Is food and stuff on cruises free?

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James Heard

To Hello,

Try www.cruisecritic.com lot's of good info there about everything that is related to cruising. If you want to access the message boards to ask questions. You will need to register for a free account.

bluedreams1810

I would say it may be a little too late. If you have to book air travel as well that may be a little tough on this short of notice, but call AAA or a local travel agent to find out. You may be able to get a good deal booking so late.

Food on cruises is free. I know on Carnival they have a supper club, and only for that do you have to pay. Everything else is FREE. You can go to dinner in the dining rooms & you can order whatever you want from the menu, you can order 2 entrees, or keep requesting more of the same entree. They can't deny you that. This is why a lot of people gain weight when they go on a cruise. There are a lot of options for dining. You can eat in the dining room or they usually have like a pizzeria and then a grill side and then another dining area that serves pretty much the same thing as the dining room, but it;s less formal.

Formal night usually happens 2 times on a 7 day cruise. Usuaully the first formal night is like the welcome one and then they will have a Captain's dinner. These are just opportunites to get dressed up and have a nice dinner. You are not required to go to any of the formal nights, you just will not be able to eat in the dining room, but like I said they are plenty of other places to eat.

There are lots of activites to do for families. For the days at sea, usually during the day they will have activities, like fun contests and things. They have Bingo, shows and entertainment like comedians and magicians. They have game rooms, dance clubs, piano bars, karokee lounges, etc.

Usually tips are added on to your bill automatically at the end of your trip, but you can do to the pursurer's desk and request certain tips be taken off of your bill. We did that on our last cruise. We only ate in the dining room twice and our server sucked so we went and had them take the tips for the dining room off.

Elle

I'm going to try to some it up in as little words as I can for you

The eating thing: all buffets and dinning meals, complimentary in-your-room breakfasts, and sometimes limited room service requests are included in your cruise package. Foods that are not included are fancy on-board restaurants, snack bars, and drinks.

Formal night is where you dress up much like you were going to prom, a fancy dinner party, or an awards show. Girls wear dresses or formal suites and nice shoes, men wear tuxes or suites. To get into the dinning rooms on formal nights, you must adhere to this dress code. If not, you may dine in the buffet. It is not required to attend formal night, but the best food is served on formal nights in the dinning rooms. This is usually the night most cruises serve lobster or prime rib.

If you plan on bringing small children to teens I would STRONGLY suggest a Royal Caribbean cruise. Princess is the much better line, but small children can get bored as it is marked for adults. There are lots of things to do for children on Royal Caribbean, and each day is filled with lots of on-board activities throughout the day and night for everyone to enjoy. Because activites vary from voyage to voyage I don't want to list anything I've experienced in the past. However, most lines provide a live show everynight with dancers, comedians, and sometimes hypnotitists. Let's just say, you will not be bored.

For a good line, yes, it is a little late to be searching. These things fill up, and what's left over is left over for a reason.

Tips are easy on most cruise lines. There are two ways I've seen it done before. Since cruise cards are used like credit cards to purchace drinks and everything else on board, you will not need to tip when you are served drinks and or anything else. You will either slip tips for your long term service providers (your cabin steward, you waiters at dinner, etc.) into an enevelope to hand them, or there will be a spot to include your tips in your billing at the end of your voyage. It's very easy and it will be well explained to you. Don't be afraid to ask anyone any questions. Everyone is always friendly and helpful on cruises.

There are no hidden fees. Most things have to be signed for if you are purchasing them on your card. You will be aware of anything you pay for. If you are worried about it, ask someone on board where you can get more info.

Hope this helps! :)

j d

You could probably find some last-minute deals. You could also find staterooms that have increased in price dramatically. I'd get busy ASAP.

Unless you dine in specialty restaurants on board the ship, all your meals are included in the fees you pay. You may go to a buffet (which is all you can eat) or go to the main dining room. You can order what you like, or 2 or 3 choices, or the entire menu if you want to. If you prefer, you could order room service, but the menu may be rather limited.

A formal night is usually the Captian's dinner. Short cruises may have 1, longer cruises 2 or more. It is suggested that women wear floor-lenght gowns or dinner dresses, and men should wear a suit or tuxedo. Most people have dinner and then go to the theatre or casino. Attendance at this dionner is not mandatory, so on that evening you could skip the dining room and go to the buffet. Some cruise lines, like Norwegian Cruse Lines, have formal dinners, but you don't have to go fancy dress. I never did. As for alcohol, it's never included in your fees and is always charged extra plus a 15% gratuity;similar for juices served at dinner.

For your family: there are excursions ashore that you can do. On board the ship, there are clubs for kids of allages. They are grouped according to age and activities are planned likewise. Some ships have a nursery for very young children, from infant to 2 yerars. You are given a beeper/pager, and they call you if the baby need changing or feeding. Or, you can keep your kids with you all the time if you prefer - they won't be allowed into the casino or the theatre in the evening.

On some ships, tips are automatically charged to your stateroom account, along with all other purchases you make on board (alcohol, photo gallery, sodas, gift shop, shore excursions, spa, mini-bar in your stateroom, etc.) They are charged at $12 per person per day. Other ships don't do this and you are expected to tip $4 to each of your stateroom steward and waiter and about $2 or $3 to each of your assistant stateroom steward and assistant waiter; these charges are per person per day. While these are the recommended charges, you are free to adjust according to the quality of service you feel you had (and, yes, you can alter the tips that are automatically charged, you may give a cash supplement of $2 or $3 for exceptional service). When you order room service, a good tip would be aboout $2 or $3.

The initial price includes the price of your cruise and airfare in applicable, but does not include your purchases on board, shore excursions (unless pre-booked) or tips. All of these costs should be clearly ooutlined in your cruise brochure, or explined on the website, or explained by your travel professional.

The keycard to your stateroom is also your credit card for purchases on board. Since you have to sign for everything , as you would using your Visa or Mastercard, there should be no hidden charges. If charges are applied to your on-board stateroom account that do not belong to you or that you question, go to the reception desk and ask for an explanation. This card also acts as your exiting and boarding pass in ports-of-call.

I think I've covered everything. Enjoy your cruise!

bored brunette

Don't forget you will need to add taxes and perhaps port charges on to the base fare, and any excursions you book will be extra, too. We book excursions independent of the ship, but you can book with the cruiseline, too. I agree that tips are non-negotiable, the staff works hard to make sure you are well taken care of. The $10 per day, per person is not unreasonable, my opinion, and we often tip a bit extra to our cabin steward and dining room waitstaff.

Stan

It's not too late. You can find some last minute bargains at:

www.vactionstogo.com

There are two different ways to eat on a cruise: Buffets and "sit down" (with a table reservation and a waiter and a menue, etc.) "Sit Down" is served for breakfast and dinner. Buffets are served for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner and the manical "Midnight Buffet."

All food is free on the cruise with only one exception that I can think of. And when I mean free, it is all free. When it's surf and turf (steak and lobster) even though it's awkward, you may order 2. The only time you pay is that now there are some exclusive dining rooms where you get a little better service and food. It's fairly cheep - like $20 a plate.

Juice and coffee are free. Soda and liquor are not. However, you will probably have an opportunity to purchase a special container for "all you can drink soda".

Formal night is where you wear a tux/suit or a gown to the "Sit Down" dinner. Some people aren't comfortable with this and opt for the buffet that night. Also, most cruises have two dinners. An early one (6:00 PM) and a late one (8:00PM). I like the late one because it means there is more time off the ship and you don't have to run to dinner.

Most cruises have a formal dinner. Cheaper cruises like Norwegian have no orderly dinners.

In my opinion, a good cruise is where you don't spend very much time on board. You have breakfast then you get off at the port and discover the area for the day, get back on the ship and have dinner while it sails away for the next port. So things for a family to do include the pool, games, ice rink, rock climbing, whatever. Fun family things to do are tours at the ports.

Once again, in my opinion, tips are not optional. These people on the cruises work really, really hard to make sure you are having a good time. On my last cruise, it broke my heart that the dining room was 1/2 empty on the last night as people didn't want to tip (tips are usually handed out in envelopes on the last night).

This is from the vacations to go website:

Tips on Tipping
Cabin steward
$3.00 to $3.50 per person per day

Waiter
$3.00 to $3.50 per person per day

Assistant waiter
$1.50 to $2.00 per person per day

Bartender, wine and deck stewards
10-15% of the bill

Maitre d'
$5.00 to $10.00 tip for each special service

The tips are the big hidden expense. If you are going to use the internet or something like that, it's not cheap. The spa (massage and stuff) cost about the same as at really nice spa on land.

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