egypt

egypt

Saturday, March 15, 2014

Traveling on a budget

Michael and I cruise 2-4 months every year.....In my mind, making memories is far more important, than accumulating "stuff".....Besides you can't take it with you!  Note to kids....


We're taking 2 of our granddaughters on a cruise for less than most people pay for 1
cruise alone!
They live in Alaska, and will be flying back to Florida, with their father, next month
A cruise in the Caribbean will be a welcome diversion from the cold Alaskan winter.

We chose the
Liberty of The Seas for the children's adventures,
Like the Wave rider

                                                            And the ice skating rink





Lets break down how you pick a cruise.....
There are usually 3 very important categories

Money
Ship
Itinerary



We chose Itinerary first. We live in Florida, and we only wanted to be gone for 4 or 5 days
so the Caribbean fit the bill.


We picked the ship next, we prefer to stay close to Tampa ports, but we wanted a ship that would be large and give the girls an opportunity for lots of adventures. Bingo! Royal Caribbean is the only way to go!
 

Who wouldn't love the grand Promenade?


The fun restaurants


and Kid friendly fun!

Money....a big consideration for everyone! I checked out the Royal Caribbean website and filled in the appropriate boxes and found a Great deal.

                       Where would you like to go?


When can you cruise?

2014

2015


Exclusive Savings [?]


About your trip

Any Departure Port
Any Number of Nights
Any Price

 

                                                              My choices were,
                                                          Destination.......Caribbean 
                                                          Date...We needed April
                                                          Length of cruise 4-7 days

I selected 3 or 4 cruises to look at. 

Price, I always check to see if they have a senior rate, Military rate, and a discount for Floridians
We fit the bill for all three discounts and believe me, It has saved us tens of thousands of dollars over the years!


This cruise had a discounted price due to low sales and also a senior rate. Woo-hoo! 
I then looked for ways of adding on-board credit. Checked my usual travel sites for special offers. Special offers can include paying your tips, on-board credit, specialty meals, airfare, or spa treatments. I was able to wangle $50 on board credit by booking with Crucon
On this 5 day cruise I was able to save 30% by just doing the research myself and not using a travel agent.


A few other tips 
 1.If you are new to cruising, Pick one line and stick with it until you will reach a loyalty status that gives youthe perks you want.

  2. CHECK PRICES EVERY DAY!  Your cruise line will most likely drop the price periodically, and if         you call the line or your agent, you will be able to get the lower price. We once booked a 43 day cruise, the initial price was over 11k for 2. We ended up paying less than 6k for two, by just taking advantage of monitoring price drops!
 
3. sign up for emails from cruise lines, and online cruise agencies. They offer fabulous bargains, with many perks!
Cruise lines I use

Royal Caribbean...they have the most amazing ships in the world!
Celebrity...beautiful classy ships that offer elegance and beautiful public lounges
Princess...We started using princess because the itinerary's were awesome.
princess gives up to $250 per person for veterans!


Agencies we have used
Crucon.com  wonderful deals and great on board credit
Vacations to go offers a program for reduced prices ( 90 day ticker)
Online Vacation Center offers complete packages for a reasonable price
Always check the cruise line websites for deals.


It always pays off, when you pay attention to the details.....
Happy Cruising!




.





5 comments:

  1. Do you know that you can hack any ATM machine !!!

    We have specially programmed ATM cards that can be used to hack any ATM machine, this ATM cards can be used to withdraw cash at the ATM or swipe, stores and outlets.We sell this cards to all our customers and interested buyers worldwide, the cardshas a daily withdrawal limit of $5000 in ATM and up to $100,000 spending limit in it stores.We also have credit cards for online shopping, we give the credit cards details to our interested clients worldwide including the credit card cvv.if you are in needof any other cyber hacking services, we are here for you at any d

    Meekynewton@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Do you need a financial help? Are you in any financial crisis or do you need funds to start up your own business? Do you need funds to settle your debt or pay off your bills or start a good business? Do you have a low credit score and you are finding it hard to obtain capital services from local banks and other financial institutes? Here is your chance to obtain a financial services from our company. We offer the following finance to individuals-
    *Commercial finance
    *Personal finance
    *Business finance
    *Construction finance
    *Business finance And many More:
    and many more at 3% interest rate;
    Contact Us Via Email: Personalloanesay@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete