How Much Money?

[underthemoon53]

Just wanted some input on how much money people general plan to spend while on their cruise. My fiancée and I are going on our wedding/honeymoon cruise and it will be our first cruise. We are going on the Carnival Legend for 7 days and I'm trying to budget our money.

[*Mach*]

If I don't have an all inclusive booked somewhere I figure on about $150 in port. On board, of course, everything goes on your Sail & Sign card...

:)

[h_blond2]

I usually bring about $200 with me for the ports. I usually do a little shopping and a little drinking! :o I also use this money for tipping and any food I may eat in port. Anything you purchase on the ship will go on your sail and sign card, so don't forget to budget for those purchases, as well! Have a great cruise!

[C Cruise Dude]

Just wanted some input on how much money people general plan to spend while on their cruise. My fiancée and I are going on our wedding/honeymoon cruise and it will be our first cruise. We are going on the Carnival Legend for 7 days and I'm trying to budget our money.

It really depends on your spending habits. You can use credit cards in most ports. I purchase travelers checks in addition to some cash that I take. When I run out of cash or choose to purchase with the travelers checks, use them. One of the safest ways is to get a low credit limit card and use it. In the major ports, St. Thomas, Nassau, I use my credit cards. The largest ticket item that I have ever purchased in port (St Thomas) was a digital camera. I used the credit card. :D

[lorijm23]

It is totally dependent on what you like to do. If you like to gamble and drink then you're going to spend more money. We generally spend about $1500 on board and about $150 in each port. I don't drink much and my husband probably only has a few drinks a day so we don't rack up the booze cost that alot of people do. We usually do a specialty restaurant twice so for the 3 of us that's about $220 including tips. For whatever reason I enjoy bingo on cruises even though I would never play it on land so I probably spend $300 for the week on the games. The rest is gambling which is our nightly entertainment. I would have to say that I budget $1500 but I always spend more than that because I usually play back whatever I win in the casino unless it's a decent amount.

 

In all honesty, we don't deprive ourselves of much during the trip. If there is something we want to do then we do it. However, you can limit your spending and still have a great time. A tip we learned in Vegas is to have a predetermined budget for gambling of what you are willing to spend daily. At night when you cash out for the day and you're ahead for that days budget, put that money away in an envelope and don't pull it back out until you go home. We have always come home with hundreds that didn't make us feel so depressed over how much we lost in total.

[rdler]

I am very, very bad. Carnival must love me. But I do all the bad things. More financially prudent folks can and do spend far less.

 

I tend to take excursions. Not always on Carnival, but they can add up. I like to get out and see things. Plus, I tend to buy things. They aren't always expensive, but they aren't cheap and tend to add up.

 

I'm a sucker for the ship's photographs. They can be really good.

 

And then I drink and smoke, so I buy beer and cigarettes on board.

 

Then, I park in the garage at the Port of Miami. That isn't cheap. Or good. And the porters there will be quick to tell you what they believe a reasonable tip to be.

 

There are the on-board gratuities to consider too.

 

I do always try to find the best cruise price available. But when considering the price of a cruise and whether I can afford it, I double it and I usually find that I'm about right.

 

And I have a good time.

[FloridaMimi]

Just wanted some input on how much money people general plan to spend while on their cruise. My fiancée and I are going on our wedding/honeymoon cruise and it will be our first cruise. We are going on the Carnival Legend for 7 days and I'm trying to budget our money.

 

 

 

I depends on a lot of things. Do you plan to drink a lot? If so, it costs a lot. How about buying photo's on board? They are approx around $22.00 each for an 8x10 Do you plan on taking excursions? You can pre book and pay for them ahead of time, but if not you will need money for that. If I remember right they run anywhere from $30 to $150 pp. If you don't drink alcohol and want to purchase an unlimited soft drink card, that will be extra. Not sure what the price would be for 7 days. Don't forget your gratuities will be added to your S & S card. $10 pp pd. Also there is bingo if you like to play. If you plan to eat in the Steak house, that will be extra. I think I heard about $35 pp for that. All of the previous will be added to you S & s card. Also don't forget parking charges if you are driving to port. That can be somewhere around $15 pd.(not sure exact amount) Cash for that. Money for tipping the baggage handlers, which is usually $1 per bag and money for tipping for room service or any extra requests such as that. Also any extra money you want to have for spending in ports. You can make it as expensive as you want or you can budget for a cheaper cruise. My husband doesn't drink alcohol and I only buy 1 per day. We only allow ourselves to buy 2 photo's at the most, usually just 1 and we do purchase the soft drink cards. We don't play bingo and any excursions we take will be no more than $50 pp per port. We have never gone over $450 for everything, but we have never taken a 7 day cruise yet. Hope this helps a little. My final thought is.... Your cruise can be whatever you and your budget want it to be. Congratulations on your wedding/honeymoon. May you have a lifetime of happiness and love with each other. and enjoy your cruise :)

[jenwales]

I budget 50% of the cruise cost. So if the cruise itself is costing us $2000, I budget $1000 for everything else while on the cruise. I've never spent that much, but I'd rather over budget than under budget.

 

Typically (for us) cruise fare = air fare and onboard spending (including excursions).

 

We take about $100 cash for room service/porter tips and little things we buy in port and that's been plenty.

[brooklynfc]

I think a list of everything that could cost would be helpful, then they can pick out what they would spend money on and total up what they could potentially spend. I did this for my friend who is a cruise newbie on this next cruise.

 

Tips

Porters-$1-$3 a bag

Cab/drivers-$1-$3

Room Service-$1-$3

Steward (extra)-$10-....

Wait Staff-$10....

 

Drinks

Fru Fru-$8 and some change

Beer-$4-$5

Shots-$4-$5

 

Photos

8x10s-$21.99

6x9-$9.99

 

Activities

Bingo-$10-$20

Wine Tastings-$15 and tip I think

 

Food

Steakhouse-$30pp

Cafe'/dessert shop-$2-$5 (normal coffee shop prices)

 

Ports

Cabs-$5-$10pp (depending on ports)

Entrance fees-$5-$20 (beaches, resorts, etc.)

Souvenirs- Totally up to the person, but typical things are

T-Shirts-3 for $10 is typical

Shot Glasses-$2-$4

 

Spa

Massages- $100-$300 (depends on day and massage type)

Spa Pass- $249 (couple) $149 (single) Only on Splendor, Dream,Magic.

 

 

That's all I can think of.......others can add more. Prices are from my experience ONLY.

[weliz]

Just wanted some input on how much money people general plan to spend while on their cruise. My fiancée and I are going on our wedding/honeymoon cruise and it will be our first cruise. We are going on the Carnival Legend for 7 days and I'm trying to budget our money.

 

Congratulations! We went on a cruise for our honeymoon in 2009, and loved it!

 

I looked back at our final Sail & Sign statement, and we spent about $1300 on top of the cruise booking cost. This included:

 

*About $550 in shore excursions

 

*$78 for dinner at David's ($30 each and a couple of drinks)

 

*About $200 in the gift shop

 

*$60 for photo purchases

 

*The rest was for adult beverages throughout the week (I don't want to do that math . . .)

 

We didn't spend much while actually on shore during the excursions; we ate at a local joint in Nassau for about $10 for a taxi and $50 for dinner (if I remember right), and only bought about $50 worth of tchatchkies total while ashore. So, only about $110 of direct support to the Bahamas economy.

 

Basically we didn't want to worry too much about every little purchase, as it was our honeymoon we figured it was more about having special experiences together. We did hem and haw a bit about the upcharge for David's, but it was _totally_ worth it! It felt like our special honeymoon dinner and the food was fabulous, I highly recommend it.

 

I hope this helps! Have a wonderful wedding day and a fabulous honeymoon cruise!

[EAZYLIVING]

Just wanted some input on how much money people general plan to spend while on their cruise. My fiancée and I are going on our wedding/honeymoon cruise and it will be our first cruise. We are going on the Carnival Legend for 7 days and I'm trying to budget our money.

 

Personally, I will never use my credit cards in any port unless its an emergency. I would budget $100 cash for each port and $5's and $10s for embarking, debarking and tipping extra for any cruise worker who goes above and beyond. And $100 per night if you're a casino person like me. And maybe $100 per day for the ship to spend on cruise stuff.

[steveNcindy]

We figure $175 pp pd for onboard spending when we cruise as a budget number. Tends to cover gratuities, drinks, spa, casino, ports, etc.

[Catrin]

We have cruised on a strict budget before, and then with no budget.... and I was amazed how things can really add up! (Our lowest being $128, our highest being $1300 .. on our Sail and Sign Acct)

 

There are great posts here how to save money, but also how NOT TO GET SUCKED IN to spending thousands of dollars on the ship and ports.

 

A few suggestions...

 

 

• Drinks - as crazy as it sounds, have a specific drink allowance. It is amazing how double Captain and Cokes can add to a Sail and Sign Bill!
  
• Take advantage of the Lemonade/Ice Tea on the Lido Deck. Or if you prefer soda, bring Soda from home or purchase a Soda card.
  
• Pictures - It will be lovely to have a few pictures of your Honeymoon. Do not skimp on these... BUT>>> at $21.00 a pop, they can add up too! And most will be lovely! But wait until the last few days to decide and pick the best.
  
• Gambling - We got to the point where I budget $50 for the casino. When its gone, its gone. I gave up on Bingo years ago, but one cruise I spent over $200 on Bingo!
  
• Ports - Why buy lunch, when lunch is "Free" on the ship?
  
• Excursions - research online. 9 times out of 10 you can find a better tour by booking independently for a lot less money.
  

Have a blast!

Catrin

[Time2CruiseAgain]

It has worked well for us counting $100 per day for the Sign & Sail - we don't gamble so that was plenty for us.

 

For port spending - probably your first time in the ports you will spend more - you will want to do the excursions, purchase local wares, etc. As we are preparing for our 5th cruise, we won't plan so much for at port spending!

 

Be sure to take extra to tip - a good idea is to take $1 bills to tip - oh and when you go to the ports, us small bills - they see you pulling out $10s and $20s and you won't be able to talk them down in prices.

 

Congratulations and Happy Honeymoon! We are sailing the legend in 28 days!!!

[thekings23]

Just got off a 7 day cruise, the S&S bill was $800 for my family of 4, due to having the kids with us we drank a lot less then last year.

 

I also love to gamble so I brought $1500 for cards, brought home $600 and that $1500 includes what we spent in the 4 ports, $100-$200 per day.

 

I am under $2,000 for the week which I am very happy with.

[Kiln Wood]

"Half the clothes and twice the money," as conventional wisdom goes.....

My personal suggestion in addition to all the GREAT ADVICE you've received, would be to make sure you take bills in small denominations: You'll be glad you did! Have a WONDERFUL CRUISE and please remember that cruising is addictive!!

[2bfirsttime]

You have recieved some good advice on cost of services/goods. I just wanted to pipe in with a couple of suggestions to help you attain the money to spend.

 

Drop your change each day into a container of your choice and DONT touch it. I know those quarters for the car wash are tempting to grab, but restrain. You will be suprised how fast your change will add up. You can choose to roll them and cash them in at your bank, or use a coin star machine that charges a small fee, hopefully the small fee being one that is donated to a cause.

 

If you give yourself an allowance each week to spend during the week for things lke coffee and snacks and you do not use all that money, at the end of the week take what you have left and drop that into a hiding space or your change container. YOU WONT MISS IT. That adds up too.

 

At your pre wedding parties or your reception (if you feel comfortable doing so) you can do a money tree and/or the dollar dance. Depending on where you live in the country, this may be acceptable or not. Both of these things were popular years ago as a way for guests to help a young couple get established.

 

Congrats on your upcomming wedding, I pray its everything you dream of and more!

[travelbumsboston]

Congrats on the wedding. We'll be on the Legend with you next week. It's a great ship. Will be our third time on her. Our sign and sail acct usually runs between $1200.00 and $1700.00.:eek: Note, the 1700.00 charge was for 3 people (Me, Hubby and 4 year old grandson). I did a breakdown on the 1700.00 one and about 500.00 was booze and drinks for little guy, 430.00 for excusions, 210.00 gratutities, 200.00 for cigs, 160.00 photos (we always get a ton of photos, I personally think they do a nice job), 200.00 casino. While in port we usually spend about 50-150.00. Just depends what your going to do in port and if you're into shopping. If you haven't already you can book your excusions ahead of time and get booze from BV department (we're beer drinkers so this doesn't really make any sense for us). Hope you have a beautiful wedding and a great honeymoon cruise.:)

[DocF]

We carry cash to use in ports. For our TA cruise, which is upcoming, I will budget $400 or so for this use. We will not be taking excursions in two ports and will be poking about on our own. Otherwise I would say $250 would be enough. There is a shop in Grand Turk which has some very good lines that DW likes. We will be doing Malaga on our own and we may find something there that says, Oh! Oh! Buy me!". We try to avoid listening, but sometimes it is too difficult.

 

Our onboard expenses on the Sail and Sign card tend to run about $400. Most of this is our tips and buying the photos that don't make be regurgitate.:)

 

Doc

[ChefSusan]

If you are casino people, bring CASH. Do not take a cash advance against your credit card/sign & sail card - that will run you 3% over and above the amount that you wish to gamble with. I usually gamble $30/day - no matter how much I have won in the casino, as soon as my original money is gone, I walk away and put the winnings onto our sign and sail card (so that I can buy something in one of the shops on board).

 

We always book our excursions independent of the ship. We have found that we get much better service, and have yet to miss the ship departing from port.

 

We never buy any of the photos on board. As a matter of fact, we have a running joke that we're in the witness protection program and no pictures of us can be taken *LOL*

 

We usually bring around $50.00 in "over and above tips" for our cabin steward, our head waiter, and the Maitre D'. We always have singles readily available for those times when we get something from Room Service.

 

Other than the above, just remember to have an open mind, don't get caught up in other people's drama, take part in as much as you can, and let your inner child out to play!

[Shelbyjane56]

We bring a little over 2k and apply it to our Sign and Sail. We also have credit cards but we only use the credit card if I find a bit of jewerly that I cant live without. We almost aways come back with quite a bit of money and no bill to be paid

[h_blond2]

Drop your change each day into a container of your choice and DONT touch it. I know those quarters for the car wash are tempting to grab, but restrain. You will be suprised how fast your change will add up. You can choose to roll them and cash them in at your bank, or use a coin star machine that charges a small fee, hopefully the small fee being one that is donated to a cause.

 

This is exactly what I do and it adds up quick!