How much cash would YOU carry for a Mediterranean cruise?

I would like everyone's personal opinion on--

How many Euros or/and US$ would YOU carry per person per day for a Mediterranean cruise, if you have prepaid DSC and plan to pay for shared shore excursions in cash?

As we don't know you, have any idea on your spending habits (or even your "ashore" habits), I am not sure how we are supposed to answer this question.

Some reading on the Ports boards would reveal that most places take credit card, although we have always tried to do small (like under 30 euro) purchases in cash. Also, more inclined to use cash a bit more in small towns.

No no, I want everyone's opinion on how many [emoji387] Euro HE/SHE would carry per person per day for HIS/HER family or group. Thanks

We leave home with a couple hundred Euros (€10s and €20s) plus whatever change was left over from our last visit. Then we visit a local ATM as needed for more. We usually carry €100 each plus a credit card for most port visits (plus cash for the excursion fee if necessary ) Tips, whether on board or in port, we use €s. But we rarely spend all that cash.

The only US cash you need is for your return home.

On other threads, some experienced posters have advised to carry half the number of clothes and DOUBLE the amount of cash you had originally planned to take.

That's a bit of a joke, but also a way of saying that in general things are more expensive in Europe.

The best rate of exchange is given via ATM withdrawals (using a debit, not a credit card). I try to tally up my known expenses (any guides or shared tours, any tickets I'll have to purchase, etc.) during the course of my trip and I will usually plan to hit the ATM 2-3 times to get the required amount.

Since I travel to Europe frequently, I nearly always have a couple hundred euros on hand to start out with.

I use my credit cards (I have two with no foreign transaction fee) for most expenses like hotels, meals, any expensive souvenirs. Cash is reserved for when other options aren't accepted.

Minimal US$ as they are not generally accepted in Europe.

If you are paying cash for shore excursions, meals, miscellaneous stuff, then 200 euros.

200 Euros per person for the entire cruise of 7 nights or more?

On other threads, some experienced posters have advised to carry half the number of clothes and DOUBLE the amount of cash you had originally planned to take.

That saying has been around longer than I have. And probably dates back to the days of travellers cheques, before ATMs were as readily available.

And yes, it has more to do with advice against over packing and the likelihood of unforeseen expenses while away.

I would like everyone's personal opinion on--

How many Euros or/and US$ would YOU carry per person per day for a Mediterranean cruise, if you have prepaid DSC and plan to pay for shared shore excursions in cash?

Very little.

I would stop at an ATM as needed to get cash.

200 Euros per person for the entire cruise of 7 nights or more?

Not unrealistic at all for PORT DAYS, if you're paying cash for excursions and a good meal, and aren't planning to use a CC.

Sea days- have you ever cruised before? You don't need cash on the ship except for room service tips.

We leave home with a couple hundred Euros (€10s and €20s) plus whatever change was left over from our last visit. Then we visit a local ATM as needed for more. We usually carry €100 each plus a credit card for most port visits (plus cash for the excursion fee if necessary ) Tips, whether on board or in port, we use €s. But we rarely spend all that cash.

The only US cash you need is for your return home.

This ^^^^^^

Enough cash for the day, and replenish by ATM when needed.

200 Euros per person for the entire cruise of 7 nights or more?

per day based on your original post.

Our answer is that we don't even think about cash. We carry 3 different ATM cards (each drawn on an account in a different bank) that have no withdrawal fees. When we need Euros (or other currencies) we simply get it out of an ATM.

Cruiser Bruce gave you the only reasonable answer which is there is no way for any of us to predict your spending habits. That is why having at least two ATM cards (with separate accounts) is a solution since it lets you get a larger amount of cash (because there are daily withdrawal limits) and also gives you a backup if one card fails to work. Major credit cards (Visa and MC are the best) are also very useful for purchases and even paying for some tours.

I will give you a simple example. When we are in the port of Civitavecchia, DW and I will often use less than $50 cash for a full day trip to Rome (over 1 hour distant). We purchase two BIRG train tickets for about 13€ each...which covers all of our transportation cost for the day. We always treat ourselves to a nice lunch in Rome, but that will be paid by one of our credit cards. The extra cash might be used to buy some coffee, gellato, etc. But you might be folks that decide to take a full day tour which can cost $200 per person. And if you also have to pay for your lunch...you could easily spend $500 (for a couple). And we are not even talking about any shopping.

Hank

My answer is, actually, somewhat more than we think we'll need. Beyond that, it's private.

For Euros I usually order them from my bank, sometimes 2,000-3,000 depending on how many tours we will need Euros for.

By day we would leave the ship with the Euros for the cost of our tour plus gratuities, and usually 200-300 extra.

We aren't shoppers and I usually prefer to pay cash if we do buy something.

Minimal US$ as they are not generally accepted in Europe.

 

If you are paying cash for shore excursions, meals, miscellaneous stuff, then 200 euros.

That would work out to 8800 Euros for a family of four on an 11 night cruise just for port excursions, sightseeing, lunch and shopping.

Let me begin with the USA dollars.

I bring a few thousand dollars "just in case". The just in case is for some type of emergency where I just want to know I have the case. It probably won't ever be used but just feel good about having it with me for the unknown.

As to Euros if all of my shore excursions were paid for and I had no real plans where I would need cash I would probably have a couple of hundred Euros with me if not only on a cruise but staying pre or post cruise.

If I didn't end up using them I would save them for a return trip or at the hotel post cruise I could use some or all to pay down part of the hotel bill and pay the rest with a credit card.

I do have a few ATM's with me so if I need to get Euros I can.

Keith

Too many unknown factors to give precise answer.

Shore excursions vary greatly depending on activity.

Local bus cf luxury tour,

McDonald's lunch, cf 5* hotel restaurant

Market t shirt. ...Boutique purchase.

Walk around....entrance fees

We take cash about 100 Euros per person, per day, one credit card ( leave others on ship, just in case) ATM card..but haven't used ATM yet.

It depends on the port and what we plan to do that day, if planning to take a private tour I would take approx. 200 Euro for 2 of us. If we were just mooching round then 50-100 which would cover us for coffee/snack, entrance to parks/museums etc or purchase of the odd tee shirt or gift.

Wow, isn't 200 [emoji387] Euros per person per day too much?

That would work out to 8800 Euros for a family of four on an 11 night cruise just for port excursions, sightseeing, lunch and shopping.

Again, we don't known your needs or habits, so hard to tell you.

We will be in Europe for 23 days on a land tour- driving around the Alps- in May and June. I bet we (2 people) don't spend 600 or 700 euros in cash. That will be mostly for food, we are not much into trinkets. Credit Card will take the vast majority of spending.

For Euros I usually order them from my bank, sometimes 2,000-3,000 depending on how many tours we will need Euros for.

What rate and fee are you paying to do that?

Also, these days with the smart phones and readers, many things like tours, that used to be cash only, and now credit card friendly.

DH and I carried 200 euros each anytime we left the ship. Since most of our tours were with the people we met on our roll calls we needed this to pay for tours, lunch, tips and souvenirs along the way. We usually came back to the ship with some cash, but we feel it is better to be safe than sorry. We didn't use any credit cards except for our expenses on the ship. I don't know if this will help, but this is what we did on our 42 day cruise from Ft. Lauderdale all around the Med and back to Ft. Lauderdale.

I hope you have a great cruise.

I'll bring a couple of thousand USD in local currency on a cruise and take $500 worth so when I go off the ship. I might not spend any of it but it is nice to have if needed. I like ATMs but depending on the country they do not always work or I have to go out of my way to find one.