In Defense of the Budget Cruiser

[cruz chic]

There seems to be a sense that if someone is travelling on a budget they must be sailing in interior cabins, staying in two stars or no stars, and eating fast food.

 

We travel on a budget. We look for value. On our most recent trip we spent six nights each in five star hotels in two different cities on our trip. Why...because the value was there for us. We might otherwise have gone for a four star, a three star, or a B&B, etc. We have a target budget per diem for balcony cabins. It is a sweet spot for us. It is as much about value as it is about budget. If our price hits on a cruise that we want we book it. If not, we pass and do something else.

 

Why pay more when we do not have to? Doing this leaves money on the table for more travel. And we could really care less about what other people may feel about it.

 

Absolutely. Who doesn't want a deal. That said there have been posts on this board with people saying they can't afford the hsc so it's not out of the realm of possibly.

[DaveOKC]

Lots of great points on this thread. We must all remember that everyone has different situations, values and ideas - thus not everyone should do things the way you would.

[dvcmember]

I love sailing on any "Dam" ship whether it is inside or an outside. We have not yet sailed in a verandah or suite because we just don't spend enough time there to justify the difference. There are just too many beautiful spaces onboard than in my cabin.

However, we will splurge on many extras such as stateroom flowers, multiple dinners in Pinnacle Grill, cooking classes, corkage fees for our wine brought onboard, $100.00 in Beverage cards, and the must Lido Cabana on Signature-class ships.

So, as you can see, we only sleep, shower, and change in our stateroom.

[sail7seas]

I love sailing on any "Dam" ship whether it is inside or an outside. We have not yet sailed in a verandah or suite because we just don't spend enough time there to justify the difference. There are just too many beautiful spaces onboard than in my cabin.

However, we will splurge on many extras such as stateroom flowers, multiple dinners in Pinnacle Grill, cooking classes, corkage fees for our wine brought onboard, $100.00 in Beverage cards, and the must Lido Cabana on Signature-class ships.

So, as you can see, we only sleep, shower, and change in our stateroom.

 

 

And this, too, is an important point. Some of us spend a lot of time in our cabins and other spend little time. For a cruiser who wants to spend most of their time outside the cabin, it is less important what category or comforts. I like to spend much time in my cabin and verandah and it matters a lot to me.

 

No one should judging others particularly when you are doing so in the dark...... you only know of people here what we choose to share.

 

[StartrainDD]

And this, too, is an important point. Some of us spend a lot of time in our cabins and other spend little time. For a cruiser who wants to spend most of their time outside the cabin, it is less important what category or comforts. I like to spend much time in my cabin and verandah and it matters a lot to me.

 

No one should judging others particularly when you are doing so in the dark...... you only know of people here what we choose to share.

 

 

Sail, you are absolutely correct. We spend little time in our cabin (basically a place to sleep, shower, and change clothing). Certainly if we intended to be in our cabin a much higher amount of time, watching the scenery from our verandah (or just reading a book...) then the cabin would be more important to us.

[HokiePoq]

We book guaranteed insides all the time. Yes we could afford to do more but we don't see any need. This gives us more money to do excursions, enjoy a drink before dinner, and so on. Plus we can travel more often this way. Holland upgrades us sometimes so it's a nice surprise, they also make every passenger feel special. Still enjoy the insides and never mind where we are located, we have no issues, just so we are on the ship and we all arrive at the same time. Some lines do make you feel like a steerage passenger, we choose not to travel on them again:mad:

 

Oh and talking budget, you can order a bucket of beer at 2 of the bars during happy hour and get the second one for $1 more. We just take the remainder of them back to our cabin to enjoy whenever;) Cann't resist a bargain:D

 

What a helpful tip, lol! We have a guaranteed inside on our upcoming 35 day cruise. Just couldn't justify spending two or three times as much for an upscale cabin. We don't spend much time at all in the cabin as we like the onboard activities. Sometimes when we've had a balcony the weather has either been too hot or too cold to justify the expense.

[summer slope]

And this, too, is an important point. Some of us spend a lot of time in our cabins and other spend little time. For a cruiser who wants to spend most of their time outside the cabin, it is less important what category or comforts. I like to spend much time in my cabin and verandah and it matters a lot to me.

 

We spend at least 1/2 of the time in our cabin. We love to sit on the balcony and watch the world go by or read. I rarely read at home, too many things taking up my time. But on a cruise I will read 7-10 or more books. We rarely go to shows but watch the stars. As S7S says, to each their own.

[sail7seas]

:) I love sitting on my verandah reading and my verandah is worth much to me. :)

[summer slope]

Oh and talking budget, you can order a bucket of beer at 2 of the bars during happy hour and get the second one for $1 more. We just take the remainder of them back to our cabin to enjoy whenever;) Cann't resist a bargain:D

 

And which bars might those be?

 

[POA1]

And which bars might those be?

 

The Happy Hour covers anything up to $7. You can get a beer and another beer for $1. Buckets are $20+. You shouldn't be able to get a second bucket for one dollar. They should be ineligible. If someone gave you a second bucket for one dollar, it's probably an accident.

Edited June 24, 2015 by POA1

[sail7seas]

And which bars might those be?

 

 

Often Ocean Bar and Crows Nest.

 

[cruiseJMO]

 

Oh and talking budget, you can order a bucket of beer at 2 of the bars during happy hour and get the second one for $1 more. We just take the remainder of them back to our cabin to enjoy whenever;) Cann't resist a bargain:D

 

Thank u for the idea. 😀

[cruiseJMO]

The Happy Hour covers anything up to $7. You can get a beer and another beer for $1. Buckets are $20+. You shouldn't be able to get a second bucket for one dollar. They should be ineligible. If someone gave you a second bucket for one dollar, it's probably an accident.

I didn't think of that, or see your posts.

Darn 😢

[taxmantoo]

The Happy Hour covers anything up to $7. You can get a beer and another beer for $1. Buckets are $20+. You shouldn't be able to get a second bucket for one dollar. They should be ineligible. If someone gave you a second bucket for one dollar, it's probably an accident.

 

We were the beneficiaries of that accident a few times at the Ocean Bar and the Crow's Nest. ;)

Edited June 24, 2015 by taxmantoo

[Banditswife]

We select our cruises based on value. We don't rent formal wear, we seldom even take it since we travel with carry on only and usually for 8-12 weeks at a time.

 

Not certain how intelligent person would connect the dots and imply that we or anyone else who travels in a similar fashion would ever cancel out the automatic gratuities or behave in an untoward manner.

 

Comments like that speak volumes about the author.

Agree- just because we are cost conscious does NOT mean we are cheap.

[Banditswife]

This thread really needs like buttons.

Yes it does. Like like like a lot of what has been shared here. Allow me to say thank you for allowing me to get a few things off my chest.

 

I'd also like to add, while we may cruise on a budget, we do not find fault in those who don't need to. As Sail said, everyone has their own priorities. We are very happy for those who can book suites, more power to them. I do not fault them at all, but am happy for them.

Edited June 24, 2015 by Banditswife

[kazu]

I don't see anything wrong with being on a budget. We are and I think a lot of people are.

 

I think where the misnomer has come in is that there are some cheap (sorry I can't find a better word) people out there or people who chose to save money by eliminating HSC. For whatever reason that has been interpreted by some as people on a budget.

 

The people that do this are NOT people on a budget. People on a budget plan for all of their cruise costs including the HSC. The people who are want to eliminate the HSC are the people you may see posts saying"maybe you shouldn't be cruising, etc." are people who think nothing of shortng the crew and I don't consider them budgeters.

 

I hope I haven't erred in clearing the air. I think some posts where people were refusing to pay the HSC may have resulted in the budgeters thinking that they were the aim of these posts. They aren't. At least, not by me.

 

I hope I won't be flamed by this, but I think that people misunderstand the word budget. It doesn't mean you are cheap. It means you plan.

[mame42]

I don't see anything wrong with being on a budget. We are and I think a lot of people are.

 

I think where the misnomer has come in is that there are some cheap (sorry I can't find a better word) people out there or people who chose to save money by eliminating HSC. For whatever reason that has been interpreted by some as people on a budget.

 

The people that do this are NOT people on a budget. People on a budget plan for all of their cruise costs including the HSC. The people who are want to eliminate the HSC are the people you may see posts saying"maybe you shouldn't be cruising, etc." are people who think nothing of shortng the crew and I don't consider them budgeters.

 

I hope I haven't erred in clearing the air. I think some posts where people were refusing to pay the HSC may have resulted in the budgeters thinking that they were the aim of these posts. They aren't. At least, not by me.

 

I hope I won't be flamed by this, but I think that people misunderstand the word budget. It doesn't mean you are cheap. It means you plan.

 

Thank you. As the originator of the thread, my only point was that for some of us, what seems to others like a small price difference between a guarantee and an assigned cabin may loom large for us. I have certainly never cancelled the HSC, and I personally tip my cabin stewards and favorite bar tenders. It is all part of the budgeting process.

[sunnygidget]

The Happy Hour covers anything up to $7. You can get a beer and another beer for $1. Buckets are $20+. You shouldn't be able to get a second bucket for one dollar. They should be ineligible. If someone gave you a second bucket for one dollar, it's probably an accident.

 

Has never been an issue on our last 8 Holland cruises, they have always done this.

Edited June 24, 2015 by sunnygidget

[sail7seas]

Thank you. As the originator of the thread, my only point was that for some of us, what seems to others like a small price difference between a guarantee and an assigned cabin may loom large for us. I have certainly never cancelled the HSC, and I personally tip my cabin stewards and favorite bar tenders. It is all part of the budgeting process.

 

I don't know where or how it turned into a thread about removing HSC but it was clear to me what your message in OP was. I know threads evolve thus this one is not unusual by doing so but I don't think your message was about HSC? Did I misunderstand,,,,,, again? There are times I'm told that here. :D

 

[kazu]

Thank you. As the originator of the thread, my only point was that for some of us, what seems to others like a small price difference between a guarantee and an assigned cabin may loom large for us. I have certainly never cancelled the HSC, and I personally tip my cabin stewards and favorite bar tenders. It is all part of the budgeting process.

 

No doubt in my mind as I posted. I saw some posts earlier in this thread that made some insinuations about HSC that I didn't think were accurate nor fair which is why I posted. apologies if it was thread drift

[Jameseric]

I love this post, with all its eddies and side-streams. When I graduated high school (okay, never mind when) there was one particular bunch of guys who were, well, a bunch. One went career military, one into a building trade. Another became a pilot, yet another a media mogul. The latter recently asked me something or other about my travels in Italy, and recommendations. Read politely what I wrote, but with the sepulchral pronouncement : "We only travel in luxury." Aha. Caused me to think, to recollect how companionable he had been in high school. Or not. And I realized that beneath the driven-businessman veneer, he was NOT somebody whose company you'd seek out in the Lido dining area. Fact is that while I'm really glad for the guy's success, his affected elegance has not really improved his articulate conversation, has not increased his breadth of interests, certainly has not made him a more fun guy to spend time with. I'm not intending to diss occupants of the 1,300 Sq ft accommodations onboard. Just defending the virtue of budgeting amongst high-rollers.

[GUT2407]

I love this post, with all its eddies and side-streams. When I graduated high school (okay, never mind when) there was one particular bunch of guys who were, well, a bunch. One went career military, one into a building trade. Another became a pilot, yet another a media mogul. The latter recently asked me something or other about my travels in Italy, and recommendations. Read politely what I wrote, but with the sepulchral pronouncement : "We only travel in luxury." Aha. Caused me to think, to recollect how companionable he had been in high school. Or not. And I realized that beneath the driven-businessman veneer, he was NOT somebody whose company you'd seek out in the Lido dining area. Fact is that while I'm really glad for the guy's success, his affected elegance has not really improved his articulate conversation, has not increased his breadth of interests, certainly has not made him a more fun guy to spend time with. I'm not intending to diss occupants of the 1,300 Sq ft accommodations onboard. Just defending the virtue of budgeting amongst high-rollers.

 

 

There is a very old saying about Silk Purses and Sows Ears.

 

I am lucky in that I have known and been friends at both ends of the wealth spectrum, I can say 100% there are good and bad at all levels.

 

There is a local property developer who started life mowing lawns for a living it s not unusual now [he's in his 70s] to see him out mowing a few acres wth a hand mower.

[BeagleOne]

To the OP, most cruisers are on a budget. There is only so much money that most will pay and can pay for a particular cruise. Those with seemingly unlimited funds are not sailing on a mass cruise ship; these are the people with the massive private yachts that you see in different ports.

 

Passing judgment, insulting and belittling others is passive aggressive behaviour that just reflects poorly on the poster. Pretentious people with an unwarranted sense of accomplishment will often attack any post that does not support or threatens their fragile self-esteem. The best solution is to simply add to your ignore list.

 

I totally agree, except I don't have anyone on my ignore list. I find the pretentious posters to be hilariously entertaining, especially because almost no one here posts under their real names, so we have no idea who these pretentious people actually are. How insecure does someone have to be to brag about how wonderful they are, when no one knows WHO they are?

 

I especially like the "Oh, WE would never sail without a balcony, but if YOU like your poky interior room, well, good for you" or the "Well, I hope YOU enjoy your cruise on the mass-market line, WE prefer to book the more exclusive lines" humblebragging posts. Posts like that always make me smile. :) And I'm quite happy with my budget and my choice of travel means and destinations!

[Lizzie68]

I totally agree, except I don't have anyone on my ignore list. I find the pretentious posters to be hilariously entertaining, especially because almost no one here posts under their real names, so we have no idea who these pretentious people actually are. How insecure does someone have to be to brag about how wonderful they are, when no one knows WHO they are?

 

I especially like the "Oh, WE would never sail without a balcony, but if YOU like your poky interior room, well, good for you" or the "Well, I hope YOU enjoy your cruise on the mass-market line, WE prefer to book the more exclusive lines" humblebragging posts. Posts like that always make me smile. :) And I'm quite happy with my budget and my choice of travel means and destinations!

 

Just wanted to say - I love your beagle! It is so much like my Mikey, who I lost a few years ago. They are such lovely dogs.

Sorry to send it off-topic, just wanted to tell you that.:)