 

[DizDragonfly]

Same way. You just don't get all of the air out, but enough to keep everything pretty much in place. Not perfect, but close enough. I use it in the hotel, the night before a cruise, so it does get unpacked and repacked.

This is more along the lines of packing organization than cabin organization, but, what I like about doing this is, it distributes the bulky stuff across the suitcase. When bundle packing, I center it in the middle of my clothes.

Of course, YMMV - what works for me doesn't work for everyone, but I love it.

Thanks. I may give this a try and see if it works out for us. Normally, I just fold the shoe holder flat and throw all the stuff that will be stored in it in a packing cube. But, on our next trip we are moving multiple times and I've been trying to figure out how to shave off some packing and unpacking time.

 

[ready123go]

Thanks. I may give this a try and see if it works out for us. Normally, I just fold the shoe holder flat and throw all the stuff that will be stored in it in a packing cube. But, on our next trip we are moving multiple times and I've been trying to figure out how to shave off some packing and unpacking time.

I have been toying with putting the self-adhesive Velcro coins or strips at the top of each pocket, as a closure, but not quite that ambitious.

Small Hijack - I used to pack for space (one carry-on per person, packing sleeves, etc.). I have decided I hate packing. Too much time and too much shifting stuff around for weight vs. bulk. So I am trying some new methods for ease of packing and unpacking. Last trip I put all our clothes on wire hangers. Shoes in bottom of duffel (right side), undergarments/swimsuits etc. in packing cubes in top of duffel (left side). I then draped the clothes over the duffel, placed the toiletries bag in the center and folded both ends of the clothing bundle over.

Overall, it worked really well. However, there were a couple of difficulties, such as protecting the clothing from the end of the hanger and the hangers (Real Simple Slimlines) didn't all make it. I used an old towel to wrap around the hanger ends. Disclaimer - We use a casual wardrobe, so I could care less about a few wrinkles (learned that lesson ).

Also, we needed new luggage, so this year I made sure to buy duffels that will stand on end (tired of struggling with floppy duffels) and a couple of wardrobe spinners. I also bought some heavy-duty wire hangers (flexible, but not flimsy). I'm hoping these items solve the few things I found irksome!

 

[DizDragonfly]

I know I'd be happier if I just learned to pack less stuff, but I'm such a pack rat! I don't think I'll ever get there.