Sign & Sail Card...Will My Method Work?

Hello fellow cruisers!

 

I am leaving this Saturday for a 6 night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Carnival Magic. Excited is an understatement! I have been on one other cruise before, a 3 day bachelorette party to Nassau on the Carnival Victory, so I am familiar with the Sign & Sail Card. This time, though, I have a different plan than the credit card connection.

 

I plan to bring an envelope with all of our trip cash separated into sections and labeled. I budgeted $100/day for this trip for onboard expenses (mostly alcohol). My plan is to keep the envelope in the safe in the room and each morning put $100 onto my Sign & Sail card to use that day. That way, I don't put the whole $600 on there and end up not using it all and having to deal with a check they give you at the end.

 

My question is, is it possible to just put money on your card each morning as needed?

 

Thanks!! :halo:

My kids had brought extra money of their own when we cruised. My son about mid way through decided to put his own money on his card after he ran out of his initial spending.

They don't give you a bill at the end. You either keep enough cash on the S&S card (or guarantee it by credit/debit card.) or you are not able to purchase.

 

But to answer your question, yes you can put cash on each day.

I'm sure that's fine. I think you can also cash out in the casino in some way if you put too much. But that's just my recollection from some threads, not really sure.

 

That being said if you are budgeting close to 100 for booze then maybe you should get Cheers for $50/day.

I will start with I have never done a cash account, so I am not 100% on this.

 

But I have read multiple places that you have to put down more than $100 the first day... Just be aware they might require a bit more of a down payment.

 

Beyond that, we used to go down and pay cash on the account when we would win at the casino.. that was before we started earning so many reward points for travel on our credit card.. Your ship will have 2 automated kiosks as well that you can use to add cash to your account. Usually 1 by guest services and the other somewhere near the coffee shop.

I will never understand why people make this so complicated.

It's very easy to do. You don't even have to go to guest services for this anymore. They have little ATM-looking machines that you walk up to, and just insert your cash, and your done. Very easy!!

you can also put on a credit card and at the end, pay the whole amount in cash and they wont charge the card at all.

IMHO, you are over-complicating things, but I can understand if you want to make sure you aren't spending more than $100 a day.

 

To answer your question, yes, you can go to GS or use a kiosk every day to add another $100 to your account. There is no minimum that you are required to add to your account at the beginning of the cruise. Be of a couple of things:

1. Once you have spent the cash on your account (if you don't also have a CC linked), you will not be able to spend more until you add more cash.
   
2. Don't forget about the gratuities.
   

At the end of the cruise, if you have anything left in your account, you can just go to GS or use a kiosk to withdraw the remainder in cash - no need to wait for a check after returning home.

It's very easy to do. You don't even have to go to guest services for this anymore. They have little ATM-looking machines that you walk up to, and just insert your cash, and your done. Very easy!!

That's awesome, I had no idea!! Thanks!

That being said if you are budgeting close to 100 for booze then maybe you should get Cheers for $50/day.

I agree.

Dont forget tips, on day 2 or 3 they will automatically charge 6 x 12,95$ on your S and S.

You could do it. With FTTF it might not be a pain in the tushie. I'd just put a good chunk down the first day and then later again if I need it to save myself the hassle. And if it is cash, you can apply it via the kiosk.

You could do it. With FTTF it might not be a pain in the tushie. I'd just put a good chunk down the first day and then later again if I need it to save myself the hassle. And if it is cash, you can apply it via the kiosk.

OK I'm lost what does FTTF have to do with this?

People with FTTF have a special line at GS.

 

Karen

Here is my opinion, this is not just for the OP but anyone who talks about putting cash on your S&S card. First off WHY would anyone put cash on it? The only reason I can think of is they do not have a credit card. I do understand some people do not have a CC, well then you would have no choice. However, if you do have a CC then I would use that then pay off the card when you get home or like another poster said "give CC but at the end go and pay the cash". I feel if you can be disciplined enough to put only $100 on your account each day and only spend that much, then why can't you just use the CC and spend only $100 a day? I know you need some cash on hand on vacations but if you do $100 p/day that would be $600 that can get lost or stolen. We have a vacation account with our bank and we just pay off the CC as soon as we get home so we do not get charged interest.

People with FTTF have a special line at GS.

 

Karen

Gotcha!

Here is my opinion, this is not just for the OP but anyone who talks about putting cash on your S&S card. First off WHY would anyone put cash on it? The only reason I can think of is they do not have a credit card. I do understand some people do not have a CC, well then you would have no choice. However, if you do have a CC then I would use that then pay off the card when you get home or like another poster said "give CC but at the end go and pay the cash". I feel if you can be disciplined enough to put only $100 on your account each day and only spend that much, then why can't you just use the CC and spend only $100 a day? I know you need some cash on hand on vacations but if you do $100 p/day that would be $600 that can get lost or stolen. We have a vacation account with our bank and we just pay off the CC as soon as we get home so we do not get charged interest.

 

We have a credit card but choose to use cash on our account instead because, honestly, I suck at budgeting my money on vacation. If I put $500 cash on the account, that's all I'm going to spend. If I use my credit card, I'm more likely to spend more than I budgeted for. We do bring a credit card with us while traveling, but we don't use it unless we have to like when checking into a hotel, renting a car, etc. I know my own spending habits and cash works better for me. We use cash as often as possible in our daily lives, too, because it helps us stick to our envelope system of budgeting. Not everyone wants to live in a cashless society.

I get the whole budget thing, but, by not putting on a CC and then just paying it off when you get home you are losing out on the potential for airline miles, hotel points, cash back or whatever your card offers. With online payments, I make sometimes 3-4 payments a week on my cc. Charge something, let it hit the card then pay it off and that way I get the rewards. (In my case recently I have been using my cash back card and I just bank that 1.5% on everything).

 

Now if you can't get a cc for whatever reason then that is a whole different story. Of course getting and using a card is a good way to build credit.

OP, the check you speak of that they mail to your after your cruise doesn't have to be done that way. If you still have unused cash on your S&S card at the end of the cruise, just go to guest services or a kiosk and withdraw what's left. If you don't do it while you're on board, that's when they mail you a check, but only if it's over $10. If less than $10, they automatically donate it to St. Jude's Hospital. As others have already said, you can add cash at guest services or at the kiosk. If that's how you prefer to handle it, then by all means, there's nothing wrong with it. Don't mind the people who say you're making it complicated (you're not) or you should just use a credit card. I prefer to deal with cash myself, no matter where I go, including with my S&S account.

 

They don't give you a bill at the end. You either keep enough cash on the S&S card (or guarantee it by credit/debit card.) or you are not able to purchase.

 

But to answer your question, yes you can put cash on each day.

The OP didn't say anything about getting a bill at the end. She said she didn't want to deal with the check at the end...meaning, the check they mail to you if you don't withdraw your unused cash on board.

 

I will never understand why people make this so complicated.

I don't see their plan as being complicated at all. She wants to budget her daily spending by only adding $100/day. If she chooses to take a few minutes out of her day to do it, what's it matter to you?

 

Here is my opinion, this is not just for the OP but anyone who talks about putting cash on your S&S card. First off WHY would anyone put cash on it? The only reason I can think of is they do not have a credit card. I do understand some people do not have a CC, well then you would have no choice. However, if you do have a CC then I would use that then pay off the card when you get home or like another poster said "give CC but at the end go and pay the cash". I feel if you can be disciplined enough to put only $100 on your account each day and only spend that much, then why can't you just use the CC and spend only $100 a day? I know you need some cash on hand on vacations but if you do $100 p/day that would be $600 that can get lost or stolen. We have a vacation account with our bank and we just pay off the CC as soon as we get home so we do not get charged interest.

I'll say the same thing I said to the last person...what does it matter to you how someone else chooses to handle their money and spending on board? I use a cash S&S account because I'm just a cash person, that's all. It's my preferred method of payment regardless of where I am. You choose to use a credit card, great. No one's knocking you for it. You can budget yourself with a credit card without problems. Others might be a little more easily tempted to spend more than they planned, so they use cash to help keep themselves in check. Just because you don't do it doesn't make it the wrong way.

Hello fellow cruisers!

 

I am leaving this Saturday for a 6 night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Carnival Magic. Excited is an understatement! I have been on one other cruise before, a 3 day bachelorette party to Nassau on the Carnival Victory, so I am familiar with the Sign & Sail Card. This time, though, I have a different plan than the credit card connection.

 

I plan to bring an envelope with all of our trip cash separated into sections and labeled. I budgeted $100/day for this trip for onboard expenses (mostly alcohol). My plan is to keep the envelope in the safe in the room and each morning put $100 onto my Sign & Sail card to use that day. That way, I don't put the whole $600 on there and end up not using it all and having to deal with a check they give you at the end.

 

My question is, is it possible to just put money on your card each morning as needed?

 

Thanks!! :halo:

We are cash users also. When we did online check-in we set it up as cash accoumt. We plan an amount and took a Lil extra. Here is what we did. We pre-paid for cheers and gratuities less things to worry about at the end. We had $100 of OBC. When we got there to check in the lady asked if we wanted to put a card on the account and told her no. She told us there was OBC so we didn't have to put any on there but we put $200 on the account for my wife and I. So that we had some money on there if needed. We used cash for tipping for our drinks. "I never found a real answer on how the tip works when it's left on the receipt so we used cash for that person that severed us" we use the hub app to keep an eye on the account we bought stuff as we wanted to get things and did not need to add any extra till the last night because we bought pictures and a few items. And when we added money we added just the amount needed at one of the kiosk because it was the last night. When we left there was a few dollars left which got donated to st Jude fund. So I agree with your idea on using cash.

 

I see where people come from on trying to get points on their credit cards and it works great for them but others not so great. So to each their own on how they choose to pay for things. Just don't judge how others plan to pay for things. But cash is always there.

Cash accounts are so easy. Get on board Go to a kiosk or guest services and put money on your account. We usually add $100 at check in also. No problem.

 

 

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We had $20 left on our account when our cruise ended. I had put $550 in Carnival GC's on the account and we $50 on board credit. I thought that money was a goner since it was from GC's but we got a check in the mail from Carnival 4 days after arriving home.

One of the biggest things on vacation that I hate is waiting in line. A previous poster asked why so many people use GS on Carnival, and when noticed on other cruise lines, there barely is a line. I think this is the number one reason on Carnival is the cash account. Now, I don't care if a person pays cash for their trip. I do, but I charge it on my CC and pay it immediately. I understand many can't do this, which is fine. But honestly, if you have 6 days, and $600.00 budget, than why stand in the long line 6 times? Just put you budget down on day one, and on the last day, go get your refund of unused money.

 

The thing about budgets and ships is that no two days are the same. Port days and Sea days have different budgets. Is you budget $600 per day or is it really only $100.00 per day. What happens if you don't spend $100.00? Do you not spend it the next day? If that is the case, than maybe the daily is better. But if you really only have a $600.00 for the trip, than save the headache, and deposit it once. I would hate to have to wake up each morning, and wait in line, when I could be relaxing someplace else.

I don't see their plan as being complicated at all. She wants to budget her daily spending by only adding $100/day. If she chooses to take a few minutes out of her day to do it, what's it matter to you?

 

 

It is my opinion of her plan which is what this topic is about. I think it is overly complicated. It is the same amount of money either way as long as some self control is exercised. I would not stand in line 7 different times to add money to my account while I am on vacation.