How do you save once on board?

[trvlcouple]

In Palermo, we went on a street food tour found through online searches for the cost of a donation (15 euro recommended) plus food purchased (about 7 euro total). This was three hours of six of us walking through the city with two enthusiastic, erudite, foodie, locals and trying out an amazing array of street food. In three months of traveling (we tripped through other parts of europe before and after the cruise), this was the favorite single thing that we did.

 

Susan

 

Susan: If you have the website/email for the Palermo food tour, please email me califkmac at comcast dot net. I did a foodie walk in Boston that was amazing. We have done "free" walks (for tips or suggested donations) in Iceland, Melbourne, Sydney and other cities. When in Boston, do the free guided tour with a park ranger. There are freebies (mostly walks) out there if you do your research. And check the local TI when in port.

 

We just did a cruise New England to Canada and rented a car with another cruise critic couple in 4 ports. We could get to far away sites and it was way cheaper that ship's excursions. Also, take public transportation. Took the bus to Montmorency Falls in Quebec City -$7.50 CAD for an all day pass - could stay as long as we wanted - no cruise tour bus to get back on with 50 other people. We also walk EVERYWHERE when in towns. Download Tom's Port Guides (they are free) and he has great info on many ports. We don't buy ANYTHING on the ship (except the wine card). No reason I see to pay for the specialty restaurants. We don't even have our photos taken, kindly decline. We cruise Princess and they have self service laundromats. So at the 7 day mark, do wash. (Most of our cruises are over 10 days and we usually pair with a condo/time share for a land portion). I take a baggie with quarters, detergent pods, dryer sheets, a few clothes pins. Also, I keep a plastic bin at home to house all my cruise "goodies" and toiletries. Helps me not to forget anything! And we both have extensive spreadsheets of what we need to take. We bring insulated mugs for our tea. And use the free exercise classes and the gym.

 

Bottom line: we do not do much different than we do in our regular life. We travel a lot and have learned to live with just what can fit in a roll aboard for sometimes 3 weeks. It's amazing what you do not need when you are hauling it half way across the world! We travel to experience other places and cultures and don't need souvenirs or stuff. Just MHO...

 

K

[sfaaa]

Some cruise lines offer immediate OBC if you put a deposit down for a future 6 day+ cruise while onboard. It's another way to get free money if you know you will cruise with them again.

[askimdog]

We stick to free food, don't buy pix or souvenirs etc.. Last 3 cruises are combined S&S Bill for our family of 3 usually runs about 0-20 bucks not counting tips.

[clr315]

I gotta say when I tell people i love cruising they say but its so expensive. When i talk to them i try to see why they feel this way. Ive come to the conclusion that it is jus common sense and sticking to a budget. One person told me they rang up a 1500 bar bill? Now that is easiky remedied.....cut back on drinking! Then another guy tokd me his spouse racked uo a huge spa bill. Again easiky remedied......dont go to the spa so much.

 

We still have a great time but we stay within a reasonable amount. I buy drinks but bring on what is allowed as well. I dont drink soda so that is not a problem. Ive never paid for food on board.....no reason to.....eat where it is incuded.

 

Shore excursions.....research and book your own. No need to buy those stupid things like pictures and tee shirts as well. I have a camera and a phone with a camera so i can get ohitos myself!

[griffy116]

When we are on vacation, it means we have saved, scrimped and made sacrifices during the year to enjoy our vacation so intend to enjoy and indulge while on our cruise. With that in mind, through the years, we have discovered things that are not sacrifices that save money.

Things we don't do:

*No photos except the ones we take. We have FAR too many of these photos taken over the years.

*No Bingo. Never really been a fan and the ships now have so much more to do that this is easy to skip. We never even think about it anymore.

*On Caribbean cruises, we usually go out in the morning, return to the ship for lunch and then go out in the afternoon. We've had a couple bad experiences with the food and we usually skip eating at the local restaurants.

*Excursions (in the Caribbean). If we've already been to the island and done the excursions that appeal to us, repeating one only happens if we have someone new going with us that hasn't been. We use private excursions instead of ship excursions. Cheaper and more bang for the buck.

Shops: We bring all of our toiletries and OTC meds from home. The prices in the on-board ships are ridiculous. The prices in the ship's shops aren't a bargain. I bring my clothes, cosmetics, etc.

Ben and Jerry's and Starbucks: Not a fan of Starbucks so that's so unnecessary. I like the Seattle's Best and the coffee in the MDR and rom room service. Grabbing an ice cream from the soft-serve by the pool is more convenient and Ben and Jerry's is right next to the Cafe where I can get the Ranger cookies that I love so much. Easy choice for me are teh cookies.

Wine: We can now bring 2 bottles of wine on-board so we ask the cabin steward for a couple of wine glasses. We carry a cork screw. Because we are Diamond, we get a few (3) drinks each evening so no need for the package that includes alcohol. We aren't big drinkers.

Casino: We set a daily limit for our casino indulge. We get OBC from an RCCL Visa, RCCL and our TA, which we use for our gambling.

Things we do Indulge In:

Laundry: We do the wash 'n fold. We pack less and don't have to pay airline fees for luggage so it's not as expensive as paying extra fees. I love it. This also leaves space in our luggage to bring back a few of the special things we love (rum cakes, vanilla, etc) that we HAVE to bring home.

Soda package: We get the soda package because when we are out on deck we enjoy having a soda. We drink more soda than when we're home. Convenience and ends up cheaper on a HOT day by the pool.

Cabs: It's so inexpensive to use the cabs that we don't feel it's a waste of money. We like the convenience.

Room Service: We enjoy room service and we always tip the person bringing the food. No biggie and it's something we enjoy with our wine.

Gratuities: We always tip and we always give a little more than the standard tips. We don't get stingy with the crew.

Liquor: Best prices and we bring what we can back, including some as gifts.

Island Specialties: Mexican vanilla, rum cakes, hot sauces. We love these and we always know ahead of our cruise that we are going to restock on these.

[rferr]

I agree with most everything here.

 

We only pack a carry on. For three of us that saves 150 dollars round trip. Go to you tube and search for the bundle method of packing. Its amazing what you can get in a small carry on bag using the bundle method of packing. We pack the carry on and a personal item and between the two of them that is plenty of stuff to take. We might do one load of self service laundry half way through the cruise. We take some quarters with us for that. Also you have your bags with you at all times and do not have to tip the bag porters or wait for your luggage. Also wear as much stuff as you can on your flight its less to get into your bag like belt, shoes, sportcoat, etc.

 

We usually smuggle on board a small amount of liquor for a before dinner drink. We are not big drinkers so our bar bill is usually negligible anyway but that saves around 100 bucks at least. We go to the free drink opportunities while on board like the past guest party.

 

We never buy pictures and do not gamble or buy souvenirs on the ship. We usually do our own tours off the ship. Usually these are snorkeling or beach trips which is what we like. Usually just the cost of the cab although some places we take the bus like Barbados and St. Thomas. We rarely buy anything off the ship at all. We are not shoppers and really don't ever see anything we want anyway. Never really bought anything on board the ship in 12 cruises. No gold rope, none of that stuff.

 

Off the ship we generally bring a lunch. I know you aren't supposed to but we do it anyway. Get a sandwich and chips and stuff and pack a lunch. We bring ziplock bags from home for this purpose.

 

Never ate at a fee restaurant.

 

We do things that are free. Never stepped foot in a spa on board a ship. We will do the free activities or just sit in the sun. Dont really buy drink of the day or anything like that usually. Maybe one per cruise like a pina colada at sail away maybe.

 

To us its almost a game to see how little we can actually spend while on the cruise. We have done cruises where literally our sign and sail account was nothing but daily gratuities before.

 

Don't buy any specialty coffees or ice cream or anything like that. We usually eat in the dining room. I am sure the cruise line hates us cause they sell us a cheap room and we don't buy anything else but hey they have to take the good with the bad. For us it makes up able to afford to cruise. But I must say we see all these people wasting a ton of money and I wonder if I would do it if I had the extra money to spend and I think I would not but who knows. I am very glad for people like that cause the money that they spend subsidizes my cruise! I hope they spend freely!

Edited November 12, 2014 by rferr

[simonmary]

I take a bank book with us. Opening balance is the budget for the cruise.

 

Everything spent is logged in. Everything. Onboard. Ashore. Doesn't matter. It gets logged. OBC gets logged. Tips get logged. Dropping a quarter into that sweepy machine in the casino gets logged. Laundry gets logged.

 

Now, having said that, I also make darn sure that I over budget. This last cruise (May 2014) I wound up with almost $600 left in the bank book. And, never EVER felt like we were missing out on anything that we wanted to do.

 

We also took the allowed 2 bottles of wine onboard. Although that did save money, we most likely won't be doing that again - just felt like we were not really on holiday with our own wine. :-)

[runner2013]

I take a bank book with us. Opening balance is the budget for the cruise.

 

Everything spent is logged in. Everything. Onboard. Ashore. Doesn't matter. It gets logged. OBC gets logged. Tips get logged. Dropping a quarter into that sweepy machine in the casino gets logged. Laundry gets logged.

 

Now, having said that, I also make darn sure that I over budget. This last cruise (May 2014) I wound up with almost $600 left in the bank book. And, never EVER felt like we were missing out on anything that we wanted to do.

 

We also took the allowed 2 bottles of wine onboard. Although that did save money, we most likely won't be doing that again - just felt like we were not really on holiday with our own wine. :-)

 

 

 

Love this idea of a bankbook/checkbook.

I may try it on my upcoming Christmas cruise.

[cruzilove]

I take a bank book with us. Opening balance is the budget for the cruise.

 

Everything spent is logged in. Everything. Onboard. Ashore. Doesn't matter. It gets logged. OBC gets logged. Tips get logged. Dropping a quarter into that sweepy machine in the casino gets logged. Laundry gets logged.

 

Now, having said that, I also make darn sure that I over budget. This last cruise (May 2014) I wound up with almost $600 left in the bank book. And, never EVER felt like we were missing out on anything that we wanted to do.

 

We also took the allowed 2 bottles of wine onboard. Although that did save money, we most likely won't be doing that again - just felt like we were not really on holiday with our own wine. :-)

 

I do not mean to sound rude...so please do not misconstrue what I am going to say....but I must ask...Why in the world would anyone on vacation take their time to keep a ledger of what they spend on vacation, down to the last quarter? Isn't vacation suppose to relax...free you from the every day stress?????

[sfaaa]

It appears someone is taking cash basis accounting to the extreme. :eek:

[paul929207]

I do not mean to sound rude...so please do not misconstrue what I am going to say....but I must ask...Why in the world would anyone on vacation take their time to keep a ledger of what they spend on vacation, down to the last quarter? Isn't vacation suppose to relax...free you from the every day stress?????

To each his own. I suspect we all do something on vacation that someone else would say "Why??"

[dhill]

You can spend a lot on specialty coffees, sodas, etc. Stick to what is included.

Oh my people you are on vacation let lose.If you want a fancy coffe get one. Whats the fun of paying for a vacation and then not enjoying it to the fullest?Thats why we dont have to take a cruise every other week.WE would rather take one every year or so.That way we can enjoy it to the fullest.:eek: You know spend a few days at a nice hotel before and after the cruise.Maybe a few specitaly resturaunts.Some drinks from the bar, some fancy coffe in the morning.You know just realax and enjoy yourself you are on vaction:)

[Natmom]

Oh my people you are on vacation let lose.If you want a fancy coffe get one. Whats the fun of paying for a vacation and then not enjoying it to the fullest?Thats why we dont have to take a cruise every other week.WE would rather take one every year or so.That way we can enjoy it to the fullest.:eek: You know spend a few days at a nice hotel before and after the cruise.Maybe a few specitaly resturaunts.Some drinks from the bar, some fancy coffe in the morning.You know just realax and enjoy yourself you are on vaction:)

 

we are exactly the same!!!

 

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Forums mobile app

[paul929207]

Oh my people you are on vacation let lose.If you want a fancy coffe get one. Whats the fun of paying for a vacation and then not enjoying it to the fullest?Thats why we dont have to take a cruise every other week.WE would rather take one every year or so.That way we can enjoy it to the fullest.:eek: You know spend a few days at a nice hotel before and after the cruise.Maybe a few specitaly resturaunts.Some drinks from the bar, some fancy coffe in the morning.You know just realax and enjoy yourself you are on vaction:)

To each his own.

 

We spend about 100 days a year on cruises and are very happy not to go to specialty restaurants, drink specialty coffees, etc. We spend several nights in the port before the cruise if the embarkation is far from home.

 

You want to blow everything on a cruise every other year that is your choice.

[simonmary]

I do not mean to sound rude...so please do not misconstrue what I am going to say....but I must ask...Why in the world would anyone on vacation take their time to keep a ledger of what they spend on vacation, down to the last quarter? Isn't vacation suppose to relax...free you from the every day stress?????

 

Don't think that is rude. Extremely logical, confused, and rational, but not rude!

 

I'm a bit AR. Okay, I'm severely AR. To me, it is a kind of game. The game is this: Can I know exactly how much I spend as compared to how much I save?

 

It drives my husband to distraction for me to do this on holiday, but I like knowing if I am hitting at or below my daily budget. Yes, even on the ship I have a daily amount to not exceed. :rolleyes:

 

When I add the information from the bank book back into the spreadsheet for the holiday, it provides me with a complete big-picture of the holiday from start to finish. With the added benefit of knowing years from now what was spent while on holiday.

 

I would imagine that 99% or more of the folks reading this have thought "Really? Tracking spending to the nth degree is FUN!?!?!?!?!?!?

 

But that significantly less than 1% of the folks (you know, the AR type A people who say they are going to work on relaxing....) will be nodding their heads and agreeing that it sounds like a great plan!

[CanadianDee]

 

But that significantly less than 1% of the folks (you know, the AR type A people who say they are going to work on relaxing....) will be nodding their heads and agreeing that it sounds like a great plan!

 

Haha. I plan every aspect of our vacations down to the last detail. The spreadsheet for our next vacation has 21 worksheets. If we deviate from my plans, I'm cool with it. But planning is half the fun for me.

 

I used to plan our kids' birthday parties by fifteen minute increments with collapse points built in if any activity went long, and optional activities if any planned activity was a bust. Some people just like to plan. :)

[Drazil65]

I am the checkbook and spreadsheet type as well :rolleyes:....I find that a lot of people that don't understand it are usually using credit cards and don't typically care about what is adding up on the bill...we run cash basis.... cash for everything so of course we keep track...it is a good feeling to see that cash account and even get a check back in the end...go on vaca and get cash back too!!! Great feeling......

[sfaaa]

Using other people's money to cruise will get you even more bang for the buck. CC has a 21 days interest free payment grace period + you get reward points to get more free stuff. Can't lose.

[MandyMommyof2]

This is a great thread with numerous great ideas! :)

[KKB]

But the MOST important thing is to only spend on things that you truly get enjoyment out of.

 

I don't do spa (can have same experiences at home for a fraction of the price), generally do not shop on or off the ship (I don't shop on vacation, again, I can do that at home).

 

We do enjoy our cocktails & Celebrity has our number right now--we booked our upcoming trip with free drink package plus paid gratuities & OBC. We also have a future booking with the same perks. On cruises we don't have the package I bring max wine allowed, rum runners & Diet Pepsi/Mountain Dew.

 

We rarely do excursions...we have spots on each island that we enjoy. And we find we can often book with an outfit on the island for much cheaper than a ship excursion. Mostly we just want a nice beach.

 

We don't do specialty restaurants (OK, we did once on a cruise we won & did enjoy it). MDR has always been perfectly fine.

 

We always do one good family or couple portrait on the ship. Even if it is $25 that is less than a sitting fee would cost at home...

 

We used to enjoy bingo but the electronic machines aren't as fun & are much pricier...we won the first time we played bingo on a ship which had us hooked for a while...it is losing its allure.

 

We do enjoy the casino. But we mostly play TX Hold em, which is generally very profitable for us (won us 2 of the 9 cruises we have taken!)...but Celebrity last year we rarely could get a game going. Not sure if it saved us or cost us $!!

Edited January 4, 2015 by KKB

[dhill]

I know for some, spending on board is no issue. But for others sticking to a budget is better.

 

I am wondering how members of this community save once on board. What are some of your tips for enjoying but not over indulging?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Thats easy just stay home.then theres no chance of over spending and look at all the money you will save;)

[Jeep108]

Great thread! With less than 2 weeks to go til my next cruise, I have enjoyed reading the tips. Yes, some of it is common sense and just not buying stuff you don't need (photos and onboard shops) but its still good to be reminded before vacation mode hits in force. I sit in the middle between planning a budget and living free. Hopefully that means we will have a reasonable idea of what we will spend before we go.

 

I just found a new way to save. Having researched all the ports of call and places I would like to go, I knew for certain we would be booking a cave-tubing excursion in Belize. Carnival has a price match policy for shore excursions. If you find the exact same excursion advertised cheaper, they give you 110% of the difference as an onboard credit. You have to book the excursion you want with Carnival, and then submit an online claim form showing the URL of the competitor tour - but they get back to you quickly, for me it was less than 24hrs. I just added $50 to my OBC account that way. We got the excursion I wanted, at less than the local operator was offering it for, with the guarantee of getting back to the ship on time plus an on board credit for us to use. Perfect.

[Cruisercl]

Thats easy just stay home.then theres no chance of over spending and look at all the money you will save;)

 

That's just silly!! :D:p

[Jasalth]

Thank you all for posting and I really like a lot of these tips! While others think it's crazy, I really do like the check book ledger and I will probably bring one myself now. I have tons of them since I don't use them at home anyways with all online-banking and computer stuff for my finances.

 

For those who like/want to buy pictures I suggest investing in even a cheaper underwater camera. I have one of the original Fuji Finepix ones that is 6 years old now. Sure it's not the latest and greatest, but it works really really well! By spending $200 (which is generous) on a cheaper underwater camera, you can skip the costs of any water sports "professional" pictures. If it stops you from spending $35 on this snorkel trip, and $25 on that one, it adds up and if you cruise more than once it is worth it!

 

Also setting a limit on your S&S card. This way even if you want to give in, you can't get that $200 spa treatment or buy that new watch.

 

For coffee drinkers bring your own stuff if you can! Now we don't fly to port, but even if we did I would end up stopping at a grocery store. I love flavored iced coffee. You don't want to be around me when I haven't had at least 1 (if not 2 or 3...) a day. Spending $15 a day on iced coffee... isn't something I want to do! Get a bottle of your favorite coffee syrup and bring it with you! Instead of spending $105 on coffee, I bring one of my $8 bottles from my Amazon subscription.

[Smilefy]

Look at the amenities and activities in advance to get ideas of what you want to do. Fill your schedule with free activities. If you are bored, you will wander into the shops, play bingo, buy drinks, and spend on other things to kill time.