Using cash on the Sign and Sail Account

[firemanbobswife]

I see your reasoning. I had encouraged my kids to put their cc's on their S&S accounts because I thought that would be easier to dispute if there were an erroneous charge, but have you actually found the opposite to be true?

I will definitely be sure my child using cash checks his S&S account the night before we debark for any unpaid charges. I had assumed he would not be allowed to charge anything that wasn't on his account which I would have preferred. I guess each payment method has its cons.

 

I personally haven't had anything pop up after the fact when using a credit card, but I have seen where others have been charged for minibar purchases, drinks, etc that they didn't actually consume. All of these showed up after the cruise on their CC statements and not on their final bill onboard. So then they have to call Carnival and hopefully get that reversed, then make sure it comes off their card.

 

Since I use the discounted Carnival Gift Cards anyway, I see no need to give them a CC. It's just easier in my case. Although I can see why some prefer to use a card. Everyone's situations are different so go with what works for you :)

[mumtopugs]

We prepay everything we can and put $100 per person in cash when we board. That covers our bingo and drinks pretty well. That way we can't go over budget. You're a lot more aware of charges when you know there's eventually and end to the swiping.

 

It's super easy to cash out. Just go to the desk the night before.

[elainmir]

This cruise I'm doing 600$ in carnival gc's first...to cover tips and 450 towards gambling...we use cash after any gift cards....

[notyours75]

Don't forget about the gift cards available from Verizon, AARP, and Citibank that you can use to apply towards you S&S account. Your cost is $90 per $100 value. (Citibank ships for free and has electronic cards available.) We know the things we are going to get from carnival (cheers, chef's table, etc) and their costs so we have enough gift cards to cover those. The remaining excursions, shopping etc, we bring cash to either spend onshore or to apply to our account on the last day so we don't end up with unused gift cards at the end. The goal is to have less than a $50 balance at the end of the cruise.

 

We do however open up our account with a credit card so I don't have to manage a hard limit and be constantly worrying about the balance. I don't like to use a debit card in these situations because the holds can be unpredictable and I don't want our regular cash flow getting gummed up.