Cruise Ship Shops good and bad

Hey all,

I'm currently looking at cruise ship shops and wondering what everyone thinks are good buys and what the shops could do with stocking more of?

I'm compiling data for a guide that I am writing for an independent travelling group.

Current best buys are:

Sun hats

Scarves

Shopping Bags

Flip-Flops

Let me know what you think.

Thanks

G

Cruise ship shops are not a good deal except for end of season sales, when a ship is leaving one area of itineraries to go another, such as leaving Europe and repositioning back to the Caribbean. The t-shirts they sell are not of good quality and shrink after the first washing. The gold by the inch items are not a really good deal, but many people seem to like the stuff, although we find it to be very poor quality. My husband says there's not nearly enough choices for men, especially if you forget to pack certain items. I find that their size selection for women's clothing to be greatly lacking, not having anything in true, plus sizes.

Jewelry is way overpriced, and I just don't think a lot of the jewelry is high quality, especially for what they charge.

The sundries they have on board are WAY overpriced, but if you forgot something important from that area, they've got you because you might really need those items so they can charge whatever they want.

Alcohol and cigarettes are a decent bargain.

I know this won't help you much, other than some costume jewelry, or a $10 watch, I can not think of anything on board that is a good buy. Alcohol, cigarettes and perfume are even less expensive in the ports than on board. Jewelry is one of the worst buys on a cruise ship IMO. The few things that you listed can be a good buy.

A recent experience in the gift shop was needing to buy NyQuil and DayQuil, I'd come down with a nasty cold. Very expensive for the small size.

The majority of the stuff in the shops is over priced.

The ships will have a big sale at the end of a season as they reposition to -- for example -- Alaska to the Caribbean. I have looked over the sales and found that many of the larger sizes for men golf shirts are long gone.

On top of being over priced, the quality in general on everything is very poor.

We have noticed this on all the lines we current cruise on, including Princess, HAL, Cunard and NCL.

We rarely buy anything... years ago there were some good quality merchandise, even if over priced.

Thanks all good comments.

What would you say a fair price would be to pay for the following:

Sun hats

Scarves

Shopping Bags

Flip-Flops

One woman told me she paid $40 for a sun hat, I thought this was mad but apparently it happens.

Cheers

G

I know this won't help you much, other than some costume jewelry, or a $10 watch, I can not think of anything on board that is a good buy. Alcohol, cigarettes and perfume are even less expensive in the ports than on board. Jewelry is one of the worst buys on a cruise ship IMO. The few things that you listed can be a good buy.

I don't know who in their right mind buys those $10.00 watches for cruise ships. the ones offered at home for the same price are far better.

I recall the only time That I picked up one of those $10.00 horrors, the stem came off in my hand.

On the other hand I brought a very nice Wittnauer watch some years ago, and my wife found a great piece of amber.

Other than those pieces however, IMO bargains seem few and far between.

john

More Rennies they never seem to carry enough stock ;)

fresher snack foods ..sometime you just want a bag a chips;)

Most have been sitting there for ages

I got a nice evening bag for $10 ... good for cruises

Not many deals

More daily personal stuff could be handy

Overpriced but need on long trips

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We do not buy anything (except essentials) on our cruises. The shops are never bargains, and seldom really good deals. A quick look online can find most ship shop stuff for less money. About the only thing we think worthwhile is buying some logo merchandise if we have a need. Had to smile on one Celebrity Cruise when we walked by the photo gallery and saw they were selling a decent compact Canon camera which we had recently purchased online for about 30% less then the "sale" price on the ship. We have seen some competitive prices on decent watches....but they were still not as good as we could get at home or online. About the only bargains we have seen on any ship is booze...and even that is often not priced as good as we can find on various islands (when we happen to be in the Caribbean).

Hank

We usually plan in advance, and buy summer things at the end of the season on sale at home, for much less than half of what we'd spend on the ship.

I would not plan to buy anything on the ship, unless I forget to pack something that is really needed, and it's a day at sea.

I don't know who in their right mind buys those $10.00 watches for cruise ships. the ones offered at home for the same price are far better.

I recall the only time That I picked up one of those $10.00 horrors, the stem came off in my hand.

On the other hand I brought a very nice Wittnauer watch some years ago, and my wife found a great piece of amber.

Other than those pieces however, IMO bargains seem few and far between.

 

john

I was in my right mind when I bought 2 $10 watches which have now lasted for 3 years and they're still going strong.

No need to be so insulting!!!

Agree about the gold by the inch..It is so cheap looking. In fact it looks like something out of a lucky bag.

Duty Free Shops on ships have very unique challenges.

There is precious little storage space for any stock.

They must compete with shore-based shops that enjoy much higher volume.

They can only afford to stock items that sell very well.

Any sales item that does not move is quickly removed from the ship.

They have a captive audience - but are also captive to that audience.

Long ago we learned that the only people willing or able to buy high end watches are the crew.

Over the past decade, the $10 items and Gold by the Inch are the big sellers.

The Walmart crowd is now cruising. They decide what we are going to sell.

We like the TShirt sales. My husband gets a lot of use out of them, and we don't find them to be poor quality at all. Just picked up 3 shirts for $20 on the Summit (usually, we get 2 for $20). I also picked up a pair of Celebrity flip flops for $5. On RCI, I picked up an evening bag for $10 which I've used quite frequently and often get complements on.

I wouldn't purchase anything expensive, but they do have some unusual and good souvenir type items at low prices.

We bought Alaska t-shirts on HAL for 4 for $20 4 years ago and they wash up fantastic, and my son, husband and father are still wearing them. Last winter I bought a t-shirt and again washes like a dream and plan on having it for a while. Have had many compliments on it as well.

Watches we have bought on board as with the 40% off and no taxes (equals 13% in Canada), we have found them to be good deals, especially when the Canadian $ is high. Have never bought jewelry but have had lots of fun looking!

We bought rum cakes and rum fudge on board as it was the cheapest we found in any port.

I have a shawl that I probably paid $10 for on a cruise 13 years ago that is still in great shape. 13 years of use for $10 is a pretty good deal.

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I love to shop and have hardly ever visited a store I can't find something to buy....:D except on cruise ships. I think the merchandise boring, uninspired, questionable quality and nothing original or tempting.

Sorry, but you asked. :o

Whomever it is that is designing, buying stocking these shops needs some updating and creativity training.

Boring is a good word........

Agree about the gold by the inch..It is so cheap looking. In fact it looks like something out of a lucky bag.

After my wrist turned the obligatory green from my gold by the inch bracelet, I thought I'd never get that cleaned up.

I bought one of DH's favorite T-shirts on a cruise during the big sale they have in one of the dining rooms. It's an Alaska T-shirt. We were on a Panama Canal cruise at the time but had seen the same shirt that summer on our Alaskan cruise.

I was in my right mind when I bought 2 $10 watches which have now lasted for 3 years and they're still going strong.

 

No need to be so insulting!!!

I call 'em the way I see 'em, and I have seen too many of 'em. Sorry if it upsets you.

john

I love to shop and have hardly ever visited a store I can't find something to buy....:D except on cruise ships. I think the merchandise boring, uninspired, questionable quality and nothing original or tempting. Sorry, but you asked. :o..Whomever it is that is designing, buying stocking these shops needs some updating and creativity training. Boring is a good word........

I have to agree completely. In the last few years, the shops have never had what I really needed/wanted (example, broke the backing on my 'every day' simple gold hoop earrings, or DH forgot to pack ALL his 'smart casual' shirts!); when we came down with a sore throat or ran out of hair spray, the selection was almost impossible. I haven't found anything to inspire impulse buying in a long time - how many logo or sequined t-shirts or caps do you really want?

If shop operators really want to improve their sales, why not trying handing each customer a simple questionnaire as they leave: Did you find what you were looking for? If not, what was it and what would you consider a reasonable price to pay for it? Make it easy for the customers to drop their response in a box and then READ THEM! After a few months, they should begin to understand what people want and need.

I was in my right mind when I bought 2 $10 watches which have now lasted for 3 years and they're still going strong.

 

No need to be so insulting!!!

My boys also each got a good watch at the $10 watch sale too. They are young teenagers and tend to be hard on stuff, but their watches are still doing great. I think dressier women's watches are too good of quality. I have bought one though...I needed to know what time it was. :cool:

We normally don't buy anything in the shops, although we did find a decent $10 tie for my husband once. He's also broken down and got some licorice when the supply he brought along ran out, and maybe some cold meds once.

I don't really like most of the clothing and it seems over-priced. DH might buy a tee once in a great while, but they don't fit me. I've been to some of the end-of-season sales but have never found anything worth buying; they sure were selling lots, though.

I usually wander through the shops once on a cruise, that's about it. We don't shop much on shore anymore either; don't need any more souvenirs, unless it is something really unique.