Emergency Cash Stash

[Moby Dick]

There is another tread going right now that is talking about the Airlines losing your luggage and not making it to the ship on time.  Made me think of doing something I've never done before.  If you're like me/us, we have to budget just about every penny we plan on spending on a cruise and all its ancillary expenses.  So, I was thinking of holding back some cash or a little extra in my C.C. for emergency clothing purchases in case of lost luggage.  All the insurance in the world will not help put clothing on your back for and extended period of time, like days/weeks after your cruise.  Come to think of it, I have seen lots of shirts and T-Shirts in the shops on a ship but I don't remember seeing lots pants/shorts.  Especially for males.  So, if I fly, which is very doubtful, I'm thinking of setting aside an extra $300.00 - $500.00 each just to help purchase a minimal wardrobe and accessories.  Oh, maybe not just when flying, either.  The port porters, especially at Seattle pier 91 (one terminal, 2 ships being serviced), aren't immune for losing luggage.  

Thoughts?

 

Edited July 11, 2022 by Moby Dick
Correct a typo (haven't to have)

[wordell1]

9 minutes ago, Moby Dick said:

There is another tread going right now that is talking about the Airlines losing your luggage and not making it to the ship on time.  Made me think of doing something I've never done before.  If you're like me/us, we have to budget just about every penny we plan on spending on a cruise and all its ancillary expenses.  So, I was thinking of holding back some cash or a little extra in my C.C. for emergency clothing purchases in case of lost luggage.  All the insurance in the world will not help put clothing on your back for and extended period of time, like days/weeks after your cruise.  Come to think of it, I haven't  seen lots of shirts and T-Shirts in the shops on a ship but I don't remember seeing lots pants/shorts.  Especially for males.  So, if I fly, which is very doubtful, I'm thinking of setting aside an extra $300.00 - $500.00 each just to help purchase a minimal wardrobe and accessories.  Oh, maybe not just when flying, either.  The port porters, especially at Seattle pier 91 (one terminal, 2 ships being serviced), aren't immune for losing luggage.  

Thoughts?

 

Should always have some back up plans for emergencies.  I have several credit cards and tend to keep them separated while travelling in case something happens with my wallet etc.

I don't really keep a whole lot of cash for everyday use - I do bring some for tips on a cruise.

[Moby Dick]

10 minutes ago, wordell1 said:

Should always have some back up plans for emergencies.  I have several credit cards and tend to keep them separated while travelling in case something happens with my wallet etc.

I don't really keep a whole lot of cash for everyday use - I do bring some for tips on a cruise.

Ya, I actually have several C.C.s that I don't carry with me, in our safe.  Like you, I don't carry a lot of cash, normally, NONE while at home base and out shopping.  And I only carry TIP cash while cruising.  I'll just start carrying one of the many C.C.s that I don't usually carry around for the emergency back up.

[mpdahmer]

Are you referring to bringing the extra cash on the cruise in case of emergency? While on board don't you have a CC linked to your account? We always bring a backup CC in case there is an issue with the one we brought. Generally, we always bring home cash that we have left over (maybe we bring too much) but I guess this was our emergency fund all along. Also, as a reminder to those first time traveling out of the country, it is best to contact your CC company to let them know you are traveling. Most CC websites have a section for this now. We learned the hard way a long time ago when one of our cards was repeatedly declined. When we got home we had several calls from the fraud department letting us know that they were sending us a new card because someone was using out of the country and they couldn't reach us. I had to explain to them that they couldn't get in touch with us because we were the ones trying to use it while out of the country...

[Moby Dick]

9 minutes ago, mpdahmer said:

Are you referring to bringing the extra cash on the cruise in case of emergency? While on board don't you have a CC linked to your account?

Yes, but as mentioned, all is budgeted down to the penny.  The C.C. that we have linked to our onboard account is a reward C.C. and a little higher interest rate if not paid off.  We always pay off our C.C.s the first statement to avoid interest.  However, an unexpected/unbudgeted expense is charged on a very low interest rate, non-reward C.C.

And like you, we usually are below budget.

[Ampurp85]

I always plan for things like lost luggage, delays, etc. when I plan any vacation. I am a huge budgeter, so I often do a 25/20 extra in my cost. Whatever I am planning to spend I add an extra 25% of the total, to my total. So, if a trip cost $5000, I round it up to $6250 but I also try to put aside 20% for emergencies; so, based on that example I would budget $7250. Thankfully I always come home way under budget. I carry one major credit card (Chase Sapphire Reserve), some cash and a debit card. I always separate the cash as well, leaving some in the safe as a just in case. I am also grateful that none of my luggage has been lost, damaged yes but not lost. Over the years I have gotten better at packing and since 3/4 time I travel solo, I only bring what I can easily handle. 

[Pooch]

Hubby & I both have a CC with us and I budget $100 per day in cash.  We probably spend all but $150-200 of the cash & put a like amount on the cards.  This has worked for us for just about every vacation for the past 40+ years.  All our cards begin every month with a zero balance so plenty of available funds for an emergency.

[ChessE4]

16 hours ago, Moby Dick said:

There is another tread going right now that is talking about the Airlines losing your luggage and not making it to the ship on time.  Made me think of doing something I've never done before.  If you're like me/us, we have to budget just about every penny we plan on spending on a cruise and all its ancillary expenses.  So, I was thinking of holding back some cash or a little extra in my C.C. for emergency clothing purchases in case of lost luggage.  All the insurance in the world will not help put clothing on your back for and extended period of time, like days/weeks after your cruise.  Come to think of it, I have seen lots of shirts and T-Shirts in the shops on a ship but I don't remember seeing lots pants/shorts.  Especially for males.  So, if I fly, which is very doubtful, I'm thinking of setting aside an extra $300.00 - $500.00 each just to help purchase a minimal wardrobe and accessories.  Oh, maybe not just when flying, either.  The port porters, especially at Seattle pier 91 (one terminal, 2 ships being serviced), aren't immune for losing luggage.  

Thoughts?

 

It's not just the cash to buy clothes, it's the availability of the right sizes.  We had a luggage delay in NZ a few years ago, and despite arriving a full day early with access to Auckland shopping district, we couldn't find anything in my wife's size.  We found toiletries and underwear, but nothing decent to wear at dinner in the MDR.  I found one pair of dockers on the ship, but the waist was a little large (they became my fat pants for the end of the cruise).  I agree with the $$ you are setting aside, but also think about where you'd fine temporary attire.  It won't be on the ship, other than T-shirts.  I now travel with a sport coat and long pants (I put shorts in carry-on) just in case my luggage is lost or delayed again.  I also subscribe to advice others have given about cross-packing, etc.

[not easy being green]

We have rather "large" backpacks and it can fit at least 2 to three days of cloths (top to bottom) and an extra pair of shoes.  We also have our toiletries and medicine.  This way we care, but not as much when we travel, airlines have never said that the backpacks are too big, just stash them underneath the seats or if we get onboard early enough we put them in the overhead.  

We live too far from any ports, so we take a plane, we have started to think about driving it might end up being less stressful!

[Pooch]

I ALWAYS have 2 full days worth of clothes etc for everyone on the trip in a carryon.  And since our stuff is mix & match and wrinkle free/drip dry, I could probably get a 7 day cruise out of what’s with us.

[Moby Dick]

15 minutes ago, Pooch said:

I ALWAYS have 2 full days worth of clothes etc for everyone on the trip in a carryon.  And since our stuff is mix & match and wrinkle free/drip dry, I could probably get a 7 day cruise out of what’s with us.

I wish we could do that, pack in backpacks, only.  However, we always wind up with one super large suitcase each, one duffle each, two backpacks, and a bag full of my electronics (cameras, charging devices, cords, USB hubs, plug blocks, and drone).  Sometimes we bring our CPAPs, each. The crazy thing, we usually go Star Class (not to brag, just stating a fact) and unlimited laundry/dry cleaning is included.  Why we take so much is beyond me, we could literally take just a couple pair of shorts, t-shirts, undies, slacks, polo/button down shirt, and have everything laundered every day.  It's crazy, I tell ya.  We're crazy.  

[TheRick]

We haven’t flown or cruised in many, many years (but two cruises scheduled through the end of the year, yay) and we have to fly from California to Florida for the first one. We are bringing extra cash and my wife and I are each taking a suitcase so I’ll put half my clothes in her suitcase and half her clothes in my suitcase so if one gets lost we will each have clothes. If they lose both suitcases we’re @#%*ed

[leesam82]

I do plan for emergencies when I travel. My go to loadout is the following 

1) CCs Royal Caribbean Branded Card (IF going on an RCL cruise),Chase Sapphire Preferred (my catch all card if I am not going on a RCL cruise) my American Express Platinum (I use this when I am checking in bags. They have good insurance for lost bags and their concierge service is very helpful ). My HSA card for any medical expenses & my bank debit card. Both the CSP and the AE Platinum have no foreign transaction fees. CSP is nice to have because it is not an AE and is accepted pretty much anywhere. 

2) My wallet will have the usual obvious stuff ie drivers license & insurance card but also cash in different increments $1,$5, & $10s. Maybe a $20 or so. Usually reserve for tips and emergencies. I will also carry an old obsolete shopping card to put into the master switch so I don't have to put my sea pass card in there. 

3) In my carry on i'll have my EDC things which will include travel sized OTC meds (Ibuprofen and Benadryl). A small battery pack with USB cord. At least two extra pair of contact lenses,  My glasses. I will also have a little pen light as well with some rubber bands (in a snack bag ziplock). A dollar store first aid kit. Also the obvious things eg print outs of boarding passes etc.  If i'm cruising I will always have a pair of quick dry hybrid shorts,   quick dry short sleeve shirt, extra pair of underwear, slippers (this is nice especially if I'm hitting the pool early). If i'm not cruising I will have some form of back up clothes just in case. If i'm traveling for work I will also have my extra laptop power cord. 

4) This is a maybe but some type of bar eg granola bar or maybe a snack. 

 

[Pattycruise]

After being stuck at work for 36 hours one time and no cash to buy food (no credit cards either) I ALWAYS have extra cash and an emergency $20 tucked in my phone  Each car I own also has an emergency $20.  When traveling it’s substantially more cash  AND I take credit cards.  My daily bag would make Monty Hall proud. 

[KJRanch]

We always bring cash.  Usually way to much and it just sits in the safe.  Always prefer to pay with cash when on vacation, that way we make sure I do not go over budget as if the cash runs out then we can buy anything else.  But we do carry at least one CC if an emergency were to take place.  

[Pooch]

For our 8 day cruise for 2 people,  we will have 1 24” checked bag, 1 21” carry on and my oversized handbag.  There are 2 small duffels in the checked bag so on the way home we can check both suitcases and use the duffels as carry ons for the stuff we buy.  I am not a clothes or shoe horse and have always packed light. And I refuse to be a pack mule at the airport!

[Moby Dick]

Oh oh oh, I forgot to mention, we purchased, on our last cruise in a promenade shop, another duffle just to carry the trinkets we purchased for friends and family.

[Matt]

For some reason this thread reminded me of American Express travelers checks. I remember when those were a thing

[Moby Dick]

8 minutes ago, Matt said:

For some reason this thread reminded me of American Express travelers checks. I remember when those were a thing

Yep, when I was a young private in the Army, circa the 70s, AE travelers checks was the only way to go when we were traveling around the world.

This is a trip down memory lane, for sure!  

[Done]

16 hours ago, Moby Dick said:

Ya, I actually have several C.C.s that I don't carry with me, in our safe.  Like you, I don't carry a lot of cash, normally, NONE while at home base and out shopping.  And I only carry TIP cash while cruising.  I'll just start carrying one of the many C.C.s that I don't usually carry around for the emergency back up.

as an aside - you need to use those cards in safe every once in a while.  I had my Discover card canceled by them because I never used it.

[Moby Dick]

11 minutes ago, Toby said:

as an aside - you need to use those cards in safe every once in a while.  I had my Discover card canceled by them because I never used it.

Yep, I hear ya.  To be honest, I'd be happy to let them cancel them.  I've got way too many open C.C. accounts as it is.  I actually need to start calling and closing accounts.  Many years ago, I applied for a signature loan at PNC bank.  I didn't get the interest rate that I though I should have.  I asked why as I have never been late with a payment in my life, I was told that I had toooooooo many open credit accounts, it didn't matter how trustworthy I was.  The loan officer told me to go home and look at my freecreditreport.com or what ever it is and see for myself.  I couldn't believe it.  I had pages and pages of open accounts, things that I had decades earlier.  Needless to say, I close about 90% of them.  I'm now, and should have been a long time earlier, a firm believer in looking at my credit report often.  

None of the C.C.s I have in the safe are very important to me anyway.  

[Done]

29 minutes ago, Moby Dick said:

Yep, I hear ya.  To be honest, I'd be happy to let them cancel them.  I've got way too many open C.C. accounts as it is.  I actually need to start calling and closing accounts.  Many years ago, I applied for a signature loan at PNC bank.  I didn't get the interest rate that I though I should have.  I asked why as I have never been late with a payment in my life, I was told that I had toooooooo many open credit accounts, it didn't matter how trustworthy I was.  The loan officer told me to go home and look at my freecreditreport.com or what ever it is and see for myself.  I couldn't believe it.  I had pages and pages of open accounts, things that I had decades earlier.  Needless to say, I close about 90% of them.  I'm now, and should have been a long time earlier, a firm believer in looking at my credit report often.  

None of the C.C.s I have in the safe are very important to me anyway.  

This is not really a cruise topic but on the flip side 5 or 6 CC's are good.  I have a very high credit score in part because I have a large amount of credit available (total of the credit limits on the CC's) and I use very little of it (usually <= 5%).  When choosing the accounts to close out, ditch them by reverse order of credit limits.

Edited July 12, 2022 by Toby
clarification

[Moby Dick]

12 minutes ago, Toby said:

This is not really a cruise topic but on the flip side 5 or 6 CC's are good.  I have a very high credit score in part because I have a large amount of credit available (total of the credit limits on the CC's) and I use very little of it (usually <= 5%).  When choosing the accounts to close out, ditch them by reverse order of credit limits.

Yep, not directly a cruise topic.  But, one that can be of a lot of interest to some cruisers, especially younger ones.  

BTW, I've been in the mid 800s for decades.  The interest rate I was quoted wasn't much of a big deal.  Just hurt my ego a little, I guess.  A large amount of credit available is a good thing as long as the ratio of credit to income isn't off balance toooooooooooo much.  In my case, it was off balance by a bunch.  Like I've said in here a few times, I'm very middle class.  I had, at the time, a few hundred thousand dollars in available credit.  Not good!  It was easy to take care of though.  Just a letter to each creditor to close the account and within a month or two, I was in balance again and all is well.  I've acquired several C.C. since then and need to start the process all over again.  We are suckers for those deals in/at the front of stores (or Royal Caribbean's Next Cruise Desk, BOA C.C. offer) that offer this, that, and the other thing if we open an account with them.  

Okay, I'm done now.  The horse has been beaten.  

[FSUFAN]

14 hours ago, TheRick said:

We haven’t flown or cruised in many, many years (but two cruises scheduled through the end of the year, yay) and we have to fly from California to Florida for the first one. We are bringing extra cash and my wife and I are each taking a suitcase so I’ll put half my clothes in her suitcase and half her clothes in my suitcase so if one gets lost we will each have clothes. If they lose both suitcases we’re @#%*ed

This is a good hack that Mrs Fan and I have used when checking bags. 90% of our travel is carry on, but still.  I see these cruise hacks about using packing cubes and such.  Those work, but not as good as roll-up vacuum bags. We have used the bags on may occasion and they work great. Wrinkles can be an issue, but just carry a small wrinkle release spray or use the steam from the shower.  I just bought some new roll-up bags this morning on Amazon (Prime day).  Magnetic hooks were on sale too.  Never used them before though.

As far as cash and cash management.  I carry about $80 or $100 on most trips.  I try to get an assortment of bills for tips and such. Also, we are doing an Alaska trip next year with our grown kids and spouses. Dad (me) is going to give everyone a nice gift towards each room. I set up a separate savings account that is paying pretty good interest and have stashed the cash over there until the final payment.  I used Costco Travel and my Costco Visa.  I get a $140 Costco shop card for each room (times 4) and 5% savings from the Costco Travel/Visa offering.  I'll keep the 5% and the Costco Shop Cards and "rebate" that back to each couple.  I think their buy in was around $700 each for balcony rooms.  They will have to pay for gratuities, specialty packages and shore excursions. 

[WAYNO]

Removed.  The topic seems to have changed.

[whitsmom]

14 hours ago, Pooch said:

I ALWAYS have 2 full days worth of clothes etc for everyone on the trip in a carryon.  And since our stuff is mix & match and wrinkle free/drip dry, I could probably get a 7 day cruise out of what’s with us.

I will be doing this ( 2 carry-ons ) for our Europe cruise.  I plan on 3 outfits (maybe 4 if the vacuum bags work)  that can be mix & matched plus all underwear for the trip.  I will be taking some single use laundry soap just in case. 

[Pooch]

Maybe misunderstood, I don’t use JUST carry ons.  BUT my carry on contains 2 days worth of clothes etc in case checked luggage is lost/delayed.  If the checked bags didn’t make it on board, we could survive on what I had in the carry on.

[whitsmom]

27 minutes ago, Pooch said:

Maybe misunderstood, I don’t use JUST carry ons.  BUT my carry on contains 2 days worth of clothes etc in case checked luggage is lost/delayed.  If the checked bags didn’t make it on board, we could survive on what I had in the carry on.

Me too!  I just want to have enough to get by with.  My niece's friend is on a river cruise in Germany.  Her luggage finally got sent to Munich but she isn't there so the airline is just going to send it back home.  She said she is not letting it ruin her vacation but her hair (extremely curly) is a hot mess

[MaryCS62]

Back in 2000, my MIL passed away - she & FIL lived in Florida, the 2 sons & their families lived in NJ.  Made the airline reservations (got all 8 of us on the same flight), get to FL, one of my BIL's bags is missing -- the one with his dark suit for the funeral.  Luckily, my FIL had actually planned it for a few days after we got there, so it showed up 1.5 days later at the hotel.  However, other than the suit, he had shorts & jeans, & did not want to have to go shopping, as he didn't wear suits on a regular basis, so it wasn't like he really needed another one.  

For clothing - 4 of us, 3 female - everyone gets their own packing cubes, & they are distributed amongst the suitcases somewhat willy-nilly, but we've never lost anything on a cruise. However, we also usually drive to port, no airlines involved

[Spang1974]

I'm not flying ANYWHERE with checked luggage ANYTIME soon:) 

[Moby Dick]

5 hours ago, Spang1974 said:

I'm not flying ANYWHERE with checked luggage ANYTIME soon:) 

Sounds like a plan.  I hope that works out for ya!