Is this too much?

[FSU Girl]

I'm trying to budget for my honeymoon cruise in January on the Fantasy. I've learned that when married I have to actually consult someone before booking lots and lots of fun expensive things. So I'm trying to figure out what to plan for the cruise, without going too overboard that he'll say no. We are also sailing in Concierge so it's already a pretty expensive vacation, but it's a honeymoon so I think a little extra splurging is okay.

Here's what I've come up with so far:

• Dinner in Remy - We got engaged in Remy on the Dream so I think it'll be really romantic to dine here again as a married couple.
• Dinner in Palo/Brunch in Palo - Is it too much to do both? I am not a fan of cruise food and there is very little in the MDRs that I've enjoyed. If it is too much which one would you pick? (One other question, we are in a one-bedroom suite, can we have Palo delivered to our room? Still willing to pay. I know we can have the MDRs delivered)
• Mixology class - We've done this on the two cruises we've gone on. I enjoyed this a lot more than the martini class.
• Excursion in Grand Cayman - I'm thinking the Stingray City
• Excursion in Cozumel/Jamaica - If we don't do excursions we will probably stay on the ship. I've been to both places before and we are going to these same places on a cruise this July on Royal Caribbean.
• If we don't go on shore I was thinking of getting a day pass to the Rainforest room or a couples massage in the spa.
• Cabana on Castaway Cay - I've never been in one and we will probably not sail in Concierge again for a long long time. Is it worth the extra splurge?
• I bought a $1,000 Disney gift card - I could use this to pay off some of the cruise or I could put it as OBC. If I do the OBC my Fiance will probably be more agreeable to doing more and I could maybe do some shopping on the ship
• Is there something I haven't thought of that I should do?

 

[arlopop]

It’s your honeymoon - do exactly what you want. No such thing as “too much”

 

[FSU Girl]

It’s your honeymoon - do exactly what you want. No such thing as “too much”

I agree lol, but my Fiance is probably going to want to discuss the budget and nix a few things I suggest.

- we're also doing a second honeymoon cruise to Europe later in the year so he's been talking about budgets with me.

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

Well, if nothing else this will be a great opportunity for the two of you to practice meshing your financial styles!

How much is too much? How can we say? How can you say? One person might come up with 100 reasons to justify a purchase, and another person might come up with 1 reason to justify 100 purchases, but at the end of the day, it isn't about how justified the purchases are, it is about how well you can afford them.

Some things to consider (I'm not trying to be critical, I'm trying to sincerely answer your question):

How many of these items are things YOU want to do, and how many are things HE (really) wants to do, and how many are things you BOTH really want to do. I think any of them alone are reasonable, but if this is a list full of your favorite activities and few of his, or vice versa, it is much harder to swallow. Make sure the final list has some favorites for both of you, and for each of you.

Another question is, if you are choosing to splurge on the Honeymoon together, are there other places you both can agree to cut back? Either now, or in the near future? My wife and I agreed to give up eating out and going to the movies for like two years in order to afford dancing lessons for the wedding and an extravagant Honeymoon. We actually borrowed money to go on the Honeymoon, but we had a plan in place to pay it back quickly. Which leads into the next one...

Budgeting. I'm not saying you have to count every penny, but I know for me it helps to agree to an overall figure first, something we agree together that we can handle. That way, when I look at some big expense, instead of wincing, I can say, "well OK, that fits within what we agreed to spend...," so I feel a lot better about it.

Of course, what works for the two of you might be different but these are just some ideas to consider.

One last thought, whatever you two do decide, I would strongly suggest that you agree to agree and then drop it. If you can't do that, it is a clear sign you may need to make changes. If it keeps coming back up again and again, then chances are one of you isn't truly happy with the arrangement. Ideally, when you have a plan you both agree with, you can move on and enjoy, which is what I'm sure you both want.

Best of luck! So exciting!

I still have Honeymoon pictures on my desk at work, so I guess we did something right.

 

[starvenger]

For Cozumel/Jamaica I think there's enough time in between your July cruise and this one to reassess what you might want to do. If you're without the kids then perhaps a longer excursion might be in order.

For Jamaica though... I don't know. I think we only got off the boat to buy coffee and sample some rum (aside: Diamonds International has a bar upstairs where you can grab a drink or two if you look somewhat interested in buying something), and that didn't require us to leave the port area. Maybe if they have an "eat like a local" tour.

we're also doing a second honeymoon cruise to Europe later in the year so he's been talking about budgets with me.

Now THAT will be a budget buster for sure.

 

[FSU Girl]

Well, if nothing else this will be a great opportunity for the two of you to practice meshing your financial styles!

How much is too much? How can we say? How can you say? One person might come up with 100 reasons to justify a purchase, and another person might come up with 1 reason to justify 100 purchases, but at the end of the day, it isn't about how justified the purchases are, it is about how well you can afford them.

Some things to consider (I'm not trying to be critical, I'm trying to sincerely answer your question):

How many of these items are things YOU want to do, and how many are things HE (really) wants to do, and how many are things you BOTH really want to do. I think any of them alone are reasonable, but if this is a list full of your favorite activities and few of his, or vice versa, it is much harder to swallow. Make sure the final list has some favorites for both of you, and for each of you.

Another question is, if you are choosing to splurge on the Honeymoon together, are there other places you both can agree to cut back? Either now, or in the near future? My wife and I agreed to give up eating out and going to the movies for like two years in order to afford dancing lessons for the wedding and an extravagant Honeymoon. We actually borrowed money to go on the Honeymoon, but we had a plan in place to pay it back quickly. Which leads into the next one...

Budgeting. I'm not saying you have to count every penny, but I know for me it helps to agree to an overall figure first, something we agree together that we can handle. That way, when I look at some big expense, instead of wincing, I can say, "well OK, that fits within what we agreed to spend...," so I feel a lot better about it.

Of course, what works for the two of you might be different but these are just some ideas to consider.

One last thought, whatever you two do decide, I would strongly suggest that you agree to agree and then drop it. If you can't do that, it is a clear sign you may need to make changes. If it keeps coming back up again and again, then chances are one of you isn't truly happy with the arrangement. Ideally, when you have a plan you both agree with, you can move on and enjoy, which is what I'm sure you both want.

Best of luck! So exciting!

I still have Honeymoon pictures on my desk at work, so I guess we did something right.

It's definitely a change for me to ask someone before buying something, since I work and have my own money I never really had to. That is a good way to look at it and see what's mostly for me instead of both. It's just hard with him because he does not like planning at all. Almost all our trips I do all the planning and he's quite happy to do it that way. I thought about just presenting him this list and going from there, I'm just worried if it's too over the top he'll shoot something down right away, whereas if I only have a couple then he might be more agreeable to everything. I'm just not sure what to cut and what to do. I do think he'd enjoy everything on the list, I also think he'd be happy having no plans. (as a planner that's terrifying lol) I'll see if he has an overall figure in mind to stay under, that might help with picking things.

 

[FSU Girl]

For Cozumel/Jamaica I think there's enough time in between your July cruise and this one to reassess what you might want to do. If you're without the kids then perhaps a longer excursion might be in order.

That's true the two places will be pretty different experiences with and without the kids. I'll have to look into the excursions and see what jumps out at me.

For Jamaica though... I don't know. I think we only got off the boat to buy coffee and sample some rum (aside: Diamonds International has a bar upstairs where you can grab a drink or two if you look somewhat interested in buying something), and that didn't require us to leave the port area. Maybe if they have an "eat like a local" tour.

I've heard a lot of people like staying on the boat in this port, the bar sounds tempting.

Now THAT will be a budget buster for sure.

Well I'm trying to keep him thinking these are separate budgets. We're also trying to get our wedding guests to pay for some of this cruise instead of gifts so that'll make things easier. Plus it's not a Disney cruise so it's wayyy less expensive. I like bringing up the cost of the Disney Iceland cruise to show what a good saver I am by not booking it

 

[starvenger]

I wonder if cruise lines have an "OBC Registry" or something similar. You'd think that they'd jump on anything that makes them money.

 

[cadien]

I'm trying to budget for my honeymoon cruise in January on the Fantasy. I've learned that when married I have to actually consult someone before booking lots and lots of fun expensive things.

It can take a while to adjust. I put an offer on our house without talking to my husband first or giving him a chance to see it! That was a month before the wedding.

Here's what I've come up with so far:

• Dinner in Remy - We got engaged in Remy on the Dream so I think it'll be really romantic to dine here again as a married couple.
• Dinner in Palo/Brunch in Palo - Is it too much to do both? I am not a fan of cruise food and there is very little in the MDRs that I've enjoyed. If it is too much which one would you pick? (One other question, we are in a one-bedroom suite, can we have Palo delivered to our room? Still willing to pay. I know we can have the MDRs delivered)
• Mixology class - We've done this on the two cruises we've gone on. I enjoyed this a lot more than the martini class.
• Excursion in Grand Cayman - I'm thinking the Stingray City
• Excursion in Cozumel/Jamaica - If we don't do excursions we will probably stay on the ship. I've been to both places before and we are going to these same places on a cruise this July on Royal Caribbean.
• If we don't go on shore I was thinking of getting a day pass to the Rainforest room or a couples massage in the spa.
• Cabana on Castaway Cay - I've never been in one and we will probably not sail in Concierge again for a long long time. Is it worth the extra splurge?
• I bought a $1,000 Disney gift card - I could use this to pay off some of the cruise or I could put it as OBC. If I do the OBC my Fiance will probably be more agreeable to doing more and I could maybe do some shopping on the ship
• Is there something I haven't thought of that I should do?

I'd say only the couples massage and the cabana are major splurges. They're both in the $400 range and everything else is more like $40.

 

[cadien]

I wonder if cruise lines have an "OBC Registry" or something similar. You'd think that they'd jump on anything that makes them money.

Travel agents offer registries when a couple wants to register for their honeymoon and nothing else. Otherwise, you just include Disney gift cards on your registry.

 

[starvenger]

It can take a while to adjust. I put an offer on our house without talking to my husband first or giving him a chance to see it!

My wife did the same thing to me, although we bought before we were married. I wanted south facing, two car garage, and no sidewalk bisecting the driveway.

I got none of those things.

 

[cadien]

My wife did the same thing to me, although we bought before we were married. I wanted south facing, two car garage, and no sidewalk bisecting the driveway.

I got none of those things.

I feel better now! Our house did fit his criteria as well as mine.

 

[Dug720]

I will just say as someone who has experienced trying to chill at SB and in the cabana behind the chair group I was at was couple who didn’t get that the cabanas are private but not PRIVATE...they aren’t. The chairs are not so far in front of them that sound doesn’t carry.

ETA: Only bringing that up because “honeymoon”.

 

[Fyrefly]

I would focus on the Europe trip tbh. That WILL be expensive. I know it's your honeymoon but I assume of the two locations, the odds of you going back to the Bahamas/Carribean within the next few years is much higher than going back to Europe.

Example: We went on a pricey excursion on our honeymoon to see Mont St. Michel during one of our stops in France. It cost around $300 for the pair of us because it was a hell of a long inland trip. I did a lot of research and there was no way for us to get there any cheaper. It was absolutely breathtaking and I am SO happy we did it. I would hate for you to spend $500 on a cabana for a beach day then miss some once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in Europe because the money wasn't there.

Think of them both as a single trip. Figure out your absolute must-dos on both, then book anything else in your budget with what is left according to what you think is important.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I'm trying to budget for my honeymoon cruise in January on the Fantasy. I've learned that when married I have to actually consult someone before booking lots and lots of fun expensive things. So I'm trying to figure out what to plan for the cruise, without going too overboard that he'll say no. We are also sailing in Concierge so it's already a pretty expensive vacation, but it's a honeymoon so I think a little extra splurging is okay.

Here's what I've come up with so far:

• Dinner in Remy - We got engaged in Remy on the Dream so I think it'll be really romantic to dine here again as a married couple.
• Dinner in Palo/Brunch in Palo - Is it too much to do both? I am not a fan of cruise food and there is very little in the MDRs that I've enjoyed. If it is too much which one would you pick? (One other question, we are in a one-bedroom suite, can we have Palo delivered to our room? Still willing to pay. I know we can have the MDRs delivered)
• Mixology class - We've done this on the two cruises we've gone on. I enjoyed this a lot more than the martini class.
• Excursion in Grand Cayman - I'm thinking the Stingray City
• Excursion in Cozumel/Jamaica - If we don't do excursions we will probably stay on the ship. I've been to both places before and we are going to these same places on a cruise this July on Royal Caribbean.
• If we don't go on shore I was thinking of getting a day pass to the Rainforest room or a couples massage in the spa.
• Cabana on Castaway Cay - I've never been in one and we will probably not sail in Concierge again for a long long time. Is it worth the extra splurge?
• I bought a $1,000 Disney gift card - I could use this to pay off some of the cruise or I could put it as OBC. If I do the OBC my Fiance will probably be more agreeable to doing more and I could maybe do some shopping on the ship
• Is there something I haven't thought of that I should do?

Remy is magnificent and if that is where you got engaged, I would definitely do it again!
If you don't like the cruise food, I don't think Palo dinner and brunch is overboard. I believe you have to be in a Royal Suite to have Palo delivered. I would e-mail or call shoreside concierge to confirm.
Mixology - yes!
Excursions - Stingray City is pretty cool! If you want to save some money, you can also just get off the ship, hop in a shared taxi and go somewhere on Seven Mile Beach (we went to Royal Palms Club on our stop in Grand Cayman)
We stayed on the ship in both Cozumel and Falmouth on our cruise last week. We enjoyed a less busy ship!
Skip the couples massage. We've done it and it was subpar and too expensive, IMHO. I can get much better spa services at home, so I skip Senses when sailing DCL. Save your money and just get the Rainforest pass OR simply go in the hot tub on the concierge sundeck! We had it to ourselves a few times on our last cruise.
Skip the Cabana. We've done cabanas twice and opted not to do one on our last cruise. We had zero issue finding great loungers with shade. Go to Serenity Bay, find a place in the shade and enjoy the beach!

 

[Cupcakesmum]

I would personally skip the cabana and I also vote for staying on the boat in Jamaica.

 

[poison ivy]

tough choices.

really depends on what your budget is. We love the family cabanas on CC and this would be a nice splurge for a honeymoon.
The couples massage isn't a must do but that's a personal choice.
I'd buy a 1 day pass online for the rainforest room in advance if those are still being offered. It's perfect for couples.

The meals are something you both need to decide on. We've found that 1 dinner / 1 brunch at either Palo or Remy is enough. But I have done Remy and Palo dinner + a Palo brunch all on a 4nt Dream cruise while sailing concierge and it was fine. So I might book that again for a 7nt, especially if it's my honeymoon and I really don't care for the food in the MDR's, and given the special memory that Remy holds.

 

[Trera]

We would prefer the cabana time on cc over a couples massage in the spa.

We really enjoy the nice quiet section of beach and few amenities that come with it.

 

[starvenger]

Just out of curiosity, what are your European ports of call?

 

[TestingH2O]

Maybe if they have an "eat like a local" tour.

They do have a tour like this and it's amazing! My TR has a description.

http://www.jamaicaculinarytours.com/