Looking back on the cruise it was a really nice vacation, but at the end of the day price needs to play a factor. I not only look at how much fun I had but also what the opportunity cost was. What I mean by that with only one vacation like this a year where do I want to spend that money and time. What opportunities am I missing out on.

The base cost of the cruise, especially considering we got an oversized balcony room and it was Christmas week which always has premium prices, was pretty reasonable at $3467.82. The initial deposit of $500 was paid at the time of booking and I was a little surprised that the remainder had to be paid in September. I would have thought we had more time. One of the interesting things to note, is the base price, which after discounts but before the taxes and fees (which is how the prices are listed on their website) was $ 1479 per person, for Christmas week. Looking at their website today, at the same cruise, the prices varies from $797 to $1550. That’s a massive swing. So because of the week we chose, we were at the high end, but if we had gone in September instead of December, it would have been $797, and that ”base price” would have been $1906 instead of $ 3467, a savings of about 40%.

The cruise add-ons and excursions were paid at various times in the intervening months which in part lessened the financial blow, but also ended up hiding the overall cost until the end. The extras were as follows and are the total price (minus tips I will show later) for both of us. I will share if I think each individual one was worth it, along with the total price for both of us, and Lee’s opinion.

1. Key Account $573.86 – This was a $41 per person per day fee which included very good internet for one device each (although you could sign off one device and sign on to another, so you could use your phone all day and then switch to an iPad or laptop to watch a movie), early and expedited entry onto the boat (Lee is a big fan and will happily give money to not have to stand around waiting any longer than he has to), dedicated seating in the entertainment venues (another excellent benefit allowing you to arrive just before a show starts and not have to worry about a seat), and a breakfast the day of departure. Overall I feel this was definitely worth it as we took advantage of all of the features that were offered.
   
2. Specialty dinner at Chops $132.12 – I am glad we got to try one specialty dinner on the trip but I’m on the fence about whether it was worth the price tag. Overall I would say yes, but Lee didn’t think the food was worth the money.
   
3. Cabo Coastal Tour excursion $131.98 – Although this was the cheapest excursion I don’t think it was worth it, and neither did Lee.
   
4. Zip Lining excursion $298 – Since this was Lee’s first time ziplining I think it was worth it but if you take that out of the equation not so much, but he feels that $150 per person for 12 lines was totally worth it and would do it again in a heartbeat.
   
5. Jeep Tour excursion $149.98 – 100% worth it and I would do it again in a minute, Lee was not as impressed, but it’s a pretty great price point for a half day of activity.
   
6. Ship’s Tour $221.98- 100% worth it although since it was all cruise ship resources it feels a little overpriced. Lee feels that the price keeps out kids who are too young for it and he’s fine with that.
   
7. Chef’s dinner $212.36 – Definitely worth it for the wine pairings alone. By far the best meal we had on the cruise. Lee thought it was a TON of laughter and fun and REALLY delicious food and wine for the same price you can easily spend for a mediocre dinner in a major city like LA. He had no complaints or recommendations for improvement on this experience at all.

The one thing we didn’t get was the drink package mainly because if one person in the room gets it you both have to, and at a cost of anywhere from $56 to $110 a day I didn’t think combined we would drink that much. Instead we paid as we went and even with the 18% added tips we never came anywhere near $110 in any one day, not even close. We did have an additional $929 in charges at the end of the cruise. That was a big surprise, mainly the $18 per person per day tip that I originally thought was included in the cruise. So the breakdown on that $929 was

$252 is the daily $18 per day per person gratuity.
$65.93 for laundry and other notions
$198.80 at the spa
$ 50 tips over and above for the Chef’s table dinner and Chops steakhouse
$ 362.27 alcohol, and that’s total between the two of us, plus tips. The minumum drink package is $56 per day per person, up to $110 per day per person, so we spent $362 against somewhere between $784 and $1540, so for us and our drinking style, we made the right choice.

Speaking of tipping that was really weird. Lee feels like the $18 per day per person gratuity is the minimum, like tipping 18% on a mediocre meal, and 25% on a really good time, so he added a tip on most drinks, and we also added tips to the Chops meal and the Chef’s table on top of the built in 18% that they put on the bill. I took $500 in cash for off boat shopping and tips and spent it all, mostly off ship but some went to my stateroom person in cash on top of the built in tip. So that additional $500 is part of the total price.

In addition to the money spent on the cruise, there was $140 for parking, which we paid instead of spending $150 each way on an Uber. And we spent $504 for 8 days of dog boarding.

So the “all in” total was $ 7261.10 and we both feel like it was a fair value, but I do wonder if we would have been better off spending more money upfront for a more inclusive cruise. Lee would happily do the same cruise again, but without the excursions, the spa, Chops, or the ship tour (since we already did it) on the cheaper week, and that total would be $4000, which would be an even better value.

Don’t get me wrong it was super fun and the most important thing was we determined a cruise could be a vacation option for us, long term. That was the number one goal for me for this vacation and we definitely accomplished that. I also think the cost was in the ballpark for more or less week long vacation as well.

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