CPAP on Royal Caribbean Cruise

What do you need to bring for your CPAP sleep machine on a Royal Caribbean Cruise? How do you carry your CPAP on board the ship? Will there be outlets to plug in your sleep machine? Check out our best tips below on how to bring your CPAP sleep machine on a Royal Caribbean Cruise without any issues!

Looking for the official information from Royal Caribbean? Check it out here: Royal Caribbean Guest Special Needs Form

Read on for all the information and helpful tips:

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Bring an extension cord

Not a surge protector. There are persistent rumors that you are not allowed to bring extension cords on cruises. You can bring a basic extension cord, just not a surge protector. Also remember that on some of the ships – even new ones – there may not be an outlet next the bed. Or not next to YOUR side of the bed. There is nothing worse than the person who medically needs an outlet being on the opposite side of the bed from all the outlets. Because switching sides of the bed is strangely impossible.

We have a 15 foot extension cord so it can make it all the way from the desk to the opposite side of the bed. This is the cord we have used (and gotten on board multiple cruise ships with no problems): 15 Foot Indoor Extension Cord

You can also just ask your room steward for an extension cord and they can provide you with one if you don’t want to bring one one. We find it less stressful to make sure we have everything we need medically with us because the first day can be a little hectic! But Royal Caribbean is clear in their policy that they can provide you with an extension cord for your CPAP.

Can you bring distilled water on board a cruise ship? Yes!

Yes, you can bring distilled water on board a cruise ship. Royal Caribbean has a form you can fill out online and they say they will provide you with distilled water, but you can also bring distilled water on board. We haven’t found this to be a super smooth process and find it easier to just bring the distilled water on board, especially if you are not on a long cruise.

If you bring your distilled water, then it should be with your machine when you embark the ship. We normally just bring 1 liter bottles from the grocery store, but these make it very clear the water is medically necessary if you are worried about bringing the liquids on the ship.

Pack your CPAP in your carry on!

Your CPAP sleep machine should be in your carry on luggage when you board your Royal Caribbean Cruise ship. But you probably want to do that anyway. You wouldn’t want it lost or broken in your checked luggage.

Depending on your packing preferences, you can bring either a small rolling carry on. This is nice because you can drop your large luggage off with the porters (don’t forget to tip a few bucks!) and then just roll on the CPAP and whatever else you want to fit into the rolling carry-on.

We actually use a special backpack for sleep machines. It has multiple pockets on the inside of the bag for the machine, a laptop, water bottles and plenty of pockets for whatever you might need.

Both make it the same place, it just depends on how you roll (or don’t).

A dust cover for your CPAP?

This is less of a necessity, but cruise ships are often super dusty. Think about a bag to keep the mask in during the day so it doesn’t get dusty! Also, you don’t want your room steward to touch your mask while they are making the bed, vacuuming or general cleaning. A dust cover just makes everything feel more sanitary. This is the one we use: CPAP Mask Cover

That’s it! Don’t let a CPAP stress you out. It is super straightforward to bring your CPAP, distilled water and an extension cord on board so you have everything you need for a great night’s sleep.

The ship rocking you to sleep is just a bonus!