What do you spend $ on?

[bumbershoot]

Three Tervis cups over 4 cruises. Though one of them was obtained for me by a kind dis'er.
The occasional glass of wine or beer.
Rented a cabana once; don't need to do that again.
Tend to rent a float or tube on Castaway.
Bought pictures once; that was enough.
DH and DS bought popcorn; another time when we sailed concierge they got it from the host, but it was horrible. Not the same at all.
We don't drink soda so we wish that would actually go a la carte. (though of course the fare wouldn't go down)
I've done Palo brunch twice and dinner once.
Rainforest room.
Evian packages; that is an always and an absolute. We drink tons of water, we don't have interest in lugging it on ourselves, and DH and I have systems that cannot handle the ship water (sure am glad for those who can deal with it, but we cannot).

I'm not the one being asked, but Castaway. Castaway was where I discovered that I can, actually, be a beach person. I didn't realize that until CC. (and then we went to Royal's Coco Cay and I discovered that their island is even better for me, and I rented NOTHING and didn't do a 5K (because Royal doesn't do that) and just sat and looked and read and looked more at the ocean and relaxed and just had a LOVELY day)

But on Castaway I start off with the (free) island (nearly)5K run, then I tend to relax all day. Have some lunch (their veggie burgers and vegetarian beans are VERY tasty). Relax. Maybe walk in the water a bit. One morning I did yoga, actually, that was very nice. Relax some more.

 

[bumbershoot]

Disney pushes their Personal Navigator app, but I liked the paper copy better.

So you know...the app gives you the *whole cruise* worth of Navigators all at once. That way, if you want to see, say, Jack Sparrow, you can see how many times he's available during the cruise, and make the best plan for you. If you have two things right up against each other that you really want to do, you can see if one will happen again. It's really very lovely. It's not like you end up spending hours on it. It's for planning, and IMO it's fabulous.

We also use it so DS can let us know when he wants to be checked out of the Lab. He has a "fauxn", a phone with the SIM taken out, that gets wifi. He takes it to the kid's club and just lets us know when he wants to go. (we haven't let him have checkout privileges yet) There can be a bit of a delay with that, and we all know that, but it's OK. He can be patient. Better than those awful Wave phones, I'll tell you that much!

 

[ozliz]

You can get away with not spending any extra except for tips but there is plenty to spend money on depending on your interests. For me the big extra charge is usually port excursions. I also pre-purchase rainforest room passes (the spa treatments are too expensive but the rainforest room is really relaxing), I love doing a specialty dining (I like Palo dinner better than brunch but most are the other way around) and then a few souvenirs or cocktails or smaller things. You can judge how much you might want to budget by looking at prices mentioned here on the DIS and on the main DCL site.

 

[ludari]

After being on eight Disney Cruises I've noticed that spend a lot of my money on port adventures, souvenirs, specialty coffee (cove café) and the occasional Palo or Remy meal. I'm not really big on alcohol or spa treatments but sometimes I will go overboard on a piece of art from the gallery if something catches my eye.

 

[Shanti]

It's too bad the arcades are gone. My son enjoys those at the resorts.

 

[bcwife76]

Arcades are now gone from the ships....

They were still on The Wonder at the end of this past September.

 

[stitchlovestink]

They were still on The Wonder at the end of this past September.

They have been removed from all of the other ships and I would venture to say that it will disappear from the Wonder when it goes in for its next dry dock. They have found its a wasted use of the space.

 

[bcwife76]

They have been removed from all of the other ships and I would venture to say that it will disappear from the Wonder when it goes in for its next dry dock. They have found its a wasted use of the space.

Gotcha. Yes, I could see that. We were there twice (I think we spent a whole $10 lol) and it was never very busy.

 

[Shanti]

I'm getting ready to book my first Dis cruise for my son for his Christmas present next Christmas. You sound like I hope to be. Not spend too much on extras unless it's something that we really want to do. Since you only went bike riding at Castaway Cay, what did you fill the rest of your day with?

We started the day by running the Castaway Cay 5K (which we really walked more than we ran), and this took us until about 9:45am. Then we went to cool off in the water, wading & then going on the Pelican Plunge water slides over & over (which takes a while as the lifeguards make you swim back to the beach each time). We had a leisurely lunch, then our bike ride, which including climbing the observation tower and enjoying the view. By the time we finished it was about 1pm, and we heded back to the ship because I was tired, & my son wanted to do the Aqua Dunk over & over with minimal lines (which wasn't possible on our day at sea).

When you get your first glimpse of that gorgeous island, your first thought probably won't be "What are we going to do?" It's great just to swim & sunbathe, & there is also snorkeling & other water activities available for not too high a cost.

 

[kiford]

We spend on:
. alcohol
. tastings
. spa
. speciality coffees
. excursions
. occasional purchases from the shops (clothing usually)
. internet
. Palo/Remy
. popcorn
We never buy photos (DH spends his entire vacation behind the camera). We're fine with water from the tap or fountain. Not interested in bingo. Rarely buy anything in ports.

 

[GatorMomInNC]

They have been removed from all of the other ships and I would venture to say that it will disappear from the Wonder when it goes in for its next dry dock. They have found its a wasted use of the space.

Still on Fantasy too, right?

 

[cedricandsophie]

I get the biggest wifi package. We buy the wine package and get a bottle of wine with dinner every night. Maybe a drink during the day. Get a few excursions and tips. That's about it. I rarely do the spa. And we don't but many souvenirs. Never buy pictures an more. Over the years I spent way too mich on pictures. Now I just use our phones for pictures. And we do palo but because we are platinum we get it for free. And of course there is laundry. I do laundry a couple of times on a seven day or more cruise. The most we ever spent was on the norway cruise last year. We brought seven people in two rooms. The excursions were very expensive times 7. And I bought my two daughters a visit to th spa. Plus they drank a lot of martinis! We ended up spending almost 10 grand for the 9 day trip on extras. It was crazy.

 

[MunFam]

With movies and soft drinks covered....

1. Internet.... give me the biggest package!
2. Photos.... there's a discount if you order pre-cruise. Need to check the daily navigator to stalk my fav characters for pictures!
3. Excursions.... like a buffet.... I look for combo's and stack my excursions to fill my port time
4. Food.... while I love main dining... I do try some of the local port food. Helps keep me full until evening 2nd feeding.

This was exactly our expense list too. Adding in mixology, laundry services (pressings and DIY wash), and drinks from the bar. Oh and the spa...never again! Once you have been to places like Canyon Ranch, Qua and The Spas at Wynn and Encore, the spa onboard (The Wonder) was awful. They upsell everything and the sports court is above it so all you hear is thump, thump, thump. Super relaxing...lol

 

[wcw57]

we spend on:

cheese and crackers

 

[dclpluto]

Yes if you like cheese and crackers you can have it for the cheap price of 38 dollars plus tip and tax. Also some fruit bowls one cost 29 the other cost 21. Plus tip and tax.

 

[cindyzig]

We spent lots more to be in concierge on our recent cruise, but we do not feel the perks are worth an extra 3000 dollars on our upcoming one.

1. Internet (we teach online and have some responsibilities while having fun)
2. Wine (I will bring on my allotted amount and purchase the rest onboard since I won't get the happy hour in CL this time)
3. Excursions (we really liked the ones we did last time but will forego the cabana this time due to not being in CL and feeling like we missed out on being separated from some of the other things to do on CC. It was pretty, but I actually was a little bored which surprised me.)
4. Coffee at Cove Cafe
5. Palo Brunch and maybe dinner (The brunch was as amazing as everyone has shared on our last cruise)
6. Pirate makeover for my son at BBB (he loved it last time)
7. Souvenirs (I got some great discounts on the last night of the cruise because we cruised at the end of the year this year and there was quite a bit of 2015 stuff on sale. Also, my father-in-law bought me the Dooney and Bourke Disney Cruise purse last time, and I love it!)
8. I may try a treatment in the spa this time since we will not be putting so much extra towards the concierge fare.

I think that is it on my list.

 

[JMHDisney]

I usually buy:
- Wine package (plus bring my own). I wish they had all inclusive alcohol packages - I'm looking forward to having that when we try RCCL this spring for the first time. Half the price of a similar DCL cruise, closer departure port, and alcohol packages? Yes please! If we like it, our December 2016 DCL cruise will likely be our last.
- Hot stone massage in the spa
- A small Internet package just to manage any work emergencies.
- Bottled water for the room.
- Palo for brunch and/or dinner.
- Souvenirs - my son gets one or two things and I usually get something small with a DCL logo.
- Excursions - we have never done a DCL excursion other than at Castaway, but do often spend money on activities in ports.
-Laundry - on a longer trip we will send out laundry. It is worth the expense to me to avoid the hassle of doing it myself.
- A small photo package if there are good shots but often the professional ones aren't that great.
- popcorn at the movie theatre because my son always wants it.
- Extra server/host tips. I usually tip in excess of recommended amounts because of great service. Also room service tips.

I've bought the drink of the day a few times in the past but have concluded they are all pretty awful so won't do that again. My son has also done the arcade. I've bought flowers for my room before because they make me happy but will probably pass in the future as I was unimpressed with our last bouquet.

Overall, I think it's easy to spend a ton of extra money and it's also easy to avoid it. I could skip most of the above things and still have a very enjoyable vacation. I think when trying to keep expenses low the key is to decide on a couple things that will really make the cruise extra special for you based on what's important to you and avoid the other extras because they can add up quickly.

 

[belac]

Laundry sent out, I hate doing laundry, so if i can have it done before getting home it is a win for me!
Spa if there is a good deal
Drinks

and now Cheese..... so might have to suck it up and do Laundry myself next time

 

[over50visits]

DCL Cruise Expenses Other than cruise fare and auto tips:

1. Alcoholic drinks at the bars and from roving servers (welcome aboard)
2. Wine by the glass or wine packages at meals
3. Spa treatments
4. Shore excursions (including cabanas and rentals at CC)
5. Purchases from the stores: clothing, sundries, jewelry, souvenirs, etc.
6. Adult dining (Palo, Remy)
7. Bottled water
8. Photos (individual and packages)
9. Onboard booking for future cruises
10. Disney Vacation Club membership (you can purchase on board)
11. Art (thank goodness those "auctions" are gone, but you can still purchase art)
12. Candy and snacks outside theater
13. Tips for room service
14. Internet
15. Room upgrades (usually at port, sometimes GS)
16. Bingo
17. Parking/transportation
18. Port porters
19. Alcohol and cigarettes for delivery at end of voyage
20. Welcome aboard packages (flowers, candy, etc waiting in your cabin)
21. Adventures by Disney (you can purchase on board)
22. Cameras from photo shop
23. Cellular phone calls (although it will be billed later to your phone bill)
24. Medical care
25. Cigars (Meridian bar)
26. Arcade
27. Hair Braiding
28. Nursery care for children under 3
29. Tastings and Mixology
30. Excursion tips
31. Soft drinks from room service or bar
32. Specialty coffee
33. Meeting room rental
34. Onboard or Castaway Cay wedding (currently $3000/$4000)
35. Vow renewal ceremony
36. Sports simulator
37. Laundry room and send-out laundry and dry cleaning
38. Tuxedo rentals
39. Room service sodas and candy (these have a charge)
40. Additional tip (over the automatic) for bar servers
41. Required gratuity added to spa services
42. Pins sold at trading pin sessions
43. Extra wave phone rental
44. Duties at customs at end of cruise if you've made a LOT of purchases abroad
45. Ship to shore calls from your room phone
46. Fuel supplement charge if the price of oil is above a certain level
47. Popcorn at theater
48. Fish Extender program gifts
49. Kids’s club magic bands (if you want to keep them, you lose the deposit)
50. Stamps from Post Office at Castaway Cay
51. Tip for Castaway Cay cabana host (you’ll need cash for this one)
52. Sparkling or still water with your meal
53. Upcharge food items at the adult clubs
54. Candy and ice cream from Vanellope’s on the Dream
55. Smoothies from the bar in Senses Spa on the Dream

 

[P'colaBeachBum]

The only extras we pay for are tastings, drink of the day, Palo Brunch and a SB cabana.