16. You’ll Spend More than you Planned
You may think you’ve paid for the majority of your cruise expenses upfront, but the truth is there is a lot of nickel and diming on a ship. Don’t consider a cruise to be an all-inclusive getaway. À la carte cocktails, wine, photographers, cappuccinos, sodas, specialty restaurants, on board jewelry shops, art auctions, spa treatments, casino trips, shore excursions etc… can add up on you. It can be hard to keep tabs on your spending when you defer payment to the end of the cruise. There seem to be a lot of high pressure sales tactics at every turn, and you don’t want to miss out on all those duty-free deals, do you? You can’t blame the cruise lines for wanting to make a profit off you, of course. That’s their business and they’re pros at what they do. Generally, cruises can be great value vacations if you’re disciplined enough to stick to the included offerings. If you choose to splurge on extras, just brace yourself for some sticker shock when the final tally comes through.
