How much have you SPENT on a cruise?

[reeran]

So, are you tell telling me that the OUTRAGEOUS prices the cruise lines charge us for an alcoholic drink is not stealing? They get their booze cheap and pay their labor pennies on the dollar.

I don't do soda cards because I don't do soda, but, if I did, I would buy one and share it with my hubby or whoever.

 

Airfare from Alaska, approx $700. Cruise approx $600 per person. Money spent on excursions paid before arriving on ship $200. Money spent on shore approx $200. Ships bill at end of cruise approx $350, which would include drinks, t shirts, perfume and always some kind of jewelry to take home. These are the times I traveled single with friends. I ALWAYS had a fantastic time and never felt like I was "going without" or deprived.

 

My upcoming cruise I am planning one excursion and the other stops I plan to spend on a beach with a beach bar nearby. I do however want to pick up a new watch on the ship. Last time I bought a Citizen watch which has been a wonderful watch for me. My only complaint is that as I am getting older it is getting harder to see where the hands on the watch are because the hands are almost the same color as the face of the watch. I am budgeting $500 for my sale and sign card. OH, and I usually take 100 in bills for tips and another $100 for the casino. I know it doesn't sound like much, but, I am not a big gambler as I never seem to win...........I just do it to pass a little time once in awhile.

 

 

 

 

LOL...I never thought I'd stir things up like this when I made my original post...:rolleyes::D

 

Please....before anyone else flames me...READ what I wrote...I hate this knee jerk reaction.

 

If you READ my post you will see a clarification...I was under the impression that all cruise line soda cards worked like Royal Caribbean & I was wrong...and I admitted it!. The way Royal Caribbean's works is you pay so much per day per person and you get unlimited sodas. So you can drink yourself silly until you float off the boat and it all costs the same! If you share it you are actually using double the sodas you normally would (more or less) So if you share their soda card it is stealing no two ways about it.

 

However...(as was posted in my next to the last post) it was brought to my attention that some lines sell soda cards with so many sodas on them. For instance hypothetically a 10 dollar soda card gets you 5 sodas. In that case if you shared it it would be ok because you are really paying $2.00 a soda no matter who uses them. However... if is printed on the card that only one individual can use it then it is not ok (that is called a rule). In that case buy 2 or more cards or don't buy them at all.

 

 

The "outrageous" prices the cruise line charge for drinks...are really no more than what you would pay for drinks in a meduim priced chain like TGI Fridays or Applebees let alone a better restaurant!!! A cosmo at Ruths Chris or Morton's is about $13.00.:eek: Drink prices, souveneirs, gift shop items, etc on a ship... it is all part of the total package, aside from the suites, what resort can you stay in for under $100.00 pp per day, have a view of the ocean, all the food you want, nice entertainment, mini golf, flow rider, rock climbing wall, ice skating etc? Hubby and I went to Joe's Stone Crab in South Beach last year when we cruised out of Miami, It was $278.00 for dinner for 2 of us and 2 drinks each, not including tip. The cruise on Royal Caribbeans newest ship at the time (Liberty) cost us just less than $1,300 for both of us for 7 days (hump balcony)!!! The only reason I bring it up is that my husband Randy said when you think about it... this bill is like a day and 1/2 at sea!!! That was one meal! (it was reeeelllly good though:D) We had a long conversation about what a value cruising is. Regarding sharing a soda card to justify what you perceive as being over charged on outrageous drink prices... If you are shopping at Macy's and you buy an "outrageously" priced blouse is it ok for you to shoplift a skirt to go with it because you feel the blouse is over priced and Macys are stealing from you???? Same principle! Any one can charge anything for what they sell...we as consumers can choose to buy or not to buy what we want. It's a great country!

 

 

My thoughts are, if you feel the drink prices are so outrageous...don't drink them...it's not a country club you don't have to buy so many drinks to remain a member.

[Teala]

our onboard account for DH and I is usually $1,000. The whole shebang (cruise, onboard, tips, spending $, airfare) usually runs between $3,000 and $3,500 and thats with a interior cabin.

[hflipper]

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[USBRIT]

I normally spend between $800.00 ans $1500.00 for my wif an I depending on shore excursions etc so I an mot a pinchpenny by any means. I have to admit that having just returned from the Cruise Ship fom Hell (MSC Poesia) my sail and sign spend was just $148.00. You can tell how much we enjoyed that one. From now on is back to Carnival Dream in May and Miracle in Nov.:D

[1 Part Sand 1 Part Sea]

What we spend on S&S depends on who we are with! if its just DH and I its less, but if we have friends along its MORE! Usually around $800,this one we are planning $1000 for the two of us because we dont want to feel limited in what we want to do. I wont do spa stuff, and we wont do specialty restaurants. I think we will have $$ left at the end :)

 

I always do interior cabins, this coming one is only running us around $400 pp which i think is great! we pre pay our tips.

We have to get a room pre-cruise, but we will be sharing with our friends so that price will be cut in half. prolly only $50 a couple if we do the carnival rate at the LGB hilton. also add in airfare (around $300 pp) and transfers ($36pp) and food etc in long beach ($100)

 

we will be bringing at least $700 in spending, as we like to do lots of things. we like to sample local fare, try local drinks, do different activities, get massages etc. i dont spend a lot on souvinirs, just some inexpensive local pieces. but once again, things add up!

 

we probably will spend under $300 for excusions, thats 2 excursians for 2 ppl. ones fishing, ones a beach break. that includes tips.

 

 

total its probably going to be close to 4,000 EEK! I didnt realize it adds up to that amount! hopefully we will be bringing money back!

[Working 2 Cruise]

Would you walk into a store pick up an item and walk out without paying for it? Same thing...you are stealing. The store is a big company too...do you feel they owe you a free ride too???

 

If it was meant to be shared soda cards would be a family plan.

 

FYI one of the "billion dollar cruise line's" stock is at a real low thanks in part to people like you...RC stock is $20.56 today so thanks for taking money out of my pocket!

 

You go on board with $4000 and can't buy separate cards...then you brag about it here like stealing is something to be proud of...how pathetic you are! I hope the powers that be at the cruiselines are reading this and keep a watchful eye on you on your next cruise.

 

People like you deserve to be caught and dropped off at the next port...no refund!

 

I guess you've never cut a corner on anything... I guess you must be happy feeling so superior to everyone else! I think that we already pay enough for cruises so that, once in a while, we can share a soda card... Geez, relax already! Chill, live and let live... Want to help the cruise lines? Go cruise some more! From what your signature looks like, that is all you do anyway!

[suenruss]

Too much!! but it included several pictures bought at the dreaded art auctions - I know that some people say they are rip offs, but we're very happy with them and we ARE suckers for pictures! Then hubby bought me some jewellery to save for Christmas. We enjoyed spending every penny!

[sjmarante]

I've spent around $900.00, but we got a lot of onboard credit so the final charge came down to about $200.00!:cool: