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Losing track of time and concept of money, while cruising the warm Caribbean Sea with piña colada in hand, can be easy for anyone to do. You sort of float away to a world that seems never-ending, and you don’t care how the daiquiris are being paid for just so long as they keep coming.
With relaxation and good times on the brain, you need to have a spending plan in place before you hit the wide open waters and let all reason slip beneath the Lido Deck cracks.
Here are three secrets that will keep you spending how you want, where you want:
1. Before you go, answer these two questions: Who needs a gift from my trip? And, how much do I want to spend on each person? You’re going to encounter plenty of souvenir and trinket shops and kiosks in nearly every port-of-call, which gives you very inexpensive gift options. You’ll also see a smorgasbord of jewelry shops – all selling expensive gems, necklaces, earrings, bracelets, etc. Jewelers will begin adjusting their pricing, giving you a “special deal,” almost the second you step in through their doors. If you’re looking to spend thousands of dollars on your cruise, then you’ll find some great deals at Diamonds International, Colombian Emeralds, Tanzanite International and more. For more affordable gifts like clothing, bags, hats and more, all with custom-to-your-port stuff, visit Cariloha and Del Sol. Kind of a shameless plug, but it’s really true. Ask anyone in town.
2. Attend the Cruise-Endorsed Port-and-Shopping Talks. Here’s where big savings and smart deals, from all the recommended stores in port, start popping up on your radar screen. If you can’t pull yourself out of bed to attend the morning shopping talk, which isn’t that early anyway, but maybe for being on a cruise and what you did the night before, etc., it is a tad early. Either way, the highly knowledgeable, friendly cruise port lecturers hold regular desk hours, and their port and shopping talks are broadcast on the TVs in your cruise cabin. Take 30 minutes to watch. Although, attending their live talks will get you some immediate freebies, along with free shopping maps and free samples of the cool stuff you’ll find in port.
3. When are you sailing? If you’re sailing in the holiday season, then selling steals you shall find. Cruise-port stores are like store back in Topeka, Kansas, or wherever you’re from — they hold huge holiday sales, too. That goes for any time of the year, if you’re sailing during the back-to-school season or Labor Day and Memorial Day weekends, be on the lookout for sales and special offers. Take note of the time of year you’re sailing in, too. If you’re sailing to the Caribbean between May and August, you’re sailing in the slow season, versus the high season from September through April, but it’s the reverse for cruises to Alaska. Hurricane season is mainly September – November.
You may have some other tips up your sleeves. What are they? Have you experienced something completely different on your cruises?