Getting Cash On Board?

We have several private tours planned for our LOS cruise in a few weeks. They all require cash payment upon arrival. I don't usually like to carry even 1/3 that much cash.

What are the options for getting cash on board?

Do I have to set up a cash account? What does that mean - can I eventually pay that with a credit card?

Is there an ATM onboard?

Any other ideas?

We will be arriving in Houston/Galveston on Friday so if we are going to need cash on hand, I need to make sure we have time to get to a bank penciled in and also a secure storage location/safe access for those days.

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There are ATM on board

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Cash account means you pay with cash at end of cruise instead of charging a card

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Probably best bring the cash. ATM/bank could have limit withdrawals per day...

You can initially set up your account as a cash account. This will allow you to get cash from the casino without paying the 5% fee. On a 7 day cruise you can withdraw up to $500 per day. With a cash account you can also charge up to $500 before being asked to pay down the balance.

You can pay down the balance using a credit card for a one time paymemt or later in the cruise you can leave your card on file to expedite the checkout process. We have done this many times.

Also, some ships will give vouchers instead of cash. Just get a slots voucher, insert that voucher into any slot machine and hit payout. You will then be given a pay voucher that you can redeem for cash.

Cash account means you pay with cash at end of cruise instead of charging a card

 

 

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You can pay off a cash account with a debit or credit card as well as cash.

A further option is to simply buy OBC in advance and cash it out as you need.

Do bring some cash..no need to pay a percentage to obtain your own money. Larger bills are much easier to carry when traveling, and the ship can break them down into smaller denominations. Each of you carry some of your cash...then put it in your safe when you board. Cash is still king...and it's not hard to carry!

Do bring some cash..no need to pay a percentage to obtain your own money. Larger bills are much easier to carry when traveling, and the ship can break them down into smaller denominations. Each of you carry some of your cash...then put it in your safe when you board. Cash is still king...and it's not hard to carry!

We are just going to have to agree to disagree that it's easy to carry...it doesn't fit in wallets/cell phone cases, it isn't okay to put it in our small bags that the kids sometimes carry, and we definitely won't have access to a safe when we first board the ship (and possibly not good access when we are in Galveston either).

Thanks to everyone for the info with onboard options. I just can't imagine getting on a ship with thousands of dollars in cash - we will likely employ some of these techniques to cover the full amount we need. We also have about $400 in OBC already so I think that maybe the cash account to start is the way to go and then flip it to a credit account after we have the cash we need in hand for all 3 port days and casino money!

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Bring cash and keep it in the safe.......

A further option is to simply buy OBC in advance and cash it out as you need.

Royal will charge 5% to get cash from an onboard account if it is secured by a credit or debit card.

Guest services will cash a personal check for up to $200 one time. Only one check per bank account can be cashed. We just did this on Allure a few weeks ago.

Travelers checks. You can cash at guess service the night before your excursions

There are ATM on board

 

 

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Yes there are ATM machines on board and GS carry a certain amount of local currency to exchange your dollars if necessary.

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Another vote for travellers cheques. This is what we have done in the past and plan to do again on our next cruise. I'm just not comfortable carrying too much cash.

My significant other and I brought cash with no problems on LOS in February. We divided it up so that we had a days worth in one envelope, kept what we didn't need in our safe, and divided what we were taking on shore between us. I had a cross body money holder which I wore under my tee and felt perfectly secure that way. I purposely got $300 in small bills (100 each 1s, 5s, and 10s) before the cruise so that I wouldn't need to worry about change while on shore.

My significant other and I brought cash with no problems on LOS in February. We divided it up so that we had a days worth in one envelope, kept what we didn't need in our safe, and divided what we were taking on shore between us. I had a cross body money holder which I wore under my tee and felt perfectly secure that way. I purposely got $300 in small bills (100 each 1s, 5s, and 10s) before the cruise so that I wouldn't need to worry about change while on shore.

I always take cash rather than credit cards ashore as seen on other threads where cards have been cloned.I tend to wear shorts with fastening pockets and spread the money around the pockets,i tend to take a max of about 300 dollars with me and my wife carrys a small amount too.

love sailing with RCCL

Thanks folks - I am not worried about taking cash on shore daily, it's just the thousands of dollars that I would be carrying from home and in Galveston and before rooms/safes were available.

I just set up our set sail as a cash account so we have flexibility when we arrive to plus up our total. I will also try to do some travelers checks and bring cash from home and one or two ATM trips after we are in Texas...

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Our last cruise in 2012 had an ATM on board but it was "out of service" from Day 2 until the end of he cruise. Guest services told us it was out of cash--as opposed to be broken--and wouldn't be restocked until after we disembarked.

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Our last cruise in 2012 had an ATM on board but it was "out of service" from Day 2 until the end of he cruise. Guest services told us it was out of cash--as opposed to be broken--and wouldn't be restocked until after we disembarked.

 

 

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There is usually an atm in the casino as well...