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When I took my first voyage back in 1980, just about everything I wanted on board the ship was included in the overall cruise fare. The only extra fees I remember paying were for tips, shore excursions and alcohol, all of which were optional and reasonably priced.

Since then, however, cruise lines have become a lot more creative in finding ways to separate passengers from their money. For example, ships now offer specialty coffees starting at $1.50 per cup. They have reservation-only alternative restaurants that charge $15-20 per person (the main dining room and lido buffet are free). There are spa treatments that can cost several hundred dollars. And the latest cash grab involves private poolside cabanas that go for as much as $50 to $75 per day.

In addition, the mark-ups on items like shore excursions are beginning to get excessive. For example, a full-day excursion from the port of Civitavecchia to Rome now costs around $250 per person. In contrast, a return train ticket between the same cities runs about $15.

The bottom line is that the cost of these “extras” can easily exceed the cost of the cruise fare if passengers are not careful.

In fairness to the cruise lines, the basic cost of a cruise ticket has actually gone down over the past 20 years when adjusted for inflation, and still provides exceptional value. In fact, some cruise fares can actually run as little as $50 per person, per day (without fees and taxes) on some repositioning cruises. So if the margins aren’t as fat as they used to be on the cruise fare, it only makes sense that cruise lines are trying to make up for it by finding new sources of on-board revenue.

The good news is that all of these extra charges are optional, and most can be greatly reduced with some smart advance planning. For example, here are a few tips:

• Limit your dinners at the alternative restaurant to a maximum of one per week. And look for special prices – sometimes a ship will offer lower prices at these alternative restaurants on the first night, or on an evening with a late port call.
• If you have a spa treatment, don’t buy any of the expensive lotions and creams they will try to sell you – it can double the cost of your treatment.
• Don’t reserve private pool chairs or cabanas, and if you must, just do so on sea days when the crowds by the pool will warrant it.
• If your cruise line’s policy allows it, buy some alcohol to consume in your room. Also, if your cruise line has a reasonable corkage fee, consider buying some wine on shore to bring aboard for dinner – it may be cheaper than buying from the wine list.
• If you drink a lot of soda pop, purchase a “drink all you want” card for a flat fee if your cruise line offers one. They are a good deal. Also, refill your own water bottles at the bar rather than purchasing new ones each day.
• Plan to do some shore excursions on your own, especially when it’s an easy port to get around in, or if the organized excursions are too pricey. 
• Or, sail on one of the luxury lines where the cost of alcohol, alternative restaurants and tips are included in the basic cruise fare.

So while cruise lines are bound to keep adding new sources of on-board revenue to off-set thinner margins on the basic cruise fare, there are lots of ways to mitigate their effect. And for those who want to use all the additional perks, I think it’s great they have the option to pay for them without the rest of us having to subsidize the cost.

Postscript: Some of you may have been wondering why there was such as long gap between the last two blog entries. We were on vacation for the last week, driving our daughter to Dalhousie University in Halifax where she is starting school this week. But I’m back now, and looking forward to posting my blogs and hearing from you again on a regular basis.

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