Newbie question - what's included?

[Jazztoon]

Im looking at planning our first cruise but can't seem able to get certain info without going through the whole booking process. I'm looking at Royal Caribbean cruise or Princess cruise to western Caribbean for 7 nights for family of 4.

 

I'm trying to understand what's included in stateroom prices? Just the room? Are the gratuities part of that price or extra? (at $12 per person, per day, for 4, that's almost $300+). Do we then have to buy a food package separately? (I know beverages are separate). What else is included vs costs money? Whats the average cost of daily excursions? Is child care or kids clubs a separate cost? Entertainment?

 

In other words, I'm not sure whats covered in the cruise price that's listed, so that I can anticipate what I need to plan for. Would love some guidance.

[delliemd]

Yes you will be paying for gratuties for 4 people in the cabin.If you dine in a specialty restaurant that is a fee about $30. each.Bottled water ,soda other than tea,coffee ,or milk extra charge.I do not know about child care etc.All excursions vary from $ 30. ea up to $200. depending on what you want to do.Personally I would also purchase trip insurance to also include medical.It is worth it and not that expensive.

Edited January 9, 2017 by delliemd

[Sauer-kraut]

Meals are included -- in the main dining room(s), buffet, and probably some other venue. Best to ask this on the cruise line specific boards.

 

Kids club are free during the day (possibly not on port days) and may incur a fee for after hours babysitting.

 

Most entertainment is free, again this is something to ask on the cruise line specific boards.

 

Coffee, tea, milk included - usually found 24 hours a day in the buffet area and included in the main dining rooms.

[serene56]

You can add your tips to your final payment. Tips pay for your cabin steward who cleans your cabin twice a day. Pays for your wait staff who cater to your every need. Pays for the buffet people. These staff members rely very heavy on passenger tipping Tipping is a hot topic for some

 

 

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[serene56]

With that being said we do not drink mor do we go to any specialty places. A cruise for us is all inclusive. But it's your first cruise and you should budget for family photos

 

 

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[serene56]

The price you could be looking at is cruise fare. You have to add in port taxes which will be calculated at the end of the booling

 

 

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Edited January 9, 2017 by serene56

[JoinedTheCircus]

Gratuities: we booked our cruise early and paid the gratuities before we even got on the boat. We always leave a little extra for our cabin steward as well (this last trip was 10 days and we left him an extra $50.)

 

Food: (Princess) all your food is included--buffet, dining rooms, pizza, BBQ, international cafe, room service...you pay if you go to the specialty restaurants (which, by the way, is well worth the $30.00) and you also pay $3.00 if you would like a pizza delivered to your room.

 

Drinks: water, tea, and lemonade a free. Bring a reusable water bottle for everyone. Bottled water is expensive, but you can bring case onboard...and on this last cruise, a fellow passenger said that Princess had an option to have a case of water delivered to your stateroom. We buy a coffee card which gives us 15 coffees for $30.00.

 

Shore excursions can be found online or on shore cheaper than through the cruise line.

 

 

 

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Edited January 10, 2017 by JoinedTheCircus

[cb at sea]

Lets go with what's NOT included.....Tips, alcohol, soda, excursions, specialty restaurants, photos, bingo, spa and souvenirs are NOT included. You will pay extra for those things.

 

 

Included in your fare is cabin, buffet and dining room (and maybe some smaller snack venues), room service during daytime hours, entertainment (shows), pool, sun and fun, ice water, coffee, tea (iced or hot), lemonade, milk and juice during breakfast.

[Cruisin' Chick]

for Princess (as that's the cruiseline we've sailed on for our last five cruises):

other than the fare, port fees & gov't taxes, and auto-grats (we let it be charged to our daily folio but you can also give your cabin steward or waitstaff or any crew member additional money if you find the service exceptional....if we do this, it's on the last day as well as fill out a consummate host card for their personnel files for each one).

 

When you book your cruise, you will be asked for your dinner preference: early traditional, late traditional, anytime. Traditional is where you are assigned a table, tablemates, waitstaff -- we like late traditional as we know that we can enter the main dining room at a specific time, and be able to order right then. Other people prefer the flexibility of anytime -- when you want to eat dinner, you show up at one of the anytime venues.

 

You can also eat in the buffet, the International Cafe (many of the Princess ships have this area in the Piazza that are display cases of little plates of food....you tell the crew member what you want and then you can take your food just about anywhere on the ship like your cabin or a lounge or even right there if a table is available. You can also get a pizza or a grill item by the pool. These are all included in your fare.

 

specialty restaurants are the dining venues with a charge. totally optional.

 

For breakfast and lunch, you can eat meals in the buffet, in a main dining room (lunches for only sea days), or the other venues I've mentioned.

 

the IC has food available 24/7 (only specialty coffee drinks and gelato if available there will have any charge).

 

there are also some other venues depending on the ship you're considering. the Princess website has this info as to what is available on what ship.

 

Lemonade is available for much of the day as well as tea, regular coffee. You would have to pay for booze and soda but you can buy packages or stickers if you think you may drink a lot.

 

the children's program is complimentary. As far as I know, only post 10-pm kidsitting has a charge. when our girl stayed on the ship in port, we never had to pay for that.

 

entertainment is free -- there's production shows in the Princess theater on most nights, live music in some of the lounges and in the Piazza (Plaza deck mid ships in the grand atrium), on the deck for some sailaways. Most of the shiips have a Movies Under the Stars big screen that will show recent movies, some sporting events, concert films -- it's by one of the pools, so you can be in the pool and watch a movie. Your cabin has a TV that runs movies, some selected programming and some satellite channels.

 

There are some optional activities (bingo, casino, wine tasting) that have a charge. Myself, I stick with the daily trivia matches.

 

For port time, you can book an excursion through the ship or do some research and book with an independent company. You may find some port side stands selling excursions. You can just walk to some beaches or get taxi to a beach. You can also research the sights you want to see and DIY.

 

My family tends not to spend a lot -- our last three cruises were two week ones to Hawaii for three of us, and we probably spent a lot less than some couples on a 7-day one, but I rarely drink, we bring on Pepsi products (I don't care for coke), we don't do specialty restaurants. this last time we did buy an Internet package (our girl was 15, enuf said) and we booked some excursions through the ship but also did our own thing in 2 of the 4 ports (and stayed on board in Ensenada as always).

[Cro_and_Swan]

It's already been mentioned briefly, but I thought I'd reiterate - just because on our recent cruise i talked to a surprising number of fellow travelers who didn't know about it - on RC standard room service is included in the 'free' dining along with the buffet(s), main dining room, etc. There may be a 'service charge' for late-night delivery and/or an additional charge for specialty items (lobster, chocolate covered strawberries) but most basic menu items are included.

 

You can pre-order your breakfast the night before and have it delivered within a 30 minute window the next morning. I'm not normally a major breakfast person, but my travel partner is ... and for me having COFFEE very first thing was great ... and not having to dress and leave the room and go to the dining room or buffet 'first thing' made mornings very relaxing .... he got fed, I got caffeine ... we relaxed on the balcony ... all was right with the world! :)

 

Depending on the age of the kids and your usual breakfast/morning routine ... it might make mornings with kids a bit easier too ... unless the addition of food/plates/drinks etc. to a crowded room becomes an issue.

[WupperAV]

We only do one specialty restaurant on a 2 week cruise. Main Dining Rooms are free and good quality, The buffet, pizza, hot dog and hamburgers are free, milkshakes are xtra. You are paying over $100/day to eat and have a bed and entertainment. To me a $30 up+ tip up charge isn't worth it because I can feed my wife and I for $60 and get as good a meal at home in a restaurant. Just budget for extras and keep track of spending on board, most ships have a printer you can check every day.

[Kingofcool1947]

We only do one specialty restaurant on a 2 week cruise. Main Dining Rooms are free and good quality, The buffet, pizza, hot dog and hamburgers are free, milkshakes are xtra. You are paying over $100/day to eat and have a bed and entertainment. To me a $30 up+ tip up charge isn't worth it because I can feed my wife and I for $60 and get as good a meal at home in a restaurant. Just budget for extras and keep track of spending on board, most ships have a printer you can check every day.

 

Interesting rationale.

You are what you eat. One man's meat, is another man's poison. Yes?

Edited January 16, 2017 by Kingofcool1947

[WupperAV]

Most people go on a 2 week cruise thinking it costs a certain amount and it ends up being double for booze, drinks, milkshakes and up sells and upscale restaurants. The Art is 3rd rate. I raise beef and lamb so I get Prime cuts every meal I want. Costco sells better quality Ribeye than you get aboard ship. The new Shares is utterly oversell under quality. Some jewelry is worth it as my wife bought some and it appraised higher than she paid. Watches are the same price on Ebay and you can get most shore excursions for a lower price and see more. We went on a Princess Montevideo Bus tour. 8 hrs of riding around hearing how the British were not such nice people. Lunch was nice. We couldn't eat on the Balcony Around the Horn, high winds, 40 degrees and rain showers. Cabin was pretty small to eat in but we didn't mind.

Edited January 16, 2017 by WupperAV

[trish1c]

The fare you see on the advertisements is the price per person for the cabin, which also doubles as your transportation to the ports. Food is included; you can eat practically 24/7 if you like. Some special restaurants & kinds of food are extra but you don't have to purchase those & you certainly won't stare if you don't. Entertainment is included. There will be live music a lot of places -- at the pool, in certain bars, etc. You can simply pull up a chair & enjoy. Shows are generally included but sometimes there are special shows that cost extra. You will know that going in. Various other activities: lectures, demonstrations, karaoke, card games etc. are included. You also get use of the facilities like the pool but not the spa which is extra.

 

Gratuities are extra. As you have done the math you know that ads up.

 

The big extras are: booze; specialty coffees, the casino, bingo, port taxes, souvenirs, & excursions. The price of the excursion varies greatly by what you want to do & whether you book through the cruise line. You can get off the ship & certain ports & walk to a beach or take a taxi for under $10. You can rent a private helicopter tour of the island for $500. It's up to you. It pays to do your research. In San Jaun we went to the Bacardi Factory. The ship's tour was around $30 pp. We DIY for $7 total by taking a public ferry & a cab. In my head not based on anything measurable, I "budget" about $50 pp per island for excursions. I rarely spend that but have spent a lot more for certain things like zip lining.

Edited January 16, 2017 by trish1c

[Kingofcool1947]

Most people go on a 2 week cruise thinking it costs a certain amount and it ends up being double for booze, drinks, milkshakes and up sells and upscale restaurants. The Art is 3rd rate. I raise beef and lamb so I get Prime cuts every meal I want. Costco sells better quality Ribeye than you get aboard ship. The new Shares is utterly oversell under quality. Some jewelry is worth it as my wife bought some and it appraised higher than she paid. Watches are the same price on Ebay and you can get most shore excursions for a lower price and see more. We went on a Princess Montevideo Bus tour. 8 hrs of riding around hearing how the British were not such nice people. Lunch was nice. We couldn't eat on the Balcony Around the Horn, high winds, 40 degrees and rain showers. Cabin was pretty small to eat in but we didn't mind.

 

Agree. The steaks are not USDA Prime cuts. But then again, for health reasons, DW and I avoid eating too much red meat. Too much fat, and leads to coronary heart disease. :eek: One man's meat is another man's poison.?

 

So, Is the glass half empty or half full?

 

For us, we tend to view our cruise experience on the positive side, and avoid nit picking every nickel and dime we spend aboard the ship. We find positive reasons to enjoy our cruise. On the other hand, many PAX find little things to whine about or have a negative attitude to jade their enjoyment of the cruise. YMMV. :)

 

Happy cruising and enjoy good health in 2017, if the Lord wills, and beyond.

Edited January 16, 2017 by Kingofcool1947