To help a ship feel like a home away from home it’s nice to travel with some home comforts. But it’s important to carefully consider what items get packed as there’s weight restrictions on flights and limited storage space in cabins.
Here’s some helpful packing suggestions from colleagues on board.
Hand luggage
At least 6 months (post end of contract) until expiry date and at least two blank pages at the rear
For example MCV Visa and C1D
If you are prescribed medication by a doctor at home, this must be declared to your Seafarer’s Medical Fitness Examiner and the ship’s Medical Team on joining. You should bring enough medication with you to last your entire contract.
Handy for buying food/drink during the journey, but don’t bring too much for security reasons.
To set up an onboard account so you’re able to purchase items like snacks and drinks – let your bank know about travel plans so they don’t introduce card restrictions. Also bring a small amount of cash to use while your account is being set up.
Hold luggage
Uniforms are provided but this does not include underwear, socks, hosiery or shoes (if you need to wear safety shoes for your role these will be provided) Hosiery is available to buy on board but sizes and styles are very limited so bring these with you. For white uniforms, neutral coloured underwear is recommended.
Our ships visit warm and cold countries so pack for all weathers. Make sure you bring a warm coat as some destinations and sea days can be very cold.
Stay fit and well on board through regular exercise in the Crew Gym or ashore in port.
Whilst some snacks are available in the Crew Shop, you may want something special only available at home. (Remember to check customs restrictions for countries you are traveling through/to as some food items may be prohibited.)
Product supplies are limited on board so if you use specific toiletries or period products, pack extra at home. Period product disposal bags are provided and must be used on board.
No need to bring these items as we provide and launder these for you. For personal laundry, pack mesh laundry bags to keep items together in the machine, and detergent sheets (not pods or powder) for the first few weeks. Detergent is available to buy on board.
Items such as laptop, tablet and smart phones – remember the chargers! Also check to see if international roaming on your phone needs to be activated and look for good value deals for using phones abroad. It may be cheaper to set this up at home. Be careful if connecting to the Telenor Maritime network when on board as this is very expensive to use.
Download your favourite movies and music to bring with you. NOTE: USB hard drives can only be used with personal devices. They must not be plugged into any ship device.
Useful as sockets vary across the fleet.
Important: packing prohibited goods
When travelling to or from one of our ships, it’s very important that you respect the laws of the countries you travel through as they may be very different to the laws at home. When packing for your journey, check that you haven’t included any prohibited goods. Penalties for traveling with prohibited items include fines, or even restrictions on future travel. If you are in any doubt, it’s best to not take the risk. Examples of prohibited items might include:
- Some medicines and/or steroids
- Alcohol (exceeding local allowance)
- Tobacco (exceeding local allowance)
- Large amounts of cash (exceeding local allowance)
- Animal products (meat, poultry, fish, seafood, eggs, dairy)
- Fruit and vegetables
- Plants or parts of plants, including grains, seeds, nuts, bulbs, straw, wood, and traditional herbs or medicines
- Soil or items with soil attached