Packing Guide for a Week Aboard a Boat

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Whether you’re taking a cruise or chartering your own boat for a week, boat living requires some items that you wouldn’t need on any other vacation. You’ll be spending a lot of time not only onboard but also in the water, and will still need outfits for offshore activities and dinners (think multi-functional and quick-drying pieces). Here’s what to pack and where to buy it if you’re planning a boating vacation this summer.

Mouse over the photos below for detailed explanations of the items. Any time you see the Thinglink icon on a photo (bottom right), you can mouse over it to interact with the image.

Where to Buy:

Tops (from left to right)

• 2 active wear tops: Sunshine Salutation Tank, $58 from lululemon
• 1 dressy top: Striped Lace Top, $45 from Lands’ End
• 1-2x tank tops: Perfect-Fit Shell, $22.50 from J. Crew
• 1-2x basic t-shirts: Vintage Cotton T-Shirt, $29.50 from J. Crew 

Sweaters

• 1 sweatshirt: Sexy Sweat Half Zip, $54.99 from lucy
• 1 UPF jacket: Vitamin Sea Jacket, $69 from Athleta
• 1 open cardigan: Open-Front Sweater, $29 from Old Navy 

Dresses

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• 1 mid-length dress: Daily Mantra Dress, $89 from lucy
• 1 cotton dress: Short-Sleeve Cotton Shirtdress, $98 from J. Crew
• 1 casual striped dress: Striped Vacances Dress, $88 from Madewell

Bottoms

• 2 pairs active shorts: Surf Short II Reversible, $68 from lululemon
• 1 skirt: Seaside Fold Over Skirt, $39 from Athleta
• 1 pair of leggings: Align Crop, $88 from lululemon
• 1 pair linen shorts: Linen Market Shorts, $29.99 from Lands’ End

Swim

• 1 full piece bathing suit: Strappy Back Onepiece, $118 from lululemon
• 1-2x mix and match two-piece bathing suits: Palm Cove Bikini Top, $59 from Athleta; Streamline Bottom, $49 from Athleta
• 1 cover up: Ombre-Gauze Tassel Swim Cover-Up, $34 from Old Navy

Shoes

• 1 pair of water shoes: Original Sandal, $37.50 from Teva
• 1 pair dressy flats: Splendid Cassandra sandal, $78 from Zappos
• 1 pair of white bottom slip on’s: Paul Sperry Swell Emmy Sneaker, $80 from Sperry

Extras

• Sea sickness relief: Sea-Band Wristbands, $7.79 from Amazon
• Quick dry hat: The North Face Breakaway Hat, $16.50 from EMS
• 2-3x books: Voyager: Travel Writings, $16.24 from Amazon
• Sport/polarized sunglasses: Drop in Polarized, $180 from Oakley
• 2x quick-dry towels: Large Towels, $44.99 from Dock & Bay
• Chemical free sunscreen: Honest Mineral Sunscreen SPF 50+, $13.95 from The Honest Company
• All purpose soap: Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Liquid Travel Soap, $1.79 from Target
• Clothespins: hegs Clothespins, $9.99 for 18 pack from Amazon
• Dry bag day pack: 15L Dry Bag, $99 from So iLL

Some review products are sent to us free of charge and with no incentive to offer a favorable review. We offer our unbiased opinions, positive and negative, and will never accept compensation to review a product.

More from SmarterTravel:

• Cruise Packing: One Suitcase Fits All
• A Guide to Packing for Every Season
• Secret Pajamas for Overnight Flights

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