Budgeting For Your Cruise Trip- By: Jacob Shemayah

Description : Years back whenever anybody mentioned going on a holiday cruise they were in one of two categories - the very wealthy or the poor. The limited number of rich travellers were vacationing in lavish, resort accommodations on the top levels of the ship, while the rest of those that wanted to take a cruise were loaded like rats in the steering section of the ship. In recent decades cruising is now more and more affordable, and the good thing is those on just about any budget can take this type of tour nowadays.

If your affordability is very important to you when you're securing a cruise accommodation, you need to plan in advance, and know exactly how much you have to spend on your journey, as well as souvenirs you might want to buy, to make sure you get the best return on your money.

When you are initially investigating cruise prices, don't spend the maximum amount of your budget when selecting your travel package. In general spending your vacation with a cruise vacation tour is an effective way to conserve your hard earned money. Take into account you are getting lodging, meals, entertainment along with the ship's amenities for one set price. However, often there are a lot of 'extra' fees that are going to be added on to that low price you're seeing, so you need a little wiggle room in your budget.

Remember even though your cost consists of resort lodgings, along with meals, it doesn't include things like snack foods you might want between meals. Also, alcoholic drinks and sodas are often not included. And, you will need to spend more for any special organized excursions that you'd like to take while at your various destinations.

Other costs that you will want to budget for are the ones that are added by the government in the country you left and those you'll visit along the way. There may be port charges and taxes that'll be added onto your total. Sometimes these fees sneak up in your total as you are finalizing the payment for your trip.

While you may point out you have a couple of extra bucks accessible, these types of fees are a little more than that and it's possible that in some cases the port charges, fees and government taxes could be $100 or more per person.

In addition, few people live right next to a port where cruise ships are based. If you'll need to get to a port city, you need to take into account your travel costs to that particular city. If you happen to be flying, make sure to do the math to know what the cost of the flight is as well as any travel costs to obtain from the airport to your cruise ship terminal. If the base port is close enough that you could drive there from your home, don't forget you are going to likely have to pay to leave your vehicle in a parking garage at the cruise port, so take those costs into account as you prepare your trip spending budget.

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Author Resource : If ever you are interested in doing a cruise in the Atlantic or Caribbean, you may want to check out one of the great cruises from Charleston SC. Other cruise lines like Royal Caribbean Cruises 2011 also offer excellent family cruise trips to a lot of great destinations.