newbie, trying to budget

[akruz]

We are so new at this and are on a budget and have no intention to buy liquor on board.

Liquor - We are not wine drinkers but ask what is the most convenient way to get liquor as we have to travel from a prairie province in Canada. A long way to tote liquids in check ons. But what is the best solution for us. Listerine bottles are they talking about clear bottles or colored bottles. Any suggestions.

Also, is the water awful on board that people want the bottled water. I do not understand why you cannot purchase bottle water at ports and take aboard.

Prepaid gratuities- we were urged to TA to do this?

Dress - I guess we could use any budget tips we can and I do not want to buy alot of fancy dresswear for formal nights perhaps only one night!

Excursions: quite simplified as due to medical reasons cannot do snorkeling scuba diving.....so what is the best options for excursions

 

We are on the Celebrity Constellation for April 202

Suggestions???? Please.

 

Help, we are newbie's.

[rmiller]

I am also a newbie and have done a lot of reading, so here's what I have gathered that may be of some help to you...

 

Bringing drinks onboard depends on your cruise line, their website should give you the rules on what you are allowed to bring including water. If allowed I would buy bottled water in or near the port before embarking, saving precious luggage space.

 

Pre-paid gratuities sounds like a good idea too me. I would think trying to remember each nights service to tip accordingly and possibly forgetting someone that was deserving of a tip would not work well for me. I'm sure that if you want to tip extra at the time of service you could.

 

Dress codes on most lines seem to be very relaxed. Nice slacks and shirt for him and a dress or pants suit for her. Of course you always have the option of skipping the dining room and having meals at the buffets or other shops included in your faire.

 

Excursions are optional. If you want to stay on the boat and enjoy some time without the crowds you are welcome too. You could always lay on the beach and soak up the sun or do a little shopping at the tourist village at the port.

 

Hope this helps and I'm sure someone else can come along and give you specifics on your cruise.

[akruz]

Thank you for taking time to reply it was appreciated. Nice to hear from another newbie.

[cb at sea]

The ship's water is perfectly fine....I drink tap water at home, AND on the ship. No problems at all! No need to PAY for water!

If you don't drink liquor/wine/beer, then that's fine...your bill will be quite low!!! Wine is very pricey...beer and cocktails give you more "bang" for your buck. Prices are comparable to a nice bar on land....Celebrity allows 1 bottle per person to be brought aboard.

As far as excursions....research your ports...a guidebook is quite useful! It will tell you EVERYTHING that's avail.....it's not ALL snorkeling (I HATE snorkeling!!!)...lots of other things to do, but you HAVE to do the research! Many things require NO excursion at all...just get off the ship and go...and you'll know HOW to do that with a guidebook!

 

Appropriate dress is all that's required....if you don't wear a tux on formal night, you won't be turned away...just look nice. A tie would be nice. Most nights are "casual"...long pants, collared shirt for men is fine. Women look better than men most of the time anyway! No shorts! Capris are fine, with heels or other nice shoes and a nice top!

 

This is a vacation...don't stress!

[paul929207]

Most cruise lines prohibit carrying alcohol onboard. Most allow you to carry on some wine.

[celyvabeach]

So you'll be on the X Constellation in March, assuming to the E. Carribbean? That's a very nice itinerary for 14 days... We were on her last November on a Holy Land cruise. Although the ship is nice we really did'nt have much time to enjoy it due to the intensive itinerary. Plus there was a Noro virus outbreak that didn't get resolved while we were onboard.

 

You can only bring a bottle of wine on embarkation. Can't bring any from the ports. But you are not a wine drinker... you can buy liqour from the ports but you will not be allowed to bring to your cabin, they will keep them till the last day. So what's the point unless you are bringing it home.

Now for the water, there's no limit. When we were in ports in November we bought bottled water and brought them onboard. I believe it costs $2.50 per bottle on the ship versus 50 cents - $1.00 at the port.

Assuming I have the correct sailing for you there will be 3 formal nights.Usually they are on sea days and the first one is when people dress up most since their clothes still fit :). Nice blingy outfit will be fine.

[akruz]

We are will be sailing April 7 for 14 days. Thanks for the information.

[celyvabeach]

We are will be sailing April 7 for 14 days. Thanks for the information.

 

Oops I re-read your original post and you said April. I don't know why I thought it is March. Anyway it's the same itinerary. Let me know if you have questions about the Constellation.

[Jasalth]

Liquor - I can't really give a lot of advice since my family really doesn't drink much. If you do bring rum rummers, remember there is always a chance they won't make it to you! I wouldn't suggest carrying it from Canada. If you are flying in the day before, use the hotel shuttle to take a trip to the store to get it at your port and deal with it there. Another option is with excursions for liquor. The only time I drank on our last cruise was at an all inclusive beach day.

 

Water - I have never understood the bottle water thing in general. I mean... how many of us and those before us grew up just fine on tap water? I drank water, tea and coffee our last cruise and it never bothered me one bit. I would suggest though, if you want to take water into ports with you, there are normally vendors pretty close outside who will have bottles of water for a LOT cheaper than the bottles on board!

 

Pre-paid Tips - This is a matter of choice. You don't get a discount for paying them before hand. It really is a matter of an upfront cost or a cost afterwards. If you pay them first though, then they aren't going to be racking up interest on a CC. Depending on the length of your trip, then can eat up a good chunk of CC money!

 

Dress - My family isn't a dress up people. If you have to buy everything new for formal nights, mix and match. Bring a black skirt and 2-3 tops for a female. For the men, this is what I did for my DH and 2 DS's! We brought 5 ties for everyone to use. We then brought them each 1 white dress shirt. I went in with knowing that the laundry on the ship is A LOT cheaper than buying 3 shirts per person. If they messed it up (my oldest did) it was $4 to have it cleaned. My DH and youngest were fine for 2 nights of use for dinner. Spending $4 to have one cleaned (or even $12 if they all needed it!) was a lot better than spending $180 on dress shirts for my guys!!

 

Excursions - Depends on what you like or want to do. Check out the Port of Call boards here to see what local companies there are that have a good reputation. This also depends on our comfort level going on your own. Some ports I wouldn't even consider it, though I have kids to worry about. I agree with getting a Guide Book for each port. Make a list of things that sound fun to do then figure out costs for everything. Then based on time cost and wants, make a list with 2-3 choices per port and print it out.

[celyvabeach]

Here's the auto-gratuities rate for Celebrity:

 

Inside /Oceanview/ Balcony = $11.50 per person per day

 

Concierge Class /Aqua = $12.00 per person per day

 

Suite = $15.00 per person per day

 

Hope this helps in calculating your auto-tip payments.

[akruz]

thanks for the great replies.

[Smithkids5521]

I like to bring an empty water bottle with me (the type you would bring to the gym with you or where ever). This way I can fill it at a drink station in the buffet and have it to drink in my cabin or while I am out and about onboard...I have always found the glasses in the buffet to be small and having your own water bottle filled sure reduces the time taken to get refills. :)

[nw2this]

Check out the cruise fashions and beauty section. There is cruise clothing exchange.

[Catocop]

I'm going on my first cruise this June and am packing a reversible dress. It's not "formal" but with silver sandals and wrap and a sparkly necklace I think it'll be ok. We're flying to the port so space was an issue for me. http://www.altrec.com/golite/womens-cayambe-reversible-dress?sku_id=1784323&cm_mmc=Mercent-_-Google+PLA-_-GoLite-_-83886-1784323&mr:trackingCode=C9D32A7E-283D-E111-AC9E-001B2163195C&mr:referralID=NA&origin=pla&mr:adType=pla&mr:ad=9637826337&mr:keyword={keyword}&gclid=CI_-8bGugq4CFYSK4Aods2tR2Q

[Sunshine times]

thanks for the great replies.

 

Hi, We have taken about six cruises. I'm learning more each time.. now, I look at trip advisor and cruise critic (ports) for excursions, it's cheaper and you have a smaller group to travel with and just make sure you plan to come back to the ship serveral hrs before, just to be safe...Ship water is fine! Bringing a water bottle, that can fit ice, is a great idea....Tipping-we don't use the wine steward therefore, we don't tip them and we always tip our room steward extra. The day before embarking we go to the front office and adjust our tipping....Clothing: people are not dressing up that much any more. My husband brings several pair of pants and double the amt. for shirts. and for me, I try and mix and match. You are not in your evening clothes long.. I hope this helps and if anyone has more ideas...I like to hear them...

[akruz]

Thanks that was great info for us. Thank you for replies

[SoozeS]

Definitely read up on your particular ship/cruise line on these Boards. Learned so much before my first cruise last year.

[Semi Retired]

I research each port to see the most popular interests and to justify whether its a port that can easily be able to hire a private tour guide or one that needs a tour from the ship (example: cartegena, Columbia, some Pacific Mexico). I've saved upwards of 20/person when finding a reputable private guide.