Credit Cards on Cruise around the Med

[Materialnut]

Hi - I'm going on a cruise soon around the Med and have heard from some friends of mine that you are not allowed to take cash on board which is fair enough however they have said that in order to spend any money credit cards are the only source of money they will accept - Is this true or are debit cards acceptable?

[Quizmonkey]

You normally get a 'cruise card' when you board which is registered against your credit card. You then use this to spend on everything (drinks, casino and any shop purchases) and are presented with your total bill at the end of the cruise. You sign this and it's transferred automatically to your credit card. They may not accept a debit card as you may spend more than there is in your account. Check in the cruiseline's terms and conditions (in brochure or online).

[jno]

your bill may also include any shore excursions you buy, which may well be the most expensive items.

[nickycoope]

hi i want on a cruise a couple of years ago, i dont do credit cards. as previous answer stated you are given an on board card, you can leave cash, if you use up all of this your on board card will stop been accepted, and you will be asked to put more cash down, what ever you dont spend is refunded, hope this helps

[dannydingbat]

There si no way they will stop you taking cash on board but they will not take it from you, as has been said, you will get a cruise card. They may, however, give you the option of settling the final bill in cash or with travellers cheques rather than you credit card (depends on the cruise line). Some ships actually have a cash machine dispensing in the currency in which the cruise line works (usually dollars)

[sddsddean]

I've part paid my cruise account in cash and travellers cheques before, but you must have a credit card for them to charge against in case you accidently on purpose forget to pay!! (which apparently has been tried).

[Materialnut]

ok its all starting to make sense now so thankyou for your input.

[Harwood]

I cruised to the Caribbean last December with P& O. They issue you with a cruise card on board and everything is booked to your cabin, you then pay either at the end of the cruise or whenever you ask for a statement, which can be cash or travellers cheques or even by card. P & O only take sterling on board and I have been told that some of the other ships - American for instance only take dollars. Check the Webb site for whichever company you are going with they usually have a FAQ section.

[auntiebertie]

You don't say what line you are cruising with - but just to clarify - on most ships the key to your cabin is like a credit card size and this is loaded with your details/photo etc and you use this to pay for everything on board. Some ships have the facility in the cabin to check how much you have run up on your 'tab', and others you just check with Reception. I know on some ships you can pay with cash, but most take credit cards.

ps: if you are cruising I hope you have read all possible info on the ship and your ports on www.cruisecritic.com and then click on the 'boards' link which takes you to here http://boards.cruisecritic.com/index.php and then you can read up about your cruise line and the ports! A mine of information...