Spending money !!

[Shortcake, Grimsby]

Can i ask those who have been IOTS 14 night Italian Med how much spending money you took ...sorry to be cheeky but i have never cruised before and i havent got a clue

We are 2 adults and 13 year old i was thinking of taking $2000 dollars and 600 euros is this enough i will have a CC but i really dont want to use it much .
I have pre paid tips ,excurtions and soda fountain for my son . So really its just for our drinks and other stuff we buy . I was hoping to not spend to much in the ports try have a big breakfast then snack in port then evening meal .

Am getting all confused i wont have enough money

Thanks peeps

[Ingle, Warwickshire]

You can't actually spend money on the ship, except in the casino, as everything is charged to your account. At the end you total amount spent is charged to your credit card. Therefore you don't really need dollars. However, should you wish, you can pay off all or part of of your account in dollars at reception at any time. For Euros we find it easy just to top up as and when required by drawing cash at an ATM on a debit card. There are lots of ATM's around these days so not a problem. If you are calling into Gibraltar you need pounds.
Brian

[Richard, colwyn bay]

Blimey how long are you going for? Thats more than enough, We spent around £700 in 2 weeks and we were drinking every night with friends and had a few meals at ports and bits and bobs, Had about 4 or 5 drinks a night and speciality coffees

[Seanda, Sutton Codfield]

spending money.....oh yes I remember .....hang on I will ask the wife....

Sean

[Explorer31, Pembs]

Far to much, especially as you have already prepaid so much. We were three adults and spent on the ship £700 on drink, photos and odds and sods, all on the credit card. No money needed onboard, ashore we were lucky if we spent a couple of hundred on drinks a meal and snacks and a few souveniers.

Hope this helps, enjoy it's a fabulous itinery.

[Santa, Redditch]

All I would suggest is a few $5 and $1 notes for tips when the service is above and beyond. For spending ashore a couple of hundred Euros should be enough.

Actually now I think about it Euros will be fine for tips too so no dollars needed.

[History Addict, Alfreton]

All I would suggest is a few $5 and $1 notes for tips when the service is above and beyond. For spending ashore a couple of hundred Euros should be enough.

Actually now I think about it Euros will be fine for tips too so no dollars needed.

It would help to take dollars if you are planning on spending any time in the casino. If you charge these to your onboard account you will probably end up paying an unattractive exhange rate and also a cash conversion fee. You only really need dollars for your casino spending.

You can use a debit card instead of a credit card to settle your onboard account too.

[kursy walut, Towson]

I hope that $ 700 is enough to release during the voyage. And how is the cantors? What is a currency converter?

[kursy walut, Towson]

I hope that $ 700 is enough to release during the voyage. And how is the cantors? What is a currency converter? I checked the website Kursy walut and the $ 700 it would be about 500 Euro. Do you think that enough?

[Kerry, Staffordshire]

We spent around £700 in 2 weeks and we were drinking every night with friends and had a few meals at ports and bits and bobs,
Blimey!!lol I was thinking of going on IOTS instead of Ventura next year......but the most we have ever spent is £150 for 2 weeks!! (but we did have £80 o.b.c which paid for our tours)

[Santa, Redditch]

If you don't have any further use for them, any dollars or Euros left over at the end of the cruise can be used to offset your on board charges. Just go along to the desk on the last day and hand them over.

It's a good idea to get a print out of your charges a few days into the trip so you can see how you are doing. And don't forget to make sure that they let your CC issuer do the currency conversion - you get a better rate that way.

[tomvet, limerick, roi]

Dont use € to pay your $ account as the charge for conversion on board are ridiculous.

What people have failed to mention is the cost of tours, which are significant if you take them. If you do your own thing - well then they will not be as expensive. Research your ports to determine what you want to do - think charges for HOHO buses, entry fees etc.

Ask loads of Qs as on this forum as what is there to do in your ports and how best to do it.

Drinks, photos, speciality restaurants are entirely at your discretion and you could spend zero on these if you wish. I think in Med - doing your own thing in port costs about €20 per person per day but that does not include what you spend on food - its a sightseeing cost!

[Peter, Stockport]

Can i ask those who have been IOTS 14 night Italian Med how much spending money you took ...sorry to be cheeky but i have never cruised before and i havent got a clue

We are 2 adults and 13 year old i was thinking of taking $2000 dollars and 600 euros is this enough i will have a CC but i really dont want to use it much .
I have pre paid tips ,excurtions and soda fountain for my son . So really its just for our drinks and other stuff we buy . I was hoping to not spend to much in the ports try have a big breakfast then snack in port then evening meal .

Am getting all confused i wont have enough money

Thanks peeps

Hi Shortcake,
You don't say if you are the person wearing the trousers or a male. Being a male myself, I would tell the other half that I am drawing out $2000 and E600, then at the end of the cruise after you have spent about $1000 and E250 tell the missus that you have paid off the account with the original money then salt the remainder away for beer tokens for the rest of the year. ;-)
Pete

[Lynn, Newton le Willows]

Blimey how long are you going for? Thats more than enough, We spent around £700 in 2 weeks and we were drinking every night with friends and had a few meals at ports and bits and bobs, Had about 4 or 5 drinks a night and speciality coffees

Hi Richard,
may I ask you if you had already paid for your drinks on a package or was the $700 for your drinks and other bits and bobs?

Regards
Lynn

[Shortcake, Grimsby]

Of course am female and deffo wear the trousers lol