First time cruiser seeks advice with $$$

[erby2283]

I am taking my first cruise November 27th on the Majesty which deports from Charleston.

Can someone help me with the following questions:
For a party of two (with me being a nonalcoholic drinker), how much money should we bring for the trip (including some excursions, of course)?

How much of that money should be cash, traveler's checks, etc.?

To keep my 30 year old butt out of debt, I only have one credit card with a $500 limit. Can I use this card number for my room deposit and then pay with traveler's checks or cash when it comes time to settle (since I am sure the room will be more than $500)?

Thank you,
Elisa

 

[ute_fan]

We actually spent very little cash on either of our two cruises. I bet the actual cash outlay was no more than $100, and we didn't take any travelers checks. Your actual cruise fees, port fees, taxes, etc. should be all paid for before you set sail.

For our 7 day cruise on the Sea (2 people) , we ended up with somewhere between $800 and $1000 on our onboard credit account. That amount included $10 pp per day for tips ($140), about $100 in internet fees (had to keep track of the kids at home), a soda card (around $30), shore excursions (between $500 and $600), miscellaneous non-alcoholic drinks ($4-$6 per drink with souvenier cup), and a couple of purchases from the gift shop. I don't know what happens if you gamble -- we don't do more than drop a couple of nickels in a slot machine.

I think that you can take cash (or probably travelers checks) down to the desk, and pay off the expenses as they're charged. What I don't know is if they have a minimum amount of credit to open your onboard account -- maybe if you call NCL they can tell you. You may also be able to put down a cash deposit at the beginning of the week, and have them work off that.

Obviously, your charges are going to be very dependent on excursions -- they were by far the biggest charges on either of our 2 cruises, outside the cruise fees. You should be able to book them in advance, and know what to plan for. Also, if you're into non-alcoholic or smoothie drinks, you might want to consider a "teen passport" if you can get them to sell you one. You get a book of 20 coupons for a little less then $40 -- way cheaper than buying the individual drinks.

 

[erby2283]

Thank you for your response. The information will help me to plan for my trip and I wil call NCL to finalize some details.

So there was a soda-card available? I was wondering about that because I only drink water or soda (I am definately NOT a tea drinker.

 

[ute_fan]

The soda cards work great if you are a big soda drinker. My DH and 2 kids all got them on our recent Alaska cruise -- I didn't bother, because for some reason I prefer water on the ship. Go figure -- hardly ever drink much water at home, but it tastes good on the ship. Must be the "water, water, everywhere" thing.

The cards were $28.75 for a 7 day cruise. By them from one of the bars the first day -- I'm not sure if they go on selling them all week. You get a sticker that goes on your room card, along with an insulated cup (that holds about 8 ounces). You can get the fountain drinks from the bars either in your cup, or just in a plastic cup if you don't have your insulated one with you, after showing your sticker. They will also bring you soda at the dinner table after you show your card. Cans are not included -- just fountain drinks. They are fairly limited on the kinds of soda available. I know they have Coke, diet Coke, and Sprite -- not sure what else is available. It also saves the 15% tip that is automatically added if you order individual sodas.

The other thing we have done is take on our own soda. For Alaska, we bought 2 twelve pack boxes -- one of diet pepsi for DH, since he prefers it to Coke, and diet Dr. Pepper, since that is my choice and it isn't available on the ship. Depending on how much you drink, and what you prefer, that can be another money saving option.

 

[erby2283]

Well thank you again. You have been more help than anyone else has.

I didn't think you could bring your own drinks on board? Or does that just pertain to the alcohol? I hate to drink water at home, but drink bottled water everywhere I go and wasn't sure if NCL charged for water or not.

How was the Alaskan cruise? I would love to there. Maybe on the next cruise...

 

[ute_fan]

If you would like to carry on our private conservation via email, that would be fine with me. It appears that no one else wants to join in. My email address is: ute_fan_79 @ yahoo . com (remove the spaces). Also, there are a couple more message board sites that seem to generate more NCL talk. Are you aware of them?

In answer to your questions, bringing drinks on board mainly applies to alcohol. I'm sure they would have a problem if you brought cases of soda in, but we put the 12 packs in our suitcases and had no problems. We just stopped at a store on the way to the pier, and brought the soda, and re-arranged the suitcases to put it in. I've also read of people bringing their own bottled water on -- it is available on the ship, but like everything else, there is a charge!

We loved Alaska! I've only been on 2 cruises, both NCL -- the Sea (Texaribbean) and the Sun (Alaska). Both great in their own ways -- the ships are very different. If you're interested at all, I have scanned the freestyle daily newspapers they hand out each day that list the daily activities -- they might be helpful to a first time cruiser to see the sorts of activities that go on, even if the ships aren't the same. I was surprised at the similarity between our 2 cruises, especially considering the different in itineraries.

 

[Anonymous User]

Hi, We just got back from our first cruise to Alaska go sometime its great!!!! Yes you can pay by cash if you do not think your cc card will be enough,as posted by others we bought 2 soda cards as well,we drink but not at 6 to 7 dollars a drink!!! We took travelers checks put them in our safe in stateroom and paid for everything w travelers checks on last day. Our bill was 790 dollars, you should of seen some of the peoples faces who got their bills at 5:30 am,culture shock,keep track of everything you spend then you will have enough,our shore excursions were 400 dollars,for first time cruisers like us watch out for the pictures. Thats where I went wild. They take them everywhere,when you board, during lifeboat drills, restaurants,formal night, I think I bought one of everything. They have specials every day so its usually 10 to 20 dollars a day spent on pictures if you want one from each event,to me well worth it because I wanted memories of ship!!!! Also we bought one helmet of beer,you get 6 cans for the price of five and get to keep the plastic football helmet or return for 5 dollar deposit,all for 28 dollars. I bought some postcards, ate one night in a charged restaurant and bought two stuffed animals. Grand total 790 as I said. So go with more than you think you need and put in Travelers checks,you are not as tempted to use that way, and can always bring home extra. We brought home 200 dollars in travelers checks and that paid for our pictures we took on shore to be developed. Hope this helps. Korina

 

[erby2283]

Korina,

Yes, thank you for advising of your trip details. I hope you had a wonderful time. I was thinking about my next cruise (already - even though I haven't even been on my 1st one yet) and was considering Alaska.

Well, I am planning to bring about $1500 b/c I would rather have more than less. This will be my first REAL vacation and wanted the option of doing whatever I wanted no matter what the cost.

My next concern is with my boyfriend. He is from Russia. Has a Russian passport and a greencard and am scared that when we board the ship, there will be a problem. I called NCL and they said if he has a greencard, he's considered an American Citizen and should be fine. But I won't feel secure until I know for a fact that he'll been ok to Board.

In fact, I am going to start a new thread and see if anyone has had problems!

Thanks again!
Elisa