Help me spend my OBC

[Ellipooh]

I’m traveling on a Panama Canal itinerary on Emerald LA-FLL in 2024.  I’m not exactly sure how, but I’ve ended up with $1050 OBC - all non-refundable. I’m traveling solo in a Balcony midship, and already have the Plus package for drinks. 
I’ve looked at the Princess excursions for my cruise, but so far none are really appealing for Mexico, Nicaragua, or Columbia. And since I’m traveling solo, private tours are even less appealing and not eligible for OBC in any event. Does someone have a convincingly reassuring experience in these ports?
I’m thinking about a couple of nice whiskies from the gift shop; would they be held and delivered upon disembarking?

Or maybe I upgrade to the premium drink package after I board?

Is any on-board jewelry worth the price? I’ve only purchased cheap stuff from Effy and I really don’t want more trinkets. 

Can I spend the OBC at the blackjack tables? I am aware of the possibility of somehow cashing out at the Casino but that all seems slightly sketchy to me. Maybe as a last resort. 

[brisalta]

The only items I have ever spent non-refundable OBC on have been some watches.  You have to know something about watches though.

I have not seen any interesting bottles of whisky or whiskey in the shop.

[cr8tiv1]

Cancel your beverage package and purchase it onboard.  That should take care of a good amount.  I am not sure I would "splurge" for the premier but definitely for the plus.

 

Take an excursion with Princess.  Not your money.

 

Eat at the Crown Grill.

 

Have fun in the casino.  Who knows, you might even "make" money.

[Kellyansapansa]

Buy yourself a nice medallion holder, perhaps a bracelet or pendant.

 

The photo gallery sells a few gadgets, plus a range of products you can have customised with your own photos or photos the shop photographers have taken of you.

 

Book the ultimate balcony breakfast or dinner (or both). As a solo traveller it will be a lot of food, but a lovely experience.

 

Does Emerald have a thermal suite or Sanctuary? Both nice experiences. Or treat yourself to a Lotus Spa package. 😊

[Ellipooh]

27 minutes ago, brisalta said:

I have not seen any interesting bottles of whisky or whiskey in the shop.

That’s what I’m afraid of. I don’t need Chivas or Cutty Sark. I was hoping they had a secret stash of Oban in the back somewhere. 

 

19 minutes ago, cr8tiv1 said:

Cancel your beverage package and purchase it onboard.  That should take care of a good amount.  I am not sure I would "splurge" for the premier but definitely for the plus.

I considered cancelling the Plus, but wasn’t sure whether the price I paid would be refunded to my cc or just more OBC. It certainly would eat up the entire $1k, and that’s assuming the price doesn’t increase in the next year. 

 

14 minutes ago, Kellyansapansa said:

Buy yourself a nice medallion holder, perhaps a bracelet or pendant.

 

Does Emerald have a thermal suite or Sanctuary? Both nice experiences. Or treat yourself to a Lotus Spa package. 😊

Can I buy Sanctuary just for Transit Day? 🤨

A spa treatment sounds like a good way to waste some money - can I pay for tips there with the OBC?

[neverbeenhere]

See someone without a beverage. Buy them one, be that liquor, soda or tea. 

[J13C85]

Regarding the casino, could the OP go to casino, "buy in" using the OBC. and then "cash out" for cash? I've heard some cruisers do this as a way of getting cash and circumventing ATM fees.

[cr8tiv1]

Yes, you can purchase Sanctuary for Transit day (at twice the going rate) AND you have to be one of the first on board to race up there for your reservation.

 

Yes, you would be taking a chance that the beverage package would have an increase if you wait to day of.  But you are no where near final payment.  I hope you have a TA.  They could remove the package for you without modifying your cruise package.

[pathi]

49 minutes ago, J13C85 said:

Regarding the casino, could the OP go to casino, "buy in" using the OBC. and then "cash out" for cash? I've heard some cruisers do this as a way of getting cash and circumventing ATM fees.

Yes you can do this. Just play a little between buying in and cash out. Nothing sketchy about it. You may even win!

[trinitygirl]

I could easily spend $1000 on spa bookings - a massage every other day would be my idea of heaven! 

[memoak]

1 hour ago, neverbeenhere said:

See someone without a beverage. Buy them one, be that liquor, soda or tea. 

Share a package loose the packsge. I would look at binoculars, nice bottles of wine and watches

[Thrak]

Book a tour with in Cartagena with http://cartagenatour.com/

 

Try to see if you can actually get Dora for your tour guide.

[tipofthehook]

My Aunt was a solo cruiser. She often went on the ship’s wine and tequila tasting excursion tours. Said she felt safe enough to get pretty tipsy and that someone would pour her back on to the ship.

[nini]

Attend a Chef's Table. 

[EDDY0827]

Shore-side Medallion purchases.

[Ellipooh]

13 minutes ago, nini said:

Attend a Chef's Table. 

Now that’s a great idea!

 

10 minutes ago, EDDY0827 said:

Shore-side Medallion purchases.

This will be my first Medallion cruise, and I don’t know what this means 🤷‍♀️

 

29 minutes ago, Thrak said:

Book a tour with in Cartagena with http://cartagenatour.com/

 

Try to see if you can actually get Dora for your tour guide.

Thanks for the tip, I’ll look into it. Everything I know about Cartagena I learned from Michael Douglas🫢

 

[EDDY0827]

25 minutes ago, Ellipooh said:

 

This will be my first Medallion cruise, and I don’t know what this means.

 

There are businesses in port that have signed up for a program run by Princess where by

you can charge purchases to your onboard account and get a little bit of obc back for doing so.

Specific business partner list would be available onboard.

[Shippy]

On our last Princess cruise we noticed several shops in the port area with the Princess logo on them.

We did not go in BUT...

it is our understanding that you can use your medallion in these shops to charge to your shipboard account.

I hope this is so.

We have a cruise next month with OBC. Being that we have the Princess Plus package, basically everything onboard is already covered.

I do NOT need any overpriced things from their shops so hoping to be able to buy somethings in the ports.

[FrankieJayIII]

3 hours ago, Ellipooh said:

 

 

Can I buy Sanctuary just for Transit Day? 🤨

 

Yes... $60

[travelin.sisters]

they sell cameras in the photo department (a present for someone?) 

 

we found some interesting liquors last fall on the Sapphire

 

Stanley bears for everyone you know?

 

 my sis-in-law got fancy orthopedic shoe inserts on our Panama cruise (a spa thing)

 

but to be honest we always have a hard time using our extra OBC

 

 

 

[cr8tiv1]

Medallion shops on shore prices are inflated to make up for the huge surcharge Princess applies to them for the "convenience".  

 

That said, Puerta Vallarta port has a great chocolate store that sells liquor filled chocolates.   

[jeromep]

Go ahead and check out the higher end jewelry on board, however I would not be afraid to buy a nice watch.  Value and quality of jewelry is all in the eye of the beholder.  The thing about watches is that there is a lot less to wonder about in terms of quality as they are all standardized and basically mass produced.  The brands on board are all good to excellent and any manufacturer warranty is valid as Princess is a registered dealer for all the brands they offer.  I've always thought Citizen made a nice watch for the price and you are buying it duty free.  And when you buy watches or jewelry you get it when you buy it, they don't hold it till the end of the cruise like booze or smokes.  I should also add that if you price compare watches on board to watches at your local jeweler, you may find the price on board very competitive.  I purchased a watch on a cruise many years ago and it was at least $200 less than my local jeweler and it was tax free.  But you have to know your prices or be willing to hop on the Internet and do a bit of research.

 

Oh, avoid the sea day "yard sales" in the Piazza.  It is almost always a mad house and on top of that, what they put out is the inventory they need to let go of and everything is basically lower end.

 

I like the suggestion of blowing your OBC in the spa.  I've never had a bad treatment in the spa, always been treated like royalty, and the therapists are all very professional and skilled.  Plus, if the spa is a bit slow during the cruise, you may be offered discounts on repeat visits directly by your therapist after your treatment.  Don't hesitate to take them up on the discount and get booked for another treatment.  A tip about the spa, don't indicate on their intake form that you have any skin issues.  They use that form to try to upsell you the cosmetic products they sell on board.  Since you have the OBC, if you like the stuff buy it, but otherwise, I'd pass.

 

 

Edited April 17, 2023 by jeromep

[rj59]

You could cancel Plus and just pay a la carte for drinks and tips and wifi once you're on board, so you're not just buying stuff you don't want or need. There's a 1L limit on duty free alcohol brought back to the US, not that anyone will check with the face ID customs machines now. I try to use OBC to try things a little out of my comfort zone, as a solo cruiser too. You might try bingo, classes, tastings, some gambling, specialty dining, and maybe there's some excursion activity you're never tried before (I found electric biking in Mazatlan and on a beach in Cabo to be exciting and memorable). I know on a Celebrity ship I used OBC to try a different sushi roll and kind of ramen every day, and I had a much better time with the female servers there than I did in the MDR. Another thing you might consider is asking about upgrading to a mini-suite after boarding, which has a couch by the window.

[ChangeOrder]

17 hours ago, pathi said:

Yes you can do this. Just play a little between buying in and cash out. Nothing sketchy about it. You may even win!

This is exactly what I do with my unused OBC. Load up the casino acct, play for a bit on the cheaper machines, cash out. The Casino desk will pay out the money is US Dollars cash to you. You just have to remember to go in by the evening before the end of the cruise.

[mtnesterz]

If you figure out how you ended up with all that OBC, do let us know!

Agree on shoreside excursions in the countries mentioned. Unsettling events lately.

Reassurance? Realistically, the risks are low. As the old saying goes, safety in numbers. Don't go off alone down an alley or side street. Same if you were going to Las Vegas.

You can buy bottled liquor, but it is held until the last evening, when it is delivered to your cabin.

Nowadays with smartphones, folks don't wear watches like they used to. But if I had money to spend or lose, it would be on a nice watch.

#1 answer IMHO: Casino buy in, have fun trying your luck, then cash out.