Putting cash down at start of cruise?

[Wheeling_family_of_3]

We travel only with a debit card and no credit cards. The debit card has a relatively low total transaction limit that we will easily exceed with our onboard expenses by the end of the cruise based on my estimates of what we plan to spend. So we are planning to bring a lot of cash with us to put down as a credit on the first day. When the cruise concludes, do they give you that cash back or do they issue you some kind of credit/check? And will we have to stand in an enormous line that last day (or last night?) to settle up?

[Clarea]

We travel only with a debit card and no credit cards. The debit card has a relatively low total transaction limit that we will easily exceed with our onboard expenses by the end of the cruise based on my estimates of what we plan to spend. So we are planning to bring a lot of cash with us to put down as a credit on the first day. When the cruise concludes, do they give you that cash back or do they issue you some kind of credit/check? And will we have to stand in an enormous line that last day (or last night?) to settle up?

They will give you any excess cash back on the last night of the cruise. Unfortunately, there usually is a longer line on that night.

[Zigggypup]

I know this is a little off topic, but how do you cruise without a credit card? God forbid someone gets sick or injured while you are out of the United States. They are not going to treat you for free and require payment.

Even if you have a travel policy that covers medical expenses, you still need to lay it out and then make a claim.

I have one credit card with a 30K limit that I always bring along with me when I cruise. I use the card once a year to buy a gallon of milk so they don't cancel it due to inactivity. But its nice to know I have the ability to pay if necessary.

Edited December 1, 2013 by Zigggypup

[MonaCK]

Not everyone has the ability to have a credit card, and for various reasons might not have stellar credit. Don't judge.

 

To the OP question - you will have no problem getting cash back for excess. You can also charge a bit before they will require you to pay down - so you can do things that way and put more money on as you see necessary and hold onto your cash.

[rock the boat]

I've posted this on a couple other threads. I know you said that you would like to use cash, but avoid using your debit card. The cruise line will hold twice what your charges are and your cash is usually frozen for 30 days. When I used cash in the past, they would issue you a check if you have any balance left at the end of the cruise. That was 8 years ago , so I'm not sure if they still do that or not. Hope this helps.

[Zigggypup]

Not everyone has the ability to have a credit card, and for various reasons might not have stellar credit. Don't judge.

 

I wasn't judging at all. Medical expenses in a foreign land has always been a concern of mine, especially in an emergency situation. Everybody wants their money before they let you go. And god forbid your condition warrants that you have to be flown home or to some other location for quality medical care. I only mention this because a lot of people think it never can happen to them.

FYI.........you don't need stellar credit to get a credit card.

Edited December 1, 2013 by Zigggypup

[belmontcrew]

We used cash on our first cruise with Royal in 2005. The policy may have changed since then, but on the last night we were not able to use our sea pass card for any charges even though we had a balance left in cash. Had to have friends buy us our last night drink.

[LMaxwell]

Always take a credit card when traveling. Debit cards are near useless for consumer protection. Others on here accurately described HOW to use a debit card. But you will find horror story after horror story about debit cards. Credit cards will give you some sort of travel interruption insurance, rental car insurance, fraud protection, price match guarantees, access to cash in emergencies, etc.

 

If your debit card ends up compromised, your money is GONE.

If your bank puts a hold on your debit card due to foreign transactions, your money is locked up and often for weeks following the cruise too.

 

If you have a credit card, re-consider bringing it. If you don't have a credit card I strongly urge that you consider applying for one. Even a secured credit card is better than a debit card. Debit cards are just a tool designed by the banking industry to get you to spend money faster and incur fees, they are not in your best interest.

 

I hope you have a great cruise and experience no issues. I am not being judgmental, just warning you of very real issues that can occur when traveling with a debit card as your main form of payment.

[uksimonusa]

another way to do it, is to buy OBC before you board, board the ship with a cash account, then on the last day, before the lines get big, secure your account with your debit card, they may hold a very small amount, but it will help in 2 ways

 

1. you can still charge on the last night of the cruise, if you close a cash account out on the last evening you cannot make any more charges once it is closed.

 

2. If you bought too much OBC, then any refund will be processed onto your debit card, no need to wait in line for a refund.

[jmf123]

Instead of carrying a large amount of cash, you could purchase OBC. Any left over amount is fully refundable at the end of your cruise. Call RCI at (800) 722-5443, the item number is 651. I would get an email confirmation to take with you, just in case.

[sdear]

I too travel with a debit card and have had no problem what so ever the way I do it now.

 

I secure my seapass with my debit card, but when I board I go add cash to my seapass card. It takes charges from my cash balance without placing those long holds on my debit card. If there is money left over at the end, it will be credited to my debit card or I can pick it up on the last night. I found if you go to guest services before dinner on the last night there are no lines.

 

When I use to use just my debit card, what I found is they were holding my daily charge amount each day, then at the end they would take off the lump sum. All those daily charges tied my money up for 5 or more days. By placing cash on my account up front I avoid those daily charges to my seapass.

 

My bank does not charge me any fees. In fact if I need more cash while traveling, they fully refund the ATM fee immediately. My debit card is also tied to my savings or a line of credit should I need it . I don't use credit cards at all.

 

I have used this method the last 3 cruises and it has worked beautifully.

 

Have a great cruise !

[help04me]

We travel only with a debit card and no credit cards. The debit card has a relatively low total transaction limit that we will easily exceed with our onboard expenses by the end of the cruise based on my estimates of what we plan to spend. So we are planning to bring a lot of cash with us to put down as a credit on the first day. When the cruise concludes, do they give you that cash back or do they issue you some kind of credit/check? And will we have to stand in an enormous line that last day (or last night?) to settle up?

I do not like using credits cards for on board so the 1st thing when I get on board is deposit more than I ever use 1000 normal then midnight on the night before we leave I go "cash out" . I have never had to wait more than a few minutes I do think the previous post is correct if you go at most peak hours then expect a longer wait I just have always went midnight

[Brandonclan]

As earlier stated, try not to use your debit card once you leave home. I did alert my bank about our trip just in case I needed to use it. We really like to pre pay for anything we can. I used it to reserve pre cruise/post cruise rooms but paid with cash when we arrived.

Thanks to some great advice from Bob(Clarea), this is how we set up our cruise as to not use our debit card on board.

 

We selected cash account while setting up our set sail pass online. We used our debit card over the phone to pre purchase OBC before we sailed. They only allow you to purchase 499.00 at a time. We purchased 499.00 before we boarded and put 500.00 in cash on our account once we boarded. We did not spend it all, so I went to guest services, around 1 a.m. on the last night/day, and received cash back for our balance. We did not make any purchases after our visit to G.S. on the last night.

Worked very well for us. I also had cash for tips, casino, and port purchases.

[dacsmom]

I do not use credit cards by choice and anything can happen anywhere, if you live your life in fear you will never experience many things. Should I avoid going out of the country because I choose not to have a credit card? To the poster who says she is not judging, it certainly seemed so with such large, bold font. If you are uncomfortable traveling without a credit card that is fine for you and I am glad you are happier if you have one with you. But please respect those of us who for many reasons do not use credit cards. To the OP guest services is open 24 hours a day and I go at an off time so I do not wait in a line. I buy OBC and add to it right when I board the ship. Never had any problem. As one poster said if you have your debit card with you make sure your bank knows you will be out of the country. The last cruise my daughter did not alert her bank and she had to make a very expensive phone call from the ship to assure the bank that it really was her making the purchases. They do this for security and she understood and appreciated the bank for its security, but it was an expensive phone call.

[jcl410]

OP -

 

With a cash account, you are allowed to spend up to $500 before they want any cash. You can go to the purser's (I mean Guest Relations. :-( ) desk and add cash to your account as often as you wish.

 

Aloha,

 

John

[SidneyOfEaston]

I do not use credit cards by choice and anything can happen anywhere, if you live your life in fear you will never experience many things. Should I avoid going out of the country because I choose not to have a credit card? To the poster who says she is not judging, it certainly seemed so with such large, bold font. If you are uncomfortable traveling without a credit card that is fine for you and I am glad you are happier if you have one with you. But please respect those of us who for many reasons do not use credit cards. To the OP guest services is open 24 hours a day and I go at an off time so I do not wait in a line. I buy OBC and add to it right when I board the ship. Never had any problem. As one poster said if you have your debit card with you make sure your bank knows you will be out of the country. The last cruise my daughter did not alert her bank and she had to make a very expensive phone call from the ship to assure the bank that it really was her making the purchases. They do this for security and she understood and appreciated the bank for its security, but it was an expensive phone call.

 

If you re-read what the poster wrote, he/she never said that fear was involved regarding leaving the country without a credit card. I think the word used was "concern". The poster also never mentioned that you should avoid leaving the country because of it. I also would never leave the country without bringing along a credit card. Not out of fear, just because of "What If"? Have you ever heard of "Murphy's Law". Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. So why not have a little insight to the fact that things happen and prepare for that possibility? It's better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

Edited December 2, 2013 by SidneyOfEaston

[shutterbug63]

I don't mean to hijack this thread...but I know that RCCL lets you set up a cash account & charge a bit before they make you secure it with cash. What is the limit?

 

Also...is it possible to have the cash account and then change it to a non-cash account (i.e., secure it with a credit card) in the middle of the cruise to help avoid long lines at the end of the cruise trying to close out a cash account?

[Clarea]

I don't mean to hijack this thread...but I know that RCCL lets you set up a cash account & charge a bit before they make you secure it with cash. What is the limit? Post #15 above mentioned the $500 limit.

 

Also...is it possible to have the cash account and then change it to a non-cash account (i.e., secure it with a credit card) in the middle of the cruise to help avoid long lines at the end of the cruise trying to close out a cash account? Yes, they will take your money any time you offer it.

 

See answers in RED above.

[reney313]

I too travel with a debit card and have had no problem what so ever the way I do it now.

 

I secure my seapass with my debit card, but when I board I go add cash to my seapass card. It takes charges from my cash balance without placing those long holds on my debit card. If there is money left over at the end, it will be credited to my debit card or I can pick it up on the last night. I found if you go to guest services before dinner on the last night there are no lines.

 

When I use to use just my debit card, what I found is they were holding my daily charge amount each day, then at the end they would take off the lump sum. All those daily charges tied my money up for 5 or more days. By placing cash on my account up front I avoid those daily charges to my seapass.

 

My bank does not charge me any fees. In fact if I need more cash while traveling, they fully refund the ATM fee immediately. My debit card is also tied to my savings or a line of credit should I need it . I don't use credit cards at all.

 

I have used this method the last 3 cruises and it has worked beautifully.

 

Have a great cruise !

 

I have done this same thing, whether using my debit card or a credit card. I secure my account with my debit (or credit) card. Sometime the first night or early the 2nd day when there is no line, I put cash down, a little less than I expect but to the point it gets me until the last day. I've never had to go stand in line the last night as anything that is above my cash is then debited to my card, but is usually a small amount.

 

That's what works for me. I don't like a large credit card bill at the end and had a problem once with the credit card company thinking it was a potential fraud charge and declining it. This way it is within my spending pattern.

[Esmerelda]

I have done my last 4 cruises with out a credit card. As a matter of fact, I don't have any credit cards. LOL.. Anyhow, we put around $300-400+ cash down on our cabin then on night 5, I go down and add my debit card for whatever over that I may charge. One cruise was $58 over, another was $178 over. By adding my card, I don't have to mess with guest services on that last evening. I have had ZERO issues with using my card, and never had holds ever put on my card. The exact amount of my remaining balance was all that was put on my card. I do notify my Credit Union that I'm going out of the country. I don't know if that makes any difference but this is how we intend on doing all of our cruises.

 

:p

Edited December 2, 2013 by Esmerelda

[Gilgo Surfer]

I decided to do a cash account for the first time on the Explorer this past October. I was surprised that I didn't have to put any money down. They told to just use my card and pay on the last day.

[Ander026]

Here is what I have done the past 4 cruises. I use my Debit Card to have on File. Then I bring Cash with me for OBC and Casino usage. Throughout the cruise I may put $ on my account by going to Guest Relations. Last 4 cruises I have done that and have had a $0 balance at the end of the cruise.

Plan on doing this for my Oasis cruise and for my Radiance Cruise next year.

[kaybeeeeeee]

Is there any way to purchase obc before boarding the ship then withdraw it once we get there as needed? I hate travelling with excess cash but we do love the casino and hate paying their percentages to access cash.

[steveru621]

Always take a credit card when traveling. Debit cards are near useless for consumer protection. Others on here accurately described HOW to use a debit card. But you will find horror story after horror story about debit cards. Credit cards will give you some sort of travel interruption insurance, rental car insurance, fraud protection, price match guarantees, access to cash in emergencies, etc.

 

If your debit card ends up compromised, your money is GONE.

If your bank puts a hold on your debit card due to foreign transactions, your money is locked up and often for weeks following the cruise too.

 

If you have a credit card, re-consider bringing it. If you don't have a credit card I strongly urge that you consider applying for one. Even a secured credit card is better than a debit card. Debit cards are just a tool designed by the banking industry to get you to spend money faster and incur fees, they are not in your best interest.

 

I hope you have a great cruise and experience no issues. I am not being judgmental, just warning you of very real issues that can occur when traveling with a debit card as your main form of payment.

 

You are wrong. Not all banks treat customers as poorly as you describe. I have seen just as many posters on CC post they have not had any problems using their debit card. 99% of banks charge NO FEES beyond what a credit card would charge.

 

I don't understand how debit cards make you spend money any faster than using a credit card? I do know there are a million people a year who file for bankruptcy because they thought credit cards were free money. You most certainly are being judgmental. There are millions of people who do not like or want a credit card. It's funny how people managed to travel for one hundred years without a credit card.

 

I have spent 20 years in the debit card industry. It may interest you to know; the banks you hate and despise, issue or charter every Visa and MasterCard in the world.

[Clarea]

Is there any way to purchase obc before boarding the ship then withdraw it once we get there as needed? I hate travelling with excess cash but we do love the casino and hate paying their percentages to access cash.

Yes, call this number to purchase OBC: 800-722-5443.

Edited December 3, 2013 by clarea