Shop prices for essentials on board

[Londontraveller67]

Hi

 

This might sound like an odd question but has anyone ever had to buy "essentials" (shampoo, toothpaste, Aspirin) on board only to find they have had a crazy mark-up?

 

I'm not going to name the line but I had that experience recently and just wondered if it was widespread. I thought they might have misprinted the price label but they hadn't.

 

I totally appreciate there is going to be some mark up on a cruise ship, of course, but this was nuts.

 

Thanks

[Joebucks]

Every line does this. Most hotels do it too. They know people will pay it.

[paul929207]

Try and buy a beer at most ball parks. Prices are outrageous.

[Bookish Angel]

I once ran out of dental floss on vacation.  It was almost $6.00 in a hotel.  A 10 minute trip to Target got me the same amount of floss for $1.00. That is why we bring your own supplies - most in refillable travel size bottles that we replenish after each trip.

[Essiesmom]

I have had to buy cold remedies and cough medicine onboard.  Highway (seaway) robbery.  EM

[spookwife]

par for the course.   its cheaper to buy in port of you absolutely need something.  most people travel with a mini first aid kit.  we pack Tylenol, ibuprofen, sinus meds and immodium as well as  all my Rxs. we also make sure we have enough toothpaste and the like before we go.  

[Londontraveller67]

Sorry, to add to my original post; I meant does anyone have actual examples of being gouged on board - how much for toothpaste etc and which line?

[navybankerteacher]

12 minutes ago, Londontraveller67 said:

Sorry, to add to my original post; I meant does anyone have actual examples of being gouged on board - how much for toothpaste etc and which line?

Specific examples? No.  But I have regularly noticed absurdly high prices for all such items across the board - on HAL, NCL, Celebrity, Cunard, Princess,  Royal Caribbean, Crystal, Oceania, Azamera,  even the long-gone Orient.   Perhaps the managers of those stores believe that anyone careless enough to run out of such essentials deserves to be penalized - — or might be sufficiently unaware to not notice the prices.  Either way, it appears to be the standard in the industry.

[Schoifmom]

1 hour ago, Londontraveller67 said:

Sorry, to add to my original post; I meant does anyone have actual examples of being gouged on board - how much for toothpaste etc and which line?

 

No, because I have never paid their prices.  I have noticed that they are extremely high, as I would expect.  It's all about the law of supply and demand.  They have exclusive supply and if you have the demand, you will be willing to pay whatever they charge.

[mom says]

2 hours ago, Schoifmom said:

 

No, because I have never paid their prices.  I have noticed that they are extremely high, as I would expect.  It's all about the law of supply and demand.  They have exclusive supply and if you have the demand, you will be willing to pay whatever they charge.

Exactly. I'm not sure why the OP is surprised by this. Similar thing occurs in hotel and Resort gift shops, especially if they are located away from an urban area. This is precisely why I pack a carefully curated mini pharmacy and first aid kit as well as toiletries.

 

Ever notice the markup on many items in a convenience store? You're paying for the convenience.

Edited June 11, 2019 by mom says

[Essiesmom]

Expect to pay 1.5 - 2 times what you would pay at home.  More if you are accustomed to buying store brand, such as Equate at WalMart.  EM

[Kate P.C]

The prices on essentials are really high, I must agree. We always come prepared with medicine we think we might need, or medicine for "just in case". As for toiletries, we do bring our own in travel sizes, depending on how long the cruise is. We only pay for alcohol on the ship 🙂  Everything else that we have forgotten and is desperately needed, we wait to get to port to buy it.

[donaldsc]

Two simple solutions.  Bring them w you or buy them in port.

 

DON

[crystalspin]

I had to do what EM did, buy cough or cold medicine on board one time. Don't remember the price though! Subsequently, I do what spookwife reports: I carry a roll-up toiletry bag stocked with all manner of things (I have a list). It is relatively bulky considering the steps I take elsewhere to minimize baggage, but I think I've used something out of it on every trip.

 

Do you know there is tablet cough suppressant? Mucinex-something or other. There are dry versions of many toiletries (tooth powder, cake shampoo, etc) but I haven't gone that far! Just keep your 3-1-1 bag stocked!

 

OTOH, my step-mom forgot her sunglasses and I told her "better buy here (in Seattle), they'll be astronomical on board" but she paid more at CVS than they were in the gift shop on the ship. 

[denmarks]

Prices are terrible. They have repackaged items that sell for many times a drug store would charge. It is only for emergencies.

[Itchy&Scratchy]

yes, prices are out there...

On one of our first cruises my DH forgot his toothbrush at home. I had to buy one onboard. At Walmart it was $0.50, and on the ship it was $4. I still remember it. Ugh.

 

Last November I forgot my hairbrush (neither my DH nor my DS use one)....NCL's Jade didn't have any hair brushes in the onboard store.  I had to wait  till day 3 of the cruise to buy one in Puerto Rico (it cost me $7, which was not outrageous). Little did I know - the ship broke down that same night and we got to go home the next day. Now, I just keep that same hair brush in the suitcase - it is my travel hair brush now. 

 

A couple of cruises ago my DH didn't realize that I brought ALL of our meds with us (still do!!!), and went down to the ship's store to buy an 8 pack of Tums tablets for $4. I almost fainted (yes, I am that frugal). I had TUMS in our suitcase!

[jocap]

I must have left my unperfumed, supermarket's own brand deodorant behind in the pre-cruise hotel, so had to buy from the shop... can't remember now how much, but it must have been high for me to still remember that I was taken aback. I put it down to there being no choice, so had to cope with a highly scented well-known brand for that cruise.

[iancal]

Not much different than resort pricing or hotel shop pricing.  We take our own sunscreen in 100ml containers.  We can get toothpaste anywhere.  We have a roll of Tums that has gone around the world once or twice over 8 years.  We have had one perhaps two pieces from the roll. Time for a replacement.

 

We don't sweat the small stuff.  The price is the price.  If we need it and we don't have it then  winging about the on board or resort  price won't make it less expensive.  In some of our winter destinations, sunscreen or the type we need is simply not available so it is something that we are always careful to  pack.

Edited June 11, 2019 by iancal

[agp_mzk]

As others have noted, this is a fairly common practice at resorts, hotels, and other vacation spots. I accidentally packed two bottles of shampoo instead of one shampoo and one conditioner on a cruise once. I ended up spending something like $15 for a  bottle that would have cost about $3 at home, but there's no way I was going to make it through an 8-day cruise with no conditioner!

[lenquixote66]

It is the same markup if you buy refreshments in a theater or sporting event.

[Markanddonna]

Any item you purchase at the onboard shops will be the most expensive you will ever buy- more like three to four times the average cost.  We think these issues of packing through very carefully, esp potential medicines. Our process is to pack an emergency supply of the meds for the usual ship maladies: stomach/bowel upset, decongestants, fever reducers, cough suppressants, etc.

I once found myself in a small village in central Europe needing an antibiotic for a UTI, and the only doctor was an old Russian woman who rarely showed up to the clinic. I was first treated by the ship's doctor ten days previous, but the problems returned during my visit. A relative secured an antibiotic through "the usual channels" people have to use in those countries. My problem never returned!. Sometimes, you gotta do what you gotta do. 

 

 

[SRF]

On 6/11/2019 at 3:09 PM, crystalspin said:

Do you know there is tablet cough suppressant? Mucinex-something or other.

 

Mucinex is not just a cough suppressant.  And only certain versions of it have a cough suppressant in them.

 

It is an expectorant.  It makes the mucus more liquid so it comes up easier.

[clo]

On 6/11/2019 at 4:44 AM, Essiesmom said:

I have had to buy cold remedies and cough medicine onboard.  Highway (seaway) robbery.  EM

For longer intl. trips we carry a "what-if" bag.  Decongestant, antihistamine, antibiotic ointment, etc.  One time my doctor even had me take a steroid with me in case  I had a flare-up of a particular problem.