Cruising gift basket for Christmas gift

[Teresa Pitman]

My family (me, my four grown kids, one-daughter-in-law, one girlfriend, and four grandchildren) will be cruising on the Dream in February. This will be our very first cruise. I'd like to put together gift baskets for Christmas of things people might need on the cruise, but - since I haven't been on a cruise before - I don't have a clue what to include. Any suggestions??

Teresa

 

[tearem]

I am also interested in any responses. I woudl like to do the same for my DD9 for when we cruise next year.

 

[Garrica]

Not that I'm an expert at this, because I'm not, but I had the same idea and this is what I've done for my little ones.

1 large shoulder bag with disney decal ($12.99)
Filled bag with:
1 snorkel gear set (I paid $30 but you can find less expensive sets)
1 disney character beach towel ($12.99)
1 disney water raft ($8)
1 disney character lanyard ($4)
1 personalized disney autograph book ($7)
1 disney Kooky Klick pen
1 pair of water shoes
1 new swim suit

I have 4 kids, so these were each personalized with their favorite characters. Our kids don't have a clue that we are taking this trip in February, so I'm considering doing a scavenger hunt for them to find these baskets.

Happy planning!

 

[CKCruising]

All the above are great. Some of the other things that come to mind along the more adult ideas:

- An onboard credit (you can print a coupon and give it to them)
- Sunscreen
- Travel toilettries - soap, toothpaste, etc.
- Memory cards (this is hard as you would have to know the cameras they have)
- Hats (matching hats possibly)
- Some sand (maybe from Castaway Cay - I think you can take sand)
- T-Shirts (some people make up embarkation shirts. It's fun when a large group has matching shirts)
- Paperbacks or magazines
- Puzzle books
- Fish Extenders (You have to know that they would be interested in participating)
- Sand toys (These need to be smaller and packable)

Most of these are not Disney specific. You can always find Disney stuff to add as well.

 

[Minniemouse07]

I would skip towels (less to pack) since they are provided by DCL.

You could include things like single drink mix packets to use in water bottles, water safes (small containers that hang on your neck to keep ID/stateroom key), snacks, Disney themed stuff from the dollar store for the kids (stickers, tattoos, activity books, etc)...etc.

Additionally, for grown-ups I would add copies of PassPorters DCL book. Lots of great info for a first time cruiser!

 

[Mommy Poppins]

Disposable underwater cameras--even for the kids. They make great stocking stuffers and it is always fun to see pictures of our trips from the kids' perspective.

 

[Teresa Pitman]

Thank you!! These are great ideas.

Teresa

 

[Tink113]

I have done something similar as well and this is what I included for the adultsL

- I made a gift card that was good for (2) upgrades to Palo for Dinner or Brunch, I just went to guest services the last night and paid that amount to each on board acct.
- I made some personalized Disney Magnets so everyone could decorate their door
- I had amazing FE's made by a super talented DISer
- I ordered personalized Disney Tote Bags (1 per family), I totally Lucked Out with these because Disney had Tote Bags on clearance that said Family Vacation with a Disney beach scene that I was able to personalize. I ordered them from DisneyStore.com and they were HUGE when they arrived.

 

[Tink113]

PS. for the kids - hit the dollar section at Target or Dollar Tree for lots of fun Disney things!

I put together baskets and put them in my brother's stateroom the day we got on the ship to surprise my nephews. Autograph books, fun pens, sand toys, sun glasses, disney flip flops....

On Pirates Night, I hung up the pirate costumes I had brought with me for them in their room with a note form Captain Mickey asking them to please join him up on deck 9 for the Pirate Party by special request of the captain. They were hanging there waiting for them when they got back from the kids club to get ready for dinner.

 

[ILoveDisney&Cruising]

I ordered personalized Disney Tote Bags (1 per family), I totally Lucked Out with these because Disney had Tote Bags on clearance that said Family Vacation with a Disney beach scene that I was able to personalize. I ordered them from DisneyStore.com and they were HUGE when they arrived.

How AWESOME are those!!!!!???? them!!

 

[Teresa Pitman]

Wow, that tote bag is wonderful!

Thank you! Any additional ideas are very welcome!

Teresa

 

[jenvin]

I thought this thread might help, it has lists of top 10 things to bring...

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2405070

Jen

 

[Tink113]

How AWESOME are those!!!!!???? them!!

For anyone who is interested, looks like someone is selling a NEW tote just like the one I posted on ebay. I'm sure you could take it to get it personalized.
Believe it or not, this bag is so roomy that I ended up using this as my "overnight" bag at the Hospital when I had my baby 5 months ago. I use it all the time. I love the long strap (long enough to cross your body). It's also removable and the shoulder straps are great for carrying on the shoulder. I would totally say this could double as a good weekender bag.

Hope this helps.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Large-NWT-Disne...622?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3cae0bd46e

 

[Tink113]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Disney-Tote-Bag-/120642451076?pt=US_CSA_WH_Handbags&hash=item1c16d9b684

 

[ILoveDisney&Cruising]

Target's Dollar Spot has some GREAT Disney stuff right now -- I had to go to 3 stores to get enough for all our traveling party, but they had:

Disney 2011 calendars (a good, medium size -- not full size and not mini) ... they had 2 different styles of these - one you add a picture to and the other was just a regular looking calendarDisney 2011 planners (kind of like a teacher would use)
Disney 2012 calendar mousepads
Disney 2011-2012 pocket calendars (2 year calendars)
other Disney stuff - like white boards, candies, girls hair stuff for $1

and Kohl's has adult Disney watches on sale for $16-20 (reg. $35) -- I've also gotten adult Disney watches at Walmart before for $20. These would be nice, since there are no clocks on the ship (other than your stateroom) ... we usually use our phone for our clock nowadays, but since those don't work on the ship ... we bought cute watches.