To begin, my husband and I planned our cruise for our first anniversary and my birthday, which are just a day apart. We are far from being wealthy, but took along the $400 we had gotten together for travel expenses. After all, I had been on Carnival before with my family (Destiny, 2012) spent about $50 on board and had a blast!

I knew we needed to pinch our pennies everywhere we could and maybe this review can help others looking to still go on a cruise but are low on cash. Anyone who has the "if you cannot afford a vacation, you should not take one" mentality, just stop reading right here. We work hard for what we can get, and saving up all we can to get away a while is just how it works for those of us who didnt grow up on a golf course.

Anyway, parking at the Charleston port is insane. Think $20 a day. For a five night cruise, your car is actually in their lot (shed) for some part of 6 days. We booked the night before our trip at the North Charleston Radisson. While it had a paper plant scent in the area, which permeated the hotel, the staff was friendly and it was nice, and we got free shuttle to the port and were able to park our car there for the week. It was hardly $100. So, I paid less for a hotel, parking, and shuttle than the confusing maze at the port. Read more