Getting the most out of the trip

[justfoxie]

We're booked in for the 10 day Baltic Cruise on the Emerald Princess in June, and I must say that I am really surprised at all the different items that carry an extra supplement. For some things (like alcohol, special balcony service, spa treatments) it is completely understandable, but others (like sodas) I would have assumed were covered. Any tips or tricks to get the most out of the trip but without spending too much onboard? How much is reasonable to budget for these on Princess cruises generally?

[Infi]

We're booked in for the 10 day Baltic Cruise on the Emerald Princess in June, and I must say that I am really surprised at all the different items that carry an extra supplement. For some things (like alcohol, special balcony service, spa treatments) it is completely understandable, but others (like sodas) I would have assumed were covered. Any tips or tricks to get the most out of the trip but without spending too much onboard? How much is reasonable to budget for these on Princess cruises generally?

 

There are plenty of freebies aboard, you just have to look for them. While I felt Princess nickle-and-dimed more than some other cruises, there are ways to get around it.

 

For example, the International Cafe on Emerald is a great place to stop for a snack (pastries, sandwiches, sweets) and it's all free, except for the evening tapas. Don't want to spend money for the ice cream bar by the pool? Wait until 3:30-4:30 for free ice cream in the Horizon Court (which is conveniently not advertised) - it's just as good, unique flavors and lots of toppings. Movies Under the Stars is great entertainment up on the deck, and it's free - complete with popcorn at night or milk and cookies in the afternoons. Afternoon tea in the dining room is a great experience and yes, it's all free, as is the pub lunch on sea days in the Wheelhouse bar.

If you really want to save money, you can cut out unnecessary extras (specialty restaurants, spa, balcony service etc.); yes they're nice but you can definitely have a great cruise without them. Enjoy the things that are most important to you. Finally, you can always buy a soda card if you know you're a big soda drinker (you have to average about 4 sodas a day to make it "worth" it, I believe.)

 

My best recommendation would be to read CC for all the tips and tricks, it's a great wealth of info. There's also a forum for tips and tricks for saving money on your cruise - you can get budgeting advice there as well. Here's the link: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=71

 

Best of luck and enjoy your first cruise!

[paul929207]

Instead of sodas ($1.95 plus tip each), drink iced tea. It is free 24 hours at Horizon Court. If you must drink soda and drink a lot, a soda card is $4.25 per day plus tip for unlimited fountain sodas (not cans and not room service).

[newmexicoNita]

We're booked in for the 10 day Baltic Cruise on the Emerald Princess in June, and I must say that I am really surprised at all the different items that carry an extra supplement. For some things (like alcohol, special balcony service, spa treatments) it is completely understandable, but others (like sodas) I would have assumed were covered. Any tips or tricks to get the most out of the trip but without spending too much onboard? How much is reasonable to budget for these on Princess cruises generally?

wow, soda hasn't been free on cruise ships for a long time, it isn't free in restaurants why do some people think it should be free on cruise ships?

 

Now, here are ways to stretch your $$s: if you are a soda drinker bring your own on board, that will save you a bunch of bucks, don't use the ships tours unless you see something you just feel you have to do and there is nothing similar out there. The exception is a long tour that may push the time element, you wouldn't want to miss the ship. We, generally book our own tours as long as they are 5 hours or less and we are going to be in port at least 7 or 8 hours.

 

Go to the roll call section here and sign up. You will have a chance to get ideas from others and maybe even do some beforehand tour planning. Remember, you do not have to do a tour in every single port.

 

Stay away from the gift shops and casinos on board.

 

Except for gratuities what you spend on board is completely up to you. Some people will say they spent nothing and this is possible. Others will spend thousands of dollars.

 

Nita

[justfoxie]

For example, the International Cafe on Emerald is a great place to stop for a snack (pastries, sandwiches, sweets) and it's all free, except for the evening tapas. Don't want to spend money for the ice cream bar by the pool? Wait until 3:30-4:30 for free ice cream in the Horizon Court (which is conveniently not advertised) - it's just as good, unique flavors and lots of toppings. Movies Under the Stars is great entertainment up on the deck, and it's free - complete with popcorn at night or milk and cookies in the afternoons. Afternoon tea in the dining room is a great experience and yes, it's all free, as is the pub lunch on sea days in the Wheelhouse bar.

If you really want to save money, you can cut out unnecessary extras (specialty restaurants, spa, balcony service etc.); yes they're nice but you can definitely have a great cruise without them. Enjoy the things that are most important to you. Finally, you can always buy a soda card if you know you're a big soda drinker (you have to average about 4 sodas a day to make it "worth" it, I believe.)

 

Oh that's really helpful. I must say that the Movies under the Stars does sound really fab as does Afternoon Tea. Thanks so much. We may do one or two optional extras (I do like my spa time!), but I was really concerned at what else we might be missing that wasn't included - at first I thought anything outside the main dining rooms would be, but am very glad to hear that's not the case.

 

Will keep the soda card in mind too - I don't really drink them much, but my MIL, who is travelling with us, does and to be fair she probably spends more than $4.95 a day anyway on soda at home, so that's really not all that bad.

 

@ newmexicoNita, thanks for those suggestions as well. I'm really looking forward to "footing it" for all the ports, as I'm really not a bus sightseeing kind of person - it's one of the big reasons we moved to Europe in the first place was to live someplace where walking was more a part of daily life. Hurrah! Fortunately, the gift shops and casinos hold absolutely no appeal for us, so an easy one to avoid.

 

 

Thanks again!

[kooljamming]

wow, soda hasn't been free on cruise ships for a long time, it isn't free in restaurants why do some people think it should be free on cruise ships?

 

Now, here are ways to stretch your $$s: if you are a soda drinker bring your own on board, that will save you a bunch of bucks, don't use the ships tours unless you see something you just feel you have to do and there is nothing similar out there. The exception is a long tour that may push the time element, you wouldn't want to miss the ship. We, generally book our own tours as long as they are 5 hours or less and we are going to be in port at least 7 or 8 hours.

 

Go to the roll call section here and sign up. You will have a chance to get ideas from others and maybe even do some beforehand tour planning. Remember, you do not have to do a tour in every single port.

 

Stay away from the gift shops and casinos on board.

 

Except for gratuities what you spend on board is completely up to you. Some people will say they spent nothing and this is possible. Others will spend thousands of dollars.

 

Nita

 

Just maybe because it's cheaper than most food you have to eat your way through. I can have 2 lobsters but not a glass of soda. Does that truly make sense to you:rolleyes: Excluding soda is one of the all time dumbest thing I can ever imagine but the market up is so great it might very well make up for that second lobster:p You can also limit your purchase of those oh so pretty pictures.

[lovespositano]

A Princess cruise is the most economical of ALL vacations. Everything onboard is free, basically, except the specialty restaurants. The only thing you pay for is alcohol and sodas. The soda card is a great value if your preferred drink is Coke or diet Coke. You can have as many glasses as you want on your entire cruise - whether at the pool, in a bar, in Explorers, Club Fusion, Princess Theater, Crooners - you name it. The other great value if you like specialty coffee is the coffee card. It is good for a certain number of "punches." But you can use it for your next Princess cruise if you have punches left on it at the end of your cruise. The pizza grill has pizza, hamburgers, hot dogs, fries, and (I just found out) made to order waffles in the morning. And you can order a whole pizza to your room - it's not listed on the room service menu page, it's listed on the next page. Regarding the specialty restaurants, if you opt to do one - the price is FABULOUS for the service, quality of food, and types of food served - much cheaper than you would pay for the same thing on land, that's for sure!! We loved the Crown Grill so much we did it twice on our last cruise - steaks were sublime and they will bring a tray of desserts for you - small portions of ALL their dessert offerings - works for me!!

 

Re shore excursions, go to Trip Advisor.com, enter the name of the port and click on "Things To Do" which will give you readers' comments on the top things to do in order of popularity among readers. This is a fantastic resource for planning your cruise. You can book your excursion directly with the providers you will read about there and save a lot of money (particularly if you are at least 4 people, you can book your own driver and REALLY save money, see tons more things in the same amount of time, and have a most relaxing and enjoyable day). The other big plus to arranging your own transportation is that you don't waste 15 minutes or more sitting in the Princess Theater waiting for your bus - you are off the ship, meeting your driver or guide, or walking into port to start exploring on your own. In Europe, the Touristic buses are great - for a few dollars per person you can take the grand tour of your port, sitting in the sunshine on the top deck and listening to the earphones tell you about points of interest you are passing. Do the whole tour once, identify the places you want to see later, then go around again and hop on and off at the places you wanted to see in more detail. Same goes for transfers -if you are a party of at least 2, you can grab a taxi for less than Princess charges, and you will arrive at your destination much quicker and with less hassle. Relax and have the time of your life - it would be difficult NOT to!!!!

[PescadoAmarillo]

It is entirely possible to cruise cheaply once you're on the ship. We just completed 2-10 night cruises on the Emerald Princess with on board spending of around $650. $420 of it was the autotip, about $200 of it were the soda stickers (a great value); add one coffee card ($27), one glass of wine and one drink and that about sums it up. Luckily, we also received $500 in on board credits (OBCs), so our out of pocket was around $150 for 20 nights. Even factoring in our original cruise cost (less than $100pp per day), you can't vacation anywhere that inexpensively these days. And we didn't feel even one bit deprived.

 

Baltic excursions are sure to set you back a bit, but you would encounter that either on a land or cruise vacation (except you might have higher transportation costs on the cruise to get to city centers). But look at what you're saving in transportation costs between cities (and an overnight on a ship is a lot more comfortable than an overnight on a train!).

[CruisinChris]

wow, soda hasn't been free on cruise ships for a long time, it isn't free in restaurants why do some people think it should be free on cruise ships?

 

 

In fact - I don't think soda was ever free. back in the day - mid-90's it was actually fairly difficult to come by and only available in cans. They didn't have fountain soda at all and you had to find a bar to get your soda. i can remember going crazy in the morning trying to track one down. Fortunately, it's gotten a lot easier over time and when the fountain soda was added (maybe 2001 or so) Princess added the soda cards.

[caribill]

wow, soda hasn't been free on cruise ships for a long time, it isn't free in restaurants why do some people think it should be free on cruise ships?

 

 

 

Maybe because you don't spend $100 or more a day per person just to be in the restaurant.

 

Under the above logic, you pay for a potato in a restaurant, why should it be free on a cruise ship?