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🛍️ The Duty Free Shop

Cruise essentials, shore excursions, and travel extras, curated by Cruise Ship Wiki. Book direct with our partners and you will usually pay less than the ship charges, not more.

✓ Every link goes straight to the operator, never to a resale middleman ✓ Your price is the same. CSW earns a commission from the partner ✓ Prices and terms below were checked 30 Jul 2026

Shore excursions by port

Booked direct through Viator, a Tripadvisor company, instead of at the ship desk. Viator gives a full refund if you cancel at least 24 hours ahead on most experiences, and every listing carries traveller reviews and ratings.

🤿 Cozumel, MexicoReef diving and Mayan ruins 🏖️ Costa Maya, MexicoBeach clubs and Mayan sites 🐠 Roatan, HondurasSome of the best reef diving in the Caribbean 🛶 Belize City, BelizeCave tubing and the barrier reef 🐷 Nassau, BahamasSwimming pigs and the Blue Lagoon 🎢 Perfect Day at CocoCayRoyal Caribbean's private island 🐋 Cabo San Lucas, MexicoThe Arch and whale watching 🏝️ Grand CaymanStingray City and Seven Mile Beach 🗺️ Not your port?Search excursions anywhere your ship stops

Cruise essentials

The stuff seasoned cruisers pack every time. These open on Amazon, where the current price and stock are shown. We do not quote Amazon prices here because they change daily.

⚖️AmazonDigital luggage scale Weigh your bag in the cabin before you fly home, when the souvenirs have gone in and the airline limit has not moved. Current price on Amazon Amazon returns and delivery estimate shown at checkout 🔌Amazon · Anker140W four-port USB charger One outlet charges four devices. Cabins have very few sockets, and most lines ban power strips with surge protection. Current price on Amazon No surge protection, so it passes the usual cabin rules 🔋Amazon · Anker737 power bank, 24,000mAh A full port day of phone photos, maps and boarding passes without hunting for a socket ashore. Current price on Amazon Check your airline's carry-on rules for lithium capacity 🧺AmazonPop-up laundry hamper Keeps worn clothes off a cabin floor that is already short on space, then folds flat into a case. Current price on Amazon Amazon returns and delivery estimate shown at checkout 🧲AmazonMagnetic cabin hooks Cabin walls and ceilings are steel. Hooks hang lanyards, hats and wet swimsuits without using a single hanger. Search results, current prices on Amazon Amazon returns and delivery estimate shown at checkout

Before you sail

Handle the boring stuff now so port days stay simple.

Travel insurance, priced by the day
Independent cover is priced per traveller per day rather than as a share of your fare, and it pays you rather than issuing cruise credit. EKTA starts at $0.99 per day on its Start plan and is valid in any country in the world.
Get a quote
🏥EKTATravel medical insurance Medical care and emergency dental abroad, plus baggage loss, flight delay and third party liability. Ship medical centres bill at private rates and your home plan usually will not cover them. From $0.99 per day, Start plan Valid in any country in the world, 24/7 medical assistance line Buyable after you have already left home, choose "Already traveling" Start plan carries a 25% deductible. Gold and Max+ have none. 📶YesimeSIM data for port days Data on your own phone the moment you step ashore, instead of ship wifi packages or carrier roaming. Data from $1.10 per GB, unused balance carries over One eSIM covers 170+ countries across 800+ operators No physical SIM and no app needed, you scan a QR code Data only. Keep your own number on your normal SIM for calls. 🧺Radical StorageLeft luggage near the terminal Drop your bags at a shop or hotel near the port when you land early or disembark before your flight, then go and enjoy the day. From €0.90 per bag per day 15,000+ storage points in 1,000+ cities worldwide Every bag carries a €3,000 guarantee against damage, loss or theft, and cancellation is free ✈️AirHelpFlight delay and cancellation claims They file the claim against the airline for you when a delayed or cancelled flight costs you a night, or nearly costs you the ship. Claims up to $270, $430 or $650 per passenger by flight distance Fee is 35% including VAT, taken from the compensation itself No win, no fee. A failed claim costs you nothing out of pocket

Getting to the ship

Skip the taxi line and the guesswork on the one morning you cannot afford to be late.

🚘KiwitaxiPrivate airport and port transfers Book the car before you fly. The driver waits at the exit past baggage claim holding a nameplate with the name you booked under. Fixed price per car, agreed at booking and it does not change 100+ countries, 2,000+ cities and airports Free cancellation up to 5 hours ahead on standard classes, 24 hours on larger and premium cars 🤝Welcome PickupsMeet and greet with a local driver A local driver meets you at arrivals rather than a dispatcher sending whoever is next in the rank, which matters at ports you do not know. Price quoted per ride before you book Operating in 500+ destinations worldwide Rated 4.9 out of 5 on Trustpilot and 4.9 on Google

On shore and beyond

More ways to fill port days, and the pre or post-cruise nights either side of them.

🏖️KlookTours, tickets and transport passes Strong on Asia and Australia, useful for the land days either side of a repositioning cruise or a long-haul sailing. Price shown per activity before you book Bookings sit in the app as e-tickets, with reviews on each listing Free cancellation on many activities, and Klook credits back on bookings 🎟️TiqetsSkip-the-line museum and attraction tickets Buy the entry ticket on your phone while you are still walking in from the ship, and go past the queue at the door. Price shown per venue before you book More than 3,000 venue partners worldwide, 5 million app downloads Instant mobile tickets, and flexible cancellation options on all venues 🎧WeGoTripSelf-guided audio tours A narrated walking tour you start when your tender lands, not when a group is ready. Several include skip-the-line entry. Price shown per tour before you book 1,000+ audio tours across 300+ cities in 50+ countries Download the tour and tickets first, then it runs with no internet, so no roaming charges ashore 🏛️Go CityAll Inclusive and Explorer city passes One pass covering a city's main sights, worth it on an embarkation day where you have hours to fill before boarding. Save up to 50% against buying each ticket separately 28 destinations, entry to 1,500 attractions, 17 million users Money back guarantee if your admissions cost less than the pass, claimed within 14 days Guarantee needs a direct purchase and real use, 3 attractions a day on All Inclusive.

Suggested by members

Cruisers put these on the shelf themselves. An editor checks each one before it appears, and the member who suggested it is credited by name. Nobody is paid or rewarded for a suggestion, which is exactly why they are worth reading.

➕MembersBe the first on this shelf If something earned its place in your cabin, suggest it and the next cruiser benefits. Your name goes on it. No payment, no rewards, ever

The full gear list

Cruise Essentials is the deep catalogue, sorted into power, sleep, cabin, packing, sun and shore, and extras, with the reason each item is on the list and a marker on the ones tested in our own cabins.

🧳Cruise Ship WikiCruise Essentials, the full gear list Six categories of cabin and port gear with a short honest reason for every item, rather than a wall of products. Items we have used ourselves are marked as tested
CSW earns a commission on some links above. Your price stays the same. Figures shown were taken from each partner's own site on 30 Jul 2026 and partners can change them at any time, so the price at checkout is the one that counts.
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