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Cruising is one of my favorite ways to travel. Waking up to ocean views never gets old, and getting to explore multiple new cities in just a few days—without extensive planning—is a huge bonus. While there are plenty of upsides to cruising, one of the major downfalls is the less-than-spacious staterooms. Many of the ones I’ve stayed in recently are around 275 square feet, and that’s inclusive of a balcony. That’s quite a small space for my family of three to keep everything we might need organized throughout a five- or seven-day vacation.
Over the years, while cruising to ports like Cozumel and Roatan, I’ve come to learn some space-saving hacks on cruises, but none are better than packing an over-the-door hanging shoe organizer. The best shoe organizers for cruises are the ones that have clear slots so you can see what's inside of each without having to memorize what goes where.
But what makes this such a needed item on a cruise? While newer cruise ships, like the Disney Wish or Carnival Mardi Gras, and more luxury lines like Viking Ocean Cruises, have gotten better by adding more places to store items like hair brushes and toothpaste, there never seems to be enough drawers or counter space for everyone’s things.
That’s where this organizer comes in: While unpacking my luggage for the week, I take it out first and hang it on the outside of the bathroom door. Almost all cruise lines prohibit guests from affixing anything to walls or doors, using tape, or bringing hooks that go over the top of a door, so I bring along a set of strong magnetic hooks—which are also good to put around the room for hats and sweaters—to hang the shoe organizer on.
Once the organizer is hung, items like my toothbrush and toothpaste, hairbrush, Band-Aids, charging cords, and bobby pins each go into its own slot. When I’m traveling with family or friends, everyone gets their own few rows to use how they see fit.
Not only does this clear up counter space in the bathroom after someone is done getting ready, but it also keeps personal items and other small odds and ends from floating around the room and finding a new home every time it’s used. After I’m done using something I can put it back in its slot to keep precious counter space clear and know where it is for next time.
I take a shoe organizer on every single cruise I go on, and when I’m not cruising it stays nicely folded in my travel bin so it’s easy to grab for my next sailing.
