Buyer's remorse?

[Strophic]

I bet he ends up loving it then!

 

Thanks, I hope so! Like I said I hope it's not too uncommon to experience these feelings early on and still have a great cruise when it finally arrives.

[Strophic]

I agree with the others in pulling up some videos like on You Tube and have him watch those. You can also tell him how much you guys deserve a vacation and you'd be glad to compare prices for different things.....then go out and get a some hotel prices for a week long vaca at Myrtle Beach......then add in all your food, gas, extras for entertainment, etc. See if you have much of a difference.

 

FYI....we haven't been to MB in about 6 years now, but we rented a house a few years in a row and just the house cost us $3000 for one week. Granted hotels will not cost that much, but that still didn't include our food and entertainment for the week. :)

 

I really like this idea. A mock budget for a land-based vacation might rely put things in perspective. We have been watching videos, but I don't want to go overboard to the point that there are no surprises left or overhype it to impossible expectations.

[Flatbush Flyer]

We're saving money by getting a guaranteed interior stateroom and by driving instead of flying. But we're going to the steakhouse and doing excursions in three out of four ports so I am also in the camp of thinking it's quite a good price for what we're getting.

 

 

Though I'd still question the quality for that low a cost, to can do the math and explain to your friend that $2400/7=$342/night. In any cosmopolitan city or major resort, that would be the cost of just a decent, memorable hotel (i.e., no food, no transport, no entertainment, etc).

Edited August 12, 2016 by Flatbush Flyer

[CapeCodCruiser]

My DH used to nitpick at vacation expenses - drove me nuts and ruined my time. Finally I told him he had to stop or stay home but I was no longer going to have him ruin my vacation with his constant worry about what everything costs! He decided to go all in! Now we travel stress free!

 

Tell BF:

 

"Getting that new computer last year was the best time" said NO ONE EVER!

 

:cool:

[AZ Ocean Lover]

He sounds like my husband when we first got married. I was used to taking family vacations and his family vacations were all camping and visiting relatives. I talked him into going to Hawaii and if that wasn't stressful enough for him I booked a couple of days in a resort and the rest of the time in a condo. This concept was totally foreign to him.

 

I could feel his stress level rise as we got closer to the resort from the airport. I could tell he felt like a fish out of water. We went to a lovely ocean side bar at the resort and had a beer. You could see the stress falling off of him. We often talk about that beer (25 years later). An immediate swim in the ocean was all it took for him to be hooked on the resort concept. The same anxiety came up as we approached the condo. By day two, he had moved in and was so relaxed that basically he was jello with eyeballs.

 

Needless to say, 25 years later we have been to Hawaii over 20 times as well as many other locales and cruises. He would much rather stay in a condo than a hotel but he trusts me completely to plan and book all of our vacations.

 

Play this one out, go on the cruise and hopefully it will change his whole view on the value of a good vacation.

[taglovestocruise]

A drinks package may mitigate obsessive numbers crunching. ;)

 

How much is the drinks package, how many drinks per day do I need to break even, do I need to tip extra to the bar staff, what happens to my overall cost percentage if I have a few beers instead of a cocktail. how do I know which cocktail to order to get the best bang for my buck, what happens on port days if I drink less than on a sea day, what happens if I have a sea sick day and can't drink at all, if we both get the package but don't order the same drinks who is getting the best deal, OMG I'am going crazy trying to make the numbers add up. If I skip the drink package I would be able to buy a printer for computer I could of bought instead of the cruise. Hold on for a minute while I do some number crunching, darn, I need a new calculator, maybe I should cancel one of the excursions and get a solar powered calculator instead, wait, I need to compare the cost of a solar calculator to cost of saving electricity or buying batteries..... Golly gosh, maybe I do need the drinks package..

[Strophic]

How much is the drinks package, how many drinks per day do I need to break even, do I need to tip extra to the bar staff, what happens to my overall cost percentage if I have a few beers instead of a cocktail. how do I know which cocktail to order to get the best bang for my buck, what happens on port days if I drink less than on a sea day, what happens if I have a sea sick day and can't drink at all, if we both get the package but don't order the same drinks who is getting the best deal, OMG I'am going crazy trying to make the numbers add up. If I skip the drink package I would be able to buy a printer for computer I could of bought instead of the cruise. Hold on for a minute while I do some number crunching, darn, I need a new calculator, maybe I should cancel one of the excursions and get a solar powered calculator instead, wait, I need to compare the cost of a solar calculator to cost of saving electricity or buying batteries..... Golly gosh, maybe I do need the drinks package..

 

Haha, that kind of thing is exactly what I was afraid of. Thankfully we don't drink alcohol so we're just gonna bring two 12-packs of Coke on the ship.

[78232]

My husband's family never vacationed when he was young so vacations was a new concept to him. Now he says his favorite thing about cruising is not seeing a bill every time we eat or do an activity.

[Seago2]

I just booked this week and I'm having a little buyer's remorse: not that I don't want to go, believe me, but it's a lot of money. I don't know anyone who would commit to a large sum of money without wondering if they've made a mistake or if it's going to be "worth it" or comparing the price of other things that money could go to. The answer is to get him on the ship. Just proceed as though it's a done deal, which it really seems to be, and trust me both of you will have fun. No cash, no bills, just an easy card to swipe :). Experiences are worth more than electronics, but everyone has a moment of doubt at times.

[NateUpNorth]

He likes gadgets.

You like vacations.

Doesn't sound like a big, giant issue to me. If he doesn't like it, then don't do it again. The fact he's willing to try it, despite his reservations, is a good thing.

[cruzkitty]

I am betting once on the Ship, with the Ocean breeze, the music playing, and all the FUN starts happening, he will love it and hopefully, forget about the costs. I had a hard time convincing my husband to spend the money when we first started cruising, and now after 16 cruises, he's like, When is our next cruise? I still tell him, If you can't beat em, join em!!

 

I sincerely hope you both have the vacation of your life and he falls in love with cruising!

[myfuzzy]

Been there, done that. Is he going just to make you happy? Is he going to be miserable and make you miserable too? Sounds like a lose lose situation to me, and that a lot of money to throw to the wind if he hates it.

 

Here's my story....back when my friend who had friends who had gone on a cruise. They came back and told her she should go. She was divorced had kids, I'm married, kids. So she asked me to go with her. I had never been near a boat, never the less on a CRUISE, they were for the RICH.

 

So we go, I just fell in love with cruising...so my friend and I went again, I wanted to share with my family, my DH didn't want any part of it, fought me all the way. So twice I took my kids....yeah, fun for me, but they learned a lot, (my son and DIL are sailing with us for the second time in a few weeks)

 

I finally put my foot down and booked a cruise for my DH and myself. I booked, paid, took care of everything....after all its a big boat, I can find something to do without him.

 

So..my thoughts.....he hates it, he will never speak to me again, he loves it he will pay going forward. Win win

 

He stepped foot on the ship and fell in love with cruising as I did....I never saw him so happy and relaxed. So now we are on our 30th cruise....Lord willing 30 more.

[Annmeat]

We're saving money by getting a guaranteed interior stateroom and by driving instead of flying. But we're going to the steakhouse and doing excursions in three out of four ports so I am also in the camp of thinking it's quite a good price for what we're getting.

 

Which ship and itinerary are you on? We may be able to give you additional cheerleading ammo!

[VennDiagram]

Though I'd still question the quality for that low a cost, to can do the math and explain to your friend that $2400/7=$342/night. In any cosmopolitan city or major resort, that would be the cost of just a decent, memorable hotel (i.e., no food, no transport, no entertainment, etc).

 

Please stop questioning the quality for "that low a cost". There are loads of good prices available if a person is somewhat flexible on their dates, itin, and don't expect a fancy-schmancy cabin.

[VennDiagram]

OP, my husband had never taken real vacations. Saving for retirement was his obsession, not computers or other electronic toys or car stuff -- money in the bank for retirement.

 

A few years ago he had either a huge loss, or a huge gain, not sure which (I suspect loss). He decided that obsessing about money in the bank was not improving his life. He suggested we go on a cruise. We did a cruise, and he is now a cruiser. He insisted that we book our next cruise while we were still on that first cruise. He still saves for retirement, but we also cruise every year.

 

Yes, there was buyer's remorse on his part (and we paid less than you are paying) but I made sure he was aware of all the financial decisions I was making. Also, we bought enough on board credit in advance that our final bill on the ship was about $10. We paid for everything in advance. So he had no worry about getting hit with a credit card bill after the cruise.

 

I hope your husband? boyfriend? (sorry, I did read your post, but now I've forgotten!) has a great time making memories with you on this cruise :)

[CapeCodCruiser]

Certainly wouldn't worry over $1200/person, which is "chump change" for a 7 day cruise. If anything, I'd worry about the quality of what I'd be getting for so little a cost.

 

Though I'd still question the quality for that low a cost, to can do the math and explain to your friend that $2400/7=$342/night. In any cosmopolitan city or major resort, that would be the cost of just a decent, memorable hotel (i.e., no food, no transport, no entertainment, etc).

 

Did you have anything helpful or just need to be snarky & pretentious?

[Strophic]

Did you have anything helpful or just need to be snarky & pretentious?

 

Rekt.

 

Which ship and itinerary are you on? We may be able to give you additional cheerleading ammo!

 

We are going to be on the Carnival Magic for a Cozumel-Belize-Roatan-Costa Mata cruise :) We already have a cave tubing and ATV excursion booked for Belize and a Horseback/Monkey Park/Snorkel excursion for Roatan. I will be finalizing the Cozumel excursion once I get a firmer answer from bf on whether or not he wants to spend the money (since he told me he wanted to do it) and then Costa Maya is just going to be a free day.

 

@VennDiagram, thank you for sharing your story! It was a relief, honestly. I hope my boyfriend falls in love with cruising too.

 

Plot twist, what if he has a great time and I end up hating it? That would be egg on my face—

[Travel_Lady_IL]

Good luck.

Edited August 12, 2016 by Travel_Lady_IL
Original post was mean

[CapeCodCruiser]

Rekt.

 

 

 

We are going to be on the Carnival Magic for a Cozumel-Belize-Roatan-Costa Mata cruise :) We already have a cave tubing and ATV excursion booked for Belize and a Horseback/Monkey Park/Snorkel excursion for Roatan. I will be finalizing the Cozumel excursion once I get a firmer answer from bf on whether or not he wants to spend the money (since he told me he wanted to do it) and then Costa Maya is just going to be a free day.

 

@VennDiagram, thank you for sharing your story! It was a relief, honestly. I hope my boyfriend falls in love with cruising too.

 

Plot twist, what if he has a great time and I end up hating it? That would be egg on my face—

 

Are you doing ships excursions or private - you can save a lot with private.

 

You both will love it - really.

[Strophic]

We are doing private excursions that we found through TripAdvisor. I think we're saving several hundred dollars between us by going this way.

[VennDiagram]

The quote function isn't working for me :(

 

We are going to be on the Carnival Magic for a Cozumel-Belize-Roatan-Costa Mata cruise We already have a cave tubing and ATV excursion booked for Belize and a Horseback/Monkey Park/Snorkel excursion for Roatan. I will be finalizing the Cozumel excursion once I get a firmer answer from bf on whether or not he wants to spend the money (since he told me he wanted to do it) and then Costa Maya is just going to be a free day.

 

@VennDiagram, thank you for sharing your story! It was a relief, honestly. I hope my boyfriend falls in love with cruising too.

 

Plot twist, what if he has a great time and I end up hating it? That would be egg on my face—

 

In Costa Maya, you can walk through the "tourism village" and find the cabs in behind the tourism village. Grab a cab to Mahahual

 

http://www.visitmexico.com/en/mahahual-costa-maya

 

The cab ride was $6/person to Mahahual back when we went, and $4ish/person back to the ship. The cab drivers all wanted US $$. There's a malecon you can walk along, and beautiful clear water and sandy beach. Tables and chairs are available and you are expected to purchase something from the restaurants that supply them.

 

I'm smiling just thinking about it -- feels like time for a W. Carib cruise :)

 

(Glad my story helped reassure you....)

 

Are you booking your shorex through the ship? Is this your first cruise, too?

[CPT Trips]

How much is the drinks package, how many drinks per day do I need to break even, do I need to tip extra to the bar staff, what happens to my overall cost percentage if I have a few beers instead of a cocktail. how do I know which cocktail to order to get the best bang for my buck, what happens on port days if I drink less than on a sea day, what happens if I have a sea sick day and can't drink at all, if we both get the package but don't order the same drinks who is getting the best deal, OMG I'am going crazy trying to make the numbers add up. If I skip the drink package I would be able to buy a printer for computer I could of bought instead of the cruise. Hold on for a minute while I do some number crunching, darn, I need a new calculator, maybe I should cancel one of the excursions and get a solar powered calculator instead, wait, I need to compare the cost of a solar calculator to cost of saving electricity or buying batteries..... Golly gosh, maybe I do need the drinks package..

 

Pick the "right" line and no extra charge. Just don't let him in on the decision of which perk. :rolleyes: But if he is seriously CDO . . . compulsive people prefer alphabetic order . . . you are OLS (SoL).

[Strophic]

The quote function isn't working for me :(

 

 

 

In Costa Maya, you can walk through the "tourism village" and find the cabs in behind the tourism village. Grab a cab to Mahahual

 

http://www.visitmexico.com/en/mahahual-costa-maya

 

The cab ride was $6/person to Mahahual back when we went, and $4ish/person back to the ship. The cab drivers all wanted US $$. There's a malecon you can walk along, and beautiful clear water and sandy beach. Tables and chairs are available and you are expected to purchase something from the restaurants that supply them.

 

I'm smiling just thinking about it -- feels like time for a W. Carib cruise :)

 

(Glad my story helped reassure you....)

 

Are you booking your shorex through the ship? Is this your first cruise, too?

 

Ooh that looks like fun...this will be my third cruise, although my first was on Disney Magic at age 5 and second was Carnival Triumph at age 13, so it's been quite a while for me.

[Wheatie59]

Two books for suggested reading. One is Dave Ramsey's "Total Money Makeover". This has basic advice for getting your financial house in order. That addresses the very basic question here: Do you have enough money to cover your living expenses and still put money into long term, untouchable savings? Or are you racking up credit card debt on vacations and stuff? Do you have (hopefully) a true emergency fund with at least three months expenses or (at least) a $1000 "baby emergency fund"? If you're putting computers, cruises, or routine expenses on credit cards you need to re-prioritize your spending. Getting your financial house in order should take priority over vacations and toys. Took me a LOOOOOOONG time to learn this and get my act together.

 

The second is more fun. "Happy Money". This provides good, science-backed ways of spending money to make yourself happy. A couple of them apply here. One is that experiences provide more happiness than stuff. Of course, some stuff is an experience in itself, and a computer or playstation might fall into that category. But if he buys and then doesn't use, then its the experience of buying that he's craving, not the actual possession of the thing. A all-too-common situation in our advertising driven world. A second recommendation is "pay now, consume later". By paying for something now, but consuming that something later you will be happier. This doesn't mean put it on a credit card, that's just the opposite. This means spend the money first and then get the benefit of what you bought down the road. Further, there's pretty good evidence that the anticipation of a vacation or other experience can be as powerful as the experience itself for generating happiness.

[Strophic]

So I shared this thread with my boyfriend when he got home from work and he agrees with a lot of you! :) He especially agreed with the notion that he is more afraid of the unknown than the actual trip, since he has never had an experience like this before he has absolutely no idea how he will feel about it. But he is feeling better about going on the cruise and probably just needs to see that ship in person.