First timer-budget questions

[irishred]

Hi everyone!

 

My mom and I are considering a Transatlatic cruise on Royal Caribbean this fall. She has taken a short Alaskan cruise, this will be my first. I've always wanted to do an ocean crossing and the price is certainly right!

 

First off, I am a pretty extreme budget traveler. I like to know how much things are going to cost and budget for them...it's not that I mind paying for things I really want to do, I just don't like to be surprised:)

 

Neither of us really drink alcohol, gamble, or play bingo, etc., so I don't expect to run through tons of money on the ship. Does RC require a minimum amount of money to be put on your ship account? Can I put a couple hundred in cash on to start and add more if/when I need to? I would prefer to use cash for this instead of a credit/debit card, is that a problem?

 

 

I have seen fees listed for things like pilates, but not for other activities listed like foreign language classes, dance classes, ice skating lessons etc. What do they usually cost, or is there no charge for these sorts of activities?

 

Thanks!

[cb at sea]

2 or 3 hundred should be fine...if you start running short, they will alert you to put more money on your account.

 

I'm not aware of any "language" classes...dance lessons are generally free....at least, the public lessons they do! No charge for ice skating lessons.

 

The only "for charge" things I can think of will be for some of the "fitness" stuff...spinning, pilates, yoga, etc.....the use of the gym is included, if you can go it alone!

 

Soda costs, $2.24 per can.

[irishred]

Thanks. Royal Caribbean lists language classes on their Explorer Academy section, but not any other info...thought it might be interesting since it is a 13 night cruise with a lot of days at sea. If it's not available I'm sure I'll find something else to do :D.

[firefly333]

I went to a spanish class on one cruise. I learned to order wine and beer in spanish and ask for the banos and white or red wine. We only had a hour class, but it was interested. Seems like it was in the schooner or piano bar, but its been a while.

 

the only thing you HAVE to pay for in my mind is the tips. Budget for them and if you want anything extra, fine. I can hardly spend anything or I can do a few excursions. What each person wants to do after tips is up to them. You can ice skate and rock climb for free. I dont know about ice skating lessons, but you can do a free skate in rentals. The rentals are boot type, which wouldnt have suited me as I used to figure skate. tons of free food and free things to drink. No reason to spend a dime unless you want to.

[trish1c]

I am a firm believer that actual cash is a bad way to establish a sign & sail card b/c it requires you to travel with a lot of money. I would be so scared that it would be stolen & then can't be replaced.

A better plan IMHO is to put it on a cc, then pay the card off immediately when you get home. You don't even have to wait. Keep your final bill & when you get home send a check for that amount . . . which should safely be in your bank account . . . to the cc company. No debt, no interest & much less risk for theft. Even my depression era father who pays cash for everything took a cc on his 1st cruise.

That said I thought there were cash minimums around $700. I don't remember if that was total or pp. I would ask on the board for the line you are sailing. Similarly they will be able to give you specifics about on board costs. The biggies usualy include:

shopping

drinking alcohol

gambling & bingo

excursions

tipping -- between $10 = $12 per day per person

spa / beauty salon

specialty restaurants

FWIW, we budget about $100 per day extra (more if an excursion is particularly expensive).

[John Bull]

Registering a credit card at the start makes life a lot easier, presuming you have a reasonablly high credit limit.

 

The cruiseline may put a hold on some funds, but the card isn't actually charged until the end of your cruise, so you can pay cash into your on-board account whenever convenient to you, rather than being harried to pay in cash to keep your account in credit.

Then on the last day, join the line to pay in cash to square the account if you wish, so that your card is not charged. Or if the line's too long or you can't be bothered, just let your cc be charged with whatever's left outstanding.

 

If you've not registered a card you'll have to keep the account in credit, so at the end of the cruise you'll have no choice but to join the line 'cos they will owe you

 

Beware of registering a debit card - the cruiseline will put a hold on a significant amount, regardless of what you spend or intend to spend, and they'll release what you haven't spent only when your on-board bill has been finalised & paid. This can have serious repurcussions if your bank balance is quite low - ATM's which won't release cash and regular payments out of your bank account such as car or mortgage payments that won't be honoured, because the cruiseline has a hold on far more money than you were planning to spend on-board.

 

John Bull :)

[tak81288]

You will get several opinions on whether or not cash is a good idea. I personally usually use cash for my onboard on account and have had no issues. You may have to call RCI to see how much they require for a cash deposit, but in my experience I have been able to put as much/little on my onboard account when using cash and add more if I actually need it later. I mainly use cash because I spend very little onboard and don't put small purchases on a credit card. My last onboard bill for a 7 day cruise was roughly $20. I only purchased a photo and a couple of non-alcoholic smoothies.

 

Based on what you are stating, it sounds like you won't be spending much onboard, so the actual amount of cash you will actually have to take probably won't be that much. I personally pay as much of my vacation upfront in order to avoid the amount of cash I actually need to take with me...Ship excusions, tips..etc...are are already paid for before the vacation even starts. I don't do the spa treatments, drink alcohol, pay for pilates and such in the gym, gamble...etc...which results in a very small onboard account bill.

 

As already stated, there will be plenty of things to do and food to eat that is included in the price of the cruise. You will get a daily newsletter letting you know what is going on throughout the day. You can pick and choose if you decided to pay for things beyond that.

 

I always have a couple of credit cards with me just in case of an emergency and fortunately, I haven't had to pull it out of my wallet.

 

Have fun planning!

[irishred]

Thanks for all the insightful replies. I think TAK81288 is on my wavelength. We'll more than likely prepay our tips and excursions as well, so there won't be a lot of need to tie up large amounts of money in a shipboard account I'll only be using for the occasional soda or picture.

 

I got off the credit card bandwagon a few years ago, and have no desire to go back to it, so I only have my debit cards and prepaid credit cards. Hence why I would prefer to use cash. While this is my first cruise, I do travel a LOT (100+ nights in hotels a year/3-4 weeks in Europe annually), and am not too concerned about carrying cash...I was planning to pull a few hundred dollars out of an ATM the day of boarding for my shipboard account, and use my debit card in port.

 

I appreciate the details of waiting in line to get my balance refunded to me...while I agree it's going to be an inconvenience, at least I am aware of it and can plan accordingly. Good to know!

 

I will call RC and see what their policies are, thanks for all the advice!

[GORDONCHICK]

Most cruise lines require $100 per day per person on the account when using cash or debit card (secured) but I'm not sure if they change that amount if you prepay your tips.

[Dayenu]

If you want cash instead of credit card, there is a minimum you have to put required by the cruise, it may even be on their website. We always use credit card to earn more points on it.

 

You will pay the required tips per person per day ($10-12 per person per day, it's on the website).

 

Language classes are free, and so are dances. Some activities listed as free, like ceramics class, but when you go there, you will have to buy a cup that you paint for free.

 

What do you drink? I mean, tea/coffee? Juice for breakfast? those are free. For sodas you pay.

[delaware32]

We always place @$700 on cash account.This is addition to the required/requested credit card.This is reduce amount ,if any, charged to the credit card.On our last 12 day cruise we actually received monies back from the onboard cash account.:)

[irishred]

What do you drink? I mean, tea/coffee? Juice for breakfast? those are free. For sodas you pay.

 

Pretty much iced tea and water. I'm so totally boring:) The occasional soda, which I've already budgeted for. And should a main dish really scream out to be paired with a nice wine, I'll go for it, but it wouldn't be a nightly thing...maybe once or twice on a 13 night cruise. So I'm budgeting around $50 for extra beverages on the ship.

 

I've written via their website Royal Caribbean to see what their policies are. I'll post again once I receive a reply so that if anyone comes along searching for this topic later they will know. Thanks for all the responses, they are very much appreciated!

[irishred]

OK, I have heard back from Royal Caribbean and the official info is completely different from everything else I've read. Go figure:) It also is exactly what I would prefer, so yay! For anyone looking for this info in the future, here is the info:

 

Dear Sir or Madam:

 

Thank you for your email.

 

Royal Caribbean International does not predetermine an authorized deposit amount for guests using a debit card for their onboard expense account. The system will only obtain authorization for what has actually been purchased by the guest, and a hold will be put on the account for that amount. Each evening, the system will obtain authorization for the amount spent by the guest that day. By the end of the cruise vacation, the ship will have authorizations for the exact amount of the individual guest's purchases. The amount of time these debit card holds will remain on an account varies from bank to bank; however, most will release within 48 hours. A running tab of all purchases will be kept under separate folio numbers for each guest, and an itemized statement will be left in the stateroom the night before departure. If a guest provided a debit card and there are no discrepancies, the final amount of the guest's expenses will be charged to the guest's account on the morning of departure.

 

Guests are strongly encouraged to place a deposit on their account if they are paying for their SeaPass account with cash; however, there is no minimum deposit to set up a cash account. There is a $500.00 daily limit on cash accounts for 7+ night sailings and a $300.00 daily limit for 2-, 3-, 4-, 5- and 6-night sailings. Once the daily cash limit is reached, we will call and inform the guests that the limit has been reached. Guests who agree to pay for their purchases with cash will settle their SeaPass account at a designated area on the last morning of the cruise vacation.

 

Sir or Madam, thank you for choosing Royal Caribbean International.