Packing

[RIDISNEYLOVERS]

Well, we still have 4 months to go before we pack for our land/sea family vacation and I always think about this ahead of time. We usually try to take two vacations per year to WDW and we have been on the DCL previously - here is my question:

How many suitcases do people actually bring?

DH and myself usually share a huge suitcase (we uaually are right at maximum weight for airline purposes without having to pay an added expense) and DD gets her own (diapers, wipes, clothes, toys, etc...) then we bring an empty bag that we fold up and bring in our suitcase for souvenirs. How do people carry all these suitcases? We usually bring the bare minimums, and after reading these boards there are some really good tips about what else to bring - I just don't know where I am going to find the room.


I would love to hear packing suggestions and ideas that may help.

Thanks,
Lisa

 

[mmouse37]

We each take one rolling suitcase each. The kids ususally also bring a backpack with things they want on the plane.

MJ

 

[aprilgail2]

With the 3 of us (grandma,me and 2 yer old)we brought 2 suitcases and one cooler and that was everything....and next time I would skip the cooler and just buy the sodamug!

 

[daltonsdodisney]

It was myself, husband and 2 DD's, 8 and 6. I took a large suitcase for my clothing, a large duffel which included my beach bag and beach/pool stuff, etc.. film, shoes, and anything extra, and I also took a hard cosmetic case for all the bathroom stuff. My husband took a large roll-on suitcase for his stuff and then my girls each had their own rolling backpacks, which fit all their clothing and shoes. We also had our video camera in it's own bag and I had my backpack purse. I felt it was just about right. It would be nice to go lighter, but we really needed everything we took.

 

[spoiled_momma]

I really hope there is not a limit. We are going in December and I'm too sure we will look like we are moving in. it will be me, DH, DS 9 and DD 6 we will each have at least one suitcase each, hanging garmet bag for dressy clothes, bathroom bag, beach/pool bag, beach toys ect ect ect..food ect ect.. I dont know how to pack light so I really hope there is not a limit.

 

[prymsu]

just remember, you might have a hard time finding a place in your room to store all those suitcases.

We went to China for three weeks last year, and we only checked two bags. Then we each had a small rolling suitcase and a backpack we carried on, but we left plenty of room for purchases.

 

[Amzey]

My parents usually share a rolling suitcase, and my sisters and I each have our own. My parents also bring a garment bag and a carry-on that they share between them, and my sisters (10 and 13) and I (17) will bring backpacks or duffel bags to entertain us on the trip. We already seem to have a ton of stuff for this cruise though, so we might need to bring more luggage.

 

[Toad]

Sometimes it is better to bring two smaller suitcases for you and your husband rather than one large one. My parents did this once years ago and their luggage was lost. From that point on, they packed half of each of their stuff in the two suit cases, and then if one case was lost, they still each had clothes until the case could be found. Of course, since then, they have never lost a bag. The other advantage is you might have two slightly less full suitcases for additional odds and ends to bring along.

 

[Lavne]

I am one of those people who doesn't believe in doing laundry on vacation and tend to bring everything we might possibly need. On this trip (7-day), for DH, myself, DS11 and DS9, we had 6 checked bags, a medium-sized carry-on each for DH and myself, and the boys each had a stuffed backpack. I also packed 2 empty duffle-type bags for extras coming home. I mixed our clothes between all the bags in case of lost luggage, and I packed one spare shorts/top outfit and swimsuit for each in the boys backpacks in case of emergency.

Our checked luggage was a large suitcase, large wheeled duffle, medium wheeled duffle, garment bag, and two smallish suitcases. Coming home I only needed to use one of my extra bags (small wheeled duffle), but actually also packed DHs original carryon so he could carry a different bag packed with our souveniers.

I had no problem with space for everything in the stateroom. DH, myself, and DS11 each had one shelf in the "trunk" for our shorts/shirts outfits, and DS9 had all his in a drawer. All of our dinner clothes hung in the closet. Toiletries were on the shelves or shoe-type hanging bag in the bathrooms, and everything else was in the desk drawers or on the desk. I emptied all of our bags and they easily fit under the bed, with the exception of one which I left out to repack with our dirty clothes as we took them off at the end of the day.

We flew, so checked our baggage curbside and portside, so really didn't have to mess with it too much ourselves. When we arrived at port, it was unloaded from our shuttle directly to a DCL porter who whisked it away.

I think DCL technically has the same luggage limits as most airlines - 2 checked bags and one carry-on per person, but I've never seen or heard of anyone being questioned about how much they've brought. We actually added a carry-on before we got to the ship, as we stopped to buy soda and beer (3 12-packs of cans) and put in in one of our spare bags to bring on board.

 

[Fawn]

I agree with splitting things up in suitcases just in case of lost luggage. I have always done that, and the one time two of our suitcases were were lost, it wasn't such a disaster!

I ALWAYS packed a backpack for each child that had their swimsuit and bedtime buddy/book/whatever.

Because we travel so frequently, I have two toiletry cases I keep packed at all times...cuts a lot of time down when packing for a large family!

My best suggestion? WHEELS! Nothing without wheels anymore...what a difference!!

 

[ducklite]

I think we're going to have a large rolling duffle, two medium to large rolling pullmans, a small rolling bag. Also each of us will have a day pack/tote bag as a carry on.

We're going for almost two weeks and hoping to not have to do laundry while we're gone.

Anne