Thoughts on the price of an NCL cruise vacation

[kathy884]

OK -- to start with let me say that I do have a bean counter sort of personality. I always have a vacation budget, itemize expenses, stay within that budget -- all that fun stuff. But I do typically have a pretty decent sized annual vacation budget too.

 

I'm just curious about your thoughts, though, on cruise vacations and if you find them to be a good value compared to other vacations that you do? And maybe too, it's how you do them. I know for example, that I spend very little in Orlando in comparison to most other people, and maybe it's just that we are doing everything that sounds appealing to us on this cruise vs. doing any economizing. We are doing a March week on the Escape and it looks like it will be a terrific trip. Also, note that we are staying at a nice hotel before the trip, doing balcony cabins, two cabins not one -- even the upgrade for a slightly larger balcony, doing any excursions we have interest in, etc.

 

I am, though, for four adults (grown up 20 something kids) in two cabins, at least finding that a vacation cruising on a new nice NCL ship (Escape) running us in total about $8000. Do note that this includes incidental expenses, air and hotel before trip, kennel for dog, airport parking, everything. Most of our vacations are out west, flying out, renting a car, staying in reasonably nice hotels, or a two bedroom condo with large balcony, etc. and doing any tours, activities, etc. we want (some meals in, though, by preference not to economize). Those vacations typically cost us about $6000 in total. (everything). Also a land based March vacation to Puerto Vallarta where we stayed in a great two bedroom condo cost us about $6000 in total too. Just saying, and although it does fit in our vacation budget, that crunching the numbers that a cruise vacation is a pricier vacation than we usually do. I realize, though, that there will be more nighttime entertainment than our typical vacations and that I booked the two 20 somethings on some excursions that looked really cool, but were pretty pricey. And note too that if we stayed a week in NYC or somewhere like that, that would be more for sure. We go to NYC quite a bit, but only stay for two nights two days after visiting relatives on the east coast (fun NYC fix with a Broadway show or two without breaking the bank because of the short duration).

 

I do see that great savings would have been possible to put four adults in one cramped cabin, etc. too (great promotion deal if you don't mind bunking up), doing a older ship or a different line, cruising at a less popular time (We are going in March, although it's before the most popular spring break weeks). The bunking up in particular isn't appealing for DH at least and would have meant not even doing a cruise (He'd rather do fewer trips or stay home).

 

I'm very much looking forward to this trip, but I do have to say that it is not super budget friendly. This is our first time since the early 90s to try NCL and the first time we have ever sailed on a relatively new ship.

 

Just curious about your overall thoughts on the price / value of a cruise vacation on NCL.

[biker@sea]

How much are you going to use a balcony in March??

 

Two O/v would cut costs.

2 Insides even more savings.

 

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Edited October 8, 2016 by biker@sea

[kathybelcher2433]

I guess I wouldn't look at it that way. I cruise for the ports and consider the ship a floating hotel. For my upcoming cruise I am visiting 8 ports in 3 countries. I couldn't efficiently do that in a 11 day period with a land based vacation so that's worth a lot to me. The ship removed all the hassle of travel which I hate - multiple flights, packing and unpacking, rental cars, hotel check in etc. I think about all that time wasted.

 

I would also consider the expense of having 3 meals in restaurants every day as a pretty big number.

 

I love the evening entertainment on NCL. That was also worth a lot to me.

 

If I was looking to save I wouldn't book any excursions with the cruise line. I'd plan and book them on my own. (Which is what I do.)

 

Our cruise for 2 for a balcony on an older ship will be around $10000 all in. Flights are more than the cruise itself.

 

 

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[mjkacmom]

It's a good value for us. We are a family of 7 and we cruise from NYC, drive to the port. This summer, we rented a shore house on LBI, over $7000 for the week, kuds took paddleboarding and surf lessons, I bought food and cooked every meal, one night at the amusement park, and it definitely cost more than 2 balcony cabins I've booked in the past, or in the future - plus I will have a week free of cooking, cleaning, laundry, and grocery shopping. We never book excursions through the ship.

[Phil80041]

It's a good value for us. We are a family of 7 and we cruise from NYC, drive to the port. This summer, we rented a shore house on LBI, over $7000 for the week, kuds took paddleboarding and surf lessons, I bought food and cooked every meal, one night at the amusement park, and it definitely cost more than 2 balcony cabins I've booked in the past, or in the future - plus I will have a week free of cooking, cleaning, laundry, and grocery shopping. We never book excursions through the ship.

 

you make the best point.... we haven't cruised the last few years... electing to take a 2nd week in the outerbanks instead. We just booked 2/26 on breakaway and I am looking forward to NOT COOKING CLEANING ETC... beach trips are fun but sometimes are alot of work...

[DirtyDawg]

I've been pricing out some vacations for this Winter and the cruises are coming out to be about CDN $2,500 each all in for a balcony cabin which is similar to the OP's U.S. $2,000. I'm finding lots of AI's in the Caribbean ( and adding on similar extras ) for lower than that. So if you want to sit on a beach of a week you can find cheaper vacations. But if you want to experience several islands in a week an AI can't offer that.

[mellowmarshmom]

When we came back from our first cruise, it was the first time in years that I came back from a vacation relaxed and recharged. As the mom of 3, vacations for me have been a lot of work. Figuring out where to eat, where to show up for entertainment, unpacking and repacking. Keeping the rooms organized and clean. My kids and my husband are great at helping with all of that, but it's still a chore and I am still the ring leader of this circus! We are also able to drive to a port so we can avoid airfare. I just love to unpack once, having a cabin steward straighten things daily, show up for meals and just chill on the balcony with some room service if I feel like it. I feel safe with the teens running around the ship on their own. More than worth the money to me for the stress free relaxation.

 

 

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[NLH Arizona]

It's a good value for us. We are a family of 7 and we cruise from NYC, drive to the port. This summer, we rented a shore house on LBI, over $7000 for the week, kuds took paddleboarding and surf lessons, I bought food and cooked every meal, one night at the amusement park, and it definitely cost more than 2 balcony cabins I've booked in the past, or in the future - plus I will have a week free of cooking, cleaning, laundry, and grocery shopping. We never book excursions through the ship.

It is still a great value for me and I'm only one person. I rented a house in South Lake Tahoe for a week this summer and if you take into consideration the cost of the house, travel expenses, food, entertainment, etc., it cost far more than cruising (including the airfare) for a week where everything is included.

[deliver42]

I haven't been on NCL since 1995, but have 2 booked now. A 3 night on the Sky and a 10 night on the Jade. I believe the overall value is there, or else I wouldn't have booked. The one thing that peeves me is the 18% service charge on the UBP, but it is what it is. I'll just live with it.

[js]

If you are wanting or looking to cut costs, put the "kids" in an inside or OV. You keep your balcony.

 

 

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[Kfamilycruise]

When we came back from our first cruise, it was the first time in years that I came back from a vacation relaxed and recharged. As the mom of 3, vacations for me have been a lot of work. Figuring out where to eat, where to show up for entertainment, unpacking and repacking. Keeping the rooms organized and clean. My kids and my husband are great at helping with all of that, but it's still a chore and I am still the ring leader of this circus! We are also able to drive to a port so we can avoid airfare. I just love to unpack once, having a cabin steward straighten things daily, show up for meals and just chill on the balcony with some room service if I feel like it. I feel safe with the teens running around the ship on their own. More than worth the money to me for the stress free relaxation.

 

 

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This completely! We drive to the port also so save money on airfare, but not having to cook and clean, buy groceries and unpacking once is priceless. The pricey excursions add up a lot! So as a pp said, you could convert to two ocean views or insides and cut out the excursions and save a huge amount of money. We are a family of 5 and also do 2 cabins, but instead of excursions try and research places to go and do them on our own, which saves a huge amount of money.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

 

 

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[mellowmarshmom]

We save money by booking excursions through private companies, not the ship's, except for major excursions where you can get early tenders, extra time or if you will be cutting time closely at port. We booked Chichen Itza through cruise and Atlantis resort through cruise. Otherwise we have followed recommendations on trip advisor, have gone with well known companies and have been pampered with much more personal attention and unique experiences than the cruise provides at sometimes half the cost.

 

 

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[Budget Queen]

I don't spend anywhere near that much, for a 1 week cruise, it would maybe be 10% (if that) for 1 person, but you have 4. My traveling style is very different than most- with the big advantage of not paying for flights- makes the world small for me. $2000 per person is for 4, so I don't think that is out of line for balcony cabins.

 

My cost savings choices involves the bottom priced inside cabins- I just don't care where I am. I late book- snag the price dump deals. I am very flexible, BUT, I don't cruise just to cruise. It has to be an itinerary that is of interest to me. I stay in Day's Inns, Super 8 type hotels. Rarely use cabs- use buses, walk, metros etc.

 

But my traveling is huge volumes, I go for weeks at a time and frequently. (most every month)

 

There are multiple choices. Key is to know what fits you best.

[kathy884]

Thanks. Enjoyed hearing everyone's perspectives. Everyone in my family is a big balcony person. DH, me, our 20 somethings love sitting out on our deck at home and out on balconies we get on land based vacations too, hence the splurge for that. We like that private outdoor space a lot - the youngsters as well as me and DH. // A good point, though, is three meals out everyday. With our condo style vacations we have lots of our own snacks and lots of breakfasts and lunches in. And probably only three out of six dinners that would be on par with the cruise ship dinners. If we ate every meal out on land based vacations that would add a lot. So I think that could be a lot of the expense too. // And actually the beach house for a week doesn't really appeal to us, but the cruise with different ports and ship activities is more appealing. // Some of our excursions are ship ones, but other aren't FYI.

 

It should be a great trip. It does seem like a decent value for what is offered.

[ColoradoGurl]

I don't think $8,000 for 4 people is a lot of money for a cruise, when taking into account airfare and hotel beforehand, plus excursions. I think it's actually quite reasonable.

 

Sure, you could do it cheaper if you wanted to, but it's not an outrageous price for the extras you want. It's hard to compare a land vacation to the cruise because you're also traveling from place to place on the cruise (the equivalent of being at a land hotel, and then taking a ferry over to another beach/island to get to another land hotel for the following night). Since you're not actually jumping from hotel to hotel on a land vacation, but instead are staying put, there's an expense in there that isn't being accounted for (the traveling from place to place part). I find cruises are usually on par or slightly cheaper than land all inclusives, but definitely cheaper if you add in the imaginary costs of paying for ferry rides to island hop.

 

I'm jealous of people who live within driving distance of the ports. Traveling to Florida/Texas and San Juan and then staying overnight in a hotel usually double my cruising expense. The only way I can make myself feel better about that is reminding myself that I live within driving distance from multiple ski towns that others pay thousands of dollars to come visit for a week during ski season. I can drive up any day of the week for the price of a half tank of gas. So we're even.

 

 

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[Nebr.cruiser]

For us cruises are still a good deal compared to most other vacations. We always book at least a balcony but we wait for the right deal--$100 pp per day in a balcony is our limit. Anything much above that and we won't book--with some exceptions for very exotic or cruises that are usually higher, like around the Horn.

 

It also depends on what you spend on board. We don't need or want a lot of the expensive extras. We don't drink, go to the spa or specialty restaurants. We do everything we want and have a great time. We also almost never do ship excursions, except in special circumstances, so we save a lot of money on private tours.

 

It's all about what you want to do and how much you splurge on extras. Everybody has their own wants and needs.

[BEACHBARB]

you make the best point.... we haven't cruised the last few years... electing to take a 2nd week in the outerbanks instead. We just booked 2/26 on breakaway and I am looking forward to NOT COOKING CLEANING ETC... beach trips are fun but sometimes are alot of work...

 

We just got back from the Outer Banks a few weeks ago and spent 2 weeks there. I live alone but there were 9 of us in the house the first week and 6 the second. I do a lot of the cooking and shopping so I was at the grocery store almost every day and cooked most nights. I SOOOO look forward to a cruise to not have to shop or cook. Usually someone else cleans up but not having to cook is a huge bonus.

[Jason82]

I'd say cruises have great value for a couple reasons.

 

1. On vacations I love to eat. On a cruise I don't have to budget for food, I can eat to my hearts content (assuming I eat at the places included in the cruise fare). Not to mention, onboard entertainment too.

 

2. The amount of places you can stop and see on a cruise are great and part of the value.

 

3. In my experience cruises are the the most refreshing and relaxing of any vacation I've taken. I come back so re-charged.

[momto2js]

I am ultra cheap. Last year our family of 4 did Alaska for a week with airfare in a rear facing balcony with rental cars in port except for one day for a total of $4000. We are on our way to Getaway this week and will be in about $3200 but DH is diving 3x on this trip. We can do disney for a week for 4 for $2000. We don't do ship excursions, we drive when possible, and we pack sandwiches for lunch when ever possible. Our budget buster is the WI term ski trip to park City, UT. We control costs by going the week after New Years. For 3 to ski 5 days we can usually manage a total of $3800 for the entire trip.

[jpcdds6]

We are booked in an aft suite for a 9 day out of NOLA costing $3800 total with all promos. Not including flights. All things considered, I think it's a great value.

[Mrs. Squirrel]

Figuring out where to eat

 

This is the one thing that drives me absolutely up a wall about land vacations with a group of any size. It can take longer to decide where to eat than the meal itself! Then, heaven forbid, you show up to the restuarant, and it is closed (has happened to us) and the whole debate/decide process starts up again! :eek:

 

Cruising is simple, relaxing, and interesting. Plus, if the weather is bad one day, you're moving on to another area. No risk of a week's wash out.

[Phil80041]

We just got back from the Outer Banks a few weeks ago and spent 2 weeks there. I live alone but there were 9 of us in the house the first week and 6 the second. I do a lot of the cooking and shopping so I was at the grocery store almost every day and cooked most nights. I SOOOO look forward to a cruise to not have to shop or cook. Usually someone else cleans up but not having to cook is a huge bonus.

 

we stayed in Frisco on Hatteras Island and had 11 people... we all split the shopping list before arrival... and even with off peak season the House cost us $1400 (we pay for the house and expect everyone to chip in extra for meals etc....)

But our Feb Breakaway cruise is costing 2400$ and thats after the UBP surcharge and tips etc.... so I think the value is there bc I will not be doing 11 peoples dishes and cooking breakfast and dinner everyday!

[Oakman58]

I enjoy cruising but for value it's hard to beat an AI resort in the Caribbean.

Edited October 8, 2016 by Oakman58