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At Perfect Day CocoCay, the beach towel is on loan. Royal Caribbean hands it out on the ship, lets you swap it for a dry one at three stations on the island, and charges $25 for every towel that doesn’t come back aboard.
That’s the Bahamas in a nutshell. Packing for the weather is easy. What catches people out is what the private islands supply, what they ban, and the one item that can get you arrested in Nassau.
What to Pack for a Cruise to the Bahamas
Pack for sun, water and a short walk into town: swimwear and a cover-up, sunscreen, a hat and sunglasses, insect repellent, water shoes, a refillable water bottle and a few small U.S. bills. Add a light layer if you sail between December and March. Leave camouflage clothing at home, and check every bag for ammunition before you leave the house.
You don’t need a plug adapter or foreign cash. The Bahamas runs on the same 110/120-volt current as the U.S., according to the U.S. Commerce Department, and Nassau’s tourism board says U.S. currency is accepted throughout Nassau and Paradise Island. The Bahamian dollar is pegged one-to-one to the U.S. dollar. Documents are a separate question, and we covered them in our guide to passports for a Bahamas cruise.
How Warm Will It Be When You Sail?
Warm all year, but not the same all year. Winter evenings are cooler than many first-timers expect, while summer brings the heat, the rain and hurricane season. We set two climate sources side by side, WeatherSpark and Weather2Travel, both for Nassau:
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Send me the checklist →| When you sail | Typical high / low | Rain per month | Add to the bag |
|---|---|---|---|
| December to March | 77-79°F / 67-69°F | 1.2-1.7 in | A light sweater or long sleeves for evenings on deck. The sea is at its coolest, about 75°F in February |
| April and May | 82-85°F / 71-74°F | 1.8-4.6 in | Extra sunscreen. The UV index peaks at 11 from April to August |
| June to October | 86-90°F / 76-79°F | 5.9-8.5 in | Loose, breathable clothes, a compact umbrella or rain jacket, and repellent |
| November | 82°F / 72°F | 2.4 in | Both a layer and rain gear. Hurricane season runs until November 30 |
The two sources agree on the highs, 77°F in January and 90°F in midsummer, but not the winter lows. Weather2Travel puts January and February nights at 63°F, four degrees colder than WeatherSpark’s 67°F. Either way, that layer earns its space in the suitcase.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, with the peak on September 10, according to the National Hurricane Center. A storm is more likely to change your itinerary than your packing list, so we covered that side in our guide to cruising the Bahamas in October.
What Do the Private Islands Supply, and What Do They Ban?
Many Bahamas cruises call at a cruise line’s private island, and that’s where packing gets confusing. Each line writes its own rules. We read the official pages for three of them and set them side by side:
| Island (line) | Towels | Chairs and umbrellas | Your own snorkel gear | Food from the ship | Paying |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perfect Day CocoCay (Royal Caribbean) | Bring from the ship. Swap at 3 stations. $25 per towel not returned | Free | Allowed | Not covered on the pages we read | SeaPass card. Cash (USD) always accepted at the island market |
| Celebration Key (Carnival) | Bring from your cabin. Provided at Pearl Cove Beach Club | Free. Your own chairs, umbrellas and tents are banned | Allowed, says Carnival. Not allowed, says Princess | Not permitted | Sail & Sign card at dining venues, but not at shops. Bring cash for small souvenirs |
| RelaxAway, Half Moon Cay (Carnival) | Bring from your cabin | Free | Allowed | Not permitted | Sail & Sign card, plus some cash for smaller vendors |
Notice the snorkel gear row. Both cruise lines sail to Celebration Key, and they’ve written different answers. Carnival’s FAQ says “personal snorkel gear are allowed.” Princess’s says guests may bring “their own diving masks” and U.S. Coast Guard-approved flotation devices, but “personal snorkel gear” is not allowed. If you’re on a Princess ship, ask at guest services before you carry fins ashore.
Carnival’s Celebration Key guide also lists items that aren’t allowed ashore: beach chairs, umbrellas, tents, boogie boards over 42 inches, golf clubs, fishing rods, kites, metal detectors, pool floats “including noodles,” folding bikes with tires over 20 inches, skateboards and collapsible wagons. Its FAQ adds glass containers and portable speakers. Drones are held by ship security: Carnival’s prohibited items page says they “must be declared during embarkation” and may only be checked out for use at approved ports that aren’t private destinations.
Royal Caribbean’s own packing list for CocoCay is worth borrowing for any island day. It says to bring closed-toe shoes secured at the heel if you’re riding the zip line, “sneakers or enclosed water shoes are great options,” and to bring any prescription medication you rely on, because the island’s medical facility may not stock it. Norwegian’s Great Stirrup Cay page doesn’t cover towels or gear, so ask on board.
What Should You Wear Into Nassau?
Shorts and sundresses are fine. Swimwear on its own isn’t. The Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board says casual spring and summer dress works all year, but “bathing suits are acceptable only on the beach, pool and poolside dining, not on the street.” If you’re heading from the ship to a beach via downtown, wear the cover-up and carry the swimsuit.
Camouflage is a harder line. Carnival’s prohibited items page says that in some ports “it is against the law for anyone, including children, to wear army-style camouflage clothing or carry items made with camouflage material,” and names The Bahamas first. Carnival’s John Heald repeated the warning in May 2026, Cruise Hive reported. That includes a camo backpack or hat.
What Must Never Be in Your Bag?
Ammunition, even one forgotten round. In December 2025, a 69-year-old Oklahoma passenger on a Royal Caribbean ship docked in Nassau was found with a .380 pistol and four rounds of ammunition in her purse. She pleaded guilty to possession of ammunition and was fined $8,000, The Tribune in Nassau reported. She told the court she had forgotten the gun was there. Cruise Hive reported that the gun had gone through security when she boarded in Fort Lauderdale.
The lesson is about old bags. If a backpack, purse or jacket has ever been to a range or on a hunting trip, empty every pocket before it goes in the suitcase.
How Much Sun and Bug Protection Do You Need?
More than you’d pack for a beach day at home. The CDC’s sun exposure advice calls for broad-spectrum sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher, reapplied at least every two hours and every time you get out of the water. It also says to wear a wide-brimmed hat and UVA/UVB sunglasses, and that sunscreen goes on first, then insect repellent. Royal Caribbean makes the same point for CocoCay: its many water features mean you should reapply often, and it suggests rash guards or UPF clothing.
Pack repellent too. The CDC’s Bahamas page lists dengue and Zika, both spread by mosquito bites, and recommends a repellent containing DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, IR3535 or 2-undecanone. Royal Caribbean warns that “depending on the time of year and time of day, there may be mosquitos, flies or other insects” on parts of CocoCay.
The Bahamas Day Bag, Packed the Night Before
Here’s what all of that means for the bag you carry off the ship:
- Your ship card and photo ID. You can’t get back aboard without the card, and Carnival’s island guide lists ID too.
- The ship’s towel, unless your line says the island supplies one. Count them on the way back.
- Sunscreen, hat, sunglasses and repellent, with sunscreen going on first.
- Water shoes, which double as zip line shoes at CocoCay.
- A refillable bottle. You can’t bring food or drinks from the ship onto Carnival’s islands, but there’s free food ashore.
- Small U.S. bills for the straw market and for shops that don’t take your ship card.
- A waterproof phone pouch that also holds your ship card, as Royal Caribbean suggests.
For the rest of the suitcase, from formal night to the last-night bag, use our free cruise packing checklist.
Cruise Chaos earns nothing from cruise lines, travel agents or booking links. Every fact here links to where we read it, and we read each cruise line’s island rules directly on November 2, 2026. Island rules change, so check your line’s app before you sail. If something has changed, tell us and we’ll correct it.
Coming up on Cruise Chaos: why do cruise ships ban surge protectors?
Keep Reading
- Free Checklist PDF: What to Pack for a Cruise, Checked Against 8 Lines’ Banned Lists
- Is It Safe to Cruise to the Bahamas in October if Hurricane Season Isn’t Over?
- What to Wear on a Cruise: Day, Dinner and Formal Night Dress Codes
Sources
- Royal Caribbean: Are beach chairs, towels, and umbrellas available at Perfect Day CocoCay? (read November 2, 2026)
- Royal Caribbean: What should I pack in my bag to bring ashore for Perfect Day CocoCay? (read November 2, 2026)
- Carnival: Prohibited items, and its Celebration Key and RelaxAway, Half Moon Cay FAQs (read November 2, 2026)
- Carnival: Celebration Key destination guide (PDF) (read November 2, 2026)
- Princess Cruises: Cruises to Celebration Key, FAQs (read November 2, 2026)
- Norwegian Cruise Line: Great Stirrup Cay (read November 2, 2026)
- CDC Travelers’ Health: The Bahamas (read November 2, 2026)
- CDC Travelers’ Health: Sun Exposure (read November 2, 2026)
- National Hurricane Center: Tropical Cyclone Climatology (read November 2, 2026)
- U.S. International Trade Administration: Bahamas Country Commercial Guide, Business Travel (read November 2, 2026)
- Nassau Paradise Island Promotion Board: Travel information (read November 2, 2026)
- WeatherSpark: Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Nassau (read November 2, 2026)
- Weather2Travel: Nassau climate guide (read November 2, 2026)
- The Tribune: American woman fined $8,000 for loaded gun on cruise ship (December 5, 2025)
- Cruise Hive: How a Forgotten Gun Landed a Cruise Grandma in Nassau’s Notorious Prison (December 2025)
- Cruise Hive: The One Type of Clothing Carnival Says You Shouldn’t Wear Ashore (May 2026)
