Very personal question for all of you.

[shelby2002]

I see many of you cruise more than once a year. How are you able to afford this, do you give up other things to cruise? We have been cruising once a year but would like to cruise twice a year but there just doesn't seem to be enough money for us to do this yet. Our next cruise we're in a D1 for 4 of us would love a junior suite but at $5000 we just can't do it so a D1 is fine with us as long as were on the boat I must mention that we only do school vacations or summer so we are traveling at the most expensive times of the year.

 

Crusin on the Radiance 2/20/05

[superjerryw]

We usually book a cheap cabin. I would rather cruise twice in a cheap cabin than once in an expensive cabin. We find that we use the cabin very little. If the ship is in port we are ashore all day. If the ship is at sea we are engaged in some sort of activity, even if it is just relaxing in a deck chair.

 

 

Donuts, is there anything they can't do....

[FlorenceItaly]

For us my dh recently retired, and is now re-employed so our income has risen. We now have more disposable income, where before we had none.

 

Also, I drive a 12 year old car, he drives a 10 year old car. We stay home alot, and consider ourselves wise stewards and frugal, versus "cheap", LOL. Our home is our only debt.

 

Also, we mainly book inside cabins. My first balcony will be in September with my sister, and we got an incredible rate, less than $700pp. It's possible it will be my last balcony, LOL.

 

Marie

 

HAL - MAASDAM - June 2004/Canada/New England

RCI - Mariner of the Seas,

Sept 2004(CC Group Cruise)

RCI - Rhapsody of the Seas

October 2004

 

 

RCI Majesty of the Seas - Spring Break, March 2005

Celebrity Mercury, April 2005

 

[GreggNKara]

As delicatly as I can put this, Im in a boat where I can afford to spend $4k - $5k for a cruise for the two of us, but before we were we used to keep a piggy bank. All change goes in it as well as extra $1, $5, $10 and sometimes $20's go in. in about 6 months if you are dilligent you can have quite a nice nest egg. Then find your best deal..

 

Ive also put a weekly goal on myself. I pick my cruise about a year away and I do the math to divide the cost out by the week, and by the end of the week I have to put X amount away tword the cruise.

 

If you cant afford to cruise 2 times a year, make 1 time a real doozey.

 

G-

 

 Days Till We Leave For THE Cruise

 

[imsulin]

Many of us have kids that are grown, and are semi-retired. What we've done for many years is have a certain amount of money taken out of our checks and put into a special "travel" savings account each month. Any tax returns, overtime, bonus pay, etc., goes into that fund. We usually book inside cabins or guarantees. We sold the huge 5-bedroom house and live in an affordable 3-bedroom townhouse. Sold the Suburban and Toyota SUV, and drive Honda Accords. We started cruising back in the 80's, and it cost more then than it does now (most of the time). That Money Market thing helps, too. We were never "rich", but travelling was always a big priority. Still is!

[Nitra]

I do the same thing.. well did when I went more than once a year.. I always book the least expensive cabin. Ports are not important to me either.. I just love to be on the ship and if possible would cruise at least 2 times a year. Right now we are saving up money and just bought a new car last year so trying to pay it off in a year instead of doing other things.

 

Voyager of the Seas!

 

 

 

Voyager 10/04

Rhapsody 10/02 03/02 1/02 11/01

Elation 10/99

Grandeur 09/97

[The Moyers]

I work a second job. However, I'm an RN so I make fairly good money and the second job is something I do because its a fun position. However, I have the money direct deposited in a separate account and use it for our cruises. This year we're doing 2 with much nicer rooms with balconies since they're special occaisons but usually we just do insides because they're cheaper.

 

The Moyers

Dennis & Debbie

Navigator of the Seas 9/18

[DFritz]

We are very fortunate that our school supports children leaving school for an educational vacation. We sail once each year in September ( we avoid test taking weeks) and the teachers and principal ask that the kids keep a journal of the things they are learning. Our daughter really does learn a lot while we cruise. My daughter , now 15, is planning a career in International Relations and has been very fortunate to do extensive interviews with peoples of other nations while on a cruise. Her writing has earned her awards as tops in the nation placing first and winning scholarship money. This time of year makes it possible for us to cruise on a Voyager class ship for an average of $400 per person including port and taxes for 7 days ( inside stateroom) . We also book way in advance and watch the price each week for a very early June cruise . The difference in weeks can mean several hundred dollars. We're taking the Voyager for 5 days to Canada and the cost was $320 per person with port and taxes included. I think sticking to an inside and watching your excursions and shipboard spending are the keys to sailing more often on a limited budget. ( We have a $20k income ) Also flexibility of where you go can make cruising very affordable more than once per year. I would rather cruise more than once but be as frugal as possible than to cruise only once. Everyone has their own choices .

 

'Til my next cruise

 

[atonal1]

We are dual income, empty nesters, so we have the disposable income to cruise twice a year.

 

We try to travel in the off-season. Thanksgiving week is still less than any summer cruise. Many school districts in our area give the kids off the week of Thanksgiving. You can also take a 3 or 4 day cruise in the summer, then cruise Thanksgiving week.

 

Even so, because I am a teacher, I still miss out on the really good winter prices.

Inspiration 6/96, 12/01

Carnival Destiny 7/97, 11/00

Rhapsody of the Seas 11/98

Norwegian Sea 7/00

Norwegian Star 6/02

Paradise 11/02

Sovereign of the Seas 8/03

Serenade of the Seas 12/03

 

 until Carnival Triumph 8/04

 

 until Adventure of the Seas 11/04

[Robinob]

Having no children and two incomes helps a great deal. (DINK's)(Double income no kids). We both make a decent salary. I couldn't do it 20 years ago but now is different.

 

Until my next cruise.

 

[Catnip]

Another DINKS here! And we book the lowest category outside cabin. I really like that window, but don't care about having (or paying for) a balcony.

I don't go to the ship's spa (way too pricey for what you get) and do our own excursions.

 

(26 prior cruises & 2 flights on Concorde)

 

It has been said that angels, while on Earth,

aren't allowed to show their wings,

but nothing was ever said

about not showing their whiskers. <^..^>

 

 

[Michuck]

We too are empty nesters and still working, with all kids out of college (6 of 'em!) and on their own. We also live in Miami, about 20 minutes from the Port - no airfare to contend with. We take a 3-dayer every 2 months or so, and a longer one 2 times per year. For the 3 dayers, we leave our office at around 2:30 on Friday, and go straight to work after getting off the ship on Monday. No vacation time spent either. We take the least expensive cabin (so long as it's mid-ship) for the short cruises, but usually a balcony for the longer cruises. We watch our expenses all the other weeks - not much eating out, and don't do things on the weekends that cost a lot of money - we spend lots of time with the grandkids (we're 55 and 66).

[Barva]

I am a teacher; dh is auto technician who works 3 jobs. We are not empty nesters. We usually travel with our ds (7 almost 8). We just chose our cruises very, very carefully and keep our debt to the absolute minimum - basically, we pay it off every month (we have a RCI card and put everything on it so that we get points towards cruising). We watch our home expenses very carefully and don't spend much on other "fun" things. Cruising is our "fun". We also drive to the ports which saves a ton of $$. We are very fortunate to be able to cruise a lot. When my dh's 3rd job stops, we will have to cut it back to probably once a year. We have a great travel agent (Royal from Crucon who gets us fantastic prices) and we also use the Crown and Anchor coupons. We are looking forward to more of a selection of RCI cruises closer to home than FL. We are going out of Bayonne this summer. We are considering Baltimore and other cruiselines out of Norfolk, VA which is just 1 hr. away.

 

Oh, we sailed one time last year for 1/2 price courtesy of RCI because we had a problem with our cabin on our 2nd Monarch cruise. Instead of holding onto the vouchers for another year, we went ahead and used them and had an extra, unexpected cruise.

 

Barbara

Monarch 6/02, 4/03

Enchantment 7/03

Sovereign 12/03, 4/04

Voyager to Canada 7/04

Navigator 12/04

[Florida Beach]

We are lucky to live in Florida. We can drive to all the ports such as Cape Canaveral, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa and Miami . We can wait until the last minutes for good price since we don't have to fly . We have Florida resident discounts . We booked inside cabins and travel during off season .

 

I wish I had discovered cruising sooner

 

March 28, 2004 - Mariner of the Seas

[natesfirewife]

I have no idea how we really manage it but I just make the reservations and things have a way of working themselves out. We have two kids, 7 & 9 and book oceanview rooms. We did get a great deal for the one in December and will be trying a Jr. Suite for the first time. Good Luck and happy cruising.

 

Misty

 

 

Roll Call for the Grandeur 12/18/04. Come join us in New Orleans for the Christmas Season!! <A HREF="http://messages.cruisecritic.com/2/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=927093444&f=1683059817&m=389105961&r=699105961#699105961

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Grandeur of the Seas / W. Caribbean / 12-18-04

Diamond / Coastal / 09-20-04

Vision of the Seas / Mexico / 04-04-04

Radiance of the Seas /Alaska /07-05-03

[pcur]

Well, right off the bat, if you have to pay for 4 people, it's hard to afford more than one a year. It's not impossible, but it's hard.

 

We took both sons once, and my youngest on 2 (he lucked out by being 5 years younger, so got to go when the older was out of the house). We took a sabbatical from cruising during the "expensive times" (substitute the word "teen" for "expensive"; they're synonomous!!)

 

Anyway, we are back to cruising alone, and we also look for one cheap and one more expensive cruise a year. We also do repositioning cruises which tend to be less expensive. We are also Diamond Members, so we get $100 - $200 off the cabin with the coupons, and we have a GREAT TA who matches prices.

 

So, if you're not Diamond level, then compare, compare, compare prices; save miscellaneous $$; shop for sale cruises and repos; stretch the cruises out because you have 4 to pay for. Someday you won't, and you can go on more cruises.

 

Also, as the kids get older, they pay for part of their expenses on the cruise.

 

Peggy - RCI since 1973

[camreesmom]

We just book the cheapest rooms possible. Also I shop around a lot. For our November cruise, our travel agent's price was over $100/pp more than what I found online. Now that I am officially an addict, I have to find the cheapest way to do it. We sail out of Galveston also and that saves us the airfare.

 

Julie

 

Fantasy 12/03

Splendour of the Seas 3/04

 

 until our first time on Princess

 

Grand Princess 11/04

 

 until our family cruise

 

Ecstasy 7/05

 

[billylen]

I think this ia good question...

 

I first started cruising because of sales incentives, but one day I realized that I really really do enjoy cruising (it is addictive, right folks?)

 

Anyway, I took a look at how much I spend on "things" (trips to Disney World, Vegas...STARBUCKS!) and I decided that I was blowing a lot of cash so I made two decisions. One, I purchased a timeshare that would be attractive and I could trade to virtually anyplace in the world and two, the Internet opened up a ton of travel possibilities...

 

Last thing, I drive a car that is now 6 years old...runs great, looks good, so why spend the cash and I looked at my expenses and obligations, Church, son's education, investments, household bills etc. and I found that with adequate dilegence it all works out...

 

I have never been in an inside cabin, but I will tell you this...I would do it in a heartbeat if the deal was right and the funds were low...afterall my goal is to cruise on each ship in the RCCL fleet...

 

Yep, I'm hooked!!

 

Bill in Monrovia

 

"Everyone has some good in them. Sometimes you just have to look a little harder to find it..."

 

6/27 Serenade of the Seas

[iluvcruzin]

I agree with imsulin in that cruises today are less expensive than in the 1980's. I remember paying almost twice the amount for a outside cabin.

 

I'm a single parent and don't have the "DINK" luxury, but I save up for my trips. I have a vacation account at my credit union that I put money in every time there's some extra. I also work a part-time job for fun and use the proceeds to help build my account along with a monthly deposit (like a Xmas fund). By the time the money is due.. I have the cruise money saved plus extra spending.

 

Now.. sometimes I only have to pay for myself since I cruise with a friend. Sometimes I take my adult kids but book the cheapest room.

 

Most I've ever booked close together were 3 in a 6 month timespan. (one was unexpected as I won it in a auction).

 

Multiple cruises can be done - with planning.

 

Maureen

 

Princess Sun 2/27/2005

Mariner of the Seas 10/16/2005

 

[sailor moon]

We don't have the expensive house or car. We have 2 kids (11&12) and cruise with them every other year. Dh & I cruise 2 times a year ourselves and really watch the prices. We try off season for the best deals when possible.

 

JB

Sun Viking 8/83,Premier 8/86

Disney 8/01, Rhapsody 8/03, Monarch 12/03, Splendour 4/04,

 

UPCOMING CRUISES:

Enchantment of the Seas 9/04

Rhapsody of the Seas 11/04

Radiance of the Seas 5/05 - Alaska

Mariner of the Seas 10/05

 

[sea_u_onboard]

We haven't been able to do two a year yet - since we still have kids in school and our cruises are taken in the most expensive time of the year also. In about 5 years that will change so I am saving now for our annual cruise and putting some away for when we can go more often.

 

I have a cruise account. Everyone at my credit union knows when i come in with a check it goes in the cruise account. I started it about 3 years ago by puting so much in a paycheck automaticly. Since then every year when I get my annual raise I split the difference and put half my raise in the travel account - it's nt much but every penny helps. I don't even miss it that way. Also if we buy anything that has a rebate, the rebate check goes into the account. At times I've even started using coupons more (should use them all the time - but don't). Since I don't usually use the coupons and I only buy things I would normally buy I take the amount I saved using coupons and stick that in the account. I roll change - which on this next cruise is giving us an extra $225.00 as FUN MONEY just from one year of saving. I had a garage sale last weekend and made $180.00 which prompty went into the cruise account. And then there are the refund checks I get from the insurance company for our prescriptions. We have dual insurance and I get back all my co-pays (the second insurance is military and is free so I'm not paying for the insurance itself - quite a savings). I have to take the initative to fill out the forms and mail them in - but hey - it's cruise money and it's worth the time. Of course all this goes into the cruise account and it adds up quickly. We even put in money we receive as presents. I have taken it to the extreme - but I love cruising as does my family. To me it's the only way to vacation.

 

It also helps to shop around for your cruise - any little savings can help.

 

-- Cheryl

 

****Proud member of O.A.T.C.****

Check out my Homepage in my profile for Conquest info

 

10/99 Fantasy

12/01 Inspiration

03/02 Inspiration

03/03 Conquest

 

Trying RC - Rhapsody

May 30, 2004

 

[breal6]

it helps if you have no mortgage, no car payments, and no kids left at home. lol

also as a diamond member we get the $150 coupons off and $200 off for balcony.

 

PROUD MEMBER OF THE PPS Princess..Star Princess 10/89

Celebrity..Infinity 6/2002

Royal Caribbean..Nordic Prince 4/87..Sovereign 4/88 and 10/02and 1/03and 1/04..Grandeur 10/99 and 11/01..Splendour 3/00..Radiance 3/01and 11/03..Enchantment 1/02..Monarch 9/02..Explorer 11/02..Nordic Empress 3/03..Majesty 4/03..Voyager 10/03..

Mariner 09/04 in

Jewel 11/04 in

Radiance 12/04 in

Splendour 01/05 in

 

[This message was edited by breal6 on 05-17-04 at 01:57 AM.]

[shelby2002]

Thanks for all the great reply's. I do have a travel club set up and money goes in it every week. We are a double income family but my two kids are ages 6 & 9 so it will be a while before we can cruise alone and I won't leave them at home I just hope they realize some day how lucky that are to travel at all. Both myself and my husband went on our first cruise last year at ages 35 & 40.

 

Crusin on the Radiance 2/20/05

[judyf]

2 income empty nesters here also. I paid off my Jeep in 3 years instaed of 5 and now we only have a mortage payment. I have 2 charge cards I pay off montly so I get free airfare once in a while with my miles.

 

I always book the cheapest cabin cause as someone else posted I would rather cruise more often in a cheaper cabin then once in a balcony. I book a gty and so far it's been great.

 

I booked my cruise for this Friday last minuye after just returning form a cruiose in April. But got a great deal and no air needed so we jumped on it.

 

Can't wait.

 

Judy

RCCL Voyager 5/21-5/30/04

CCL Inspiration 4/4-4/11/04

NCL Sea 4/14-4/27/03

DCL Wonder 5/16-5/19/02

DCL Wonder 5/3-5/8/01

CCL Fantasy 2/15-2/18/01

 

[driftychick]

WE try to cruise 2 times a year, both of us still owrk and have 4 wks. vacation a year. We usually do 1 cruise of 3,4, or 7 days and 1 cruise of 10 or more days. We try to pick cruises that require no air or 1 way air and because I travel in my job we usually have free air tickets and also hotel stays and car rentals which we take advantage of. The more you use RCCL the cheaper it is, you get coupons to apply and also try to find group bookings they can be cheaper. Time of year also helps.

 

"The only GOOD reason to work is to PAY FOR THE NEXT CRUISE!"

 

 

Then we sail on the Legend!