While your cruise is paid approximately 85% in advance, more than likely you’re going on encounter some onboard expenses like alcoholic drinks and soda-pop, gambling in the casino or playing bingo, tipping, shore tours, and purchases in the shops found on-board…which will all go on your on-board account. In other words, cruising isn’t a pay as you go system. Instead, when you board, you’re given a card that is the size and shape of a credit card. This card is your ID, your room key and your onboard charge card. So, you want to buy a beer? You turn over the card and it’s charged to your room. Want to buy a shirt with the cruise line logo on it? You turn over the card and it’s charged to your room. I think you get the idea.

Your onboard charge card is secured with a credit card or debit card such as VISA or MasterCard or you can put down cash. All three ways (charge card, debit card, and cash) are accepted on all major cruise lines.

The tough part is telling people how much to expect to spend on their onboard account. Heavy drinkers are often shocked when they receive their end of cruise statement and it’s well into the thousands of dollars…trust me, there is at least one on every cruise! So, to help you estimate your spending while onboard there ship, here is a list…well at least a list of everything I could think of…that will or could be charged to your on-board account:

- Tips (gratuities). The latest trend which has been in place for a few years now is automatic tipping. In other words, in days gone by, it was customary to give the people who worked hard for you during your cruise, such as your waiter, assistant waiter, and cabin attendant a gratuity for their services. Often times people didn’t tip them at all and, since this is major part of their salaries, the cruise line decided that automatic tipping would help to discourage this practice of non-tipping. While you can still remove tips (and that does remain your right) or increase them if you had outstanding service, you can expect to see this expense on your end of cruise bill which will be charged to your credit card or withdrawn from your debit card or cash reserve. What needs to be understood is that if you see recommended tips are $68 per guest for the week…that goes for every single person in the cabin INCLUDING children. So if the recommended tip is $68 per guest, a family of four can expect to be charged $272 for a week’s worth of service. Which roughly breaks down to $9.71 (US Dollars) per day, which is split between your waiter, assistant waiter, cabin attendant, etc.

-Drinks. There are some drinks such as tea, ice tea, coffee and sometimes juices that are complimentary on most of the major cruise lines. Everything else is going to be charged. So from bottled water to ginger ale to cola to beer to mixed drinks and wine…expect a charge. Pricing varies greatly but, on average you can expect soda-pop to run between $1.50 – $3.00 (depending on the cruise line) per glass or can; beer runs between $4.00 – $6.00 (again depending on the cruise line) per glass or can or bottle; and wine, figure $4 per glass and up. There are some cruise lines, usually, the more upscale cruise lines that include drinks in their prices but, if your traveling on the mainstream cruise lines like Carnival, Celebrity, Disney, Holland America, NCL, Princess and Royal Caribbean…you’re going to be charged for these drinks. Only you know what you drink and how much…budget accordingly.

-Gambling. I don’t think anyone out there expects this to be free, so, again, you know your habits in gambling situations….use your own judgement and budget accordingly.

-Shore Tours – Depending on the cruise line, chances are your shore tours (sightseeing and activities in the various ports of call) are not going to be included with your cruise fare. Some cruise lines allow you to book and pay for your shore tours prior to coming aboard and others simply allow you to reserve them and then you pay for them once you’re on board. Of course, you can wait and book onboard too. Shore tour prices vary greatly, so, check with your individual cruise line for pricing.

-On-board Shopping. You’re going to have the opportunity to purchase many trinkets and silly items onboard your cruise ship. Some of the more common things you’re going to find will be “An Inch of Gold” or “An Inch of Silver” where they sell an inch of gold or inch of silver starting at $1 per inch. Of course, you have the onboard shops which will sell everything from sunscreen to cruise line logo shirts to liquor to magazines. These things add up quickly, and, expect to pay premium prices on most items. One trick…if you want things like logo shirts, wait until the very end of the cruise…that’s when everything goes on sale!

-Unforeseen Expenses – Most of the newer, larger mega ship now offer alternative restaurants onboard. These restaurants are usually an outstanding value for the quality of food and service, however, just be prepared to pay extra for it. The average alternative restaurant runs about $20 per person. Spa Services and the Beauty Salon services never come cheap on land, so, don’t expect any discounts while at sea…figure the pricing to be about the same as you’d pay in any major city. Another new trend is to add Coffee House type areas on the ship. You can expect to pay premium prices for your latte and they often have pastries and cakes for purchase at these stands as well. Another money pit is the game room…I was on a Carnival ship in Europe in 2005 with one of my closest friends and her then 16 year old son. I went into the game room with him for a while and we played air hockey and several video games and within an hour, I dropped $40 without a sweat…so unless you have deep pockets, encourage your children to save and bring their own money along for the game room…and help them out by budgeting them an allowance each day.

I’m sure I’m forgetting to list a few things but these are the major expenses you’ll have to plan for while on a cruise vacation. And, believe it or not, even with all of these “extras” factored in…a cruise vacation is still one of the best values for your money in today’s vacation market!

I hope you’ve found this tips helpful in planning your cruise vacation.