60 days till our cruise and i've just lost my job

[Budget Queen]

Everyone has given you great and cheap idea's but I will have to bring up one that has not been mentioned.

 

You are saying a lot to justify why you should still go, great if it works out but me being a realist you have also said a lot to justify why you maybe shouldn't go. So I have to bring up travel insurance, do you have it in case you have to/should cancel?

 

Life happens and you also have health issues and the possibly that maybe DH gets new job offer and cant go or (god forbid) he has continuing health obstacles. There is no flying by the seat of your pants here and hoping it all turns out ok, you may have to think about alternatives.

 

It happens, but that is a lot of money to lose if you need to cancel for any reason. Think carefully about it as it is in your control right now and you still have a chance to prepare financially just in case.

 

I'm also a realist. :) And completely see this point of view. Hopefully the OP, has that 6 months of income on hand, and also several contacts for employment?

 

At this point, I would also think the cruise cancellation percentage is still not 100%?

 

I'm never one, to claim, "oh everything will be alright" , anyway- many times it isn't.

 

There appears to be financial problems. Depends to what degree, and how it's going to be, after this short vacation, and what consequences this spending will end up as.

 

General comment only.

[StaceySteveDMB]

We will be on this same cruise! We have never been to St. Maarten, but have been to San Juan and Grand Turk multiple times.

 

For San Juan , the map and walking tour that are attached did not originally go together, but if you use the map to guide you around town, you can use the walking tour for additional sites as well as a historical description of each stop along the way. FYI the numbers on the map do not match the numbers on the walking tour. While in Old San Juan I would recommend stopping for a snack or lunch at this little bakery on Calle O’Donnell. I do not know the name of the bakery, but it is across the street from Plaza Colon. It is operated by a little old Puerto Rican woman that makes the best empanadas and croquetas. You can get a bag full of good food for $10-$15 that would be enough food for all four of you. Be sure to go inside the Cathedral of San Juan. It is one of the two places in the world that claim to house the remains of Ponce de Leon, the other is in Havana.

 

In Grand Turk I would bypass Margaritaville as the cost for food and drinks is crazy. Head to Jacks Shack a few hundred yards north of Margaritaville. The beach is actually much nicer and the food and drinks are very reasonable. Chairs are free and umbrellas are only like $10.

 

I hope to see you there!

[StaceySteveDMB]

It appears that the historical descriptions of the San Juan location did not upload. Send me your email and I will email it to you if you want it.

[Doggielover68]

You can do what I do to earn some extra cash for the trip. Have a yard sale or sell some things on Craigslist. I just ask myself what I would rather have, a lifetime of memories vs some material object that I forgot I had. :)

 

 

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[Viesczy]

Firstly, that SUX! I'm sorry to hear you lost your gig after being told 'oh no, you're all good"! Now you'll be able to collect, right? You just got yourself, what 26-53 weeks of paid time off?! Yeah it might be a little less $ than you were bringing, but you're still on a half year vacation w some income still coming in.

 

Secondly, everyone listed all that I thought too--no booze, no specialty restaurants ETC. All the ports you're going to are pretty much self service too with points of interest very close by. You'll be able to have a great time w/o worrying.

 

Enjoy your time, you're on vacation for the cruise and then some!

 

Really!

 

Think on it this way, you were working to make someone else rich and them paying you the least amount that they thought they could pay you while they still got rich!

[Ragdollbd]

I was in St. Maarten in January 2015. Booked online with Jo Junie Tours, $45.00 They took us on a tour of the island, stopped at Orient Beach, Maho Beach, little shopping area. Great tour, check it out online.

[evandbob]

Re: Sint Maarten - I believed I read that Maho Beach has been washed away and now is a rocky shoreline.

 

If that is true, then it's probably safest to watch any landings or takeoffs from the local bar. Order a coke. People have been blown away by jet exhaust when they stand on the road or try clinging to the fence. Plenty of that evidence on you tube.

Edited September 23, 2015 by evandbob

[barbaro_3003]

St. Maarten, we rented a car for the day $50. We got to plan our own itinerary; We went to the airport to watch the planes land. We also found a free beach while waiting for a non-cruise excursion we had paid for. One person takes water taxi to Phillipsburg, picks up the rental car, then drive back to the port to pick everyone else up.

I'll not kid you and tell you that driving on the island is effortless, but its no worse than what we deal with every day in Atlanta.

 

San Juan, as it has been said there is a free shuttle that will take you up to the fort. I recommend taking the shuttle up to the Morro fort, touring the fort, then walking from Morro to Crisobal fort (easy downhill walk along the sea wall, you will walk right down by the La Perla neighborhood), tour the Cristobal fort, then walk downhill back through OSJ to the ship.

Added bonus, both Morro and Cristobal are run by National Park Service. If your elementary school kid happens to be in the 4th grade, NPS is giving away free annual NPS passes to 4th graders this year. I think it gets the whole family into any NPS run facilities.

 

Good luck, and enjoy your cruise. Life will still be there when you get back!

 

-E

[Whiskey60]

Thanks so much!

 

We were hoping to go to Maho to see the planes come in but I've heard we probably don't want to spend your entire day there - any ideas for after we see the planes?

 

Would love to have a driver for the day if we could find one that was reasonable but I haven't been able to find anything so far. This would probably be our only stop that we would actually "do" something.

 

Bummer and sad to hear the news. For St Marteen the last time I was there was in April and we had a group of 8 and used http://www.thestmaartenpartybus.com/ ... They were great and the price included 2 or 3 drinks per person but you could easily buy more from them for 2 bucks so not that expensive at all. They also take you around the entire island and give you a history of the island while doing so. Its a very fun atmosphere and you also had time at the end to do a little window shopping before having to head back to the ship.

 

I only suggest this as you did say you had a fairly large group so this would be a great one to use and a fun all day excursion.

[LMaxwell]

In St. Maarten walk to Back Street (free) and get into a Bus (looks identical to cabs, license plate will say BUS) can get all over the island for a fraction of the cost of one cab ride anywhere.

 

We took a bus from Back Street to Marigot, then a bus from Marigot to Maho to watch the planes, then another bus back. I think we spent $6 per person for all of this. The busses run CONSTANTLY and have a sign in their front window of what the next stop is. Got some great food for two of us at a cafe in Marigot +/- $10 and you can find beers on the street for about a buck or two. The total for both of us with some food and drinks was less than the cost of one person to do the cheapest excursion with no add ons.

 

The only difference between a bus and a taxi is a bus will pick up and drop off others along the route, a taxi won't. But it is WAY cheaper.

[LMaxwell]

Thanks so much!

 

We were hoping to go to Maho to see the planes come in but I've heard we probably don't want to spend your entire day there - any ideas for after we see the planes?

 

Would love to have a driver for the day if we could find one that was reasonable but I haven't been able to find anything so far. This would probably be our only stop that we would actually "do" something.

 

30-45 minutes is probably enough time to see a bunch of planes in Marigot. There is a supermarket on the corner where busses drop you off. You can get food/refreshments there for a fraction of the bar price.

 

If you gave me $50/couple to do St Maarten I could easily do it with eating and some drinks. You just can't hit the expensive tourist trap bars/restaurants. But you can see a lot, get all around, and sample the foods no problem.

 

Grand Turk is a beach day; for lunch I'd just go back onto the ship and eat there.

[mykindaparty]

It was for 6 ppl, but they are negotiable. We had the driver for 5 hrs. When you get off the boat just walk to the round open area where the grocery store is, it's inside the port area to the right. We just asked for a taxi to take us around the city and to the beach and see the planes and they tell you which ones to go see. It was 35.00 pp and we negotiated down to 20.00. Some of the places we saw were absolutely breathtaking. You won't have any trouble finding them when you get off the boat. There are plenty there.

[smyliecruising]

My husband and I have 5 kiddos and went on an anniversary cruise alone. We hardly had any money to spend on the ship or excursions. We didn't gamble we brought our own two bottles of wine and our pop onboard. We didn't eat at any specialty restaurants or have any drinks, we didn't spend anything and we had the most wonderful time of our lives!! We jumped on a bus and went to the beach at two different stops and just rented snorkeling equipment and drank/ate a fresh coconut each. We did go to a restaurant in Jamaica and that was fun and inexpensive, also just using transportation from the pier. When I do take all of my children on a cruise someday I won't be taking an excursion at every port that is for sure and we won't be eating in the specialty restaurants most likely. It costs a lot when you bring a bunch of people. We've had just as much fun sitting around a campfire eating hotdogs as we have had when we all go and eat at a seafood restaurant! Just being together relaxing and making memories is what it's all about! You will never regret this penny pinching week together at Thanksgiving! May you find another job quickly that pays twice as much!!

Edited September 23, 2015 by smyliecruising

[springs741]

Just being together relaxing and making memories is what it's all about! You will never regret this penny pinching week together at Thanksgiving! May you find another job quickly that pays twice as much!!

 

 

What a beautiful sentiment. I think that might be the best post on this thread.

[Miller_KC]

If any of your family are Star Wars fans the man that created Yoda and many other special effects in the first movies has a shop on St Ma Just across the bay from the ship and one street back from the boardwalk (19a Voorstaat, aka Front Street). You can look around his shop and, if he's there, meet him for free. If you buy something, or pay a small fee around $10 you can go through his movie museum. It's small but interesting. Listening to him tell stories about making movies in the '70s is the best part.

[GeorgiaMomof4]

Wow - so much great information here!

 

Thanks everyone so much for all the tips and well wishes.

 

I will be commenting and asking some questions to some of you individually later this evening but just wanted to say thanks for all the tips.

 

My job was getting so stressful that my DH said it was probably a blessing in disguise that they did away with my job because I would probably have ended up having a heart attack or stroke at the rate things were going.

 

I'm seriously considering opening a daycare because there is a need here in the community where I live. There is something very appealing to me about being my own boss but I've always worked outside the home so I'm not sure I wouldn't go stir crazy being home every day even though I do love children. My DH and I are foster parents and have been for the past 10 years. We've currently got our 4 plus 2 foster sons who are 2 and 10 months.

 

I have a lot to think about and pray about in the next few weeks.

 

Once again, thanks for the tips and keep them coming if you have any more.

[LuckyZ]

Hey everyone!

 

Our ship is the Sunshine and our ports are San Juan, St. Marteen and Grand Turk.

 

You guys have always been a wealth of information for me so I'm asking again!

 

Thanks in advance!

 

As for saving money at the ports,

A) San Juan - there is a lot of great sightseeing in Old San Juan and it's all walking distance. For example, the 2 forts are very cool and minimal entrance fee

B) St Maarten - you can buy a water taxi daily pass for like $6 pp and it takes you downtown to where they have a nice public beach

C) Grand Turk - great beach right off the ship. Chairs are free. Just stay away from Margheritaville (expensive drinks)

[volmoma]

Thanks so much!

 

 

 

We were hoping to go to Maho to see the planes come in but I've heard we probably don't want to spend your entire day there - any ideas for after we see the planes?

 

 

 

Would love to have a driver for the day if we could find one that was reasonable but I haven't been able to find anything so far. This would probably be our only stop that we would actually "do" something.

 

 

FYI...Check the flight schedule, you don't want to be there all day and not see a plane. Not sure how busy that airport is. We've been several times and have never gone. This was something I really didn't think about, we go back in January, and I'm making it a point to go see the planes. LOL Wishing you a wonderful cruise!

[NoName]

When we wanted to see the planes come in in St. Maarten, we took the bus! I think it was about $2.00 each and was really simple. I am sure if you search, you will find good instructions, but I remember walking one street over from main street, I think it was called "back" street. The buses are older mini-vans. It was really fun to ride with the locals and check out the sites along the way. Google it!

[tigercat]

One thing you might look into is putting a block on the cruise cards of family members who are on your account ... i.e. credit card. That way they can't buy anything on board and you won't have any unpleasant surprises.

 

If you'll be ashore during lunch, make sandwiches at the breakfast buffet to take with you. Just throw a bunch of Ziploc bags into your suitcase. You might even be able to make a snack mix, depending on what is on the buffet, such as raisins or other dried fruit and nuts

 

You can't take food off the ship. In some places they have dogs to sniff out food. There is always a sign at the debarkation point telling you not to take food off.

tigercat

[realjd]

You can't take food off the ship. In some places they have dogs to sniff out food. There is always a sign at the debarkation point telling you not to take food off.

tigercat

 

The customs dogs are mainly at US ports. You can typically take food off, even in US ports, just not fruits, vegetables, or meats. The concern is agricultural contamination. Breads, candies, and manufactured/packaged foods like cereal boxes are typically fine.

[springs741]

Dogs are showing up in other ports too. In February and in July there were dogs in Cozumel. I watched from my balcony for about an hour. If "Fido" sniffed and sat then something was in the bag. There was a big trash can filled in a very short time. I don't understand, there are signs that tell you not to take items off the ship. Why can't people just follow the rules?

[pretzellover]

This happened to us several years ago. Go, stay on board, and relax for your week. Stressing on board won't make things better, but you can use that one week to just distract and detach.

 

 

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[tdk1938]

You like to visit Maho beach and see planes landing in St. Maarten, go there in the afternoon. Usually the most large planes land in the afternoon. Our HAL ship left at 3 pm from St. Maarten, so we're there around noon and didn't see much. We just saw a couple of small puddle jumpers landing there. So look around by the port in the morning, back to ship for lunch and go to Maho beach in the afternoon. Since your ship leaves at 6 pm so you could spend a few hours at Maho beach, and get back to port by 5 pm. Check St Maarten board, they should have public transportation to Maho beach from the port area/downtown Phillpsburg.

 

For San Juan, we visited two forts (San Cristobal and San Felipe del Morro). We walked to San Cristobal but I felt hot and humid so I took two younger kids and went back to ship. But my DW and oldest kid took a trolley and went to El Morro from San Cristobal.

 

We made Grand Turk as our beach day and went back to ship for lunch and we didn't spent any money at San Juan and Grand Turk.

[sana216]

Thanks so much!

 

We were hoping to go to Maho to see the planes come in but I've heard we probably don't want to spend your entire day there - any ideas for after we see the planes?

 

Would love to have a driver for the day if we could find one that was reasonable but I haven't been able to find anything so far. This would probably be our only stop that we would actually "do" something.

 

We just went there last month. The cabs cost $20 each way to the beach. The only thing to do after watching the planes is to head to a restaurant (which are a little high priced) or $20 more dollars back to the ship. Also, watch what cab you hire. The police had us get out of one because the driver did not have proper paperwork for driving a cab. I'm glad they are watching out for the tourists.