I’m the type of person who likes to create a budget for my vacations down to the very penny. This way I am sure to have enough money before I leave on the trip, dismissing any possibility of ending up in debt afterward. Two years ago I took my girls on their very first cruise. Here are the costs you can expect to pay should you decide that taking a cruise is right for your family.

1. The Cruise Itself: The cruise itself covers your lodgings, meals, entertainment, and most of your non-alcoholic drinks. There are ways to take advantage of special discounts, as well as receiving lower prices if you choose to cruise during the off-season. Make sure when they give you a quote that they are including the taxes and any other associated fees.

2. Drinks: You will need to pay for any alcoholic drinks you desire. Also, while water, tea, coffee, and juice are free, soda and smoothies are not. You can purchase soda cards ahead of time if you plan on consuming a lot of soda. I personally don’t like soda so that wasn’t a big deal for me.

3. Shore Excursions: When you book your vacation, you’ll be given a list of shore excursions. These are optional, but you will most likely want to take advantage of one shore excursion at each port, unless the port is far away from any entertainment. For example, our ship docked in Nassau so we went to see Atlantis. It also docked in Freeport, which is about 30 minutes from any attractions. We just go out and strolled around the shops by the port.

4. Pictures: Don’t book a cruise thinking you will only come home with the pictures on your digital camera. I easily spent $200 purchasing the portraits that were taken on the cruise by the cruise ship photographers. These guys were amazing and I just couldn’t help myself.

5. Tips: Fortunately, my mom told me about the tipping procedure before I went on the cruise. You’ll need several $1 bills for tipping the men who bring you room service. I had tea, fresh fruit, and pastries brought to the room each morning. That was about the only time I used room service. I also had to tip the man who collected our bags when we arrived at the port. Because we had such an excellent waiter each night of the cruise, we also gave him a tip at the end of the week. Finally, you’ll want to set aside some money to tip the men and women who were cleaning your room all week.

6. Optionals: There are charges to do your laundry (pack enough clothes that you won’t need to do laundry), use the Internet (forget about it and enjoy your vacation), get a massage (maybe, but if you wait until you get home you can get one much cheaper), and purchase souvenirs. My daughter saved up $100 for souvenirs and it was fun to watch her consider what she should spend the money on. We found excellent deals while shopping on the islands. The souvenirs on the boat, however, are extremely expensive.