My brother is planning a cruise for our parents?

ǝƃɐʞǝpuɐd: My brother is planning a cruise for our parents?
Yes, my brother is planning on surprising our parents with a summer cruise for the two of them. They obviously deserve it, but the idea is just so random. Plus, my brother is unemployed (recently laid off) and I’m still a college freshman, so I have no idea where the money’s going to come from. How should I response to his proposal?

Answers and Views:

Answer by norf4
First-off, WHERE do your parents live? This is a very important question, since it can DRASTICALLY affect how much this endeavor is going to cost the two of you. If they live near any Florida or California-port, you are in luck, because both states have ports that are within several-hours drive-time from anywhere within the state’s borders.

Let’s use Florida for an example:

If your parents live in “The Villages”, they can easily get to either Tampa or Cape Canaveral (NASA) in less than 90-120 minutes drive-time. Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Disney (and coming very soon) NCL all sail out of Cape Canaveral (known as “Port Canaveral”) all year-long.This is an important fact since you don’t have to worry about air-fare and getting them a shuttle from the plane to the ship and back at the end of the cruise. Both ports mentioned above offer EXCELLENT itineraries of 3,4,5 and 7-night cruises on these and other lines. If this is your parent’s first cruise, I would recommend you use the 3 or 4-night Bahamas cruise on Royal Caribbean out of Port Canaveral for two reasons. #1) Right now there are incredible bargains to be found starting as low as $ 179.00 per-person! That is not a misprint friend! And because your parents are empty-nesters, they are PERFECT for taking advantage of these types of deals because they can pretty-much pick up and go whenever they want. The 3 and 4-night Bahamas deals are even better out of Miami, so you have to select a really good cruise-agent who is more concerned with your financial needs instead of opening your wallet. Otherwise that $ 179.00pp deal can end up costing you over $ 300.00! #2) Sometimes, the 4-night cruises are even cheaper than the 3-night due to the fact many sharp cruisers like myself that live within driving-distance of the ports can jump on the ship with less than 24-hours notice for a weekend battery-re-charge, thus filling the ship far-easier than the 4-nighter that heads out to sea on Mondays and returns on Fridays. This means the 4-nighter can be more difficult for the cruise line to fill, thus creating deals that are even better than the 3-night weekend cruise. Many of the same conditions exist out of L.A. and San Fransisco on 3, and 4-night cruises to Mexico and Washington State/Vancouver.

Of course, if your parents live in Chicago or New York, getting ahold of one of the above deals becomes more difficult and expensive, but can still be done. So if you are worried about breaking the bank, don’t be; now’s the time to become your parent’s hero.

Answer by William
Carnival Cruise is tne best value for your cruising dollors with 13 US ports to choose from during the summer months. There is a current 60% off sale and you can get pricing infromation and Carnival reviews on my link below that will help your research.

Answer by AJ
Your response needs to be to wait till we can afford to send them on a cruise. Not only will you have to buy the tickets, but also pay for any of the excursions they want plus whatever else they spend on a cruise.

Can’t give them the cruise and then expect them to shell out alot of money on the cruise themselves.

I would say that you could book a cruise now, since you should be booking the cruise for 2011.

Answer by Mary
In addition to the obvious issue of where you and your brother can get the money to purchase a cruise for your parents, there is the issue of what amount of money it will cost your parents to go! Even if you and brother pay for transportation to and from the ship and for the cruise fare, there are other expenses — souvenirs, alcohol and soft drinks, casino, tips, shore excursions, spa, beauty salon, photos, etc. Don’t forget travel insurance. And do your parents both have passports? That is another issue. I suggest that you NOT book a cruise until you have everything completely sorted out! As you may or may not know, there is a deposit required at time of booking, and the cruise must be completely paid for in advance of sailing.

Answer by Royboy
It sounds very simple to me – you and your brother cannot afford this venture.
Regardless of how much your parents deserve it, or how they would enjoy a holiday afloat you cannot afford it – end of story.
You should explain this to your (immature) brother. Your parents would surely be very upset to find that a holiday they had enjoyed had put you both in debt, they would feel guilty, and probably also feel that they should pay to get you both out of debt!

Answer by ♥Bajan Princess♥
Well honestly if it were me I would wait til I know I can afford it, instead of streching what I dont have. You guys can save towards it. I highly doubt that your parent would be happy to know that you guys dont have oney and are trying to semd them on a cruise..with what little you have.
After you send them on the cruise what next? How will your brother live? How willl he afford to pay his bills and buy all the necessary stuff he needs. In the interim he may have to go back to the very same parents he sen ton the cruise. In my opinion you are out becasue you are now ins chool and even if you have a job I doubt it will provide you with sufficient to buy what you need and then some left over to pay for a crusie. You guys can just save your way there and when the time coems they will greatly appreciate it. Also, in the interim you guys can do something specail for them that you can afford: cook them dinner etc or treat them for the day.

If you guys are die hard on the cruise then try the below sites, they usually have good deals for vaction plans and cruises:

I hope the above links helped.

♥

Answer by J
If money is very limited I would wait and do it during the non peak season. Summer time is prime time and could get very expensive. If possible I would look for great deals in the fall sept or oct if your parents are able to travel then.