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Tomorrow, 2 June 2018, is the 10th anniversary of this great thread, which was started by ChevyCruiser on 2 June 2008.

Running 10 years continuously with over 700 posts and 320,000 views. A record!

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Tomorrow, 2 June 2018, is the 10th anniversary of this great thread, which was started by ChevyCruiser on 2 June 2008.

Running 10 years continuously with over 700 posts and 320,000 views. A record!

 

And this quote still cracks me up. Posted right smack in the middle of the Great Recession, one of the worst economic periods in America since the 1930s. But yep, it was all a conspiracy by the "left wing media."

 

LOL

 

"Not because the economy is "weak" or gas prices have "skyrocketed" - most of which has been conjured up by the left-wing media"

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Tomorrow, 2 June 2018, is the 10th anniversary of this great thread, which was started by ChevyCruiser on 2 June 2008.

Running 10 years continuously with over 700 posts and 320,000 views. A record!

 

 

 

I think , today , is the 10 year anniversary of the start of this thread. Have we learned anything ? There are some good points and some not so good ideas. I was surprised for instance when someone posted that they wouldn’t sail on a particular ship because it didn’t have a laundromat. Yikes ! There’s pinching pennies and then there is absurdity.

 

ChevyCruiser hasn’t posted in 5y . Where art thou ,today ? I thought no political comments allowed on cc.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

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I would not say tightwad, but DEFINITELY I squeeze every penny out of every dollar we make!

 

Every cruise we have ever booked got us deal or extras thrown in. The more we cruise, the better I am getting at this! Our upcoming Celebrity cruise we paid $1200 each for a balcony--and got the premium drink plan (we would spend that much on drinks anyway), $350 OBC (we will use to gamble--we play poker, so is often profitable), tips & unlimited internet (more than we need) included.

 

We don't shop on the ship & rarely on port; never buy art. We will almost always buy at least one photo, perhaps 2. We generally eat in the MDR.

 

We almost always plan or own excursions. Paying $100 total for each all-inclusive beach experiences in Cozumel & Costa Maya. Key West we just wander, grab a few drinks, maybe parasail. Grand Cayman just lounge at the beach for a few hours. We will not drink much on port since we drink free on the ship.

 

I bring along everything we would need from meds to sunscreen so very very rarely have to overpay for such things on the ship.

 

Flights are BOGO on SWA with companion pass--at least for the rest of the year.

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I've found I LIKE inside cabins,

 

- maybe it is all the years I worked as a shift worker and loved sleeping in a completely blacked out room. I would rather sail more and stretch my budget with inside cabins.

I have booked balconies, when cruising with my friend who prefers them. And the next cruise is a balcony, only because the price wasn't much more than the inside price.

For my husband and myself I have booked a balcony this coming February for our anniversary.

I have booked a solo cabin for an NCL cruise next May.

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I've found I LIKE inside cabins,

 

- maybe it is all the years I worked as a shift worker and loved sleeping in a completely blacked out room. I would rather sail more and stretch my budget with inside cabins.

I have booked balconies, when cruising with my friend who prefers them. And the next cruise is a balcony, only because the price wasn't much more than the inside price.

For my husband and myself I have booked a balcony this coming February for our anniversary.

I have booked a solo cabin for an NCL cruise next May.

Thanks, how much more is a solo cabin compared to twin sharing?
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This last Cruise I booked to Cuba for my Fiancé and I was pretty cheap. Carnival was running a sale and I used a 12 month no interest credit card that gave me $150 back for using it. I then paid off the credit card with my checking account. All said and done the 5 night Cruise came out to be $804 for both of us. Of course there will be all of the other costs but its a good starting point.

 

Some other stuff I have done on previous cruises to save money.

 

Booked excursions outside of Cruise line

Don't buy any drink packages, we don't drink a whole lot and it is more cost effective to just buy a few drinks.

Enjoy the free stuff at ports, IE the sights, sounds, the culture!

Pack really light so we don't pay for checked bags on planes.

Only eat the included food on the cruise, most of the specialty restaurants aren't worth it. Plus if we are going to pay extra for food it will be at the ports!

 

The more money we save, the more vacations we can take, thats my theory at least

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Thanks, how much more is a solo cabin compared to twin sharing?

I think it depends on the specific cruise and line. I have booked a solo for my upcoming Danube river cruise and the price is double - essentially, I am paying for 2 people.

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I think it depends on the specific cruise and line. I have booked a solo for my upcoming Danube river cruise and the price is double - essentially, I am paying for 2 people.
Wow. Even otherwise, aren't river cruises more expensive?
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Wow. Even otherwise, aren't river cruises more expensive?

Yes, they are more expensive than the ocean cruises. There are more passengers on the big ships (literally thousands) - the river cruises are small ships with few passengers - hence, more money.

Also, on the big cruise ships it is possible to get 3 in a room - not an option on the river cruises as 2 per room is the max.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Same as most, avoid the photos (I take my own), food is good enough in the dining room so we skip the specialty dining, and excursions are a joke unless you are worried about getting back in time. No drink package because ever since they started them you can't find anyone to serve you, or you wait on line your whole cruise. Before packages you were harrassed all day by staff, now how many do you see after they have your money already???

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No drink package because ever since they started them you can't find anyone to serve you, or you wait on line your whole cruise.

 

You must be cruising on the wrong ships. I've never had that problem on RC Oasis class. If anything, sometimes we're the only people in the bar.

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No drink package because ever since they started them you can't find anyone to serve you, or you wait on line your whole cruise. Before packages you were harrassed all day by staff, now how many do you see after they have your money already???

On Celebrity, if you have the unlimited alcoholic beverage package, the bartender in the MDR keeps asking if you would another cocktail every now and then.

We also got served immediately in all the bars, except the crowded Martini bar.

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Recently we have been booking porthole cabins to get the benefits of natural light at an interior price, This time carnival suggested a "skylight cabin" (4J) which has a window to a deck (which is accessed by a door just steps away from our cabin door) rather than the ocean. And we are on the Lido deck rather than way down at the bottom of the ship (for just $32 total than the porthole) I think booking it was a good decision.

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Recently we have been booking porthole cabins to get the benefits of natural light at an interior price, This time carnival suggested a "skylight cabin" (4J) which has a window to a deck (which is accessed by a door just steps away from our cabin door) rather than the ocean. And we are on the Lido deck rather than way down at the bottom of the ship (for just $32 total than the porthole) I think booking it was a good decision.

 

Probably a good decision if you don't mind other people look at you when they pass your window.

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Probably a good decision if you don't mind other people look at you when they pass your window.
Haha, I don't think it's desirable to have such a cabin, unless you keep the curtains closed.

There won't be much demand for such a cabin.

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It was a GREAT CHOICE we have been in those cabins several times and NO one can see in unless they press their face up against the window and really looks so don't worry

 

 

You are smart for booking

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recently we have been booking porthole cabins to get the benefits of natural light at an interior price, This time carnival suggested a "skylight cabin" (4J) which has a window to a deck (which is accessed by a door just steps away from our cabin door) rather than the ocean. And we are on the Lido deck rather than way down at the bottom of the ship (for just $32 total than the porthole) I think booking it was a good decision.
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I have been cruising for 25 years. The last year and a half I have saved money by being a part of a cruise club. I have saved tons of money and have been able to cruise more. I have cruise dollars accumulated now just sitting there waiting on me to decide where I want to go next. I am having so much fun of dreaming of my next paid in full cruise!

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  • 1 month later...

Well, I don't know if we are 'Tightwads' or not - We just try to get the best price and forgo the estras. On our last Cruise we worked hard compared prices and i thought we got a good deal...BUT THEN we were talking to other couples who got free extras thrown in as an incentive to use an agent to book though. Its been a long time since i used an agent to do anything, but i would do so if we can get a better deal. When is this helpful and when is just an extra complication? Thank you

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Well, I don't know if we are 'Tightwads' or not - We just try to get the best price and forgo the estras. On our last Cruise we worked hard compared prices and i thought we got a good deal...BUT THEN we were talking to other couples who got free extras thrown in as an incentive to use an agent to book though. Its been a long time since i used an agent to do anything, but i would do so if we can get a better deal. When is this helpful and when is just an extra complication? Thank you

 

I learned here on cruise critic about the benefits of using a TA. I wouldn't do it any other way. Discounts of 10% or slightly more are common. I also use a credit card from a big box discount store which pays 3% cash back.

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I learned here on cruise critic about the benefits of using a TA. I wouldn't do it any other way. Discounts of 10% or slightly more are common. I also use a credit card from a big box discount store which pays 3% cash back.

would u mind telling me the TA you use?

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There are agents that have an extensive list of "blocked" bookings that they secure a number of cabins @ the introductory price, before pricing does a gradual increase. This is usually done 2 yrs in advance of cruise date and you can get in on this price up until they have sold out. Could be 1 1/2 yrs - 6 months before cruise date. (this is where "can get cheaper from agent" comes into play)

Also, I use an agent that gives 100-800 OBC and 1 specialty dining for 2. So, I will get this from him, and also the perks that the cruiseline may be promoting at that time. (OBC, BOGO, 2nd guest % off, gratuities included...etc.)

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There are agents that have an extensive list of "blocked" bookings that they secure a number of cabins @ the introductory price, before pricing does a gradual increase. This is usually done 2 yrs in advance of cruise date and you can get in on this price up until they have sold out. Could be 1 1/2 yrs - 6 months before cruise date. (this is where "can get cheaper from agent" comes into play)

Also, I use an agent that gives 100-800 OBC and 1 specialty dining for 2. So, I will get this from him, and also the perks that the cruiseline may be promoting at that time. (OBC, BOGO, 2nd guest % off, gratuities included...etc.)

Or, a TA can forgo a portion of their commission resulting in a cheaper price.

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Long time since my last post on Cruise Critic. I used to live here starting with our first cruise in 2001, 17 years and 40+ cruises ago. I've lost touch with the community and have some observations and a question.

 

Starting sometime around 2010 when there was cruise industry wide implementation of the many software programs that optimize cabin pricing (like the Airlines optimize seat pricing), it's gotten hard to game the system to optimize your cruise cabin cost. I've probably used all the "tricks" cruisers have used. For one, I know that you can book on board and get perks for doing that but, lately, I don't think the pricing is favorable at all, at least not with Celebrity which is our preferred line. 4y ago, in anticipation of retirement, we bought a duplex in Fort Lauderdale, have one half rented and we use the other half probably more than 6 months of the year, on and off. The whole plan was, when we are in Fort Lauderdale, to be able to decide to go on a cruise the last minute and go for it.

 

I retired more than a year ago but have found this approach doesn't work very well as, typically, the cruise you might be looking at met it's capacity for profit months ago and the company isn't going to give away the few remaining cabins they might have.

 

Currently, for cruise bookings, I use an on-line agent who I just happen to like and I get airline miles as a perk with my favorite airline. However, I do the shopping using one of the many on-line consolidators that offer web sites where you can see what's available and what the current pricing is for the cabin you want. To a certain degree, you can use a site where you can see what cabins are available and how many and this might affect pricing and, in the end usually does (supply/demand pricing). After shopping and doing the best I can on price this way, I call my favorite agent and tell her what cruise I'm looking at. She can usually match the price/value of perks or will tell me the deal I found is better than she can do.

 

I'm also signed up for a news letter that seems to tell me when a line is offering some pretty good cruise pricing - the better pricing is further out, some, not all, on cruise lines I probably wouldn't book or itineraries I'm not interested in. It's gotten to the point that buying a cruise cabin is just like buying an airline seat, that is, as far as 6 months out the airline starts to manage it's seat pricing. It will offer deep discounts on airline flights that evaporate as soon as those seats are sold - it can take 2-3d or it can take 3 months for the seats to get sold. As well, there will be an entirely unpredictable appearance of a deep discount closer to the actual date of the flight that might appear for a couple of hours then be gone. It's hit or miss. By two weeks out, seats become very expensive as the airline has optimized it's profit on a particular flight. There are no last minute deals and I believe the cruise lines are operating in the same manner.

 

I used an independent TA when we first started cruising. She was really good but she retired. I never went back or tried another independent TA, maybe I should. I found the comment up-thread that TAs buy a block of cabins at a discount (acting as a consolidator) and can therefore sell these to you at a lower price than the cruise line is selling them direct to you. Or, the TA might forego their commission and sell the cabin for exactly what they paid for it at discount. Is this sort of thing as good as it sounds in the current market?

 

What's the 2018 model for shopping for and then purchasing a cruise when you are pretty much free to cruise whenever you want, subject to budgeting constraints, of course?

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