I went on my first cruise—there's 1 item I would never take onboard again

Cruising is a great way to see the world, especially if you don’t like flying. However, it is very different to your typical holiday, with certain items you must remember. For me, one of these was earplugs as I found out if you have a room near the entertainment lounges, or near the engine, it can be loud.

Despite my cabin not being located near the engine or entertainment rooms, I still wore them to improve sleep. Many people also find that they help with seasickness by reducing conflicting sensory signals.

However, it wasn’t until the third night into the cruise that I realised I should never have worn earplugs to sleep on a cruise.

Luckily, I wasn’t travelling on my own, but I was made aware that I had completely missed an announcement.

The announcement, thankfully, wasn’t an emergency, but it was an announcement to notify cruisers that the route may be slightly choppy.

However, I couldn’t stop thinking about the potential for missing announcements, especially emergency alerts.

What’s more, even wearing them during the day could result in you missing daily announcements of the itinerary or important information.

If you’re afraid of sleeping well on a cruise, focus on creating a comfortable and quiet environment in your cabin.

It might also be worth choosing a midship cabin on a lower deck to minimise motion and noise, and bringing a white noise machine or fan to mask distracting sounds.

Use a familiar pillow and pillowcase, too, and bring a comfortable blanket or mattress topper for added support.

Noise-cancelling headphones could also be an option. While not as effective as earplugs, this makes them great for a cruise to reduce some external sounds.