How Much Cash Should You Bring?

You are ready for your cruise, you have all those “must have” items purchased, your passport is ready, but how much cash should you take with you?

There is no way to ever know exactly how much cash you should bring with you on your cruise, but I do have a few tips to help you figure out what should work for you.

While you won’t need cash to pay for anything onboard, you will want to bring cash for tips. You can’t pay for anything onboard except with your cruise card that is attached to your onboard account. Some people will choose not to link their onboard account to a credit card but put cash on it. That isn’t something I’ve ever chosen to do, but if you do, you will need cash for that. 

So how much should you bring for tips? That depends on who you want to tip and how much you want to tip them. I have backed off on tipping as much as I did on my first few cruises since I do pre-pay daily gratuities. However, I like to tip anyone who makes my cruise extra special. That means that we tip our cabin steward. How much depends on how often they are coming into our room and if they go above and beyond what is expected. We usually give $20 each for a 7-day cruise as a base, and it will go up from there if we think more is deserved. I also like to tip bartenders if I frequent the same bar or if there is a server that goes out of his or her way. We usually choose anytime or your time dining which means we do not have the same servers throughout the week, but if we did, then I would also leave them a tip at the end of the week, especially if they got to know my preferences and went out of their way to make sure I never needed to ask for anything. 

How much cash you should bring for port stops will depend on your excursions and spending habits. Most of our excursions are booked through local companies where we have paid a deposit and they want the remainder paid in cash. I don’t usually spend a lot on souvenirs. I like to get a magnet and maybe a t-shirt. If I know we will need a taxi, I will bring money for that. Many places have set amounts for taxi rides where you can research how much you will need. I find that if I bring cash to finish paying the excursion, money for a taxi if needed, and an additional $40-$50, I will have enough to buy any souvenirs and tip drivers and tour guides. That might not be enough for you if you are a big spender when it comes to souvenirs, so adjust accordingly. You will want to make sure you have a good amount of ones and fives, not just a bunch of 10s and 20s. I will also take my credit card with me in case I decide to make any large purchases. I have been known to buy rum and rum cakes on occasion! I don’t like using my credit card unless it is in a store that is either in the terminal area itself or is a nice, well-established location. I am never giving it to a taxi driver, or a small souvenir stand. I would be more inclined to use a credit card if I was in the UK or parts of Europe than I would in the Caribbean. 

My goal is to always come back home with cash. It is better to have it and not use it, than need it and not have it! I use a little portable safe for my cash when I cruise, and I like to just leave anything left over in there for the next cruise! While you can use ATM’s to get more cash, there will always be fees involved, so I’d just rather bring with me what I think I’ll need. I am also skeptical of using ATMs in some tourist areas due to the prevalence of chip readers and other scams used to access tourists’ accounts.

While there is no right answer to how much cash a cruiser needs, I hope I have given you some things to think about that will help you decide the right amount for you.