Cruise Tips

We have now been on two Carnival Cruises and I am by no means an expert cruiser but I can share some tips and tricks that we picked up along the way that have saved us money. First off, we booked our most recent cruise two years ago. We put down a deposit and paid it off over two years. Yes, the deposit was non refundable but we were able to bump our trip out an extra year so that was not lost. A non refundable deposit is scary but it was also a great way to commit to a trip and force ourselves to budget and work towards this vacation. Talk is cheap and you can always talk about a vacation you want to take and plan but until you start the process you will never go. The fact that we could pay for it over time made it appealing and exciting as well.

What Happens on a Cruise?

So you book your vacation and choose what places you want to visit. For us, we went the Caribbean route. So we boarded the cruise from Miami on a Sunday afternoon. We spent Monday at sea traveling to the first destination, Jamaica. Tuesday, we docked and could get off the ship at 8am but had to return on board by 4pm. Our ship left that port Tuesday evening and we awoke Wednesday morning at Grand Cayman. Then Thursday, we awoke in Cozumel. Friday we spent the day and night at sea leading us to docking back in Miami on Saturday morning.  

When you arrive at the cruise terminal with all your bags you get tags on them, tip the bag man who insures they get to your room and proceed to actually checking in to get on board. Once you are on the ship you can go eat or go to your room or wander the ship. During the lunch hours they had a buffet and for dinners there was a more formal sit down dinner. You had the option of assigned dining in which each night you had early seating (6pm) or late seating (8pm) and were paired with the same people each night. Of you could do free seating in which you showed up to dine between the hours of 6-9pm and were sat with different folks each evening. We liked the late dining because after a full day on the islands we liked to come back, grab a snack, and take a nap. Then we would wake up and have a few hours before dinner. We did assigned dining on both cruises and will not be doing that again. The first cruise we were paired with a really nice couple in which we really enjoyed talking with and eating with each night. This last cruise, we got paired with two other couples and we just didn't jive. If you don't like the folks you have to sit with, you end up not wanting to go to the dinners. Each morning they had several breakfast buffets and had one big dining room open for a sit down served breakfast or brunch. We enjoyed a bit of both depending on when we woke up and what we were in the mood for. 

Each evening, usually while you are out eating dinner, your room is cleaned and they leave an itinerary for the next days events happening on the ship. There was always plenty of entertainment to include: comedians, bingo, dance parties, deck movies, contests and shows. They also tell you when you can get off the ship once we dock on the island and when you are to be back on board. It's usually a good 6-8 hours you get to be on the island before having to return on board. 

You can choose to book excursions before you even sail, book them on board or book them the day you are on that island or destination. These are the big money makers but are also really fun adventures that you typically won't be able to do anywhere else. The ship offers sanctioned excursions but once you dock you will notice there are local folks offering excursions as well. Carnival recommends you choose theirs because if your excursion runs late or something happens they will hold the ship for you. So it may be a bit pricer but it's worth the fact knowing that big boat won't leave without you! We didn't do any this trip because we just wanted to go to the beaches and play it easy. Our first cruise we swam with dolphins and did the Atlantis Waterpark in the Bahamas. That was really fun, really pricey but totally worth the experience!

Food and Drinks:

The big thing everyone talks about on a cruise is all the fab food. Well, yes the food is everywhere, all the time so you never go hungry. It's all included in your vacation except for a few speciality restaurants  that you can choose to make reservations at and pay a bit extra to go there. You don't have to book those restaurants before you actually cruise so you have the option to look at the menu on board and decide for yourself. 

As for drinks, black coffee, milk, water, and tea are all included and you can find it everywhere on the ship. If you want any sodas, you have to pay for them and it's not to cheap. Same with alcohol, wine, beer, and fancy coffee. I think we paid $5 a beer, $7.50 for a margarita and $3 for a vanilla latte. To help ease the cost of our beverages we did the following things, which Carnival allows:

We each brought a bottle of wine in our luggage and on board. You are allowed one bottle per person. Only wine though, you can't bring a bottle of liquor or any beer. We also brought a 12 pack of cokes and a 12 pack of water bottles on board. You are allowed one 12 pack, less than 20oz bottles or cans per person. Since my husband drinks a few cokes a day, this saved us mucho money! The water bottles were for us to take on the island so that we always had water and were not having to pay for it on the island. The ship water was fine and filtered so never any worries there. I also packed a handful of the Starbucks instant vanilla latte coffee because I knew I would want a taste of home and it's super hard for me to down black coffee with cream and sugar. These instant packs were great and served me well with my vanilla coffee addiction!

Tips and Gratuity:

This is another cost not included in your booking fee. When you cruise you have a room key which also serves as a credit card in some sense. You buy drinks and whatever else you want on board with it and the last day of your cruise you get a bill and pay for it with your real credit card. Each cruise line charges differently but our ship had an $11.50 gratuity charge per person, per day. They divide that up between the stateroom person (person who cleans your room at least twice a day), dining room service, and alternative services (kitchen staff and other board staff). Besides that, each drink you buy has an automatic 15% tip added with your choice to add on it that or not. I think these folks on the ship more than deserve all these automatic gratuity charges so we didn't have issues with this policy. I know these auto charges had to be put in place because many guest would never tip so I understand. But, if you have never cruised or haven't read all the FAQ's you will probably be surprised to see these charges! We always plan for extra money to tip our specific stateroom person, our waiter and anyone else that we felt we appreciated how amazing they were! We typically tip this extra cash the last night. Before we leave town we bring a few extra envelopes to be able to hand out to those folks. This is pretty common to do. These folks work super hard and most of them work for 8 months straight before they get to go home to visit family. They are from all walks of life and are all so polite and nice no matter how crappy their day is. 

Packing:

The most essential things that were worth packing were:

Pain relievers: Any meds you may need like Tylenol, Benadryl, bandaids, etc take! Or you will pay a pretty penny for them on the cruise when you need them.

Sunscreen

Beach Bag: I personally like the ones with a zipper to feel a little more secure about my belonging when walking around the islands.
 
Water Bottle: We filled ours up during the day to have water on hand in our room and we took our personal bottles on the islands so we didn't spend money on bottled water.

Watch: There are no clocks in the rooms so this helped us know what time a day it was on the ship and on the islands

Dress Shoes: 1-2 pairs max that match multiple outfits so you can save space and hassle in your suitcase. Don't overpack with shoes, it's a waste!

Extra baggies:  Or a small waterproof container that you can take on the islands with you so your ID's and cash don't get soaked in the water if you choose to take them with you.

Carry On: I like to pack a day or two's worth of essentials in my carry on in the event that my luggage gets lost and I need stuff to wear/use until it arrives. Never hurts to packs your must need things in your carry on.