I'm told they charge for EVERYTHING extra on most cruises. Everything?!?

Question

I would like to take a cruise with my partner next year, probably 10-14 days, either Alaska or a Panama Canal crossing. I'm impressed with the prices and selection available on vacationstogo.com -- we are hoping to do a 4.5 or 5-star ship.

My concern is that bill you get at the end of the trip. I know that each alcoholic drink will be there. Several drinks per day over nearly two weeks is going to hurt not just the liver, but the ol' wallet, too.

How much can I expect to be charged for these things:

Room service

Alcoholic beverages

Bottle of wine with dinner

Visit to the fitness center (even locker room, spa, sauna?)

Spa services (massage or facials)

Shore excursions

Watersports

Shows

Also, there are a few cruise lines, mostly in the very high-end range, which include alcohol in the price. Might this be worth it? I might be more comfortable paying ahead of time, and not worrying about being nickel & dimed to death on the trip.

Your opinion?

Answer 1

Room service is free.  Unless you order a Mimosa for breakfast or wine with dinner - there is not charge.

Drinks are anywhere between $3.00 - $8.00 depending on what you get.

Bottle of wine can be obtained for $25.

Spa treatments are extra, but you can use the fitness center for free.

Pedicure was $65 - couples massage $125 (45 minutes)

Shore excursions - depends on what you do.  Anywhere from $30 - $500.  My sister did the dog sled helicopter tour in Alaska that was $479.  A beach break shore excursion can be as little as $30.  

Water sports are usually $30 per 1/2 hour.  Para-sailing etc.

Shows are FREE!!!

Answer 2

what extra do you pay for?

gratuities 10.00per person per day.

alcoholic beverages.

couples massage was 160.00

shows are included in the cruise cost.(most of them)

go to cruisecritic.com

cruiseclues.com

Answer 3

on-board shows are usually free. If u decide to go to the spa its best to go while the ship is docked b/c they usually have a special running then. room service was free on my cruise along with use of the gym and sauna. drink prices vary depending on what type u drink

Answer 4

Well first of all if you are thinking "high end" you are thinking about best cruise lines like Crystal, Radisson,  Windstar, and Silver Sea.  These cruise lines are a cut above the others because they run smaller ships (about 500 to 700 passengers) and have a higher staff to passenger ratio so you get top of the line service.  They also have more amenities included in the much higher price, like all veranda/balcony cabins, tubs and shower bathroom, larger cabins, daily wine and/or champaign with meals, etc. .  Prices for a 7 day cruise on these top of the line ships may start at $4000 to $5000  (vs about $1200 on the next tier of ships.).

So if a Balcony cabin on a 14 day cruise on, for example  Crystal or Windstar, is $5,000 each for you and your partner, but only $2500. each for you and your partner of Royal Caribbean or Celebrity, will you drink $5,000 worth of liquor in 2 weeks??  I doubt it and so just for drinks included I would not recommend selecting the one over the others.

After you pay your cruise fare there will be additional charges once you are on ship as I will outline below.  The only one of these which should NOT be considered optional is the gratuities.  

things you will pay for additionally are:

Gratuities: They will amount to about $10 per person in your cabin per day; about $70 each for the week. 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.

Alcoholic drinks and soft drinks: Coffee, tea, milk, juice, and lemonade and punch will be provided free but you must pay for drinks (alcoholic beverages) and they will add a 15% gratuity to each drink and  soft drink order. You can save on drinks by ordering them in a plain glass rather than the souvenir glasses they often use. You can also save money if you can by taking a six-pack of bottled water and soft drinks with you in your carry on. Since you cannot take these through airport security you would have to get them after leaving the airport.

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.  Some ships will even do a video of all of the activities while you are on ship which you can purchase at the end of the cruise.The photos will cost a lot, like $15 to $20 each for most; the video about $40.. Skip them and save yourself a lot of money. Take your own camera and have the other passengers photograph you on and off the ship.

Tours/Excursions: First of all excursions are optional, you do not have to do any ship's excursions. You can get off the ship in each port (with a couple exceptions like Russia) and go on your own.  These tours and excursions  are listed on your cruise line web site and you can reserve them well before the cruise and pay for them also. If you wait until you are on ship to book tours they will be charged to your on board account (then you can pay cash to settle your account on the last day). The shore excursions vary in price from about $35 for a short 3 hr city tour to well over $100 for an all day tour that includes several stops and also a sit down lunch meal.

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.  But you are not required to buy anything.

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. All other food on board is free and its not really necessary to budget for food; you cannot eat all that will be available for free.  You will be able to use the gym free all of the time, but if you want nails, hair or feet done or a massage you will pay top dollar (in the range of $80 to $150 for a massage).

Room service is free and they will bring whatever you want 24/7.  But you should tip the person who brings it a couple dollars in cash.

On most cruise lines you can order wine and other treats from their gifts menu well before your cruise and have it delivered to your table or to your cabin (we ordered 2 bottle for our cabin on out last 14 day cruise).  The prices start at about $30. and then go way up.  Princess will allow you to order alcoholic drinks for your cabin.

Shows are free and use of all of the sports facilities on ship are also free and that includes all of the pools, hot tubs, and on most ships the saunas.  If you want to go parasailing or jet skiing you will pay about $75 or more for each person.

You have control of your bill and on most long cruises that we have been on our total was under $500 per person, not including tours.  If we do tours in each port stop it usually adds another $500 each, but most times less since we know how to go off the ship and find a cheaper tour.

I have been on almost 20 cruises with four different cruise lines.  My recommendation for a great cruise would be Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Princess, Holland America and Norwegian.  Pretty much in that order.

Answer 5

I have been on several cruise lines and they do not charge for shows, room service fitness center pools, etc. They do charge for wine with dinner; however, most ships will allow you to bring wine on board with you. You can drink it "free" in your room or you can take it to the dining room and they will charge you a cork charge. Some ships will automatically charge the tip to your bill while others do not.

Depending on where you go, you do not have to book cruise excursions. My husband and I almost always plan our days on land ourselves. There are good websites where cruise ship passengers post messages and you can get ideas about what to do in various ports. (usually you can do whatever the ship's excursions do for less money.

I hope this has been helpful.

Answer 6

The five star lines (Crystal, Regent, Silversea, Seabourn ...) do include alcoholic drinks in the cost of the cruise.  I am not sure about room service.  Typically a visit to the fitness center is free, unless you take a special class.  Watersports and shows are also free.  Shore excursions are extra, and can run anywhere from $50 to several hundred dollars.  Spa services cost about the same as they do on land.

The four star lines (HAL, Celebrity and Princess) do not include the Alcoholic drinks in the cost of the cruise.  Drink prices are similar to the cost on land.  Room service is about $1 to $2, depending on how much is ordered.  Spa services are about the same as on land.  Shore excursions run from about $40 to several hundred dollars.  Watersports and shows are free.

Answer 7

depends on what cruise line you are going on....most cover the cost of some beverages(most ships offer drink cards so you can purchase a set amount of alcoholic drinks), meals (buffet style or "lito", the price of sit down and order may charge 10-20),  entertainment(if they have a special celebrity on board maybe not) you can use all of the ships spas exercise equipment pools and saunas free however if you want something extra like a massage you will have to pay for that...

if you are going to foreign countries you will have to pay duty tax on any purchases you make. and you will have to pay for any gratuities. the following link is every question you can ask about cruises and the answer to the questions