Estimate how much your cruise will really cost and track every expense — fares, gratuities, shore excursions, drinks packages, Wi-Fi and onboard spending — in one simple, reusable cruise budget planner.
This free cruise cost calculator helps you estimate the full price of your cruise before you sail — including hidden and onboard expenses.
✅ Free • ✅ Reusable • ✅ Works for ocean & river cruises
No signup required. Make a copy and start planning instantly.
Every time we booked a cruise, we started with a clear budget in mind. We thought we knew what the cruise would cost — the fare, a few excursions, maybe a drinks package — and that would be it.
But almost every trip ended the same way.
The final cruise bill was higher than we expected.
Gratuities added up. Shore excursions cost more than planned. Onboard spending, specialty dining, Wi-Fi and last-minute extras slowly pushed the total cruise cost beyond our original budget.
We searched for a simple cruise budget planner that would help us track everything in one place. Most of the tools we found were either complicated multi-page spreadsheets or paid downloads that required a subscription or one-time fee. They were powerful — but not easy to use.
So we created our own.
This planner is intentionally simple. It keeps all your cruise expenses in one clear, single-page view so you can see exactly how much your cruise will really cost — before you sail.
This planner brings together every major cruise expense in one clear, single-page view. Instead of switching between multiple tabs or complex spreadsheets, you can see your full cruise cost breakdown at a glance — from your cruise fare to onboard spending.
It’s practical, reusable, and designed for real-world cruise budgeting.
Everything you need to plan, track and review your cruise budget — in one simple sheet.
Begin with a simple step-by-step guide that walks you through setting up your cruise date, destination and cruise line before you start budgeting.
Log every purchase with date, item, category and amount so nothing gets forgotten.
See your planned vs actual spending and category breakdown at a glance with built-in charts.
Plan your cruise budget by category — cruise fare, airfares, excursions, specialty dining, onboard spending and more.
The planner automatically updates your total spent, remaining balance and progress percentage.
Make a copy and reuse it for your next cruise in seconds — no need to start from scratch.
The planner is designed to be simple. In three steps, you can set up your trip, plan your budget, and track your spending — all in one clear view.
Enter your cruise date, destination and cruise line on the Start Here page.
Add your planned spending in each category — fares, excursions, dining, Wi-Fi and more.
Log purchases and watch your total spent, remaining balance and progress update automatically.
Free to use — no signup required.
Here’s an example of a cruise budget in progress — showing real spending, over-budget alerts, and charts that update automatically.
Progress bars highlight when you’re going over budget.
No complex formulas. No manual calculations. Just enter your expenses and everything updates automatically.
Know exactly what your cruise will really cost — before you sail.
Avoid surprise bills and stay in control.
✔ See your total cruise cost in one place
✔ Track spending in real time
✔ Get instant alerts when you go over budget
Takes 5 seconds to make your own copy.
Free to use. No signup required.
First-time cruisers who want to avoid surprise onboard charges
Repeat cruisers who want better cost control
Families budgeting for group travel
Retirees planning longer ocean or river cruises
Travel bloggers who want to offer a genuinely useful cruise planning resource to their readers
Cruise reviewers creating helpful planning guides
Travel sites building practical cruise content
If you’ve ever wondered, “What will this cruise really cost once everything is added?” — this planner was built for you.
If you’re a travel blogger or cruise reviewer, you’re welcome to reference this free Cruise Budget Planner as a helpful resource for your readers. We built it to be shared.
It’s completely free to reference in cruise planning guides, budget articles, and cost breakdown posts.
If you mention it, a link back to this page helps other cruisers find a simple, free budgeting tool.
Common cruise expenses include:
Cruise fare
Gratuities
Airfare
Shore excursions
Specialty dining
Drinks packages
Wi-Fi
Onboard purchases
Spa treatments
Pre/post cruise hotels
The planner includes all of these categories.
Yes. There’s no signup required. Simply make a copy and use it for your own cruise planning.
Absolutely. Make a fresh copy for each cruise and adjust the categories as needed.
Yes. The planner works for both ocean and river cruises.
While cruise fares can seem affordable upfront, additional costs like gratuities, excursions, drinks, Wi-Fi and onboard purchases can increase the total significantly. This planner helps you estimate the complete cruise cost in advance.
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Our score is out of 10 and based on:
Location & convenience – 30%
Room Quality & cleanliness – 30%
Facilities & services – 25%
Dining – 15%
We do not take price (value for money) into our calculations, as rates can differ substantially depending on when you go. If you travel in peak season, then expect to pay the highest rates, but it does not (or should not) change the quality of the hotel. If we give it a rating of 8.0 or higher, we would consider staying again.
TBA – means we have not stayed at this hotel but have booked for a future visit or included in our research as a suggested place to stay
We’ll send you a direct link to our Google Sheets Travel Budget Planner. Easy to use for multiple trips.
We’ll send you a direct link to our Google Sheets Cruise Budget Planner. Easy to use for multiple cruises.
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