Go Cheap or Stay Home???

[ehfl]

Cruising has always been an inexpensive getaway for us. It's just a few minutes drive to the port, so no flights or hotels involved. We typically stay in inside cabins, with a balcony if we can get a good rate. We book guarantee when available.

 

We can do several cruises per year for the same price others pay for that "perfect" cabin.

[Ifoundmydream]

we are on a 2 week cruise shortly and to be honest we are only scraping budget, that is all we can afford. we own our own businesses so it is doubling the cost as we won't be earning while we are away, so needs must.

 

we have been on cruises before, and to be honest we enjoy the natural things about cruising that don't cost anything. I have learned that really you can enjoy yourself just as much, so:

 

1. We are in an inside cabin - we enjoy getting up early so we virtually have the whole ship to ourselves outside.

 

2. We won't be don't specialty dining, never did when we could afford it, so not missing out here.

 

3. Buying a wine package - this wont be any expensive than drinking for a fortnight at home.

 

4. Making our own way around ports - it's a European cruise, we know Europe enough to not have to be taken anywhere and we can walk or get a local bus, eh, Barcelona, Lisbon, Palma etc.

 

5. Daughter will have a soda package for her birthday, and has saved her pocket money as spending money

 

6. cocktail dresses (including some really high end brands) off eBay

 

7. Using facilities on board while others are on really expensive excursions :)

 

8. Using our supermarket points to stay at a hotel the night before

 

Its amazing what you see when you are being really careful financially, I remember going back to my room to get some more wine and en route saw a family of whales (not in the corridor)!

 

I do get the balcony bit, but hopefully by doing this we can afford a cruise, carry on running the businesses, and make our daughter money savvy.

 

As I prefer the outside of big ships to the inside, I'm not sure what I would pay for, perhaps a balcony and make use of the dry cleaning service more, and perhaps if there was an excursion I couldn't make on my own, but not much more.

[MommaBear55]

Easy choice. Cruising always beats staying home.

 

Amen! The inside cabin was so small and cramped it made us laugh. We have done the tiny to the balcony and although a balcony was very nice, it isn't a make it or break it for us.

[CateW]

Stay home, no wine (at dinner) is a deal breaker.

[Ifoundmydream]

Cruising has always been an inexpensive getaway for us. It's just a few minutes drive to the port, so no flights or hotels involved. We typically stay in inside cabins, with a balcony if we can get a good rate. We book guarantee when available.

 

We can do several cruises per year for the same price others pay for that "perfect" cabin.

 

I'm with you completely on this.

[rafinmd]

Flying in the day of the cruise would be hard for me, it would have to be at a time when storms were rare. Fortunately for me, I can take a city bus to the Grandeur for less than $2. I'd prefer an oceanview, very seldom book a balcony, but have done inside on the Jewel and had a great cruise.

 

I agree, there are inexpensive things to do in most ports. Other than my penchant for sailing Crystal, everything else about my cruising is pretty frugal.

 

Roy

[SHICHIDAN]

Stay home.

[Cindy]

I would stay home.:o Much to my husband's dismay, I can't handle the thought of an inside cabin.:rolleyes: I could probably stay out of Vintages if I HAD to!;)

[Ifoundmydream]

Hope I have a good time having booked an inside. :rolleyes:

[shippmates]

This sounds like our way of cruising. We eat in the MDR every night, stay in inside cabins as we are not in our cabins that much, we do not drink so would not miss it, the casinos are way to smoky so we try not even to walk thru them. We rarely do excursions unless there is some thing that we really want to see. Shopping is very limited as we have all the little trinkets from the islands. I would much rather cruise several times a year than spend our entire vacation budget on one cruise.

[Ifoundmydream]

This sounds like our way of cruising. We eat in the MDR every night, stay in inside cabins as we are not in our cabins that much, we do not drink so would not miss it, the casinos are way to smoky so we try not even to walk thru them. We rarely do excursions unless there is some thing that we really want to see. Shopping is very limited as we have all the little trinkets from the islands. I would much rather cruise several times a year than spend our entire vacation budget on one cruise.

 

Ditto. Doing our med this way we are hoping to cruise to Russia and Norway also at the end of the year, but that will be on a very limited budget too. I love finding my own way around, but will splash out f its something touristy that you can't get to on your own.

[pattle66]

Absolutely! Every time.

[BLAMBKY]

Sandwiched between boarding and departure, seven nights is just not enough time for me to unwind. Beginning with boarding, I cannot find myself in "cruise mode" until the second full day on the ship (third night of the cruise). This leaves three days/nights of relaxation before packing panic begins to set in. The last full day onboard, while still enjoyable, that thought of getting ready for departure is a bothersome thought in the back of my head.

 

One of the greatest feelings in the world is waking up in the cabin and forgetting what you did before you got on the ship. I've not been able to capture that feeling on a short cruise. I prefer nine nighters (or longer) with the main criteria being that it overlaps two work weeks in some way. Fellow passengers seem more relaxed and less likely to be trying to cram as much "vacation experience" into the shorter time period. Same reason I use certain departure ports or itineraries to act as a filter.

 

That said, your idea of not getting off the ship in ports does sound like a great plan to maximize the vacation experience while being able to minimize cost. This is especially true if it is a port you have been to before. You will not feel like you are missing anything. Either way, you can focus fully on the ship as the vacation destination. That sounds like a really great strategy if you are planning on sailing the Allure or Oasis (which are usually seven night cruises). There are some nice bargains out there right now on those ships.

 

I am curious to where you live/vacation time available.... Thanks for posting. Your post really made me think. I am happy to say that I enjoy vacation from the second I step on board! :)

[PattyG12]

If I had vacation time available I'd definitely cruise cheap!! Can't imagine staying home would be more fun then being on a ship!

[molly361]

I would go on the cheap as well!!!:)

[Starry Eyes]

I'd go.

I would first check prices of the flights and hotels the day before. If flights are cheaper than flights the day of the cruise, the budget might be fine if the hotel is inexpensive (maybe an opaque site).

an inside cabin would be better tha home.

[cruizeblues]

We have "gone cheap" before, except the inside cabin part. I suggest trying the balcony guarantee...that can be as cheap as an inside cabin and we have always been assigned a nice D1 or D2 for around $700 pp. Also, when trying to find a cheap cruise, I usually look for an airfare deal first to a few different ports, then see which ship is least expensive out of that port.

[JosieCat-MN]

Well, I've only taken one cruise, and I didn't do much of the stuff you mention, but no casino would be the deal breaker for me :).

[stjohnpa]

Not much different than my usual anyway. I've never flown in the night before, always had an inside room, don't really drink...just soda. I do enjoy leaving the ship, but have never paid much for excursions.

Just to be on a ship, seeing the beautiful sea and sunshine is enough for me.

[Bookish Angel]

We drink very little and never drink wine, never gamble, don't bother with specialty dining, avoid the overpriced ship excursions and the cheesy photos and don't often buy souvenirs. It doesn't really matter what the cabin is -we're not there as permanent residents.

[Legalgal]

I am not a fan of the flying in on the day of the cruise, but have done it before and would do it again if I had no choice due to budget, schedule, whatever.

 

I am not a big drinker, so I doubt I'd miss the drinks around the pool.

 

I love the speciality restaurants, but I doubt my cruising experience would be diminished if I missed them.

 

Excursions are not make it or break it items.

 

I hardly buy souvenirs beyond an ornament for our tree, so that's really not an issue.

 

It's the inside cabin that would make me think twice. I didn't even really enjoy the promenade cabin on the Mariner I had once. I want the ocean view balcony. But, in this hypothetical situation, if it meant no cruise at all for a very long time, I might make due. If it simply meant to delay the cruise by a few months to save up the money, I might wait.

[Ifoundmydream]

OK. So this is kind of just for fun, but would maybe make you think if you were given this ultimatum. If you were given the choice to go on a 7 night cruise but had to be on a very tight budget, would you do it or would you just stay home?

 

What I mean by being on a tight budget or "frugal" as I like to call it is

 

-flying in the same day as the cruise, therefore, no overnight hotel, no buying drinks and supper the night before the cruise and no buying breakfast the morning of the cruise.

 

-we are diamond, so we would just have the drinks in the DL from 5-8 every night. No foo-foo drinks around the pool:eek:

 

-no wine at vintages every afternoon

 

-no specialty restaurants, just eat in the MDR every night

 

-no excursions, just enjoy the empty ship

 

-no souvenir shopping--have all the t shirts from every island anyways

 

-no casino:(

 

-no picture buying

 

-and last but not least, stay in an inside cabin instead of our usual balcony:o

 

So if you had to decide, what would you choose?? Go cheap and still be able to cruise, or just stay home!!

 

REMEMBER People...this is just a hypothetical situation. Would you be able to give all these things up to go on a cruise???

 

I would struggle with the 7 nights, would much rather to without all the plastic trinkets, photos and extortionate excursions and do 14 nights.

[RickT]

Staying home is NEVER an option :cool:

 

I don't mind cruising on the cheap if that's the best vacation option available. I always compare cruises to land based vacations and let my budget and the deals point me in the direction I need to go.

 

Some years we go big (like this year with a med cruise) and sometimes we go small (a week in Stowe, Vermont) and never complain. Life is too short to stay at home.

 

And, although you didn't specifically ask... if the option was a cruise in an inside cabin vs. no cruise because we couldn't afford a verandah.. we'd definitely cruise. We've done a number of inside cabins and while they aren't as nice as a verandah we never complain.

[mike1trim]

Always choose the cruise!

[ryano]

OK. So this is kind of just for fun, but would maybe make you think if you were given this ultimatum. If you were given the choice to go on a 7 night cruise but had to be on a very tight budget, would you do it or would you just stay home?

 

What I mean by being on a tight budget or "frugal" as I like to call it is

 

-flying in the same day as the cruise, therefore, no overnight hotel, no buying drinks and supper the night before the cruise and no buying breakfast the morning of the cruise.

 

-we are diamond, so we would just have the drinks in the DL from 5-8 every night. No foo-foo drinks around the pool:eek:

 

-no wine at vintages every afternoon

 

-no specialty restaurants, just eat in the MDR every night

 

-no excursions, just enjoy the empty ship

 

-no souvenir shopping--have all the t shirts from every island anyways

 

-no casino:(

 

-no picture buying

 

-and last but not least, stay in an inside cabin instead of our usual balcony:o

 

So if you had to decide, what would you choose?? Go cheap and still be able to cruise, or just stay home!!

 

REMEMBER People...this is just a hypothetical situation. Would you be able to give all these things up to go on a cruise???

 

NO WAY would I stay at home! I guess ALL of my cruises are considered "on the cheap" because I dont partake in any of those things youve listed and I get the cheapest cabin I can get that gets me on the ship. Luckily I have been able to upgrade from inside to Oceanview or Promenade cabins for 0.00 so far though.