• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 30 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 30th anniversary: Happy 30th Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $21,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $21 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    60,000+ subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

Cruising....onboard credit amount?

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
I'm thinking on taking another cruise and Carnival is offering a $500 onboard credit. Is that a pretty standard amount? Anyone have any knowledge of this kind of thing?
 

pedro47

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
22,066
Reaction score
8,532
Points
948
Location
East Coast
Sounds liked $250 per person/per cabin. How many nights is your cruise?.
Yes! IMO, that is pretty good OBC for Carnival.
 

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
Thanks, Pedro! We are looking at a 5-7 night cruise, but the OBC remains the same. It sounded good to me, but thought I'd check. Thank you!
 

Talent312

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2007
Messages
17,461
Reaction score
7,277
Points
948
Resorts Owned
HGVC & GTS
IMHO, that's pretty generous.
OBC's often depend on the class of cabin you choose.
To ensure that we use it all, we don't prepay the usual gratuities.
That, specialty dining, onboard shops & drinks make it go quickly.
.
 

moonstone

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
2,761
Reaction score
2,766
Points
599
Location
Moonstone, ON
Resorts Owned
The Beach Club at St. Augustine Beach, FL (1 floating week, purchased in 1982)

77,000 RCI points (Sunrise Ridge Resort, TN)
That does seem generous. When we took our last cruise, about 8 yrs ago, Carnival gave us $125 each!


~Diane
 

Passepartout

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Feb 10, 2007
Messages
28,461
Reaction score
17,213
Points
1,299
Location
Twin Falls, Eye-Duh-Hoe
You couldn't PAY me to take a Carnival cruise! Oh wait- That's what they are doing. After you subtract the roughly $25pp/pd for gratuities and have a couple of drinks here and there it will go pretty quickly. I'd call $500 pretty average for 7 nights. (for 2 people).

Jim
 

pedro47

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
22,066
Reaction score
8,532
Points
948
Location
East Coast
How much does Carnival charged per day in gratuities? (Stateroom attendant, wait staff, housekeeping staff, etc.,) I feel $25. 00 per day for two (2) guests is a good guess. Could be more.

A seven (7) days cruise In gratuities that equates to $175.00 .

This could be more if you have a suite stateroom.

One Speciality Dining’s for two @ $40 p/p equates to $80.00.
You have spend $255.00 dollars in OBC.

You have $245. 00 dollars to spend in drinks, gifts, gambling, pictures, etc.,
This is my opinion only.
 

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
All booked! Thank you all for your comments and help! We went last year, for my birthday, and had a fantastic time! So, my dear hubby offered to do it again this coming birthday. We love to gamble in the casino, and part of this package is free drinks while in the casino. The OBC paying for the gratuities is awesome, and with some left over, even better!! We do an interior stateroom, since we don't spend a whole lot of time there anyway. We have never done a specialty dining (and probably won't this time either), with food readily available everywhere, I don't see the need to spend money on this. I'd rather gamble it in the casino...:cheer: Thank you all for your input! Hopefully, they will continue to offer OBC in this amount; we've never had this offered before, so weren't sure if it was a good deal or not. You guys/gals are the best!! Thanks again!
 

nightnurse613

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
2,088
Reaction score
55
Points
408
Location
Phoenix, AZ
Yes, $500 is pretty generous, especially for an inside stateroom! MY experience is the cruise lines adjust your OBC based on what they charge (HIGHER FARE=MORE OBC). By now you have the Carnival Confirmation which should confirm your amount. Bon Voyage!
 

SmithOp

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 17, 2010
Messages
7,609
Reaction score
3,403
Points
499
Location
Huntington Beach, CA
Resorts Owned
HGVC King's Land 2BR Premier 23.040K Points.
All booked! Thank you all for your comments and help! We went last year, for my birthday, and had a fantastic time! So, my dear hubby offered to do it again this coming birthday. We love to gamble in the casino, and part of this package is free drinks while in the casino. The OBC paying for the gratuities is awesome, and with some left over, even better!! We do an interior stateroom, since we don't spend a whole lot of time there anyway. We have never done a specialty dining (and probably won't this time either), with food readily available everywhere, I don't see the need to spend money on this. I'd rather gamble it in the casino...:cheer: Thank you all for your input! Hopefully, they will continue to offer OBC in this amount; we've never had this offered before, so weren't sure if it was a good deal or not. You guys/gals are the best!! Thanks again!

Hi Sue, we are casino gamblers too! We go to a local land based one at least once a month, I call it paying our native american taxes. :)

We have the affinity card, Ceasars Rewards, and the comps are pretty good for the level we gamble at. About twice a year they offer free cruise comps, usually with NCL. We are taking one in November, inside cabin and the OBC is only $50 so your offer is a great deal. We are only paying the port charges, taxes, and gratuities. We also get the free drink card in the casino. Its called the CAS, Casino at Sea promotion.

There is a Princess cruise offer this Saturday so I’ll be going to pick up the coupon even if we don’t use it.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
 

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
Free Cruise Comps?????!!!! Now you're speaking my language!! Wow!! Had no idea this even existed! I'll definitely be looking into this!

Yes, we also go to some land-based casinos (I LOVE your native american taxes!! haha) We have tried 3 different ones close (well, not really close, but as close as we can get when you live in Texas....which is Louisiana and Oklahoma.... 4-6 hour drive from our house!) Anyway, we try to make a weekend of it, every 4-6 months, but if they were closer, we'd do it more often! We will go to Vegas for the hubby's birthday next July. We really enjoy it!

Enjoy your cruise!! Sounds SOOOOO amazing!!
 

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
Yes, $500 is pretty generous, especially for an inside stateroom! MY experience is the cruise lines adjust your OBC based on what they charge (HIGHER FARE=MORE OBC). By now you have the Carnival Confirmation which should confirm your amount. Bon Voyage!
Yes, I have my confirmation and I double-checked the OBC amount is still $500, so I'm super excited!! Thank you!!
 

LannyPC

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 5, 2010
Messages
4,777
Reaction score
2,405
Points
448
Location
British Columbia
How much does Carnival charged per day in gratuities? (Stateroom attendant, wait staff, housekeeping staff, etc.,) I feel $25. 00 per day for two (2) guests is a good guess. Could be more.

The last cruise on which we went five years ago "recommended" $15 per person per day.

But still, with gratuities, spa treatments, shore excursions, and "specialty" drinks and dining, that $500 between two people can get absorbed really fast. In fact, I think one idea behind this is that a person/couple with that much OBC will be quite lax with onboard spending thinking that the $500 will go a long way and then, before one knows it, that OBC is quickly spent and the couple still have a few days on board to spend above and beyond the OBC.
 

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
Sounds right! I bet they plan on me neglecting to keep track of what I’ve spent....but they haven’t met me...haha! I’m pretty good at keeping track of things.. We don’t do any shore excursions, in fact, on our last cruise (7days) we only got off the ship in Jamaica, so my husband could say he had a beer in Jamaica... then we stayed onboard the rest of the time. We have been to most of the Caribbean islands, so don’t feel the need to spend extra money on that. We just like to hang out together and reconnect.
 

pedro47

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
22,066
Reaction score
8,532
Points
948
Location
East Coast
$500 dollars in OBC for an inside cabin is awesome.
Celebrity Cruise Line charges $14.50 per day, per passenger for an inside cabin that $29.00 per day for two passengers or for 7 nights $293.00 dollars.
 

Passepartout

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Feb 10, 2007
Messages
28,461
Reaction score
17,213
Points
1,299
Location
Twin Falls, Eye-Duh-Hoe
Sounds right! I bet they plan on me neglecting to keep track of what I’ve spent....but they haven’t met me...haha!
You can see a running recap of your charges on the TV in your cabin. So I suppose that's a bet you'd lose.
 

dioxide45

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
May 20, 2006
Messages
47,354
Reaction score
18,913
Points
1,299
Location
NE Florida
Resorts Owned
Marriott Grande Vista
Marriott Harbour Lake
Sheraton Vistana Villages
Club Wyndham CWA
$500 dollars in OBC for an inside cabin is awesome.
Celebrity Cruise Line charges $14.50 per day, per passenger for an inside cabin that $29.00 per day for two passengers or for 7 nights $293.00 dollars.
Based on the math $14.50 * 2 * 7 is only $203.00.

I agree that the $500 is pretty generous for an inside cabin. You usually only see that for a suite booking. Perhaps it is a ship they are really trying to fill, or it could be a pricing error. It could also be based on prior casino time on Carnival. They often offer heavily discounted or even free cruises for those that spend a lot of time in the casino. Some cruise lines also have arrangements with Vegas casinos and will offer promos based on time spent in the casinos in Vegas.
 

pedro47

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
22,066
Reaction score
8,532
Points
948
Location
East Coast
Dioxide45, thanks for the math corrections of $203.00:wave:

That is more $$$ for the OP to spend on their cruise
 

tompalm

TUG Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2006
Messages
2,073
Reaction score
347
Points
293
Location
Honolulu, Hawaii
You couldn't PAY me to take a Carnival cruise! Oh wait- That's what they are doing. After you subtract the roughly $25pp/pd for gratuities and have a couple of drinks here and there it will go pretty quickly. I'd call $500 pretty average for 7 nights. (for 2 people).

Jim

Totally agree that I would not go on Carnival if they gave me a free cruise. They have the worst reputation in the industry. You should shop around more and look at Celebrity and Princess.
 

Talent312

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2007
Messages
17,461
Reaction score
7,277
Points
948
Resorts Owned
HGVC & GTS
In one ship's casino, I saw a statue of a woman with her hand out, palm up.
To those who enjoy it, sorry but I said, "Yep. Just hand over your money."
Whatever floats your boat.
.
 

alwysonvac

TUG Lifetime Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2005
Messages
15,914
Reaction score
3,743
Points
848
Location
New Jersey
Resorts Owned
WORLDMARK, HGVC, VISTANA

SOLD (DVC, FSRC)
Yes, $500 is pretty generous, especially for an inside stateroom! MY experience is the cruise lines adjust your OBC based on what they charge (HIGHER FARE=MORE OBC). By now you have the Carnival Confirmation which should confirm your amount. Bon Voyage!

I’ve observed the same watching Celebrity promotions.
 

Gypsy65

TUG Member
Joined
May 11, 2019
Messages
821
Reaction score
785
Points
154
Resorts Owned
HIVC
Comps will vary as many have mentioned and I wouldn’t doubt that they watch what you spend on previous cruises and comp accordingly??

Also
If you are unaware. You can decline your gratuities upfront and then tip each dept as you feel fit
Sometimes that can be a hassle but if one dept lacks or one excels then you can tip them each independently

On the comp side of things
We go out for dinner probably more than we should and almost always ask for the same server
This does a few things. That person gets to know us and our likes and dislikes therefore wouldn’t recommend something say with ham if they know we didn’t like that
And many times we will get something for free wether it’s apps, drinks, desserts etc.

So wether out and about or on a cruise being loyal does have its benefits
 

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
We have never had a bad cruise experience.... I guess if we ever do, we will "ban" that cruise-line from our selection list. We've done Norwegian, Carnival, and Royal Caribbean. I'll look into the others, but it will be difficult to beat these deals they are offering. But this is the FIRST time we have ever been offered OBC, so we really weren't sure if that was a decent amount or not. Now I'm pretty clear on that being a great amount. I'm sure it was based on our casino playing on our last cruise. We were there everytime it opened. Haha!

Thanks for all the feedback!
 

Suesue1738

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 28, 2015
Messages
64
Reaction score
24
Points
118
Location
Burnet, Tx
Ok, I see now why I haven't looked into Princess or Celebrity cruises.... they would require a FLIGHT from where we live in Texas. We choose to leave out of Galveston, still a 5 hour drive for us, but not a $500 flight to some other cruise port.
 
Top