Cash Vs. Credit

[cobb2113]

So going on our first(of many I hope) cruise and trying to decide if we should use our credit card or cash for our on-board account. So I thought I would ask on CC what do you prefer and why?

 

Also anyone that has used cash how does it work? Do you give them cash at the beginning and you get balance back at the end or do you just settle up at end?

[jacksmycat]

I prefer credit card because it's easier to me than bringing a bunch of cash. Plus I get cash back on purchases made with it. You do have to give them cash up front. If you spend it, you will not be able to purchase anything else on board until you give them more cash. At the end, if you have any left over you will get it back, but I'm not sure on the process.

[paul929207]

I also use a credit card. No worries. No need to carry a bunch of cash.

 

If you are going to use cash, the cruise line will require a deposit form you. Amounts may vary, but I think most are about $300 per person. If your spending is getting close to the deposit, you will be asked to put down more money. If you do not, your account will be cut off for further charging

[rakuroda]

So going on our first(of many I hope) cruise and trying to decide if we should use our credit card or cash for our on-board account. So I thought I would ask on CC what do you prefer and why?

 

Also anyone that has used cash how does it work? Do you give them cash at the beginning and you get balance back at the end or do you just settle up at end?

Aloha :D

 

I thought all cruise line were no-cash on board. Gratuities for restaurants & room stewards were paid in the "voluntary/mandtory" daily service fee charge. On board purchases were charged to suite & settled up at end of cruise if you didn't leave an open credit card beforehand. The only cash I've seen recommended was for additional tips for exemplary service. Even pay as you go bar drinks had 18% tip included in charge, as did Spa visits.

 

You should really check this out if it is of concern.

 

Aloha :D

[cruisead]

Aloha :D

 

I thought all cruise line were no-cash on board. Gratuities for restaurants & room stewards were paid in the "voluntary/mandtory" daily service fee charge. On board purchases were charged to suite & settled up at end of cruise if you didn't leave an open credit card beforehand. The only cash I've seen recommended was for additional tips for exemplary service. Even pay as you go bar drinks had 18% tip included in charge, as did Spa visits.

 

You should really check this out if it is of concern.

 

Aloha :D

 

I think you misunderstand what the OP is asking. They want to know if you prefer to pay your final bill using a credit card or cash. When you check in for the cruise, you must either give them a credit card or cash. But you are right that cruises are mostly cashless except for the casino and extra tips.

[paul929207]

Aloha :D

 

I thought all cruise line were no-cash on board. Gratuities for restaurants & room stewards were paid in the "voluntary/mandtory" daily service fee charge. On board purchases were charged to suite & settled up at end of cruise if you didn't leave an open credit card beforehand. The only cash I've seen recommended was for additional tips for exemplary service. Even pay as you go bar drinks had 18% tip included in charge, as did Spa visits.

 

You should really check this out if it is of concern.

 

Aloha :D

OP is looking for advice on how to settle his onboard account

[rakuroda]

I think you misunderstand what the OP is asking. They want to know if you prefer to pay your final bill using a credit card or cash. When you check in for the cruise, you must either give them a credit card or cash. But you are right that cruises are mostly cashless except for the casino and extra tips.

Aloha cruisead :D

 

The fact that I mis-understood OP is not unusual. My better half is always telling me that I don't read her mind correctly, but won't give me any classes in mind-reading. My reading is not much better, and even when I read the same material 4 or 5 times, I always notice points I missed previously.

 

I just post answers to questions I think were asked (entertaining to some people trying to figure out what the question was).

 

Aloha :D:D:D:D

[viccullen17]

I am using cash but only because I'm taking my sister who likes to waste money. So I can put a limit to how much she's going to use. On NCL they require a deposit of $300 per person and if you use that you either add more money or not buy anything else. To make it easier I pre-paid for all service charges, excursions and the specialty dining we want to try. We would only charge drinks(well she would because I don't drink) to our on-board account. This works for me but doesn't work for everyone. I am bringing a CC just incase.

[pscozz702]

We used to use credit cards but the last 4 cruises we switched to using cash. We would leave $1000 at the start and if we needed to add more we could or we could switch to credit card. With leaving cash the last night we would settle the account and get what was left over back in cash. We prefer cash because it helps limit unwanted spending. On one cruise while out at sea our account with a credit card was frozen because the bank saw fraudulent charges on it, luckily I had a back up, WHAT A HASSLE WHEN I GOT BACK HOME BOY I TELL YOU......an hour on the phone going over every charge, a bunch were made in the Carolinas while I was miles from land. All the Florida charges I had to agree with because that's where the cruise line goes to the bank. Plus if you max out your card by not paying attention to spending, when you need it you wont have it...But that is my opinion, not telling you what you should do.........But do check your balances daily any way which ever way you go, enjoy your cruise(s) and you try either credit or cash your choice your vacation.

[NMLady]

So going on our first(of many I hope) cruise and trying to decide if we should use our credit card or cash for our on-board account. So I thought I would ask on CC what do you prefer and why?

 

Also anyone that has used cash how does it work? Do you give them cash at the beginning and you get balance back at the end or do you just settle up at end?

 

Credit card since it is safer than bringing a lot of cash.

Also we have a card that gives us 1.5% back. That is better than most savings accounts.

[Scrapnana]

I prefer not to carry large sums of money so I use a credit card. I have a card that gives me 3% back on all charges from travel related companies so it's a win-win situation.

[BeachBill]

We prefer using a credit card for everything. I have a cash-back card, as others have posted, so we also reap a small reward for every dollar spent. I also like having a convenient record of all our travel expenses. :eek:

[Cuizer2]

So going on our first(of many I hope) cruise and trying to decide if we should use our credit card or cash for our on-board account. So I thought I would ask on CC what do you prefer and why?

 

Also anyone that has used cash how does it work? Do you give them cash at the beginning and you get balance back at the end or do you just settle up at end?

 

I prefer credit.

 

As to cash, you give the cruise line your cash at the beginning and then go to guest services at the end to get your balance back. This is just one of the reasons I prefer credit. They bring the statement to you, you don't have to get in line as guest services.

[kelkel2]

I prefer credit. As long as you're not one of those people who would go way overboard with their spending and would have an issue with over spending if you had a credit card attached to your account I would do it that way.

I know a friend of mine did cash because she was worried that her teen would spend and spend if she had a credit card on the account. She didn't realize she could put a limit on the kids card.

For me, I don't want to constantly pay attention to my bill to see if I need to go add more cash. I like knowing that my credit card is on the account and the bill is being taken care of.

[Keith1010]

It is so much easier to use Credit Card.

 

Keith

[OCruisers]

We use our credit card for our on board account.

The only cash we take is for extra tips and for things we do in ports of call.

[Chip and Dale]

So going on our first(of many I hope) cruise and trying to decide if we should use our credit card or cash for our on-board account. So I thought I would ask on CC what do you prefer and why?

 

Also anyone that has used cash how does it work? Do you give them cash at the beginning and you get balance back at the end or do you just settle up at end?

 

We are Canadian and have had issues with Royal Caribbean charging US to our Canadian Credit card, so we starting doing a cash account. We do not need to keep a balance on the ship board account. When the account reaches a few hundred dollars (this takes time since we usually have an onboard credit), they leave a note in the cabin to come down and post some money to the account. We bring US travellers cheques with us (we get them free of charge at the bank) and pay the account off the night before the cruise ends in US dollars.

 

The only problem we have ever had, believe it or not, is one cruise we were flagged getting off the ship and had to return to Guest Relations to get a refund of the equivalent of a bottle of water that we had used, but they had neglected to charge us for. It was pretty funny really, we simply could not get them to understand that we had used the water and were trying to be honest so we left it on the account thinking that it would be charged late on our final night. NOPE, something like a $6 refund at Guest Relations and then we were allowed to leave the ship.

Dee:)

[paul929207]

I am using cash but only because I'm taking my sister who likes to waste money. So I can put a limit to how much she's going to use. On NCL they require a deposit of $300 per person and if you use that you either add more money or not buy anything else. To make it easier I pre-paid for all service charges, excursions and the specialty dining we want to try. We would only charge drinks(well she would because I don't drink) to our on-board account. This works for me but doesn't work for everyone. I am bringing a CC just incase.

You will each have your own On Board Account. If your sister is old enough to drink, she should be old enough to manage her own account.

[Hlitner]

Using cash is a pain in the behind with most lines since they usually require that you maintain a certain amount on account. Every time you have to go to Guest Relations is just one more hassle on a cruise (we have taken 60+ day cruises without ever going to Guest Relations). Having a credit card on file is the easiest way. But for those who do not want to have a credit card bill there is a compromise. Given them a credit card at embarkation but on the last night of the cruise go to Guest Relations and settle your bill for cash (before it is actually charged to your card). Just be aware that most cruise lines will put some kind of "credit hold" on your credit card account to ensure that you have a sufficient credit limit.

 

Hank

[viccullen17]

You will each have your own On Board Account. If your sister is old enough to drink, she should be old enough to manage her own account.

 

 

I didn't know they could be separated, I thought that since we're in the same room we would share an account.

[Hlitner]

I didn't know they could be separated, I thought that since we're in the same room we would share an account.

 

On most cruise lines that decision is up to you. You can add other people to your onboard account or you can choose to keep that account for only yourself. But the cruise line will ask for some kind of guarantee during the check-in process be it a credit card (put on file) or a cash deposit. And they will expect this for every passenger.

 

Hank

[RobynT]

We have just returned from our first cruise (so much fun!) and did just what Hank explained. We had our account attached to a credit card, but we brought cash and paid off our account on the last night. Better for us Canadians right now too, as we had bought our US cash earlier at a better rate, and then no foreign exchange fees on a credit card transaction. We kept track of our account daily on the T.V. and it appeared that although we each had our own sail and sign account, mine just had my own spending on it, but my husband's had all the spending - as if it was a "master" account, probably because we were using his credit card. So I imagine it would easy for them to keep individual accounts separate.

[Illyria]

I can see where it might make more sense for someone using foreign currency to use cash if you were able to get a better exchange rate in advance.

 

For me - it's credit card, all the way, cash is way too much hassle to bother on vacation. Plus all my credit cards have perks (miles, points, cash back, etc.) I'd be throwing money away if I *didn't* use them.

[PaintedBird]

Since I get a way better exchange rate if I withdraw USD directly from my bank, it'll be cash for me with a credit card as the back up.

[luddite]

Use a credit card. Pay the bill a month later using deflated money.

 

Never, ever use a debit card for this.