Did you or anyone just go on a cruise?

Question

I just wondering.... have to pay food or resturtant in the cruise? or what? I never been in Cruise but I have thought about going to Disney Cruise Line for my family. I just curious... Thanks!

Answer 1

i got off the carnival liberty about a month ago. best vacation of my life!

Answer 2

I have  been on about 20 cruises with 4 different cruise lines and here's how it works as far as charges over and above your cruise fare.  

For the most part all cruises are all inclusive. Let me explain.

Regardless of which cruise line you select, the things that are included are pretty much the same. The price of your cruise includes your cabin, all meals (including breakfast, lunch dinner, snacks and free room service)(you do pay to eat in the specialty restaurants), all shows and entertainment, and free use of all facilities on ship. The things that you will have to pay for are:

GRATUITIES: They will amount to about $10 per person in your cabin per day; about $70 each for a 7 day cruise. When you check in at the pier they will set up an on-board charge account for you to cover any and everything you may buy on ship. They will issue you a "cruise card" which will also serve as your room key and pass to get on and off the ship. At the end of the cruise they will add the gratuity to your tab and you can pay with a credit card or cash, your choice.  Cruise lines also now charge a fuel supplement of $7 to $8 per person per day; but you should know the exact amount of this up front when you make your final payment.

ALCOHOLIC DRINKS AND SOFT DRINKS: Coffee, tea, milk, juice, and lemonade and punch will be provided free but you must pay for soft drinks and alcoholic beverages and they will add a 15% gratuity to each drink and soft drink order.  On Disney ships soft drinks are FREE.

PHOTOGRAPHS: Cruise lines will take plenty of photographs of you all over the ship, in the dining room, and as you exit the ship in ports. These will cost a lot, like $15 to $20 for most.

TOURS/EXCURSIONS: You are not required to book any tours and can get off and on in the ports as much as you want. But the cruise line will offer a lot of tours and these are expensive.

SOUVENIRS: Anything you buy on ship from a gift shop or duty free shop goes on your on board account. Things that you buy on shore you pay cash or credit card for.

CASINO: If you plan to gamble on ship you will need cash for that.

OTHER: Most cruise lines have what they call "specialty" restaurants where there is a gratuity/service charge.  The specialty restaurants are nice; like steak house, Italian, Tex-Mex, sushi, but they cost from $5. to $25 per person per visit.  All other food on board is free and its not really necessary to budget for food; you cannot eat all of the FREE FOOD that will be available.

SPA SERVICES:  If you want/need to have your hair done, get a massage or wrap, or any services from the spa, you will have to pay for them. You can use the gym free but the spa stuff cost big bucks.

INTERNET:   Ships now have internet cafe and some have WiFi but the there is a fee for internet access and it is very expensive (like about $50 to $60 an hour).

You cabin will likely have a minibar with soft drinks and munchies; you have to pay for them (but there is free room service 24/7).

The only one of the above that is essentially mandatory is the gratuities.  All of the others are optional.  So to figure your cost for a cruise look at the cruise price which will be listed as  per person based on double occupancy (two people cruising) and then add in the gratuity costs based on the number of days the cruise will have.

Hope that satisfied your curiosity.

Answer 3

I just went on a cruise in March on Norwegian.  It varies somewhat between cruise lines, so you might want to check before you make your reservation.  I'm sure Disney would be very nice!

Basically all meals are included for free as long as you eat in the dining room or at one of the free buffets.  

Most do charge extra for beverages other than tea or coffee, milk or juice.

There are also usually some other special restaurants that have a "surcharge" of $10-$20 per person.  If you're trying to stay within a budget, I think you'll find that the food in the dining room and free buffets is fine or at least adequate.

If you'd  like to see pictures and read more about my recent cruise experience go to:

http://www.squidoo.com/Mexico_Cruise