Expensive free cruise lol

I keep meaning to share this and keep forgetting.

Last fall, when I made reservations for our Alaska cruise last month, I was thrilled to see the 3rd/4th person free option and listed our adult son and daughter without even asking them first - wanted to lock in the option and save lifeboat space for them and figured we could cancel them if they weren't interested. They both jumped at the chance and came on the cruise. We paid their daily service charges and bought an unlimited wifi package for all of us to share, but I told them anything else would be their responsibility. So they bought their own excursions, and souvenirs, and food in port, and extras on the ship ...

The last day of the cruise, my son moaned, "I can't believe how expensive this free cruise turned out to be!"

To clarify.... why did it get expensive?

• not enough internet time?
  
• too many photos? This is my weakness.
  
• specialty dining?
  
• spa's?
  
• gratuities?
  
• drink packages?
  

That's true. The fare may be cheap or free. But the "miscellaneous" expenses, especially in port, may be staggering.

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And this is why NCL offers the "free" 3rd & 4th option.

Don

Eh. As long as you had fun.

The spending spree ends when you have been on enough cruises. Right now, I don't incur any extra fees. I literally just chill on the boat and get off on the port and do my own thing. For me, the ship and the beach are the destinations. I will maybe go on one excursion per trip. I also have had to spend half of cruise trip studying for some garbage at school

We're taking my son and his friend, his friend is getting the cruise for free but we've taught him how to get coffee without going to the atrium, water without buying bottles etc so that he can limit the spend. I suppose there's no such thing as a free holiday

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You can order a pitcher of water direct to your room that is complimentary.

...So they bought their own excursions, and souvenirs, and food in port, and extras on the ship

If you want to keep your expenses down, you have to have some spending discipline, just as you would at home. It is possible to cruise without spending anything on souvenirs, food in port, and extras on the ship.

Maybe it is a young people thing.

My dear niece, who just turned 23, has cruised with me three times. First time, we had a suite and there was room for an extra passenger, so we asked her along. She didn't have to pay anything except for her souvenirs. Second time we went, we had a suite again that slept 6, so we added her and her best friend. We asked best friend to pay port taxes but we covered everything else for both of them. They bought their drinks and an internet package on board. And, the third time we went, her grandmother and I covered all her expenses as a graduation/birthday gift to celebrate her finishing college.

Last cruise, I was going to go by myself and I was going to get a balcony, so when I added her, I only had her pay the tax on her beverage plan, her port taxes and most of her daily charge. I think I had her give me about 350 of the just shy of 3,000 bill for the one week cruise...since I would have paid the rest if I had been sailing alone.

She loves to cruise, we love to have her come, so it has always just worked out. Next cruise, however, she wants to bring her boyfriend and have her own room. So, we booked them an interior room on the same deck as we have two adjoining balconies. I put down a future cruise credit of 250 for the deposit, but she and her boyfriend have to come up with the balance (about 1,800 I think) (room is about 1,600, but the beverage package tip, and the port taxes add up).

So last night I am talking to her on the phone, and she says to me "I don't know, this cruise is so much more expensive than any of the others I have taken." And I am like, yeah, you think? It is only expensive to you because you are finally paying for it!

So, she is not exactly complaining how expensive her previous FREE cruises were, but she is comparing FREE cruises to a moderately priced cruise that someone already paid for part of and still complaining. Plus, we are providing transportation to and from the port for this cruise, so she is saving a ton on airfare for her and the boyfriend.

So, maybe it is just a young people thing.

Maybe it is a young people thing.

 

My dear niece, who just turned 23, has cruised with me three times. First time, we had a suite and there was room for an extra passenger, so we asked her along. She didn't have to pay anything except for her souvenirs. Second time we went, we had a suite again that slept 6, so we added her and her best friend. We asked best friend to pay port taxes but we covered everything else for both of them. They bought their drinks and an internet package on board. And, the third time we went, her grandmother and I covered all her expenses as a graduation/birthday gift to celebrate her finishing college.

 

Last cruise, I was going to go by myself and I was going to get a balcony, so when I added her, I only had her pay the tax on her beverage plan, her port taxes and most of her daily charge. I think I had her give me about 350 of the just shy of 3,000 bill for the one week cruise...since I would have paid the rest if I had been sailing alone.

 

She loves to cruise, we love to have her come, so it has always just worked out. Next cruise, however, she wants to bring her boyfriend and have her own room. So, we booked them an interior room on the same deck as we have two adjoining balconies. I put down a future cruise credit of 250 for the deposit, but she and her boyfriend have to come up with the balance (about 1,800 I think) (room is about 1,600, but the beverage package tip, and the port taxes add up).

 

So last night I am talking to her on the phone, and she says to me "I don't know, this cruise is so much more expensive than any of the others I have taken." And I am like, yeah, you think? It is only expensive to you because you are finally paying for it!

 

So, she is not exactly complaining how expensive her previous FREE cruises were, but she is comparing FREE cruises to a moderately priced cruise that someone already paid for part of and still complaining. Plus, we are providing transportation to and from the port for this cruise, so she is saving a ton on airfare for her and the boyfriend.

 

So, maybe it is just a young people thing.

Naw. I am in my 20s too. It's not a young people thing. It's a being broke kind of thing. $130/day/person is very cheap considering all that she is getting. She is probably like most millennials and doesn't have a great job, which I don't get as I was making enough to pay for my undergrad debt, go on vacation, and save a small nest egg which I liquidated it all on med school. Maybe your niece should get with me instead :cool: (jk of course).

Naw. I am in my 20s too. It's not a young people thing. It's a being broke kind of thing. $130/day/person is very cheap considering all that she is getting. She is probably like most millennials and doesn't have a great job, which I don't get as I was making enough to pay for my undergrad debt, go on vacation, and save a small nest egg which I liquidated it all on med school. Maybe your niece should get with me instead :cool: (jk of course).

Wait a minute.....Can I git wit you? :hearteyes: (jk, happily married for 32 years but so far loving your posts.) :cool:

Wait a minute.....Can I git wit you? :hearteyes: (jk, happily married for 32 years but so far loving your posts.) :cool:

I can do a drive by...your husband doesn't have to know... ;) (haha jk)

LMAO I was talking to some friends on this today. On our first cruise the cost was relatively cheap for the vacation we were getting....however nobody warned us ...how could we expect to be that smart to know that those frequent visits from our fav servers and bartenders actually add up at the end of the cruise.....you know its not going to be good when they cant squeeze the bill at the end of cruise under the door :)

While the cruise may be "free" for the 3rd and 4th person all the extra charges are not and they tend to add up very, very quickly!:D That's what the marketing people count on...free cruise so why not buy drinks, shore excursions, etc.

MARAPRINCE

> And this is why NCL offers the "free" 3rd & 4th option

No doubt! Since they were in the same room with us, all it really cost NCL was food at the included restaurants. Meanwhile, their drinks, food at extra-cost places, excursions, and all onboard purchases went into their profit column.

> I also have had to spend half of cruise trip studying for some garbage at school

Oh no! I'm pretty sure that falls into the constitutionally-prohibited category of cruel and unusual punishment.

This was only DH's and my 2nd cruise and the kids' 1st ever. And none of us have been to Alaska before. So yeah, we all spent money on excursions (and would do it again). It was still a wonderful time and I don't think any of us truly regret the money we spent.

I'm a Millennial, but an older millennial LOL. I understand what she means. I just got off the ship on Monday and I got the cruise really cheap (as a party of 1) for $87 a night ($609 for 7 days including the tax). I recently lost my job so I am on a budget. I just had to book this cruise because it was a last minute special that I knew I would rarely see again. There were excursions that I just couldn't logically pay for that I wanted to do like take a float plane for $365 to view bears,a 3 hour whale watch for $90 (I live in San Diego and see whales all the time for free or if I want to go on a boat, there's deals for like $20) and a half day kayaking trip to Mendenhall for $189 (although I just found a deal for $100 for that lol..). I would have spent more on 3 excursions than for the 7 night cruise. I just couldn't do it but I know probably most people do. If I were to go to Alaska again (and I would love too!) I probably would just pay for Mendenhall. On all vacations I do allow for 1 "splurge" within reason ($365 to me I just could never do). My splurge on my trip was in Skagway $122 for the train and $42 for a 2 hour walking tour= $164 before tips. I know for most again, that's great value lol. My most expensive splurge though would be the unlimited wifi package for $205 (ended up being $180 since 1 day the wifi was down). I know it's sad but I cannot imagine not being able to go online as much as I want. In fairness though, the plan should more have been called the 65% unlimited wifi plan because it seemed to only work 65% of the time. The internet manager though was extremely difficult to talk to so I gave up trying to get assistance from her and guest services refused to help.

LMAO I was talking to some friends on this today. On our first cruise the cost was relatively cheap for the vacation we were getting....however nobody warned us ...how could we expect to be that smart to know that those frequent visits from our fav servers and bartenders actually add up at the end of the cruise.....you know its not going to be good when they cant squeeze the bill at the end of cruise under the door :)

Been there and it's sticker shock.

We have perfected our spending on cruises. Last November on the Sky we had a Credit Balance of $8.00. The following week we did the Escape and had a bill of $189. Can't get any better than that. I pay for everything in advance.

 

> I also have had to spend half of cruise trip studying for some garbage at school

 

Oh no! I'm pretty sure that falls into the constitutionally-prohibited category of cruel and unusual punishment.

 

You have no idea...the things that I have done and seen...

I'm a Millennial, but an older millennial LOL. I understand what she means. I just got off the ship on Monday and I got the cruise really cheap (as a party of 1) for $87 a night ($609 for 7 days including the tax). I recently lost my job so I am on a budget. I just had to book this cruise because it was a last minute special that I knew I would rarely see again. There were excursions that I just couldn't logically pay for that I wanted to do like take a float plane for $365 to view bears,a 3 hour whale watch for $90 (I live in San Diego and see whales all the time for free or if I want to go on a boat, there's deals for like $20) and a half day kayaking trip to Mendenhall for $189 (although I just found a deal for $100 for that lol..). I would have spent more on 3 excursions than for the 7 night cruise. I just couldn't do it but I know probably most people do. If I were to go to Alaska again (and I would love too!) I probably would just pay for Mendenhall. On all vacations I do allow for 1 "splurge" within reason ($365 to me I just could never do). My splurge on my trip was in Skagway $122 for the train and $42 for a 2 hour walking tour= $164 before tips. I know for most again, that's great value lol. My most expensive splurge though would be the unlimited wifi package for $205 (ended up being $180 since 1 day the wifi was down). I know it's sad but I cannot imagine not being able to go online as much as I want. In fairness though, the plan should more have been called the 65% unlimited wifi plan because it seemed to only work 65% of the time. The internet manager though was extremely difficult to talk to so I gave up trying to get assistance from her and guest services refused to help.

Sweet! Another millennial. High five.

I think what you did was exactly what people should do with their vacations when it comes to people who aren't lex luthor. Budget. Don't check off all the boxes, b/c that can get really pricey.

And this was a one time mistake. Now the OP's son knows. He cannot unknowingly make that mistake again. And he had fun. It's all good.