Cruise Cash Bar?

[sr30sb]

Even though it is "use it or lose it" I think the Cruise Cash is a great idea for somebody like me. I get paid monthly bonuses on a debit card and apply $500 or so dollars or so to the card ( I will spend at least that much) and not need to worry too much about expenses on the cruise.

 

Yes I know I could just save the money but this makes it easier to save.

 

Not sure why someone would choose just the card for the bar unless you were getting as a gift for an alcoholic friend, LOL :p

[BigBertha81]

I bought Cruise Cash to pay for my gratuities and steakhouse dinner. I don't drink alcohol or gamble so to me it was a way to put those funds aside for a specific purpose. It's also a way to trick myself into believing everything I want to pay for is already included. :rolleyes:

[FiveAce]

What would be the benefit of using this over just paying your bill?

 

To avoid the sticker shock of seeing a larger-than-expected bill on the last night. Those drinks and other purchases can really add up and a lot of people like to end their cruise with a big fat $0.00 balance. To some it's worth giving Carnival the interest-free loan.

[girlscruise2011]

I'm pretty sure this is non-refundable. Use it or lose it.

 

I've heard that the same thing about the Cash bar.

[Lovefuninthesun]

On our last cruise we tried something new (for us) -- we added some OBC ahead of time. Then at check in we just put down an additional cash deposit -- the idea was to cover our alcohol and pictures.. At the end of the cruise we got a check for the unspent (I guess we didn't drink as much as I thought we would! :p) and cashed it before leaving the ship.

That worked really well for us.

[jaxfl]

Except for Cyber Cats carnival MC I don't get it. If I just use my Sign & Sail card and have them charge "everything to it" then Carnival bills my United Air CC why would I need SHIP CASH of any kind?

[CaribeDiver]

Bar cash is just the replacement for the old drink coupons. Instead of having to deal with coupons and worry about the cost of the drink that you can use a coupon for they apply the credit to your account and you can spend away.

 

So, I had purchased bar coupons in Feb 2012 for our Magic Cruise but didn't use them all. We are going on Magic in August and the coupons didn't say they expired so will Carnival not allow us to use them since they changed programs? And this new Bar Cash system does it allow you to forgo the 15% tip like the coupons did? We bought the coupons because they were $5.75 tip included and with 40 coupons that added up.

[grozas]

My wife is going on a Girls Weekend cruise on the Triumph is about a month. One woman that is going does not have a CC. Does not have an ATM card. This might be a solution for her. I still think she would do better putting cash on a Sail and Sign and then she would get any unused part back.

[sjcruiser]

I was just checking the bar cash out on the Bon Voyage page. We use to get the drink coupons, which seemed to be a waste to us lugging them around in our pockets, then we just bought drinks using our S&S card, then we found out about Bon Voyage ordering, which works out great for us for pre/post dinner drinks. We still order drinks when out and about, but the Bon Voyage orders, along with bringing our own mixers cut down on the money spent on drinks, except for the DOD's.

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

All you are doing when you buy cruise cash, bar, etc. is giving Carnival an interest free loan. I would recommend none of the above. Make your money work for you, not against you. Charge it on your sail and sign and then pay with a credit card that offers rewards. The caveat here is that you need to pay your balance off in full to make it worthwhile.

 

That's what I was wondering too. You are paying up front for something you haven't even gotten yet. Any number of things could happen to keep you from going and does insurance cover something like that?

 

I am amazed CCL can market this kind of stuff. They know people are excited for their trips, so they entice them to spend money before they even get on the ships. Their business model is not for me anymore...

[tpooleinjax]

From the website:

 

"Cruise Cash Bar is the newest way to pre-load your on-board Sail & Sign account with a credit that will work on any bar item. Cruise Cash Bar credit can be used on all cocktails, beer, liquor, juice, soda, water, milkshakes, coffee, and even the souvenir glasses sold in the bars. Nothing special you have to do to get your credit as it is automatically applied to your account. Welcome aboard and enjoy your Cruise Cash Bar credit immediately...Cheers!"

 

and:

 

"Cruise Cash Bar is non-refundable and any unused credits will be forfeited."

 

The only benefit to this program i see is if someone wanted to give it as a gift.

[TruckinMama]

If you're a cash only person trying to slowly save to budget what you spend, just buy the gift cards rather than the cruise/bar/photo cash. The gift cards do NOT expire, can be used for anything (including paying for your cruise itself), and you can add them as you go if you need more. You also don't have to be booked already to purchase them.

 

As for the cruise cash, it can be used for ANY onboard purchases, the bar cash can ONLY be used for the bar, and the photo cash can only be used on photo items. NONE of these are refundable, but they will be used first on your account, so if you also add a cash deposit, you will get that back. One thing that can be confusing when checking your S&S account is that these amounts don't show in your totals, they are in the itemized listing, but not in the balance. You have to do the math yourself. I'm an accountant, so this was easy for me to figure out, but my husband nearly drove himself insane with it. HA!!

[CaribbeanLuver]

This seems ridiculous and my mind can't even begin to comprehend why someone would buy this......... If they were offering drinks at a discount I would understand but wouldn't you just have the money in your account???? Seems like nothing more than an added hassle.:rolleyes:

[TruckinMama]

I wouldn't personally purchase it just to purchase it. However, for my graduation cruise last month, I had a couple friends purchase some as gifts. I also ordered a package deal of champagne from Bon Voyage that included a small amount of bar cash and photo cash.

 

 

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[CRP2012TX]

Can you use the bar cash credit to purchase the "cheers" program during embarkation?