How not to break the bank while onboard?

[killintime]

From the way they nickel and dime you to death from the moment you get on board, maybe they are banking on you spending $1000+. that's why the cruise itself is so darn cheap!!! I think I am going to buy Carnival stock!

[imazz]

I usually buy all my pictures on the last day. Some people say that there are usually sales or discounts. But they usually throw in a picture frame or something as oppose to a discount. Buying your pictures on the last day helps you review the 4 or 5 best pictures of the cruise. So you should never regret buying a picture on the first day.

 

Another thing in which you can save a ton of money on is not to buy doubles from the cruise line. I know that when i was onboard a Carnival ship, they said that they put these security stuff on the pictures which prevents you from copying outside of the ship. But that's not true. I went to my local Wal-Mart to get my pictures copied and they all turned out fine.

[gizmo]

I have heard people reference shipboard credits. How do you get them? Are they free or do you merely pay extra money when you pay for the cruise that they hold for you?

 

Many TA's have promo's that give you a ship board credit when you book with them. Same goes for cruise lines. They run promotions to get people to book. There is also stock. CCL and RCL wil give you an onboard credit if you own a 100 shares of stock. The amount of the credit is based on the number of days of the cruise.

[bmkrjk]

Thanks for all the money saving ideas. :)

 

 

[ngl116]

My husband and I tend to drink a lot on our cruises, it's not often that we can both have a few and not have to worry about who's driving. This year we are going to pack a bottle or 2 of our own libations and mix with the tea and lemonade and punch. Also, last year we saved a lot of money by reading our capers and hitting all the "happy hours" at the different bars. We also made sure to pay the refill price for the drink of the day each time by bringing the cup we bought on the first day back to the bar with us. Finally we book all of our own shore excursions. We are scuba divers and it is amazing how much they mark up the price for their dive excursions. (Example: Would have cost us over $750 to dive in 3 ports this year thru Carnival, we're diving in 4 ports for just under $500 by booking ourselves!) :D

[CruisinOnWheels]

a lil help please...first time ever cruisers on the Rahapsody (RCI) from Galveston 12/3...

 

We are drving down to Glaveston staying over night there night before, then one night on drive back home & have budgeted for that.

 

Cruise is paid for, we have not booked any shore excursions...will probably do some independent ones, rent a car and do self tours, etc (handicapped accessible is a concern)

 

Wife and I do not drink, may want to gamble a bit (on a budget), play bingo...not interested in art auctions, may do some room service.

 

We have budgeted $200 for grats for both of us ($140 suggested, $60 room service tips).

 

It looks like beside all out other expenses that we have already paid, or have budgeted for...we should have about an extra $1,000, does this sound ok?

[PrincessDaphne]

BINGO (now my daughter likes to play along with me)

PHOTOS (I buy every one of them!!!!!)

SHOPPING ON THE SHIP (I go there at least 2 times a day)

 

Yah, it's hopeless for me.

[lovemylab]

We did a cruise for our honeymoon and our onboard spending was minimal. For seven days we spent around $300 onboard (including tips and tuxedo rental). We are not gamblers and only bought one drink onboard. We didn't go to the specialty restaurants as we found the food in the dining room was excellent.

 

I would have loved to have spent more but with the expenses from the wedding we had to set a budget. Because it was our first cruise everything was new to us anyways - we didn't feel like we were missing out by not going to the spa, specialty restaurants, etc.

 

Whenever a photographer offered to take our photo I politely declined. By doing this I wouldn't be tempted to buy that same photo. The only photos we had taken were on formal night and we only bought a 5x7.

 

We only did one ship excursion - everything else we did on our own.

 

Even though we had a budget for our cruise we still had a fabulous time. The key is to determine what is most important to you and spend your money on that. For us, we preferred to have more money for onshore spending.

[ultimatemaniaccruiser]

My best memories of my first cruise when I was pretty young (10 years old or so) was riding in a cab with a rusted out floor in Barbados on a "no bs tour" of the island. Pretty eye opening.

 

I remember that a lot of times on that cruise we just got cabs to local beaches. The cabbie would pick us up again at a set time and be paid upon return to the ship. Is this still doable?