Friday, April 12, 2024

50 Best Cruise Hacks 2024: Tips to Save Money, WiFi & Hassle

cruise tips and hacks

Instead of a buzzing alarm or a loud phone ring, you’ll wake up to a soft knock on your door and have a cup of coffee in your hand within minutes of waking. Then enjoy a leisurely breakfast-in-bed as you pull into port. Then don’t feel bad about getting the chocolate lava cake later in the night. Most large cruise ships have a minimum of 10 passenger floors (often many more). So use these simple cruise hacks to enjoy all of that fantastic cuisine, without disembarking ten pounds heavier.

Always carry the ship's contact information with you

Many cruise ships have a specialty ice cream shop onboard, which is not included. However, it might surprise you to know that most cruise lines actually make their own delicious ice cream, gelato and sorbet to use in the main dining room for desserts. The least expensive cabin for all cruise ships will be interior staterooms. If you don’t think you’ll be in your room much, skip an oceanview or balcony stateroom and stay in a cozy inside room.

Past passengers cocktail party

Leave your phone on airplane mode and turn off cellular data immediately, You don’t want to incur any roaming charges. Have a look at the cruise line’s suggested packing list along with prohibited items. Not required on all cruises, but if your taxi gets a flat tire and you miss the port departure, it is tough to fly home without one. Equally important can be the convenience factor of having a drink package so you don't have to worry about running up a big bar bill later. Cruises are more expensive at peak times like Christmas and other holidays.

Cruise Ship On-Board Specials and Promotions

Cabins just below the pool deck and near the anchor also can be problematic as well as cabins near casinos. When going ashore, always bring the ship's contact information with you. Those details are usually printed in the newsletter that's delivered to your cabin each night. If something goes wrong when you're away from the ship, you'll want to get in contact with the cruise line right away. Some lines will let you sign up for shows, tours and other activities (including meals at specialty restaurants) in advance of sailing using online portals. If you want to be sure that you get a seat for a specific show on a specific night, or a specific tour or restaurant reservation time, it's a good idea to do this.

For about the same price as those one-time rentals, you can buy a pop-up beach shade tent like this to use across multiple cruise ports and your next beach vacation. At nearly every cruise port where there are beaches, you can guarantee that there will be no shortage of vendors offering pricey beach chair rentals and snorkeling gear. Many ports (particularly cruise lines’ private islands) have beautiful reefs that you can swim to from shore. Yet in many popular cruise ports touristic ports tap water is unsafe to drink. Meanwhile, bottled water in these touristic areas can often be outrageously priced. We have so many drink-related cruise hacks to share, so we’ve detailed them all in a separate post explaining all the different tips to get free & cheap alcohol on a cruise.

60 Best Norwegian Cruise Line Tips, Tricks & Hacks (2024) - Cruise Blog

60 Best Norwegian Cruise Line Tips, Tricks & Hacks ( .

Posted: Mon, 02 Oct 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

It’s super easy to use, is small/portable, and is priced under $50. Meanwhile, if you were to purchase a second unlimited wifi package, it would cost hundreds of dollars! So a wireless travel router easily pays for itself and it can be used similarly in hotels that charge for wifi, per device. Sometimes a cruise ship’s wifi system becomes overloaded or has outages, particularly in remote ocean locations. If the Internet is really bad and you find yourself waiting five minutes for a page to load, it is unfair to be charged for that when wifi a cruise is so costly.

But what many cruise passengers don’t realize is that you can also find beautiful desserts at the ship’s coffee shops that are all complimentary. Doing this cruise wifi hack works particularly well if you have an unlimited wifi package during your cruise. Set up your own localized network in your cabin and just let it run during the entire length of your cruise. Then you can connect as many phones, tablets, and laptops as you’d like.

In some cases, you can also bring a full case of water bottles. Just bring it to the cruise port, and ask a porter at the embarkation port to slap a sticky luggage tag on it. Do check with the cruise line for their policies and restrictions. While this can depend on your cruise ship, do log into your reservation on the cruise line website and check if you should make reservations ahead of time for shows and dinners. There are many cruise ports where you can easily take a cab to close by beaches and attractions. In other cruise ports, you may want to take a tour or go on shore excursion.

Don’t wait for the elevator

cruise tips and hacks

Any savings may be more than balanced by an undesirable cabin – or there may be no cabins whatsoever. Personally, I have pretty severe motion sickness, but being on a cruise ship has never bothered me. I bought the sea bands before hand and wore them for one day and then realized I didn’t need them.

Big mistake cruisers make on day one - Escape

Big mistake cruisers make on day one.

Posted: Wed, 10 Apr 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]

So when paying for room service on those lines, make it count! Whether you just order a simple cheese plate or two dinners with generous appetizers and desserts, you’ll be paying the same fee. However, when in port or even near land, consider using the data plan on your mobile phone to connect to the Internet.

Given TPG's origins as a points and miles website, we'd be remiss if we didn't remind you to maximize your credit card points while making purchases on ships. The way to do this is to tie a credit card that offers extra points for travel purchases to your onboard account. This could be the Chase Sapphire Reserve, which offers 3 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar on travel and dining (excluding the annual $300 travel credit). There's also the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, which brings 2 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar on travel and 3 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar on dining.

Often the ship will have a big sale on the last day of a cruise. There will be greater odds of this happening and better deals if the ship you’re on is about to change itineraries or if you’re on a repositioning cruise. Some cruise lines will charge a small fee to get casino chips using your credit card and they may impose a minimum threshold to withdraw. For example, on a recent Norwegian cruise, they charged me a $3 fee and there was a $100 withdrawal minimum. Still, the $3 fee is significantly less than the $15 fee that the shipboard ATM would have charged.

Do check your booking for your specific cruise information. Some of the biggest cruise ship horror stories you'll find on the internet are tales of cruising newbies who racked up thousands of dollars in cellphone charges while on ships. This can happen when you leave your phone turned on and, say, watch videos on the internet. Shore excursions can be tricky, particularly if you’re new to cruising and don’t want to pay for the often exorbitant fees charged by the cruise lines. Booking excursions through the cruise line can be very convenient and offers a hassle-free experience.

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