Packing for a cruise is hard enough, no matter if it’s a 3-day cruise or a 14-day cruise. You generally need multiple outfits for each day–like beachwear for a port stop on an island, cute day outfits for eating breakfast or lunch onboard, and of course, your nightwear for fancy dinners or dancing in the clubs. With so many things to pack, it’s almost a given that your clothes are going to get wrinkly and slightly messy looking.
As someone who worked on cruise ships as a crew member for over five years, and who also enjoys going on cruises for leisure multiple times a year, I’ve had my fair share of dealing with wrinkly clothing. One of the biggest problems with this is that cruise ship cabins aren’t like normal hotel rooms. Most of them don’t have an iron or an ironing board available, since that’s a fire hazard. Instead, some cruise ships offer a communal laundry room with ironing supplies available, and others offer dry cleaning services. However, there’s seemingly nothing you can do in your own stateroom to make your clothes presentable before heading out.
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Try This DIY Ironing Technique Right In Your Cruise Ship Stateroom
I thought I was the only one who did this secret onboard ironing hack in my cruise ship cabin, and it wasn’t until I saw a TikTok created by 360.cruising that I realized I wasn’t the only one. In this video, she explains how to basically iron your clothing in your stateroom without the need of an iron. All you need is a hair dryer and the metal lid from an ice bucket–both of which are usually provided within each stateroom.
From there, use a flat and hard surface in your stateroom to lay the item of clothing down that you want to iron. Then, heat up the underside of the ice bucket lid with the hair dryer, and then go ahead and use it to press your clothing down. You can also keep the hair dryer pointed towards the clothing as you press it down, making the clothing nice and warm, which will allow the wrinkles to be released. It’s a simple trick that allows you to stay in your stateroom, will save you money from dry cleaning, and you won’t have to worry about trekking to and from the communal laundry room.
This Easy Trick Keeps Clothes Wrinkle-Free on a Cruise
