How do you do it?

[DASA]

For us it came to our attention that after our boys were grown and out the house that we were rich !!!!!!!!

 

The savings on the food bill every month pays for cruises now. LOL

[dan40]

Have been lucky enough, or smart enough,...... OK, OK, lucky enough to afford many cruises. :o # 47 coming soon.

 

Dan

[Cruzzinagain]

For us it came to our attention that after our boys were grown and out the house that we were rich !!!!!!!!

 

The savings on the food bill every month pays for cruises now. LOL

My kids still live at home. Daughter 18, son 15. My daughter can hold her own and still maintains her figure (very active). My son can eat like a horse that is starving. I saw him go to the kitchen about 5 times last night after dinner. He burns it off though (5'10"/145lbs). I'll be rich one day. Until then.....Military discount (actually former military but the discount still applies).

 

 

gfsmith........could you also email me at svaughn59NOSPAM@gmail.com

 

Please remove the nospam part.

 

Thanks,

 

Steve

[kchesneylover]

wow!! I am really impressed with all of these responses! (no I am not the OP), but y'all are giving me some GREAT TIPS!!!

 

I <3 you guys!!!

[lorn63]

I have a credit card with miles on it. I put every single one of my bills on the credit card and then pay off the card at the end of every month. (I have to pay those bills every month anyway) The miles really rack up. For my next cruise, I got 500.00 off the price because of the miles.

[Mark_AR]

I look for last minute deals or book 8 months in advance as others have noted. I look for cruises that are $60 to $80 per day. (Per Person)

 

We book Guarantee rather than specifics and hope for the holy grail of upgrades, but since we had already had a balcony & we didn't use it much anyway, now we go inside or OV and put the money toward shopping or supper club.

 

We drive to our port and stay in el-cheapo motels or camp out/stay with friends or family to save on lodging.

 

It is a small price to pay when you figure a hotel in a major city is $80-129+ per night and that doesnt include meals, whereas the cruise has food 24/7.

 

December and January are my prime savings times that I prefer. I will book hurricane season only rarely since IVAN in 2004. If you get insurance or like to gamble with the weather then there is no cheaper time to go than SEPT.

 

You may just luck out and get extra days at sea. :cool:

[frito58]

I have this little plastic card with numbers on it. All we have to do is enter the numbers and like magic we get what ever we want..............LOL

[mek]

Well one thing's for sure, if I had saved all of the money spent on cruising and vacations over the past 35 years I would have a lot more money in the bank right now, but I'm not sure I would really be any richer. Traveling around the world has been one of the most rewarding and enriching experiences of my life. I always look for bargins and will book what I feel is the best price, which many times has been an inside, but I do frequently book outsides and occasionally a balcony if I feel the price is right. I usually travel where and when there is a deal, promotion, or extra incentive and have been known to cancel one trip for another at a better price. I always pay cash for my trips and make my plans fit fit my budget for any particular year. I usually go to the spa once during a cruise and spend most of my extra money on shore excursions, which I usually do independently. DH and I don't drink much, so our bar bill very low.

[dan40]

Those plastic cards are great. The moving every few months and changing names are a hassle tho. :D

 

Dan

[suzy671]

We cruise at least 3-4 times a year, we both have good jobs, no kids, have plenty of vacation time so we love to cruise.

[nalady98]

Have been lucky enough, or smart enough,...... OK, OK, lucky enough to afford many cruises. :o # 47 coming soon.

 

Dan

 

What luck you have!!! You are living my dream ! I'll be doing whatever it takes to go on at least one cruise a year for the rest of my life tho, bet on that!! I bet you have the best stories to tell :eek: ....

[birdie16]

Get a job with an airline, then you fly free to the cruise and get discounts too! We also use our credit card for EVERYTHING and pay it off each month, this way we can "buy" tickets for travel to the port (rather than take a chance with stand-by) and also pay for the hotel with miles.

 

Really, if you add up what it costs you for a land vacation, a cruise is an economical way to go.

[LHARTWICK]

I've really enjoyed this post. Basically, you'll spend your money on what is most important to you. We love to cruise and we are not monetarily "rich" by any means. We just spend what we have wisely. We shop at Wal-Mart and Kohl's, not Dillard's or other over-priced stores. And quite frankly I dress just as nicely as other ladies in the office - it just doesn't cost me as much. I love a good sale rack! We have no credit card debt. Both of our cars are paid for, and our house will be paid for in January. We are not even 40 yet either. We book cruises early and allow time to pay them off over a few months. We don't insist on having the latest techno gadget or the fanciest cell phone or the largest TV known to man or the most expensive car on the road. We only buy what we need when we need it. After all - you can't take it with you when you go. Cruising is an important part of our lives, even though we only do one a year. We have created so many memories while cruising, especially with friends. Those are priceless!

 

We also watch for cruise sales and specials and sail during the off season for whichever region we want to cruise in. We also have started booking our own excursions as opposed to booking with the cruise line. It's much cheaper and the tours are much more personalized. We just wish we lived closer to a cruise port so we wouldn't have to purchase air fare.

 

Love everyone on these boards! It sounds like we definitely need to check out some of the Cruise Critic group cruises!

[Binney]

Like many others on this board, I drive an old car that is paid for and do not have a showy house with a pool, etc. I live life for me...it is too hard to keep up with the Jones' in my neck of the woods (Eastern Long Island), so I don't. I use my credit card as a "vacation account." I book the cruise and pay it down at the rate of about $500.00 per month...because I don't have car payments, etc. Sometimes they overlap and I haven't finished paying for one before I book another...and I have to tell my hubby a little white lie.;)

[tkportersat]

I am irresponsible :) I put them on my credit card, then I pay them off at the end of the year w/ my bonus and tax return!

[auburn77]

Just sent the last tuition payment for my youngest daughter. That free's up $ for 10 cruises a year. But we're putting away over half so that we can go on 15 a year when we retire. I'm also hoping that the cruise lines will begin hiring retirees as greeters, just like Walmart.