So really.. how much $$ do you take?

[teambeaman]

This is great to know, I plan on doing this and using gift cards too! Thanks for the info ;-)

That's exactly what we did! I loaded up at Target before we left! It was great!!!

 

[su_A_ve]

Suggested tips are $12 per person per night. How many nights is your cruise?

 

[tweis]

We usually take very little cash but it depends on what our plans are. If you have excursions booked and plan to tip then you need cash. If you plan on shopping in Nassau or wherever and don't want to encounter fees from your credit card company (unless your card has none) for using it outside the US then you will need cash for that.

In April we will have OBC from DCL and OBC from our TA and that will cover our gratuities and we will have some extra but I plan on buying a few hundred dollars in gift cards to apply to our account to cover drinks, Palo, bikes on CC, souvenirs, smoothies for the kids, specialty coffees for DH and I, etc. In the past, we have generally signed the slip for room service and rarely need cash for that. We are doing Atlantis via Comfort Suites so we will need to bring cash for that also.

 

[JohnsPrincess]

Well for the three of us we spent about 1400$ for a week-long cruise. This included everything we paid for on board with the credit card (1000$ = excursions, tips, drinks, nursery, souvenirs) and what we bought on the 3 islands (400$ cash = food, drinks, souvenirs).

 

[Feisty Fairy]

We are a family of 3 going on a 4 nighter next month. We have the Stingray port adventure booked so we know we are looking at about $130 there and around $150 for tips. Santa is supplying GCs for individual souvenir purchases for the little one. Including tips for room service and others and anything else I may be forgetting (please elaborate) what is a safe amount to bring? Thanks in advance.

. No excursions last time we spent about $160 plus are tips where covered with OBC of $100.

 

[AndreaDM]

It probably depends if you are going out on your own and have to pay for taxi service etc....

This is where we spent our cash. We don't do ship sponsored excursions, we book them on our own and a lot of times there is a discount if paying in cash. We took a taxi to the beach both ways in Cozumel, $15 + tip each way. We took $500 and I ended up taking out another $100 to make sure we'd have plenty for departure day tips, etc.

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

NOT ENOUGH.

That's what we did: TWICE this year. We were scrambling for cash at the end of both trips this year and credit card use on the islands was iffy. We will NOT make that mistake again. And that was with on board credit coming off of cards, we just did NOT have enough cash for taxi, awesome lunch on islands, some rum, one excursion that we joined at the top of the hill since they were sold out but we tipped the guide and she took us on the tour with our friends anyway etc.

We are bringing WAY more cash this time, period. Not for the ship, for the islands and a few extra tips for those extra magical CMs. (we prepay typical tips but $12 a day is not enough if they have done a great job.)

 

[BuzzLightyearInTampa]

You'll for sure need cash to tip room service ($1 or $2 each trip) and to tip on excursions as well. As a previous poster said, it is also a good idea to have cash with you on these islands for shopping/incidentals. As for how much you'll need for your on board charges, that varies wildly from person to person. You can absolutely get by without any charges other than tips, but how much you want to spend is entirely up to you. For us on a 7-night, including excursions, tips, drinks, shopping on board, photos, and adult dining, we spent $1K+, but we went to Palo Brunch, Palo Dinner and Remy Dinner as well. Others spend much, much more.

 

[auntlynne]

If you live near a store with Disney Gift Cards, I'd buy enough to cover known expenses (ie, Stingray excursion, tips). I suggest this to keep from having holds placed on your card.

Your onboard spending will have a $300 cap. You can pay for your tips and excursions before they are posted to your account and maintain that open limit.

Once the lines at Guest Services get smaller (ie, not on boarding, usually), they can add the cards to your onboard accounts.

[At Sam's Club, a $150 pack of cards costs $143. Target Red Card members save 5% on Disney Cards.]

I've always tipped for room service with cash; a few dollars a visit; however, with a 3-night cruise, you might not need it.

Are you going to be tempted by DCL photos? A single 8x10 is about $20, last time I cruised. Their professional staged photos are actually a good deal for a family photo, as you aren't having to pay a sitting fee and that $20 photo is a whole lot less expensive than what a studio would charge.

Someone mentioned nursery fees - you might want to check those prices if your little one needs that service.

 

[TwinPrincessMermaids]

Just a remember to cruisers:

The islands don't accept Disney Gift Cards. Just sayin'. The cruise is easy to handle with plastic, be it gift cards or anything else. No cash need besides tipping CMs on the ship.

The islands are another story. Although on a side note, I wouldn't bring massive amounts to the straw market. One of my good strategies (and again cuz we ran out of cash!) was "It's $25!" "Well I only have a $10 left." "Ok I'll sell it for that."

You can plan your On board credit with gift cards, but still bring cash safely. We were glad we had some cash to put in the envelopes to hand directly to our servers on the last night, even with the auto tips. Our debarkation breakfast was wonderful, just as good as service and not rushed and we were glad to see our waiters one more time before we left, and even happier since we had shown our gratitude the night before. And I had to borrow that cash from sis, so I'm going to be sure and have plenty in May.

 

[Holeshot1982]

Just a remember to cruisers: The islands don't accept Disney Gift Cards. Just sayin'. The cruise is easy to handle with plastic, be it gift cards or anything else. No cash need besides tipping CMs on the ship. The islands are another story. Although on a side note, I wouldn't bring massive amounts to the straw market. One of my good strategies (and again cuz we ran out of cash!) was "It's $25!" "Well I only have a $10 left." "Ok I'll sell it for that." You can plan your On board credit with gift cards, but still bring cash safely. We were glad we had some cash to put in the envelopes to hand directly to our servers on the last night, even with the auto tips. Our debarkation breakfast was wonderful, just as good as service and not rushed and we were glad to see our waiters one more time before we left, and even happier since we had shown our gratitude the night before. And I had to borrow that cash from sis, so I'm going to be sure and have plenty in May.

So with Castaway Cay can you use GC or charge it to the room? Don't really want spend the cash if I don't have to.

 

[holula]

So with Castaway Cay can you use GC or charge it to the room? Don't really want spend the cash if I don't have to.

CC is the same as the ship EXCEPT the post office which only takes cash.