How do you save for cruises

[NSWP]

Re the cruise money tin, my wife collects 50 cent coins to pay for her daily Rasberry Mohito fix on board the Princess ships.

 

This time round, she can get to the Elite/Platinuim lounge on the Ruby/Coral and buy the $5 cocktail of the day, instead of paying $8 for a mohito. Cruel am I not? LOL.

[The Fox]

OMG!:eek: These people obviously have way to much money, I will happily settle for an inside cabin, if it means I am going to be on the ship, I get the same service,meals ,entertainment etc in my inside cabin as these particular w...... in there suites or balcony cabins. If it means no cooking cleaning, washing , ironing etc,and being treated like royalty for a while,I would travel in the storage cupboard! The cheaper the fare the more often I can cruise! I have travelled in all cabins except a suite and have found the 2 balcony cabins we have had nice, but a waste of money as we don't spend much time in them anyway, I do enjoy an oceanview cabin, it's nice to wake up and see where you are and what the weather is like,and have some natural light in the room, but unless I can get an oceanview for reasonable money, I will settle for an inside happily. Robin:)

 

HI,

 

Im with you Robin.We always cruise in inside cabins for the same reasons.less $ = more cruises.

 

I could retire a but with GFC my super is up and down like a fiddlers elbow Instead of sitting home worrying about it i figure its better to keep working and cruise....

 

Col:)

[poolreader]

We save any way we can; order water instead of drinks and share meals when we do eat out, never go to Starbucks, buy at thrift stores, particapate in book exchanges, have cell phones that are 5 years old, only one flat screen TV, etc. I am just crazy for cruising and spend a good deal of time shopping for the best rates. I am ready to go any time I find a great deal, and take the room that will give us the best price (which is sometimes a balcony because of past guest considerations).:)

[thied]

we have cruise account that we pay into every month as one works and one is self retired at 48 and we own every thing so no dets only running costs.This works for us and we pay more in then we need so the exess is used for more cruises.

I have to add that these days we cruise in mini suites or suites, not because we are snobs, it because we have made great investments over the years and now we can enjoy it.

[rugbypopsie]

If you can put down a small deposit or no deposit (FCC letters with Princess) and then organise a fixed amount to come out of your pay into your holiday fund account you hardly notice it...when the time comes for final payment you have you money ready and the holiday pay covers everything else...or it you are lucky enough to be able to cruise at short notice and you don't care where you are in the ship..you have your funds ready and waiting and off you go as soon as those hot specials pop up. Of course if you have to cruise in school holiday time..its tough to get a bargain.

[SunnyinDubai]

Of course if you have to cruise in school holiday time..its tough to get a bargain.

 

That is so true Sue....see some fab specials but they are hardly in the school hols....this latest cruise offer we got was a fluke really :(

[resordanis]

If you can put down a small deposit or no deposit (FCC letters with Princess) and then organise a fixed amount to come out of your pay into your holiday fund account you hardly notice it...when the time comes for final payment you have you money ready and the holiday pay covers everything else...or it you are lucky enough to be able to cruise at short notice and you don't care where you are in the ship..you have your funds ready and waiting and off you go as soon as those hot specials pop up. Of course if you have to cruise in school holiday time..its tough to get a bargain.[/quote

I agree with you. We are retired and can cruise anytime. After our upcoming Diamond Princess cruise from Singapore, we are just going to sve our money and cruise when we see a great special.

We did this with our recent Pacific Pearl cruise and I think that made it even more enjoyable, because we got a good deal!:D

[NSWP]

I have to add that these days we cruise in mini suites or suites, not because we are snobs, it because we have made great investments over the years and now we can enjoy it.

Hi thied, lucky you, suites/mini suites. On another point, I note your cruise history is all the South Pacific area. Are you not interested in doing cruises further a field ? i.e. Alaska, USA, Europe, Asia, Baltics etc? Do you not get bored with doing the Pacific Islands repeatedly? I would.

[Ask4Jay]

It seems to me that the prevailing attitude here is to poo poo the balcony cruisers. Even balcony cruisers can be frugal, and I mean us. We're 75+, both worked part time until three years ago. Having lived through WWII and in post-war Germany, we have learned to live frugally. Being immigrants to the US, totally on our own, we learned how to make do. Yes, the house is paid for, we have a decent car, and we each have a computer. But no cable TV @ $100/ month, no fancy restaurants. On the ship we eat in the MDR or buffet, we do not drink or gamble; no bottled water, no spa treatment. However, we do want the luxury of an aft balcony. That is the sole reason for cruising - for us. We want to be on the ocean, hence our TAs, we don't care to do shorex. We spend most of our time on our balcony, protected from the wind. So, as you have your reasons to cruise in an inside cabin, we have ours. We are still frugal. It's our life style.

OK, I'm off my box now.

 

 

Juergen (and Helen)

Via Tapatalk & iPod touch.

[Janet&Carl]

We save any way we can; order water instead of drinks and share meals when we do eat out, never go to Starbucks, buy at thrift stores, particapate in book exchanges, have cell phones that are 5 years old, only one flat screen TV, etc. I am just crazy for cruising and spend a good deal of time shopping for the best rates. I am ready to go any time I find a great deal, and take the room that will give us the best price (which is sometimes a balcony because of past guest considerations).:)

 

Got to agree with the above - and add .... if you saw my poor daughter in her short clothes (long pants half way up to her knees, sleeves half way up to her elbow) you'd understand where I take short cuts to the extreme ;) I just wish I could stop her growing ... lol

[Topaz_M]

It seems to me that the prevailing attitude here is to poo poo the balcony cruisers. Even balcony cruisers can be frugal, and I mean us. We're 75+, both worked part time until three years ago. Having lived through WWII and in post-war Germany, we have learned to live frugally. Being immigrants to the US, totally on our own, we learned how to make do. Yes, the house is paid for, we have a decent car, and we each have a computer. But no cable TV @ $100/ month, no fancy restaurants. On the ship we eat in the MDR or buffet, we do not drink or gamble; no bottled water, no spa treatment. However, we do want the luxury of an aft balcony. That is the sole reason for cruising - for us. We want to be on the ocean, hence our TAs, we don't care to do shorex. We spend most of our time on our balcony, protected from the wind. So, as you have your reasons to cruise in an inside cabin, we have ours. We are still frugal. It's our life style.

OK, I'm off my box now.

 

 

Juergen (and Helen)

Via Tapatalk & iPod touch.

 

Hi Juergen, good to hear your opinion and how you manage your cruising :)

 

For cruise pricing on Aussie ships, the price of a balcony is way above that of an inside or an oceanview. We also have many more insides and oceanviews on these ships.

On my upcoming two cruises (see signature) the price of balconies on Oasis and Solstice was far less than the price of a usual week's cruise in an Inside to the South Pacific :eek:

Also the price of my Inside on Radiance (a good deal too) was $20 less each than the balcony on Solstice. I can afford this but not more than twice this price for a balcony!

 

For me, I would rather be cruising than the alternative ;)

[Sandielle]

Hi Juergen, and welcome! I think you have got us wrong. We are not rubbishing those who have balconies. It's as Moira said, our ships have fewer balconies than American-based ships and our fares are much higher. We envy you people! :rolleyes: DH and I have actually had one balcony - in one sale they offered guarantee cheapest balconies at a lower price than some outside cabins, so of course, we jumped at it. By and large, though, DH and I are happy to just be on a cruise.

 

I am glad you are able to have your favourite balconies - I prefer the back deck of the ship, too, but I haven't been on one that has cabins at the back.

 

Happy cruising!

Sandy

[oskarNZ]

It seems to me that the prevailing attitude here is to poo poo the balcony cruisers. Even balcony cruisers can be frugal, and I mean us. We're 75+, both worked part time until three years ago. Having lived through WWII and in post-war Germany, we have learned to live frugally. Being immigrants to the US, totally on our own, we learned how to make do. Yes, the house is paid for, we have a decent car, and we each have a computer. But no cable TV @ $100/ month, no fancy restaurants. On the ship we eat in the MDR or buffet, we do not drink or gamble; no bottled water, no spa treatment. However, we do want the luxury of an aft balcony. That is the sole reason for cruising - for us. We want to be on the ocean, hence our TAs, we don't care to do shorex. We spend most of our time on our balcony, protected from the wind. So, as you have your reasons to cruise in an inside cabin, we have ours. We are still frugal. It's our life style.

OK, I'm off my box now.

 

Juergen (and Helen)

Via Tapatalk & iPod touch.

 

Hi Juergen,

 

I wanted to respond to your post since it was me that brought the balcony issue up in the first place.

I have to agree with Sandielle and say that you have misunderstood us.

I have no problem with people booking balconies. I have had a balcony before on a river cruise, so I would be a hypocrite if I thought less of people who booked them.

What I do find slightly annoying, however, is when people respond to threads about oceanviews and insides suggesting that a balcony is better. Unhelpful responses such as this are quite common and they can make the OP feel like they are in for a less enjoyable experience because they can not afford a more expensive cabin. For a while they even had me doubting my decision to book an oceanview on my upcoming Celebrity cruise. In the end though, no matter which way I looked at it, I just couldn't justify the extra $1000 it will cost us to upgrade.

 

This thread is about saving money and I guess this is just one way some of us make cruising more affordable. :)

[Itachi]

Hi Juergen, and welcome! I think you have got us wrong. We are not rubbishing those who have balconies. It's as Moira said, our ships have fewer balconies than American-based ships and our fares are much higher.

 

Have to agree with you there -- from time to time the issue does crop up and its like a balcony vs non-balcony and it just goes on :P

 

We spend most of our time on our balcony, protected from the wind. So, as you have your reasons to cruise in an inside cabin, we have ours. We are still frugal. It's our life style.

OK, I'm off my box now.

 

That is what cruising is all about -- doing what gives you the most enjoyment, and from the sounds of it, it is spending time together in the peace, quiet on your balcony. For us, I normally travel with a group of friends (between our 20 - 30 year olds). So for us, our rooms are essentially a roof over our heads -- a place to come back to at night to sleep and store our luggage. Having said that, we prefer an outside room, personally, I don't think I would survive in a room without a window on to the outside world. Having said that, for some of my friends, it doesnt bother them at all.

 

The way I look at it is, what makes a cruise is being able to say, yes, I got to do everything I want to do. Whether it be the islands, relaxing, partying, spending time with family and friends, or relaxing on a balcony (can imagine it would be very nice), etc.