To any penny pinchers...

[BobBeaSea]

I didn't say that I wasn't using any of it for schooling so plz do not misquote me! I have already attended and graduated college without osap. I am at university and attempting to fast-track to save money. However, osap does give you more money than you actually need sometimes so I have been pinching pennies to save for a cruise to take my mom on (this is HER dream cruise) for her 65th birthday. Additionally, I am not only using osap money but funds from past savings or summer earnings or inheritance if need be.

 

I guess I didn't really need to write all that but I just get touchy when ppl judge me - I could have explained better in the opening but I figured ppl wouldn't really care.

 

Besides, I'm sure other students buy things with their osap money that they do not "need". My sister used to tell me you could tell when the osap came in b/c all of a sudden ppl had new stereos in their room!

 

It's a right of passage for Canadian students to "massage the funds" :) This ain't free money folks..OP is on the hook for it. For the OP, when you do go, I hope your and your Mom have a great cruise.

[superjerryw]

One way to save money, is to go on a line that doesn't do auto-tipping and then avoid dinner on the last night and sneak out of your cabin in the early hours.:o

 

We prefer to eat in the dining room the last night so we just hand the dining room staff empty envelopes. We also like to cruise with friends so the last night of the cruise we switch cabins. When we leave the last morning the cabin steward has no idea who we are......:eek:

[BobBeaSea]

We prefer to eat in the dining room the last night so we just hand the dining room staff empty envelopes. We also like to cruise with friends so the last night of the cruise we switch cabins. When we leave the last morning the cabin steward has no idea who we are......:eek:

 

"Attaboy" Jerry :). Personally, I just leave the ship a little earlier than others...gets a little wet though :D

[Puffinater]

We prefer to eat in the dining room the last night so we just hand the dining room staff empty envelopes. We also like to cruise with friends so the last night of the cruise we switch cabins. When we leave the last morning the cabin steward has no idea who we are......:eek:

 

How dare you attempt a sense of humor on these boards!! ...You were kidding right?

 

Ps..thanks for the cabin switch idea.

[KillaFee]

Yes, there are other cheapies out there! I am one of them, actually. Living in Mystic, CT is not cheap at all so I have to save! I basically just save all of the money I can (but still go out, I don't cut myself short) and when I book cruises I make payments as often as I can to my TA, usually booking far in advance so I can pay it off without feeling like all of my $$ is going towards the cruise. We always go the really inexpensive way w/cruises, always in the off season in an inside room (although we've been upgraded to outside), my next cruise on the Serenade is the first time we've splurged on a balcony!! The cheapest time to cruise is October-Early November, First two weeks of December, Jan-May, or basically when school is in session. When you go can really make a difference in price. Good luck!

Laura

[Wilsoncruisers]

First off, I would never consider not tipping those who have made my vacation enjoyable. (all the usuals + anybody else I feel went out of their way).

To save money I only book if I can afford to go. Then I book on a credit card at 0%. Yes I said 0 %.:cool: I continue to pay at that rate until it's paid off. This next cruise, I put on my Carnival credit card to get the points then transferred it to the 0% card. When I arrive on board I will put my seapass acct to the carnival card to get the points. When I get home I will transfer it to the 0% card as well.

I'm loving the fact that I'm cruising RCCL and earning points so someday Carnival will need to give me a free cruise. I know I could get double points with a RCCL card but at this point I want to stick it to the carnival card (Juniper Bank) because I felt misled about their intrest rate when I got the card.

 

Yes I do enjoy playing with the credit card companies. I haven't paid intrest on a credit card in 6 years.

Happy Cruising To All

[kingsgirl]

It's a right of passage for Canadian students to "massage the funds" :) This ain't free money folks..OP is on the hook for it. For the OP, when you do go, I hope your and your Mom have a great cruise.

 

 

Thanks for the support ;)

[BobBeaSea]

Thanks for the support ;)

 

Anytime :). kingsgirl...does your board name refer to you being a student at Kings College at UWO? If so, great school.

[CruisinKits]

I keep hearing about free upgrades. How do you get one? Do you have to have a few cruises under your belt or what's the deal?

[kingsgirl]

I keep hearing about free upgrades. How do you get one? Do you have to have a few cruises under your belt or what's the deal?

 

Try posting out in the main part. You'll get more hits!

[MGoBlue2]

I would venture that the OP is from Ontario Canada (OSAP = Ontario Student Assistance Program) and she states that she is using her gov't assistance for schooling - not to be too harsh but that is why it is called what it is called. I am not aware of a parallel program called OCAP (Ontario Cruising Assistance Program)

 

You would not have qualified for it if you had not shown a need for it to pay for your schooling. The question you need to ask now that you see that you will not need all of it in addition to your other sources of income is if a cruise is the best use of your extra cash or should you concentrate on paying back your OSAP loans as quickly as possible.

 

I think that the majority of us cruise as much as we do because we are not in school, we have jobs/careers or are retired and have spent our life balancing the pros and cons of debt and otehr expeditures with the pleasures that cruising and other past times can provide to us.

 

Good luck as you try to figure out the best balance between these and other life decisions in the future.

If OSAP loans are anything like College loans in the US, the interest rates are so low the last thing you want to do is pay it off early. Pay off other higher interest loans or invest it somewhere, yes, but definitely don't pay it back early.

[mumofsons]

Many many years ago.....too many to count - I was in Nursing School in Stratford Ontario (won't mean anything to anyone except those from Ontario sorry). Sadly the nursing school is gone now. I was waiting for my OSAP to come in - quess what? I went out and bought a stereo. I felt so bad about it a couple of days later that I did end up taking it back. But for those couple of days the Stereo sounded great. LOL - now to penny pinchin - we try not to book the expensive rooms. And we check flights over and over again in case there are good deals. I live in North Carolina now and a lot of times we can get a cheaper flight from Raleigh than from Greensboro where we live - it is a little over an hour drive. I have bought formal gowns on Ebay. (DH turns around and sells them after the cruise). We are having a yard sale a couple of weeks before the cruise to get rid of some stuff and make a couple of dollars. Lastly I always book the hotel the night before on priceline - these have been hit or miss but mostly hit. Last year before our Mariner cruise got a beautiful room regularly $200 per night for $60 each. It was really nice. So there are ways. I don't scrimp much when we get on the cruise but we aren't that extravagant anyway. We do try to find coupons too for restaurants if we are staying more than one night precruise. Are you going out of Vancouver or Seattle? Good for you for taking your mum too! We took mine in January - now her and her Red Hat friends are off to a Hawaian Cruise in January.

[LAKaye]

One way to make the most of your dollars is to, regardless of what line you are shopping, get ahold of actual print brochures with deck plans. Scour along all of the decks looking for inside staterooms that are located on decks where there is some sort of public windowed sitting area or access to the outside not far from your door.

 

Leslie

[English Tim]

Avoid:

 

Bingo

Casino

Art auctions

Ship excursions

Wine in the restaurant

 

Provided that none of the above are crucial to your enjoyment of the cruise, then avoiding them can make your money go a lot further. If money becomes less tight then you can remove things from the list.:cool:

[BillOh]

In my case, my 2nd job pays for the cruises :D Actually, I already had the 2nd job, We reserved a cruise more than a year ahead of our 25th anniversary. In that time I came down with severe depression because of many factors. At one point, having that cruise 300+ days out was on major factor in keeping going. After a wonderful cruise, and the glow for weeks afterward, the depression got worse.(Post cruise depression is a little more real and serious for me) Finally I recognized it as that and got under a doctor's care. In a stroke of good luck, we were able to pay off our mortgage a couple of years early. Now, I use the income from that 2nd job to pay for cruising. I intentionally booked the cruise out as far as I could to benefit from that one more thing to look forward. We will probably cruise about every 2 years from now on.

[cb at sea]

I guess some "pinch pennies" on the vacation, while other's pinch at home! When I'm on a cruise (or any type of trip) I want to be comfortable! (No camping for me!) However, I don't waste money at home! If I can do it, no way would I hire someone to do it for me! I shop prudently--if it's not on sale, it'd better be pretty damn special!!!)

Anyway--that's my take on it!

[lovemylab]

I pay for my cruise and flights with my Christmas bonus and OT.

 

On the ship I avoid the casino, spa and onboard drinks. However, these are things that don't interest me so I don't feel like I am missing out on anything. I can get massages at home for free (my medical plan covers them) so don't see the need in paying hundreds of dollars for the same thing onboard.

[critterchick]

I guess some "pinch pennies" on the vacation, while other's pinch at home! When I'm on a cruise (or any type of trip) I want to be comfortable! (No camping for me!) However, I don't waste money at home! If I can do it, no way would I hire someone to do it for me! I shop prudently--if it's not on sale, it'd better be pretty damn special!!!)

Anyway--that's my take on it!

 

I'm with you on that, CB! Although that list of "honey do" projects is kinda long right now....

[SimplyAddicted]

First off, I would never consider not tipping those who have made my vacation enjoyable. (all the usuals + anybody else I feel went out of their way).

To save money I only book if I can afford to go. Then I book on a credit card at 0%. Yes I said 0 %.:cool: I continue to pay at that rate until it's paid off. This next cruise, I put on my Carnival credit card to get the points then transferred it to the 0% card. When I arrive on board I will put my seapass acct to the carnival card to get the points. When I get home I will transfer it to the 0% card as well.

I'm loving the fact that I'm cruising RCCL and earning points so someday Carnival will need to give me a free cruise. I know I could get double points with a RCCL card but at this point I want to stick it to the carnival card (Juniper Bank) because I felt misled about their intrest rate when I got the card.

 

Yes I do enjoy playing with the credit card companies. I haven't paid intrest on a credit card in 6 years.

Happy Cruising To All

 

I, too, got the Carnival Credit Card. I never keep a balance, but I thought it would be a great idea to earn points to help pay for a cruise. I stopped using the card because the amount of points you get are negligible. It would take forever to get enough points. I now put all of my monthly expenses on my Citi Rewards Card and get at least a $100 gift card back each month. I figure I will save much more this way than with the Carnival card.

 

When I did have balances, after my wedding :) , I always transferred balances to 0% interest cards. The only drawback is that hurts your credit score a little. (Credit scores are to protect lenders and if you transfer your balances often, the lenders don't make much money on you.) I'll take a lower credit score and keep my money!

 

As for the cabins, we considered an inside this upcoming cruise, but as usual, went with the balcony. I think I would be perfectly happy with an inside cabin, but the difference in rate has never been more than $100-150. Not enough difference for me. We save for our cruises as well. Our spending motto is - if you can't pay for it in cash, don't buy it.

[kingsgirl]

If OSAP loans are anything like College loans in the US, the interest rates are so low the last thing you want to do is pay it off early. Pay off other higher interest loans or invest it somewhere, yes, but definitely don't pay it back early.

 

Yeah our loans aren't ANYTHING like yours. My friend racked up in 4 months $1000 in interest charges on her osap bill. No such thing as a free ride here for schooling.

[CruisinOnWheels]

Thanks for what you posted...and wife and I absolutely understand where your coming from.

 

We too take a step back a bit, when we see someone has been on like 100 cruises...we will never have the resources to be able to do that.

 

Having lived with a handicap since a early age there were many things/life experiences I was told I would never have. I have had to fight all my life, because I wasn't willing to settle for the life the Dr's laid out for me.

 

I am on a set income and wife teaches preschool, so our $$$ is very limited. When we decided on a cruise as a goal for us we sat down and put together a very strict budget, cutting back on almost every "luxury" we could live without to make it happen. Within 2 months our cruise was paid for, now we are saving to pay for our extra expenses to/from our cruise port.

 

We know all too well that it is not much fun living on a tight budget to accomplish a goal, but it is easier when sharing that goal with another.

 

We printed out pictures of our ship and ports of call from the internet, and put them in a "cruise book" we look at whenever we need a "boost".

 

Also, to put in a bit of a plug here...Like you we had resigned ourselves that our budget would not permit a very expensive room, and that really did not matter to us...However I got to know someone with RCI that not only worked with us on my disability issues, but even gave us a junior suite for about 1/2 of what they are going for now!

 

It is evrr excitting when a plan comes together....

[Esmerelda]

Wow...my hubby calls me the "Queen of Frugal"...:) I clip coupons...buy in bulk..buy on clearance/sale...buy school clothes a year ahead so they are cheaper (if I can figure out their size..lol)..etc. We both drive used cars so as not to have some huge car payments. You name it..I do it.

 

We too love to cruise but I do not use a credit card for any part of it. This is why we save all year. We did however book a balcony cabin for next summer. I watch everyday for a price drop.

 

We also about 3 months ago stumbled up Dave Ramsey "Total Money Makeover" book. WOW is this guy smart! If you have a chance, check out his book at the library (I did end up buying it later on). This gentleman is truly a financial genius in many many aspects. He has taught us how to control our money...not have our money control us. Its the best book I've read in years.

 

great post by the way!

 

squeezes Lincoln till he cries...;)

Esmerelda

[irishhrts4]

We are a family of 6 (me, dh and 4 boys). We have to book 2 cabins because the cheap rooms only hold 4. Forget about the suites...I would never in my life be able to even think of getting one. We are a 1-income family, living on Long Island...very expensive.

 

We were suppose to go on a cruise this past February, booked it a year in advance and then 6 months before had to cancel because we just wouldn't have had the $$ to pay it off and have spending money etc.

Any money we had saved for that cruise (very little), we put towards this one. We've been saving for 2 years. We have the $$ for our final payment for this cruise, but will get our taxes done early and do electronic filing so that we get our tax return before we sail. If not, we are out of luck for spending money.

We do not use or have any credit cards.

 

The passport thing is killing me...it's almost $600 to get everyones passport. I've heard..."think of it as being only $60 a year because passports last 10 years". Well, I can't pay $60 a year, I need $600 up front.

 

Sometimes I feel like I am the only one who HAS to book an inside cabin. If I want to cruise, then it's inside for me.

[karisma99]

Well, for me, I live in Miami so don't have the added expense of airline tickets. I just cruise the ships that leave from Miami or Ft Lauderdale. The itinerary and choice of ships is limited and gets repetitive, but I get to cruise more often. The only time I splurge on a balcony is when I go with my mother, because she is a smoker.

 

I do want to do Alaska and really live it up when I go. I plan on making it my graduation present to myself when I finish my Associates degree. I am going to school part time and paying for it myself, while working full time. IT has been a challenge but I manage. I have already started a savings account for Alaska cruise and just throw everything I can into the account. I do not have much opportunity to go out and treat myself since I am always at work or doing school work, so I feel like I am not too deprived.

 

Patty

[ashleycrew]

Well answering for myself we have been doing a 7 night and a 3 night each year and I think I am the king of cheap. Here is what I have been able to get on the boat for over the past couple of years:

 

Carnival Victory- 5 night to Eastern Canada in June- $429 each in inside room.

RCCL Sov. of the Seas- 3 night Bahamas- Feb. $229 ea. in outside room on 2nd floor.

RCCL Vision of the Seas- 7 night to Alaska- $499 ea!! for inside room, I am actuall proud of that one as we had a better room booked and once they offered this we could not resist and downgraded and saved a ton of money for excursions.

NCL- Majesty- 7 night Bermuda- $529 ea with $50 obc. for 9th floor outside room

RCCL- Majesty of the seas- next month (Nov.) booked an inside gty got a inside floor five and paid $189 ea.

 

I think they are a lot of us out there that like to save money for several reasons. We do because we have found we are just never in our rooms and for us having 4 kids from ages 1-11 we have to save money (and believe me they do not go with us as these are our breaks away from things).