Cruising on the Cheap

[D&L Thomas]

2 hours ago, GUT2407 said:

Never had a move over offer, nit sure how I’d feel, a move down I’d be all over.

 

My understanding is the move-overs are more commonly offered to those who live near the port and thus do not have to consider airfare. I have heard of people sailing a week or two later, instead of their original sail sate, for a full or partial refund.

Edited March 24, 2019 by D&L Thomas

[MicCanberra]

9 minutes ago, D&L Thomas said:

 

My understanding is the move-overs are more commonly offered to those who live near the port and thus do not have to consider airfare. I have heard of people sailing a week or two later, instead of their original sail sate, for a full or partial refund.

That may be the general rule but it is not a hard and fast rule, as with ours, they had offered it to many international guests and also to us. We are not local to the port.

[ldubs]

12 hours ago, Hlitner said:

Not sure we understand the question asked by the OP.  If it is a matter of having little or no bill at the end of a cruise, this has nothing to do with the overall cost. 

 

I read it as the OP is asking to have a fun discussion about how much (or little) is owed on the shipboard account at the end of the cruise.  

[pris993]

guess I don't understand the question... using an on board credit makes sense to me, I have little or no out of pocket expensive??

 

 

[cruzin4us]

I guess I wasn't clear in my original post.   Many of us newbies don't have OBC, so just (for fun) I'm trying to figure out how you can cruise on the cheap.  Purchasing OBC in advance doesn't count.   But by avoiding alcohol, the casino, bingo, specialty dining, spa visits, photos, etc, you can cruise cheaply.   I always have good intentions of having a zero balance (with the exception gratuities), but that never happens.   I envy those that have "self control" and can cruise without purchasing the extras.   Maybe if I cruised more often I wouldn't splurge on some of the unnecessary items (such as lobster in the Pinnacle Grill). 

 

I always tell my husband we will do a "cheap cruise" meaning we will book an inside cabin.   Then, I find myself upgrading to a balcony, then I end up with an aft cabin.  Pretty soon I've made dining reservations at the Specialty Dining, then I end up buying lobster and pretty soon I've taken advantage of the port day spa specials.  The bottom line is I have no self control when I cruise.   

 

My bill always tends to be around $1,000 even though I have every intention of it being around $200.  First time cruisers are usually shell shocked by their final bill because I don't think they realize there is a charge for many items.   Such as specialty coffees, water when getting off the ship, etc.   

 

My intent of this post was just a way to show how you can get by cruising cheaply if you avoid certain things.   

 

 

 

 

[Joebucks]

11 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

I suppose using OBC no matter where it comes from to pay for everything should be excluded as well then.

 

I have no idea what you keep going on about. The OP has stated that this was about the total cost. 

 

In a discussion on how to save money on cruises. It almost always comes up that prepaying the same amount you would post-pay is some kind of tip and trick on how to save money because at the end you feel better. Since you feel different, it's a savings. If I pay $3000 for my cruise, it's $3000. The money isn't any different because I spent it before I left vs when I came home. Now yes, if you have instances where prepaying may offer you a discount or even a favorable exchange rate, then that's an actual savings (if you planned on buying it already). Let's be real, this isn't what most people are talking about though. Getting a free OBC to bring down your bill absolutely also counts. However, people will also purchase OBC beforehand as another "tip" to pay less at the end, again, not a savings.

 

Anyways, when I want to cruise cheap:

- Interior cabin

- Off-peak season

- No buying photos (take our own)

- Stay away from alcohol packages/limit consumption. Can buy a bottle for significantly cheaper. Bring what is allowed.

- Limit specialty restaurants. Maybe 1 or so for a special occasion.

Edited March 24, 2019 by Joebucks

[navybankerteacher]

Obviously the way to cruise cheap is:

a) Start cheap by shopping around, only looking at last minute bargains, and then book minimum (inside) cabin.

b) Continue cheap by only eating included meals, only drinking tap water and included beverages, only doing walk-about in ports, staying out of casino, not buying drinks, stuffing crew by cancelling gratuities.

 

Of course, you could save even more by staying home on your vacation and watching TV.

 

The point of cruising, however, is to give yourself a bit of luxury -so why try to negate the point.

[calliopecruiser]

4 hours ago, Joebucks said:

people will also purchase OBC beforehand

You can do that???

[navybankerteacher]

2 hours ago, calliopecruiser said:

You can do that???

I’ve seen posters referring to purchasing on board credit in advance.  Just one of a number of inexplicable things some cruisers think of doing.

[MicCanberra]

 

9 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

I guess I wasn't clear in my original post.   Many of us newbies don't have OBC, so just (for fun) I'm trying to figure out how you can cruise on the cheap.  Purchasing OBC in advance doesn't count.   But by avoiding alcohol, the casino, bingo, specialty dining, spa visits, photos, etc, you can cruise cheaply.   I always have good intentions of having a zero balance (with the exception gratuities), but that never happens.   I envy those that have "self control" and can cruise without purchasing the extras.   Maybe if I cruised more often I wouldn't splurge on some of the unnecessary items (such as lobster in the Pinnacle Grill). 

 

I always tell my husband we will do a "cheap cruise" meaning we will book an inside cabin.   Then, I find myself upgrading to a balcony, then I end up with an aft cabin.  Pretty soon I've made dining reservations at the Specialty Dining, then I end up buying lobster and pretty soon I've taken advantage of the port day spa specials.  The bottom line is I have no self control when I cruise.   

 

My bill always tends to be around $1,000 even though I have every intention of it being around $200.  First time cruisers are usually shell shocked by their final bill because I don't think they realize there is a charge for many items.   Such as specialty coffees, water when getting off the ship, etc.   

 

My intent of this post was just a way to show how you can get by cruising cheaply if you avoid certain things.   

 

 

 

 

Thanks for clarifying what I suggested.

 

[MicCanberra]

 

9 hours ago, Joebucks said:

 

I have no idea what you keep going on about. The OP has stated that this was about the total cost. 

 

In a discussion on how to save money on cruises. It almost always comes up that prepaying the same amount you would post-pay is some kind of tip and trick on how to save money because at the end you feel better. Since you feel different, it's a savings. If I pay $3000 for my cruise, it's $3000. The money isn't any different because I spent it before I left vs when I came home. Now yes, if you have instances where prepaying may offer you a discount or even a favorable exchange rate, then that's an actual savings (if you planned on buying it already). Let's be real, this isn't what most people are talking about though. Getting a free OBC to bring down your bill absolutely also counts. However, people will also purchase OBC beforehand as another "tip" to pay less at the end, again, not a savings.

 

Anyways, when I want to cruise cheap:

- Interior cabin

- Off-peak season

- No buying photos (take our own)

- Stay away from alcohol packages/limit consumption. Can buy a bottle for significantly cheaper. Bring what is allowed.

- Limit specialty restaurants. Maybe 1 or so for a special occasion.

No they didn't the OP wants to know how cheap the total on board costs are, not the total cost of the cruise, which is why I said OBC should be excluded.

[MicCanberra]

4 hours ago, calliopecruiser said:

You can do that???

yes, it can work out beneficial as well as controlling post cruise bill shock.

[MicCanberra]

1 hour ago, navybankerteacher said:

I’ve seen posters referring to purchasing on board credit in advance.  Just one of a number of inexplicable things some cruisers think of doing.

It can be very advantageous for people who are cruising on international cruises and are not from the US.

[Zeashore]

@Knoxscoop,   

We typically have booked through the cruise line for excursions but this time booked one (out of four excursions) through shoreexcursioneers.com .   I think this is a COSTCO product.  It was about 20% less expensive; NO issues and got back to the ship on time.   All reviews were very positive. 

We will certainly be doing that again.

Enjoy your trip and excursions!

Zeashore

[calliopecruiser]

4 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

It can be very advantageous for people who are cruising on international cruises and are not from the US

How so.....you're still paying in US dollars, whether you pay for it ahead of time, or pay for it at the end of the cruise, right?  I know there might be an exchange difference, but that can't be much more than $20 or $30 difference, as I see it.  Sure, it's a savings, but it doesn't seem very significant in light of the cost of the cruise - hardly "very advantageous", unless I"m missing something. 

[GUT2407]

12 minutes ago, calliopecruiser said:

How so.....you're still paying in US dollars, whether you pay for it ahead of time, or pay for it at the end of the cruise, right?  I know there might be an exchange difference, but that can't be much more than $20 or $30 difference, as I see it.  Sure, it's a savings, but it doesn't seem very significant in light of the cost of the cruise - hardly "very advantageous", unless I"m missing something. 

Sometimes the cruise lines offer fantastic exchange rates, you can, at times gain as much as $30 on every $100 you prepurchase, last year (maybe it was early this year) one line was offering dollar for dollar US to Aus, when the official rate was around 70c, so pre purchase $1000 you benefited $300, a big win.

[calliopecruiser]

19 minutes ago, GUT2407 said:

one line was offering dollar for dollar US to Aus, when the official rate was around 70c, so pre purchase $1000 you benefited $300, a big win.

Yeah, that's more significant!

[GUT2407]

1 hour ago, calliopecruiser said:

Yeah, that's more significant!

Some buy even more, cash out on board and have $US to spend on shore

[MicCanberra]

2 hours ago, calliopecruiser said:

How so.....you're still paying in US dollars, whether you pay for it ahead of time, or pay for it at the end of the cruise, right?  I know there might be an exchange difference, but that can't be much more than $20 or $30 difference, as I see it.  Sure, it's a savings, but it doesn't seem very significant in light of the cost of the cruise - hardly "very advantageous", unless I"m missing something. 

As mentioned, sometimes it is the rate offered rather than the current exchange rate, sometimes it is to prepay to limit bill shock at the end of a cruise and it may be just to have more money left on the credit card for other travels after the cruise. The good thing is the option to do it..

[MicCanberra]

16 minutes ago, GUT2407 said:

Some buy even more, cash out on board and have $US to spend on shore

Have done that but cruise lines are making that harder to do.

[ldubs]

16 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

 

My bill always tends to be around $1,000 even though I have every intention of it being around $200.  First time cruisers are usually shell shocked by their final bill because I don't think they realize there is a charge for many items.   Such as specialty coffees, water when getting off the ship, etc.   

 

 

Speaking of shell shocked, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say a fair number of cruisers may feel just that way at the end of a cruise when they see their bar bill.  

 

And, let's not forget  folks who don't think to put their phones in airplane mode.  I wonder how many folks have returned home to be surprised by big data bills from their cell companies.  Happened to my SIL, though they gave her the benefit of the doubt and credited out several hundred in charges.  

[MicCanberra]

3 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

Speaking of shell shocked, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say a fair number of cruisers may feel just that way at the end of a cruise when they see their bar bill.  

 

And, let's not forget  folks who don't think to put their phones in airplane mode.  I wonder how many folks have returned home to be surprised by big data bills from their cell companies.  Happened to my SIL, though they gave her the benefit of the doubt and credited out several hundred in charges.  

Yes, I always tell friends and family new to cruising to turn their phones off or at least their data.

[OzKiwiJJ]

More important to us is that our onboard spending comes in under the budget we have set. We enjoy having some drinks during our cruise, maybe dinner at a speciality restaurant sometimes. Then there are some items we prefer to send to the ship's laundry, usually because they need pressing after washing. We allow for a little extra spending onboard to cover situations like the time my face powder compact disintegrated and I had to buy a new one onboard. We set a realistic budget and, although we don't obsess about it during our cruise, are always very happy when we end the cruise under budget.

[D&L Thomas]

As new giddy retirees we choose to cruise often and as inexpensively as we can. We book insides or GTY balconies and never pay more than $100 pp/per night. We don’t drink or gamble and have majorly downsized so we don’t shop much either. We will occasionally do a specialty restaurant or spa visit if we have OBC to burn.

 

This is not a hardship for us, just the way we prefer to go.

 

I had to chuckle at the lobster. Living in New England I wouldn’t dream of ordering lobster on a cruise ship. 🦞 

[Itchy&Scratchy]

usually just the gratuities and, maybe, an occasional cocktail or gelato. Mostly, just the gratuities.

We have no interest in drink packages, specialty restaurants, gambling, spa, photos, onboard shopping (maybe, an occasional $10 gift for someone), etc.

 

Before having a school aged kid we were able to cruise for a lot less money by avoiding school breaks. I remember cruising for $258 pp for a 7 day cruise on RCI's new ships (not megaships) just a few years ago...

Edited March 25, 2019 by Itchy&Scratchy