Frugal Mom's cruise saving tips

I have done a few cruise pictorial reviews, and typically I include a section on my money saving tips. I did not realize this board existed until today. I thought I would share ways I have saved on cruises:

 

 

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From our recent NCL Jewel cruise:

 

Onboard Credit: How to maximize this even if you sail the cheap cabins.

 

Wow! We really racked up on the free OBC. $600 total from numerous sources. One of the reasons for justifying the added cost of two cabins over a single cabin was that we could double dip on some of the free OBC. At the time of booking, NCL was offering $75 OBC per cabin, while our TA threw in an additional $25 per cabin. After we booked, I found out on the CC forums, that there was a Home Shopping Network $100 OBC promotion: all you needed to do was sign up online at HSN for a NCL catalog to be mailed to your house. The paperwork stated for new bookings only, but the great advice and info on CC suggested that I give it a try to get the HSN OBC added. It took a few phone calls, but it worked! AND we kept all previous OBC, AND got cabin upgrades to a higher deck.

 

We are Loyalty members with our online TA, and following each cruise, we get a $25 OBC voucher for the next cruise booked through them. We had two vouchers, so that added another $50 OBC. Last year, prior to booking the cruise, I signed up for the Norwegian Credit Card and received enough free points to earn $100 OBC. I used the card for a couple of months to get another $50 OBC (and $20 in casino chips). I love signing up for credit cards to get the initial free perks and then I cash in and cancel the cards shortly thereafter. I know this may affect credit ratings, but we are not concerned as we never borrow money (our only debt is our primary house).

 

It took a little work, but we got $600 OBC total. We used it for our excursion in Roatan, dinner at Teppanyaki, drinks, rum cake, Deal or No Deal, and souvenirs from the onboard shops.

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From our Carnival Freedom cruise to the southern Caribbean:

 

$$$ Money Saving Tips $$$

 

I started off this review indicating I would let everyone know some of my money saving tips. I must admit, I love getting a bargain! I also want to make sure I don’t get too cheap to miss out on what’s important to us: experiences in port.

 

$ Pre-cruise hotel:

I use Hotwire, Priceline, and hotel reward points. For two nights stay, this can save $1-200.

 

$ Pre-cruise parking:

I do not typically park at the port parking facility. For this cruise, we used Park N Go, and it was perfect! Cheap, professional, fast, and prompt on picking us up after the cruise. Port paking for 8 day is $15 daily (or $120). Our pre-booked cost for Park N Go was $69.67, including taxes.

 

$ Cheapest time of the year to cruise:

January and November and the first week of December (based solely on my observation!). Most expensive time to cruise: holidays and July.

 

$ Cabin:

I always try to book the largest (s.f.) cabin for the lowest price. Ocean View cabins are the biggest quad cabins, and there are also special “interior” cabins that are larger than standard interior cabins. The special cabins include PT (porthole), 4J (picture window) and 4K (French door). The special interior cabins are significantly less than the standard OV cabin. There are a limited number of these special cabins for quads. So… I must always book early. When I originally booked this cruise, there were no special quad interior cabins available. I booked 11 months out for $2500 for an OV quad. This 8-day cruise is very popular, and the laws of supply and demand make it one of Carnival’s most expensive. I watch the cruise price at least weekly between booking and final payment. At about 10 months prior to sailing, a PT quad cabin became available at $2200, and I switch cabins and saved $300. I noticed that the OV quad cabin price went up to $2950 just before final payment. Further justifying the need to book early to save money. Summary, by booking early and watching for a PT cabin, I theoretically saved $750.

 

In case you are interested: I once posted photos of our past cabins. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showt...d#post33702019 (FYI, Carnival now uses the term Picture Window instead of Obstructed View)

 

$ On Board Credit:

I used a Carnival Future Cruise Certificate to receive a $100 OBC. (Sadly, these are no longer available). Following every cruise I book with my online travel agent, I receive a $25 OBC voucher for my next cruise. Through reading Cruise Critic forum, I learned of a Master Card promotion receiving $50 OBC. I also received an additional $50 OBC from my TA. This nearly paid the gratuities.

 

 

$ On board drinks:

We do not buy the soda package. I do carry on a few sodas and lots of Crystal Light drink mix packets. Some of my drink packets have caffeine; this is to supplement the nasty coffee on the ship. My husband has a Carnival credit card and earns Funpoints each month. We use our credit cards to purchase everything and pay it off each month. This process really works for us and we get many free perks. My husband cashed in his points for drink vouchers: We got 8 free adult drink tickets and 8 free soda tickets. VIFP (past guests) each get a free drink coupon (with the ridiculous restriction of redemption only from the main dining room at either breakfast or lunch). We redeemed the VIFP coupons at breakfast to get un-opened, mega-sized canned Fosters beer, which we carried back to the cabin and placed in our fridge for later consumption. We also attended the Gold level and higher VIFP party. We drank a few drinks at the party and carried a mixed drink out with us “for the road”. We don’t typically drink during the day, and I only have a glass of wine on formal night. We really only have drinks at the Comedy Club. And of course, for those more daring, rumrunners are an option.

 

 

$ Casino:

The only way to save money here is to not loose! I only played slot machines during this cruise. I literally set myself a limit of putting $20 on my sail and sign card for slots. If I double my money at a machine, I stop. If I loose half of my money at a machine I stop. I either take a break or move on to the next machine. I have also noticed that the machines seem to pay out more during the beginning of the week and take more the end of the week. With that said, I probably played for a total of 2 hours all week and came home $40 richer. One thing that I had wanted to do, but never got around to it: use a receipt for a Classic Cocktail to get a match and play token in the casino. I have read you can do this. On Royal ships, I always use my match token on the roulette wheel and have always come out ahead.

 

 

$ Shore Excursions:

 

I use a cash reward credit card and put all my rewards into a vacation kitty for shore excursions. This amounts to over $300 of “free” money. I also put all my mail-in rebates (if I get any) into this “free” account.

 

Aruba: Another great find on CC forum was a coupon code for 10% off Carnival shore excursions. I successfully used this coupon code to get a discount on our North Shore Jeep Safari excursion in Aruba. It saved $30 for my family of 4 ($272).

 

Grand Turk – we did not spend any money here except to buy a shot glass. The pool and beach are free. The ship sells $10 Grand Turk T shirts on the next sea day. We did not buy any food here, as I have a hard time spending money at a facility that is just like the Margaretville in the States.

 

Seavis Tours – La Romana – The tour cost for the 4 of us was $254. Which included transportation, lunch, snorkeling gear, rum & beer. This tour would have been worth the money even if it had not had the drinks and lunch!

 

Curacao – The taxi to the beach did not seem like a bargain. It was $100. But there was no acceptable alternative for us, as we really wanted to hit a nice beach and snorkel. As we had packed water and snacks in our cooler, we did not need to purchase food in port. We ate dinner on the ship before going back out to Willemstad.

 

In looking at the numbers above, it appears that we only “spent” (after “free money” deducted) a little over $400 on shore excursions and tips.

 

$ Souvenirs:

Every person is different is what the want for souvenirs. I always get a cheesy shot glass at each port and try to buy something handmade too. I find the souvenirs tend to be less expensive further away from the cruise dock.

 

$ Spa:

Sadly, I do not use the spa facilities. I am just too frugal to do it! I keep thinking that my husband can give me a massage (), and "do I really need to relax any more than I already am on vacation". I have attended the spa raffle on boarding day, unsuccessfully trying to win a free luxury treat.

 

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RCL Explorer of the Seas to Bermuda:

 

I did not type a section of my review specifically to saving money, but here are some ways we saved on this cruise for just my husband and myself:

 

1. We booked and IS guarantee cabin 2 months before the cruise when prices significantly dropped (We were not planning for this cruise, but when a BERMUDA cruise came up for $489 pp, I just had to go!)

 

2. We took a gamble on a early October cruise during hurricane season. The temps in Bermuda were nice and the water was warm.

 

3. I used my free Marriott rewards points for a free pre-cruise hotel stay in Newark. I had signed up for a Marriott credit card a year before, and was given enough points for 4 hotel stays.

 

4. We had OBC from our TA.

 

5. We used our Crown & Anchor coupon booklets for the casino match play and the free spin.

 

That'a all I can remember off the top of my head.

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Even with all this money saving, I do not feel that we have skimped on our vacations. We make shore excursions a priority, and go with the cheapest cabins during the cheapest time of the year.

 

Happy cruise planning!

Sounds like you got ripped off...we took a cab to the beach last January...I don't remember the exact cost but I am sure it wasn't anywhere near $100:eek:(I would have remembered THAT!) Seems like $25 or something--maybe $50 max?

 

Is there only one port in Curacao? We were on Princess not Carnival.

 

Good tips here--use most of them myself!

 

(here is from Trip Advisor:

Many travelers visiting Curacao opt to use taxi service as a supplement to either public transportation or car rental during their stay. Some people even opt to make taxi service a primary form of transportation during their Curacao vacation. Taxi service is readily available, with taxis most easily found in Otrobanda and Punda, as well as at the airport and on the curbside of most popular hotels throughout Curacao. Taxis are easy to recognize, as they all have signs on top of their cars, and the license plate numbers always start with TX for taxi. Taxi rates are standardized by the government. Rates are for one to four persons. Aditional passanger is 25% extra on the fare and the standard fare is from 6 am to 11 pm. between 11 pm and 6 am the fares go up with 25%.These are the fares from the Airport: To Marriott hotel area: $25,- To Willemstad Otrabanda hotel area: $28.- To Willemstad Punda hotel area: $30.- To the Seaquarium hotel area: $35.- To Jantiel hotel area: $45.- To the Hyatt: $75.- To the Westside Kura Hulanda Lodge: $60.- The shortest ride with a taxi is $10,- and if you call for a taxi when you are at the hotel but when the taxi arrives, you don't need the taxi service anymore, you still have to pay $10.- So make sure you need a taxi. Other fares are: From The Marriott hotel area to Otrabanda $15.- Seaquarium area to Punda $16.- Mega ship pier to Seaquqrium area $20.- Marriott to Seaquarium $25.- Marriott to Hato Caves $25.-. Fares to other destinations are known by the taxi driver. Tipping is allowed. Some taxi drivers will give island tours in addition to taking visitors between destinations. The tour fare is $40.- per hour for one to four persons. Additional passanger pays $10.- extra. The most recomended taxi service in Curacao is Meyer and Meyer Exclusive Transfers and Tours. http://meyertransfers.webs.com with Natasja Gibbs as your professional and reliable tourg)

Edited March 2, 2014 by KKB

The $100 Taxi in Curacao was steep. I had researched beforehand, and expected it to be $80 round trip for 4 persons. Porto Marie was about 30 minutes away from Willemstad. The taxi driver came back and picked us up at a designated time. The cost was high, but time was of the essence, as we ported in the late afternoon and the sunset was around 6:00. So we paid the extra $20.

 

I think there is only one port in Curacao.

Good advice!

 

I'll add a few more tips:

 

- You can save more money on the day you book than any other day. Choose a moderate cabin, choose off-season. These choices equal more than any small choices you will make later.

 

- When you're watching for price drops, don't look at JUST your ship and category. Once we switched from Freedom to Liberty and shaved $$$$$ from our bill -- is there really a difference between the ships? Another time we had booked two connecting ocean views for ourselves and four girls . . . But they offered a great sale on balconies, and we switched to three E1 balcony rooms for LESS money (that was not a typical occurrence). Always look up and down a notch to see all your options!

 

- Book early, preferably the very day your dates come available. This won't really save you money, but it'll allow you to grab a prime cabin (whether you think that's an aft or a hump cabin, I'll let you decide for yourself). These cabins are in short supply, and they genuinely do make a trip nicer . . . But they go fast.

 

- If you're buying insurance (and I do), don't buy it through the cruise company. By doing it independently, you can spend less, and you can get JUST what you need. We drive ourselves, so we don't need lost luggage insurance. Our medical is good outside the country, so we don't pay for that either. We do pay for medical evac.

 

- Bring your own soft drinks. You can bring all you can drink in a week for the cost of one day's soda package.

 

- Bringing a small amount of alcohol is very easy and will save you a bit of money. If you use moderation and pack carefully, you are unlikely to be caught.

 

- Buy a sun shelter that you can set up on the beach instead of renting a shelter. I saw them yesterday at Academy Sports for $40. It was big enough to provide sun shelter for four comfortably and could probably be set up in 5 minutes. I have something similar that I bought from ebay years ago.

 

- Always choose private excursions. Not only are they less expensive, you'll be in a smaller group and will have more control over your day.

 

- Don't feel that you must buy a suitcase of new clothes for your trip. Few people pay much attention to how others dress.

I just wrote a post on money saving tips on my family blog....take a look if you like...

http://karanandmichael.blogspot.com/

Hope it helps someone. :)

Only prepackaged foods can be taken off the ship.

Basically bring some cereal bars from home or cereal boxes from the ship.

 

Yes, the food onboard can have unusual/dangerous-to-the-island ecosystem bugs in them. Just off the Sapphire Princess and found a puny bug crawling out of my asparagus.

 

We find the lowest price for souviners at grocery stores.

I just wrote a post on money saving tips on my family blog....take a look if you like...

http://karanandmichael.blogspot.com/

Hope it helps someone. :)

Beautiful Blog beautiful new grand daughter:)

Beautiful Blog beautiful new grand daughter:)

 

Thank you so much! I love blogging about my travels!

Beautiful Blog beautiful new grand daughter:)

 

We are leaving soon on this trip with our granddaughters. In Jamaica, we will find a taxi tour off the dock, another money saving idea. I will research tours before we go, and then use those prices to negotiate a fair price at the dock. I guarantee it will be cheaper than the cruise lines, and we will see the same places!

Good advice!

 

I'll add a few more tips:

 

- You can save more money on the day you book than any other day. Choose a moderate cabin, choose off-season. These choices equal more than any small choices you will make later.

 

- When you're watching for price drops, don't look at JUST your ship and category. Once we switched from Freedom to Liberty and shaved $$$$$ from our bill -- is there really a difference between the ships? Another time we had booked two connecting ocean views for ourselves and four girls . . . But they offered a great sale on balconies, and we switched to three E1 balcony rooms for LESS money (that was not a typical occurrence). Always look up and down a notch to see all your options!

 

- Book early, preferably the very day your dates come available. This won't really save you money, but it'll allow you to grab a prime cabin (whether you think that's an aft or a hump cabin, I'll let you decide for yourself). These cabins are in short supply, and they genuinely do make a trip nicer . . . But they go fast.

 

- If you're buying insurance (and I do), don't buy it through the cruise company. By doing it independently, you can spend less, and you can get JUST what you need. We drive ourselves, so we don't need lost luggage insurance. Our medical is good outside the country, so we don't pay for that either. We do pay for medical evac.

 

- Bring your own soft drinks. You can bring all you can drink in a week for the cost of one day's soda package.

i didn't think you could bring water, soda,etc on RCCL

- Bringing a small amount of alcohol is very easy and will save you a bit of money. If you use moderation and pack carefully, you are unlikely to be caught.

 

- Buy a sun shelter that you can set up on the beach instead of renting a shelter. I saw them yesterday at Academy Sports for $40. It was big enough to provide sun shelter for four comfortably and could probably be set up in 5 minutes. I have something similar that I bought from ebay years ago.

 

- Always choose private excursions. Not only are they less expensive, you'll be in a smaller group and will have more control over your day.

 

- Don't feel that you must buy a suitcase of new clothes for your trip. Few people pay much attention to how others dress.

 

Thanks for any answers

Good advice!

 

I'll add a few more tips:

 

- You can save more money on the day you book than any other day. Choose a moderate cabin, choose off-season. These choices equal more than any small choices you will make later.

 

- When you're watching for price drops, don't look at JUST your ship and category. Once we switched from Freedom to Liberty and shaved $$$$$ from our bill -- is there really a difference between the ships? Another time we had booked two connecting ocean views for ourselves and four girls . . . But they offered a great sale on balconies, and we switched to three E1 balcony rooms for LESS money (that was not a typical occurrence). Always look up and down a notch to see all your options!

 

- Book early, preferably the very day your dates come available. This won't really save you money, but it'll allow you to grab a prime cabin (whether you think that's an aft or a hump cabin, I'll let you decide for yourself). These cabins are in short supply, and they genuinely do make a trip nicer . . . But they go fast.

 

- If you're buying insurance (and I do), don't buy it through the cruise company. By doing it independently, you can spend less, and you can get JUST what you need. We drive ourselves, so we don't need lost luggage insurance. Our medical is good outside the country, so we don't pay for that either. We do pay for medical evac.

 

- Bring your own soft drinks. You can bring all you can drink in a week for the cost of one day's soda package.

 

- Bringing a small amount of alcohol is very easy and will save you a bit of money. If you use moderation and pack carefully, you are unlikely to be caught.

 

- Buy a sun shelter that you can set up on the beach instead of renting a shelter. I saw them yesterday at Academy Sports for $40. It was big enough to provide sun shelter for four comfortably and could probably be set up in 5 minutes. I have something similar that I bought from ebay years ago.

 

- Always choose private excursions. Not only are they less expensive, you'll be in a smaller group and will have more control over your day.

 

- Don't feel that you must buy a suitcase of new clothes for your trip. Few people pay much attention to how others dress.

 

 

Some great tips here which I will be sure to use on my next cruise in November 2014

 

Just to expand on the point about booking at the right time.

 

I have come across a website which tracks the price of cruises free of charge and emails whenever there is an alteration (either cheaper or more expensive)

 

CruisePriceTracker,com

 

I am tracking two cruises for November and waiting for the price of one to drop before putting a deposit down.

 

This may also help customers who have already booked a cruise to upgrade to a different cabin at minimal expense or claim OBC they are owed due to a decrease in prices

 

Hope this helps others out there - Good Luck!

 

Chris

Edited April 7, 2014 by chriss87

- Always choose private excursions. Not only are they less expensive, you'll be in a smaller group and will have more control over your day.

 

Not always true.

 

Compare options and make sure you know what will happen if your itinerary changes, especially if at the last minute.

 

(also evaluate the potential impacts if something happens to delay your return to the ship; what does the excursion company do to ensure you're back before the ship leaves?)

I came across a blog this morning with good cruise saving tips. Most people probably are doing this, but it's still nice to see them listed all together. Book early or way late, and only get the cabin your NEED to save money:

 

http://www.thewisdomjournal.com/Blog/save-money-on-a-cruise/

 

I have also discovered a website called cayole that analyzes seven months of pricing history to predict if the cost of a cruise will go up or down in the "near to medium term". I have played around with it a little, but cannot confirm it's accuracy of predicting price drops.

Edited April 11, 2014 by mpcaruth

Thanks for any answers

As for water and soda, there's the rule . . . and then there's what happens. If you're sailing at spring break, you'll find that they're strict about this. Any other time of year, you're likely to walk right through with your drinks -- they'll look at them, but they'll allow you to bring in a reasonable amount.

 

Not always true.

 

Compare options and make sure you know what will happen if your itinerary changes, especially if at the last minute.

 

(also evaluate the potential impacts if something happens to delay your return to the ship; what does the excursion company do to ensure you're back before the ship leaves?)

Respectfully, yeah, it's always true.

 

All activities aren't well-suited to cruises (i.e., the Tulum ruins are just a bad idea -- they require multiple forms of transportation, and you're traveling for hours to spend a small amount of time seeing the ruins.) I've been reading these boards for 10+ years, and I've never once heard of a private excursion causing people to miss the ship. Not once. I have heard of people coming back to the port, sitting down for a drink, and then suddenly it's two hours later and the ship is leaving -- but that can't be blamed on any tour provider.

I came across a blog this morning with good cruise saving tips. Most people probably are doing this, but it's still nice to see them listed all together. Book early or way late, and only get the cabin your NEED to save money:

 

http://www.thewisdomjournal.com/Blog/save-money-on-a-cruise.

Good article, especially suited to new folks -- concise, clear.

 

I disagree with only one point: Return to the ship for lunch. In most ports, this would mean wasting an hour reboarding /reaching the dining room. If you're trying to save money (or if you're afraid to eat ashore), I suggest having a big breakfast and bringing along snacks (it's fine to bring factory-packed snacks -- peanut butter crackers, bags of peanuts or similar) to tide you over, then have a late lunch when you return to the ship. Most of the time the ship is in port roughly 8-9:00 - 2-4:00, and most experienced cruisers will say return to the ship 1-2 hours ahead of time.

Edited April 27, 2014 by MrsPete

Not wanting to start an argument here but I have come across 2 cases (whale watching in San Diego, catamaran tour in Antigua) where the ship's excursion was actually CHEAPER than booking directly with the same supplier. This has only happened twice but I always double check now.

Hello fellow cruisers. My husband and I love cruising. We have many years left (God willing) to cruise:D, and many years left till retirement:eek:. That being said- i look for all possible ways to keep our travels low. So need more info on things said here. Someone made comment about switching ships- it is my understanding that any change to bookings incurs a charge-is this the cost vs benefit theory of saving $700 by spending $100? Also, how do you get coupon booklets. I have never received anything like this. Shore excursions- We are looking for inexpensive option in Roartan (love snorkeling) but safety is first priority. Also, getting ready to take first RCI cruise what are hidden charges to be aware of.(sailed on

Princess 2, Celebrity 1, Holland America 3, and Carnival 6) thanks.

Thanks for any answers

 

For the 2 of us we took 20 cans of Diet Coke and 1 bottle of water that we had from the hotel. They just took my roller soft side cooler to a table and me watch while they opened it. They briefly looked at the cans and shook the bottle of water to make sure it wasn't vodka and then let us take it Onboard with us. I had read RCCL did not allow it, but had also read many said they were allowed to do it so I decided to give it a try.

Great tips ...

I just wrote a post on money saving tips on my family blog....take a look if you like...

http://karanandmichael.blogspot.com/

Hope it helps someone. :)

 

I read your blog this afternoon! Awesome job! I hope to one day do some of those long itineraries you have done!

Shore excursions- We are looking for inexpensive option in Roartan (love snorkeling) but safety is first priority. Also, getting ready to take first RCI cruise what are hidden charges to be aware of.

 

Everyone told us the snorkelling in Roatan was the best, but we were disappointed and the cabbie ripped us off. We heard that a particular beach was free but the cabbie told us they charged now: $10 each. Back on board the crew told us it was free. (I like to ask crew for advice BTW as they always know).

 

Believe it or not some of the best snorkelling I've had is in Cozumel. (I suspect if you're going to Roatan you might be hitting Cozumel as well). We got a name from a Lonely Planet book and asked at the cab station. The name had been changed to "The Money Bar". There were 6 of us. $2 each to the beach, no charge if you bought a drink ($2/beer) and a $2 cab ride back.$6 Total each. We were there a couple hours when all of a sudden all the snorkelling excursions from the cruise ships arrived. They were paying a gazillion $$$$$$$$ and we had the same place to ourselves for 2 hours for $6 each. There is a current but nothing I couldn't handle and I'm not a strong swimmer.

 

Another tip:

 

I save a pop bottle and get my filtered water from the fountains in the onboard gyms.

Snorkeling in Roatan is awesome! You must have not swam out to a reef. It's unfortunate that you had a bad experience there. Roatan is one of my favorite ports.

 

I have heard there is great snorkeling at the Money Bar in Cozumel. We plan in going there on a future cruise.

mp,

 

Best snorkelling I've had is Koki Beach on St. Thomas. Wish I'd had an underwater camera. My friends had a dog biscuit and every time they'd break off a piece they'd be enveloped in a ball off fish. All you could see were their fins sticking out at the bottom of the ball.

 

I'm sure all beaches vary from time to time.

Edited June 12, 2014 by operabob1

Back from another bargain cruise on the Carnival Sunshine out of Port Canaveral. Here is an excerpt from my picture review on the Carnival board:

 

 

Money saving tips:

 

 

Cruise Fare and OBC

Future Cruise: $100 OBC. We booked this cruise while on board our summer cruise on the Fascination.

 

Carnival MasterCard: $100 discount. I used this card to pay the $1000 deposit and had enough points to deduct $100 from the charge. So, I actually paid $900. I signed up for this card years ago to get the bonus points. I had very few points remaining on my card, but received an email last spring about a promo of 5% points (as opposed to the typical 1%) for travel charges. I jumped on it, as I was about to book hotel and train tickets to New York City.

 

Carnival MasterCard: $40 photo credit. Because I had redeemed my points from above, they gave me bonus points. I always buy a photo, so I chose to wipe out the rest of my points on a photo credit.

 

Carnival MasterCard: $200 OBC. My husband has his own card, and he uses this daily. He had enough points to get $200 OBC.

 

Verizon Smart Rewards: $95 discount. I used my reward points to purchase Carnival eGift cards at a 10% discount. I bought $950 of eGift cards to make final payment on the cruise at a cost of $855.

 

Early Saver Rate: $120 discount. We original booked on the ship at the Past Guest rate, and later switched to the Early Saver Rate for a $120 price savings. I highly recommend this, and so do other on CC. This way, if you change your mind about a cabin, sailing, or anything, there will be no ES penalty.

 

Early Saver price reduction: $76 OBC. I faithfully watched for price reductions for our ship and came across only one.

 

Switching to Travel Agent: $75 OBC. We had booked our cruise while on another cruise. We typically use an online TA. So, we decided to switch our booking to our TA and receive a $50 OBC through the TA. We also had a Loyalty gift card from the TA for another $25 OBC.

 

Summary: When we originally booked our cruise, the total was $2080 for all four of us. We ended only paying only $1765, and had a total of $491 OBC. The OBC paid for all the gratuities, photos, and some fun money too!

 

 

 

Casino Match Play: They do not advertise this well, but for every Classic Cocktail you buy, you can use your receipt to get a free $5 match play token in the casino. We bought a few of these drinks and I used my matches unsuccessfully this time at roulette. Classic Cocktail menu: http://www.zydecocruiser.net/Carniva...iseBarMenu.htm

 

Pre-cruise hotel and parking: We stayed this year at the Radisson by the Port, which includes free parking while you cruise. Parking at the port runs $105 for a 7-night cruise. Our Hotel rate was $145 plus taxes. We also had to pay an extra $20 for shuttling our 3rd and 4th guests (only two free shuttles). We have actually done this cheaper in years past using Hotwire for the hotel ($60 with free breakfast) and paying around $70 offsite parking and shuttle.

 

Drinks: We brought onto the ship a 12-pack of soda and two bottles of wine. We used our Gold Past Guest drink coupons on the first sea at brunch to get two unopened 24 ounce cans of Fosters. We put them in our cabin fridge for later, more convenient than 10 AM consumption. We also attended the past guest party, which offers free drinks. Upon leaving they were handing out pre-maid drinks from the bar. So, I took 1 and my husband took 2 for later consumption at the Comedy Club. Again, the fridge came in very handy. And those drinks that we actually purchased, were done so with our free OBC.

 

Shore Excursions: We booked privately rather than through the cruise line. By doing so, we comparatively saved over the cruiseline price $130 in Belize and $120 in Cozumel, not including the savings of free lunch and drinks.

 

Time Year Sailing: We sail during January, and it it typically 40-50% cheaper than cruising during the summer or holidays.

 

Cabin type: We booked the 4J Interior with Obstructed View Picture Window. The rate for this cabin is that of an interior, but the cabins are much larger and really are an Ocean View cabin. (See my photos from earlier in the review). This is the biggest bang for your buck.

 

You can read my full review with lots of photos including shore excursions in Roatan (Orphanage & snorkeling), Belize (Shark Alley and Cay Caulker), Costa Maya (Blue Kay resort - free wifi, free use of facilities, only asked to purchase food & drinks), and Cozumel (Private Jeep tour to eastern side of the island):

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2169332

 

 

I have already booked our next cruise deal on the NCL Getaway: Balcony guarantee for four, free 3rd & 4th guest, free UBP drink package for adults free soda package for kids, and $125 OBC for a total, incl. fees and taxes, of ... $2053!

We cruised on the Fascination out of Jacksonville last summer and my family of 4 spent the day at the Atlantis waterpark for FREE. Here's my excerpt from my picture review of that cruise:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2066091

 

 

I had mentioned earlier that we got into Atlantis for free. Here’s how we did it: About 5 months before the cruise, I booked a room at the Comfort Suites on Paradise Island, Atlantis' sister hotel. The rate was $154 /night plus fees and taxes (came to somewhere around $200 total). Atlantis amenities, such as the waterpark, beach, and the aquarium are free to use for Comfort Suites guests. About a year ago, I signed up for a Choice Privileges credit card. The card had a promotion of bonus reward points upon 1st use, and additional points if I charged a certain amount in 3 months. No problem for me charging, as I pay everything with a credit card, and pay it off each month. Why not get a free 30-day loan and get free rewards? So… I have over 33,000 reward points, and I redeemed 25,000 of them on, you guess it, the Comfort Suites on Paradise Island. I had previously reserved the room for $154 because, you cannot book rooms with bonus points greater than 60 days out. I did not want to chance not having any rooms left at 60 days out. I cancelled my other booking when I made the new rewards points booking. And, if you stay at a Choice hotel with your reward points, there are no additional fees or taxes. Cha-ching!!!! To compare, booking at the Atlantis Water park Adventure through Carnival for 4 was more than $600 (it included transportation and limited lunch). I paid on the taxi fee.

Everyone told us the snorkelling in Roatan was the best, but we were disappointed and the cabbie ripped us off. We heard that a particular beach was free but the cabbie told us they charged now: $10 each. Back on board the crew told us it was free. (I like to ask crew for advice BTW as they always know).

 

Believe it or not some of the best snorkelling I've had is in Cozumel. (I suspect if you're going to Roatan you might be hitting Cozumel as well). We got a name from a Lonely Planet book and asked at the cab station. The name had been changed to "The Money Bar". There were 6 of us. $2 each to the beach, no charge if you bought a drink ($2/beer) and a $2 cab ride back.$6 Total each. We were there a couple hours when all of a sudden all the snorkelling excursions from the cruise ships arrived. They were paying a gazillion $$$$$$$$ and we had the same place to ourselves for 2 hours for $6 each. There is a current but nothing I couldn't handle and I'm not a strong swimmer.

 

Another tip:

 

I save a pop bottle and get my filtered water from the fountains in the onboard gyms.

 

We had jut the opposite experience last summer. The Money Bar in Cozumel was just so-so, but Tabyana Beach in Roatan was the best snorkeling (eagle ray, barracuda, parrots, lobster, lots of variety in color of fish and coral.