Budget for 7 day cruise

[yankeegirllost]

We have cruised before but this is our first 7 day cruise...and first cruise with the kids in tow (17 and 11). Hubby and I are drinkers...any advice on how much we should budget per day for the cruise? We like to use cash for our Sail & Sign account? We are giving the 17-year-old charging privileges but not the 11-year-old. Just a guesstimate is fine - any input or advice is welcome!

[cb at sea]

I would budget about $150 per day, but that doesn't include any excursions....presumably, you will book those (if any) in advance...that can get pricey! so can any "specialty restaurants"!

And, I would give the 17 year old a daily budget, too...the arcade can get expensive!

 

Really, tho...what did you spend per day on your shorter cruises? That should give you a "per day" idea of what your final bill will be!

[yankeegirllost]

I would budget about $150 per day, but that doesn't include any excursions....presumably, you will book those (if any) in advance...that can get pricey! so can any "specialty restaurants"!

And, I would give the 17 year old a daily budget, too...the arcade can get expensive!

 

Really, tho...what did you spend per day on your shorter cruises? That should give you a "per day" idea of what your final bill will be!

 

Seems like we average $150 per day (excluding excursions) and again, that is without the kids...and yes, daily budget will be imposed on the teenager, but thanks for the tip!

 

As far as budget goes, I am speaking strictly about onboard charges - excursions and specialty restaurants aside.

[tak81288]

Budgeting is sooo hard to figure out because everyone's spending and vacation habits are completely different. Many people on here budget about $100per day, but I personally know people that can spend thousands just in the casino.

 

If you normally spend about $150.00per day on a shorter cruise then it will be similar for the longer one...However, I'm not sure how much time you plan on spending in port, but I do spend less onboard on port days than on sea days...If you have a lot of port days, than you may get away with knocking your onboard budget down a little since the time you are actually on the ship on port days will be pretty limited.

 

As for the 17yr old, probably $50.00 tops for the whole trip...Aside from maybe some candy in the ships store, a non-alcoholic smoothie or soda here or there...etc..there's not a whole lot s/he can purchase or would even want to purchase while onboard....:) If they are going to drink a lot of soda, purchasing the soda card may be a good investment, but it just depends on how much soda they will actually drink. If you are using cash for the S&S card though, then you are good to go and don't have to worry about them going over budget.

 

Have fun!

[Colorado Kat]

I think for the kids, you can establish a spending limit on their S&S cards. I always just told mine how much they could spend for the week, and they were good.

 

But if either kid is into video games or the internet, it would be really easy to spend a lot without them realising it. You can monitor everyones' spending on the cabin TV set daily. I think you need to know their folio #s, off their S&S cards.

 

A drink is $7-8 each, including tip.

[LarryL]

We budget $100 per day for all alcohol which includes beer, drinks, and wine for dinners. If they sell a wine package you may cut some costs there.

 

To save some money, I would recommend purchasing the soft drink and coffee packages for each person who will consume more than a dozen or so during the cruise. Cruise lines charge differently so check on the cost. I would also take into account any specialty shops, eateries or other places where you or your kids can use the card. Do you want to stay connected? add the costs of internet minutes if you do.

 

You may also want to add in any spa treatments you may want to get.

 

Through all this, I'm sure you will be setting some ground rules on your 17 year old's spending. We did with our DD (15) and she was very responsible with her card.

 

Have a great cruise,

 

Larry

[yankeegirllost]

So you can actually set limits on the kids' cards? That would be super - just never thought that would be an option.

[Carolin]

You know your drinker so to save yourself a ton. Call Bon Voyage and order a bottle or two of your fav bev. Also get a soda card. Believe me it is well worth the price. Even when I went off campus (wanted something different), I ended up with a fraction of the liqour bill then what I would have had. For a 7 day cruise, I ended up with a $80 sign and sail bill. I put $200 on my card the first day and that was for on board purchases that my boyfriend made (flowers, cigs) and a little extra for my intake.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[whciv]

Here are some suggestions on how to save a little while cruising. Cruise ships sell cabins for less than break even pricing in hopes that you will buy stuff, drinks and gamble while on the ship. Alcohol is a huge moneymaker for the cruise lines. We too like to drink some, but you can get carried away and find your sign and sail charges through the roof. Here are some things we do:

 

1. If you kids like soft drinks, consider buying them a drink pass. Each can of soda is about $2 so it doesn't take long to hit the price of a pass. Be sure to buy it the first day... before you buy any drinks. Doesn't do you much good on day 3 of a 7 day cruise.

 

2. Bring your own water bottles and fill them at water dispensers. My wife has a bottle of water everywhere she goes. We found that we were spending tons just on water bottles. Take our own.

 

3. Budget your gambling. I love to gamble a little, but I always set a budget. Its easy to get carried away and they now let you charge gaming to your room account... dangerous.

 

4. Look for drink specials. Rather than buy 5 beers, just buy one of those buckets of beers and share them... if you drink beer that is. You will also notice that cruise lines run other drink specials during the cruise.

 

5. Video games can be expensive. My son loves to play arcade video games and they are quite expensive on the ship. We have found that some cruise lines will let kids play for FREE for during certain timeframes. My son usually uses the kids room and asks them about any free gaming days. They gave them 3 hours on two separate days on our last 7 day cruise. Saves quite a bit when games can cost $1 to $1 each.

 

6. Check your room bill a couple of times during your trip to insure its accurate. We had several charges show up one cruise that weren't ours. I waited until the last day and WOW the lines were horrible to get them fixed. Just check a few times during your trip.

 

Have a great trip!! Your kids will love the cruise. :)

 

Smart-Travelers

http://www.*****

[JaneBP]

This link might help with a comparison about drinks/cards

 

http://www.frommers.com/articles/7316.html

[yankeegirllost]

All very helpful replies. Thanks.

 

We have taken a few of the suggestions: I called Bon Voyage and ordered my husband several drink coupons and a bottle of Absolut and mixers for me; got the little one a soda/juice card. All will be in our cabin when we arrive, or so said the customer relations rep.

 

And yes, the video/arcade machines will definitely be a tough one for my youngest to resist. Thanks for the tip of "free" time. I'll have to check that out at camp orientation the first day.