How much cash do you bring?

[sunlover2]

Been awhile since we cruised. I know the gratuities are included but wondering how much cash you bring for additional tips...drinks, porters. extra $ for steward or whomever you feel deserves an extra tip, excursion tips and souvenirs....

 

Thinking at least 100 in singles plus other smaller bills....

 

Thoughts?  Thank you

[neverbeenhere]

For the stated purposes, your numbers sound about right. 

[Eddie Wilson]

That is too many 1’s for me to carry.  I tipped Vintages and pool bar tenders $5’s and 10’s for Diamond drinks early in cruise, then go back to same person during week, and hit again late in cruise.

 

We tipped tour guides some $75 in total, luggage handlers $5, 

 

We were on a week cruise earlier this month, and to do a quick audit, I used less than 50% of what I used to carry in cash for tips, mainly because in the old days I heavily tipped room steward, waiter and asst waiter.  
 

 

[Ashland]

We bring large bills and get the change we need at guest services or casino. 

I bring more than I need just to be on the safe side.

[time4u2go]

49 minutes ago, sunlover2 said:

Been awhile since we cruised. I know the gratuities are included but wondering how much cash you bring for additional tips...drinks, porters. extra $ for steward or whomever you feel deserves an extra tip, excursion tips and souvenirs....

 

Thinking at least 100 in singles plus other smaller bills....

 

Thoughts?  Thank you

How long is your cruise? It matters.

[BND]

We bring at least 150 in ones but we get 5 "free" drinks each and tip for each one.  I always figure at least $50-75/day for incidentals.  Do we bring money home?  Yes, but we also don't have to use an ATM that costs several dollars.  I also keep what's left for our next cruise.  

[Mum2Mercury]

Honestly, we bring very little cash: 

 

- We use our credit card for gas and meals on the road.  

- We pay most things -- including basic tips -- ahead of time.  

- Drinks onboard have an 18% tip added.  Unless someone's really gone above and beyond for us, we feel this is adequate.  

- I prepare an envelope for each island stop, which includes cash for any tours we're planning -- as well as taxis, meals, tips, whatever seems appropriate for that stop.  

- We don't really buy souvenirs.  

[Cigar King]

We tend to bring more cash than we need.  I figure it never hurts to have it.  We do bring 200 in singles though.  We do usually take multiple cruises though.

[GTO-Girl]

For a 7 day cruise I bring at least $100 in ones for drink tipping.  Then we bring another $100-$200 in $5’s, $10’s, and $20’s to use for extra tipping at the end of week 

[TeeRick]

There are ATMs on board.  
We use cash for extra tips mainly to the bar staff, concierges and cabin attendants.  And waiters.  Envelopes at the end of the cruise.

Off the ship there is tipping for the luggage porters for example.  

A big reason for cash for some of us is the damn casino!

[sunlover2]

1 hour ago, time4u2go said:

How long is your cruise? It matters.

1 pre-cruise and 7 nights

[sunlover2]

Thank you everyone!!

[goldfish65]

Advice from my Dad, whatever you think you might spend, double it. 

[hapster85]

We usually bring $200, mostly for shore side shopping, but rarely spend it all. 

[DragonOfTheSeas]

It depends on the length of the cruise, but usually I bring $500 in cash for the cruise. [more if I am doing any land-based days before or a longer cruise]. I bring two credit cards for the rest. I do a 30-30-40 breakdown for small bills. [$30 in ones and fives; and $40 in tens]

 

100 $1 would be too much for me to carry.  I get change at GS or the casino if I need more small bills. Like BND I do not want to visit an ATM. 

[cruiseboy89130]

0$

[Beer Belly]

Upcoming 7 day Bahamas, might visit the Port, mostly staying onboard. We'll bring $700.....100 singles, the rest 5's and 10's for tips, usually charge any purchases.

[cruiseguy1016]

We bring $500. We fly to embarkation ports so there is sometimes a meal or snack at the airport. We always go a day early so we have cab fares (tips) to consider. We are Diamond so we get 4 free drinks that we tip for. We do shore excursions in most ports so we need tips for those. We like to eat local food off the ship and we always pay cash for our meals in port. We always bring money home but I'd rather have too much than not enough.

[villageidit]

I bring 5's and 10's for drink tipping on a cruise, I tip myself every time I fill up at the freestyle machine. When I've made enough I go "invest " it at the casino. 🤣  Everyone else has given you some great advice.

[OldCaver]

I just asked Mrs. Caver (la esposa) about this. We generally bring around $500 for all expenses, including stuff on the way to the port and back. We never use it all.
We tip maybe $20 per person in the cabin to Stewart (in addition to the pre-pay money), and a buck each time we order a drink or drinks.We don't ask much of Stewart, keeping our room more or less neat and orderly, so all he or she has to do is empty the trash and make the beds and maybe replace the towels once during the cruise.

You do not need to bring a huge stack of ones, since it's way easy to break a ten or twenty at guest services, but you should still estimate what you need for tipping so you can avoid the long complaint lines. If you do exceed your estimates, it's not a problem, just a slight inconvenience while you wait for twenty people to complain about it raining too much.

If you take an excursion (whether it's managed by the cruise line or not), you should be prepared to tip your guide or driver, but that's easy math.

[SoloAlaska]

$1 for each drink, $5-10 for simple excursions and $20 for expensive/complex excursions, $20-30 for room steward, a little extra for other things like restaurant service. Then I add in any small spending I plan to do in port. So for my upcoming Alaska cruise it’s $200 (40-$1, 4-$5, 7-$20) and I’ll still have my credit card for bigger shopping if I need it but probably not often on this cruise.

[Seville2Cabo]

My wife and I go thru about $50 per day in cash ($60 for sea day).  $15 for specialty dinning ($10 more for sea day lunch),  $30 for C&A drinks and about $5 for the steward. 

 

Depending on length of cruise and if we are staying overseas before or after, we take $1,000 to $2,000 (includes foreign currency if we take any) 

[Another_Critic]

And we know who to blame for "tipping is getting out of hand".  😄

[Jussabitconfused]

We are on the second leg of a side to side. First was on the Allure and now on the Mariner. Last day of the Allure I got a message to come settle my account. My credit card on file was not working. I settled in cash even though I had other cards with me. The card in question is my BOA Royal Caribbean card. I am not even close to my limit. I have never paid late. I checked my account online, could not see a problem. Get on the next ship and have them check and they see no problem. Things happen, it's good to be prepared. I always take more cash than needed.

[cruisingjandb]

As some have said it is according to how long the cruise is. For a 7 da\y cruise I usually take 40 ones, 10 tens, 10 fives, and 10 twentys. That takes care of all tips and porters. I also take a few hundred extra in case.