How do people afford $20,000 suites?

[Ret MP]

2 minutes ago, Tatka said:

 

OP describes their earnings (well into 6 digits salary each) and savings ($2 millions). Please tell me OP does not understand how $20K for a suite can be earned?

 

Or does OP really spends two 6 digits salaries on living expenses?

 

Does OP thinks only they can earn money?

 

 

But, nothing about the why!  The OP was not a WHY post.  

 

 

[Cayman1]

3 minutes ago, Tatka said:

 

OP describes their earnings (well into 6 digits salary each) and savings ($2 millions). Please tell me OP does not understand how $20K for a suite can be earned?

 

Or does OP really spends two 6 digits salaries on living expenses?

 

Does OP thinks only they can earn money?

 

 

 

The OP can obviously afford a $20k cruise if they chose to, based on the financial position that they stated. My guess is, they can't justify it with their current way of living/saving/future planning.

 

If you reread the first paragraph, on the first post, you will see that she is asking How people afford to spend $20k on a cruise AND go multiple times a year. I think the multiple times a year is an important part to her initial question.

 

[cured]

We sail suites approximately 2x per year. Kids are grown and out of college. House is paid for. The monthly savings we put into their college tuition fund and paid into the mortgage is now allocated to our vacation fund + additional 401k/savings.  Careful planning and booking early is helpful. If you subtract the UDP, the UBP, internet, and everything else that is included, the suite can work out to be a bargain. Even in today's prices, we have found good prices, you just have to be flexible with itinerary and dates which we are ok with.  We also prioritize memories with our children. We don't spend a ton on cars or fancy furniture or fancy houses. Everyone has different priorities and that is ok.

 

You choose to prioritize your house, car, and other things.  We choose vacations.  All is good.

 

Edited April 3, 2023 by cured

[Tatka]

21 minutes ago, Cayman1 said:

 

The OP can obviously afford a $20k cruise if they chose to, based on the financial position that they stated. My guess is, they can't justify it with their current way of living/saving/future planning.

 

If you reread the first paragraph, on the first post, you will see that she is asking How people afford to spend $20k on a cruise AND go multiple times a year. I think the multiple times a year is an important part to her initial question.

 

 

I agree! Even multiple spending of $20K a year is completely affordable for some number  of people, and for OP too. It is about Why... about Justification, not about How.

 

People rent houses on Cape Cod for $10-20K for a week, people have exotic vacations for WAY more than that... Should I mention weddings, other lager spending.

Everything can be done cheaper or WAY cheaper, but people can afford it and prefer.

Edited April 3, 2023 by Tatka

[Tatka]

15 minutes ago, Ret MP said:

But, nothing about the why!  The OP was not a WHY post.  

 

 

 

This is a question. Why did OP ask it like this. 🙂

 

Should we really explain how many cruises OP can take in suites having $2 millions saved and making two 6 figures salaries ? I bet multiple times multiple years. If they choose to.

[graphicguy]

OK....simple answer....NUNYA!

[graphicguy]

44 minutes ago, Cayman1 said:

 

It wasn't asked WHY, it was asked HOW. Big difference.

 

And, I'm asking why it matters?  Looking for financial advice?  In cruise forums?  There's your first mistake.

[Ret MP]

2 minutes ago, Tatka said:

 

This is a question. Why did OP ask it like this. 🙂

 

Should we really explain how many cruises OP can take in suites having $2 millions saved and making two 6 figures salaries ? I bet multiple times multiple years. If they choose to.

I'm trying to turn a new leaf and avoid the long, drawn-out debates/disagreements/less-than-upbeat discussions.  So, my final comment:

 

Should we explain?  Not if you don't want to, it's an option only you can make.  But, the OP was not a question of "WHY".  Which was your earlier discussion.

[DirtyDawg]

37 minutes ago, Blur said:

Curious so did some googling...  

 

Looks like net worth for top 0.1% in US was about 25 million... ( 1 in 1000)

Also top 1% makes about ~700k a year so on (10 in 1000) 

 

Given a ship has roughly 5000 people there could be up to 50 people 1% and 5 people in top 0.1%, so very possible people just have that sort of $.

 

We have many people in the US making a ton of money lol.

I'll wager that at least 4 out of those 5 .1%ers are not sailing on Royal.

They are probably sailing on Carnival - that's how they save and be worth $25 mil. 😉

[Blur]

17 minutes ago, DirtyDawg said:

I'll wager that at least 4 out of those 5 .1%ers are not sailing on Royal.

They are probably sailing on Carnival - that's how they save and be worth $25 mil. 😉

When you have 25 mil... Long as you aren't blowing it on multiple million dollar houses, or giving it all way you prob don't need to save costs by cruising carnival.  While chances are high they would do private cruises on yachts instead, if they had family I can see them doing Star class on a royal for all the activities.  They prob think it's a bargain lol.

 

That's why I said "could be up to"... For all we know there's a bunch that love royal and book up all the star cabins all the time.  We have millions of people in the US so plenty of people making that $.

Edited April 3, 2023 by Blur

[nimbex1970]

I must be the rare person, who has no issue spending 20k on a family cruise, but not in a suite all stuffed together! Taking the family on the WOS this May, 4 rooms. It's a splurge and we all can only arrange a week per year together, I live in Alaska and they are in Florida. We still cruise, but for the two of us, a balcony, even inside is fine, we are NEVER in the cabin but to sleep, so not worth it for us. 

 

I need my space and peace, not stuffing family in the same space!

[PhillyFan33579]

On 3/30/2023 at 6:30 PM, njsmom said:

I keep trying to figure this out. Who is it paying $15,000 and $20,000 for suites on cruise ships and going multiple times a year? Are they putting it on credit or are they paying cash? 

 

Since this is an anonymous board, I can say that my spouse and I are very successful without sounding like I am bragging. No one knows me here. 🙂 

 

We each make well over six figures and our income easily places us in the top 3-4% of all households in our state. I am a vice president at my company, and my husband is quite successful as well. And it's not just our annual income. We have over $2 million already saved for retirement and we're still many years away from that time in our lives.Yet, I can't fathom spending $20,000 on a suite.  It's not that we're against spending. We love fancy things. We live in a lovely home, we drive luxury cars and we have taken our three kids to Europe and we go regularly to Napa and drop $600 a night for a 4-5 night stay, and do $300 dinners. But again, $20,000 on a suite? That is another realm of spending. 

 

Who is it spending this much on a suite? If my husband and I can't afford to do it, who can? There's not that many people who make more than us, to be frank. I just don't get it. 

People making $200 - $300K a year, while obviously a decent income, is not the target market of high end suites. There are a lot of people in this country (in the millions) who make significantly more money than you do. These are the people who don’t think twice about spending $20,000 for a suite. 

[cruiselvr04]

17 minutes ago, nimbex1970 said:

I must be the rare person, who has no issue spending 20k on a family cruise, but not in a suite all stuffed together! Taking the family on the WOS this May, 4 rooms. It's a splurge and we all can only arrange a week per year together, I live in Alaska and they are in Florida. We still cruise, but for the two of us, a balcony, even inside is fine, we are NEVER in the cabin but to sleep, so not worth it for us. 

 

I need my space and peace, not stuffing family in the same space!

While I agree the perks of suites are really nice for adults, our family of 16, likes being spread out in 7 cabins instead of 2 suites.  More bathrooms and better sleeping for the little ones with no more then one on a sofa sleeper and no insides.  With half under 18 the perks aren’t worth it overall. They won’t use the internet, drink package and wouldn’t enjoy the longer speciality dining.  It’s still not cheap but less than 2 suites. 

[Ret MP]

12 minutes ago, cruiselvr04 said:

While I agree the perks of suites are really nice for adults, our family of 16, likes being spread out in 7 cabins instead of 2 suites.  More bathrooms and better sleeping for the little ones with no more then one on a sofa sleeper and no insides.  With half under 18 the perks aren’t worth it overall. They won’t use the internet, drink package and wouldn’t enjoy the longer speciality dining.  It’s still not cheap but less than 2 suites. 

Just to be clear.  And this is not an attempt to change your mind. To each to their own:

 

For example, the 4 Bedroom Family Villa (Symphony) has 4 full bathrooms (two of the bedroom sleep 4, one of which has its own full bath, and the other has to use the bathroom in the hallway.  All other bedrooms are ensuites).  The Star Loft (on Ovation) is a one-bedroom loft that has two huge full bathrooms, one is actually two separate rooms, a WC with a sink and the other is a sink with lav and a shower.  The 2 Bedroom Aqua Theatre (Allure) has 2 full bathrooms. 

 

I, (XXX), because those are just a few examples of ships that I've actually cruised on in suites.  And I've never felt cramped in, even though we've maxed out the occupancy in each suite.  The only inconvenience, and I learned early, is you don't let late sleepers sleep on the pull-out bed in the living room as it can be uncomfortable to move around while people are exposed and sleeping and you try to get to the balcony or refrig, or whatever.  So, my wife and I volunteer to sleep in the living room, as we get up anywhere between 5:00 - 6:00 am, sometimes earlier.  

[John&LaLa]

On 3/31/2023 at 6:20 PM, orville99 said:

The redesign of the WJ was completely dysfunctional

 

To each his own. I found the jammer to be the best in the fleet

[acpalmer]

19 hours ago, njsmom said:

I'm not rich but obviously comfortable by any definition and we definitely give to a range of charities every month.

 

If your household is at $400,000 a year, which is what you said, you are in the top 1.8% of households in America per IRS statistics.  You are rich.  You are wealthier than 98.2% of folks in the US--there is no way you can tell us you aren't rich with that income.

[reallyitsmema]

1 hour ago, nimbex1970 said:

I must be the rare person, who has no issue spending 20k on a family cruise, but not in a suite all stuffed together! Taking the family on the WOS this May, 4 rooms. It's a splurge and we all can only arrange a week per year together, I live in Alaska and they are in Florida. We still cruise, but for the two of us, a balcony, even inside is fine, we are NEVER in the cabin but to sleep, so not worth it for us. 

 

I need my space and peace, not stuffing family in the same space!

 

I agree, squishing 14 into some of these larger suites is not something we would ever do.  Someone said they had 8 in the 4 bedroom suite that sleeps 14, that would be my max.  They were a parents, kids and grandkids group that 4 bedrooms would have no one on the sleep sofa.  We have had a 2 bedroom GS, which is supposed to sleep 8, for just the 2 of us, and I wouldn't have done that cabin with more than 4.  Having people sleep on the sleep sofa in the only common space makes no sense.  If I can't sleep and want to sit on the couch and read, that option is gone if you have people out in the living room too.  

[John&LaLa]

13 hours ago, grandgeezer said:

We retired in 2001, I was 55 and my wife was 50. We started out being a little conservative, although we had a lot of money saved, my pension was about 20% of what I made. After a couple of years we realized that money wouldn’t be an issue so we started spending it like water. We found cruising and averaged about 42 days a year at sea. New car every three years, many home improvements, basically we had everything we wanted and did everything we wanted and the money kept growing thanks to the stock market. 
Fast forward to now. Cruising is history, current product, is average at best, and not worth it at any price. Even with the downturn in the stock market, the portfolio is worth 2 1/2 times it was in 2001.

With the mandatory withdrawal from my 401k, our 2022 gross was well into six figures, life is good for us and will be even better for our son, his wife, and our only grandson. The grandson starts college in the fall and with the AZ529 Savings Plan we funded for him, he should graduate in four years with zero debt. Best money ever spent.

 

If you've given up on cruising, why are you still here.

 

This really isn't a financial forum

[OCSC Mike]

28 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

On 3/31/2023 at 6:20 PM, orville99 said:

The redesign of the WJ was completely dysfunctional

 

To each his own. I found the jammer to be the best in the fleet

 

Hey John, been on Cruse Critic hiatus for several months since I knew we wouldn't be cruising until Wonder in June. Just getting back on since we're almost 2 months out.

 

You know I'm all about food (if you remember me from discussing Indy and Playmakers last Summer/Fall). What's so great about this particular WJ? Anything beyond the layout?

[sft429]

On 3/31/2023 at 7:20 PM, davekathy said:

If I don't spend it, I'll tale it with me.🤪

 

I'm trying to time things so that my last check bounces.

[John&LaLa]

16 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

 

Hey John, been on Cruse Critic hiatus for several months since I knew we wouldn't be cruising until Wonder in June. Just getting back on since we're almost 2 months out.

 

You know I'm all about food (if you remember me from discussing Indy and Playmakers last Summer/Fall). What's so great about this particular WJ? Anything beyond the layout?

 

It has several stations at the front for hot dishes. Plus its on the pool deck and with only one entrance. Less likely to go to a side that's not open. Way better hand washing station layout. More like a Freedom ship

 

It's almost like two different venues because you can't walk from one side to other like other Oasis ships, but that didn't bother me.

[LoungerOnBalcony55]

39 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

If you've given up on cruising, why are you still here.

 

This really isn't a financial forum

What are you, the freakin' board bouncer? Their comments were perfectly germane to the conversation. 

[Tatka]

3 hours ago, Ret MP said:

I'm trying to turn a new leaf and avoid the long, drawn-out debates/disagreements/less-than-upbeat discussions.  So, my final comment:

 

Should we explain?  Not if you don't want to, it's an option only you can make.  But, the OP was not a question of "WHY".  Which was your earlier discussion.

 

Mathematically it is absolutely possible to book 20K suites with OP income.

I doubt person who can make such money and save such money does not know this.

Edited April 3, 2023 by Tatka

[molly361]

I feel like the poor little Red headed stepchild on this thread.  Not even close to most of you that have posted about your personal wealth. SIGH😇

[graphicguy]

11 minutes ago, molly361 said:

I feel like the poor little Red headed stepchild on this thread.  Not even close to most of you that have posted about your personal wealth. SIGH😇

I’m with you.  So, you have company!