MSC USA no longer accepting non US credit cards for cruise additions

For any UK guests booked via MSC USA (or via a US TA), MSC USA will no longer accept UK credit cards for any form of payment. I’ve been trying to add drinks packages to an upcoming booking that was made via a US TA with no success - payment declined. Today I called their US call centre to be informed that they no longer take UK cards. They assured me the card would be accepted onboard however I’ll be hit for the additional 15% gratuities that I could have avoided if they would let me pre-pay.

It’s my first booking with MSC and so far it’s been a fight

For any UK guests booked via MSC USA (or via a US TA), MSC USA will no longer accept UK credit cards for any form of payment. I’ve been trying to add drinks packages to an upcoming booking that was made via a US TA with no success - payment declined. Today I called their US call centre to be informed that they no longer take UK cards. They assured me the card would be accepted onboard however I’ll be hit for the additional 15% gratuities that I could have avoided if they would let me pre-pay.

 

It’s my first booking with MSC and so far it’s been a fight

Hardly seems fair we are Canadian and they except our cards

For any UK guests booked via MSC USA (or via a US TA), MSC USA will no longer accept UK credit cards for any form of payment. I’ve been trying to add drinks packages to an upcoming booking that was made via a US TA with no success - payment declined. Today I called their US call centre to be informed that they no longer take UK cards. They assured me the card would be accepted onboard however I’ll be hit for the additional 15% gratuities that I could have avoided if they would let me pre-pay.

 

It’s my first booking with MSC and so far it’s been a fight

Is there a reason you didn't use MSC (UK/European) site?

Is there a reason you didn't use MSC (UK/European) site?

Yes price. MSC UK is usually a lot more expensive to book through than their US site (not just MSC, usually the case with most of the Cruise lines)

Yes price. MSC UK is usually a lot more expensive to book through than their US site (not just MSC, usually the case with most of the Cruise lines)

Understand.... That stinks. I wonder if you would still have the problem if you used Amex??

Doesn’t matter what card. It’s where it was issued.

Thanks for the update.

For any UK guests booked via MSC USA (or via a US TA), MSC USA will no longer accept UK credit cards for any form of payment. I’ve been trying to add drinks packages to an upcoming booking that was made via a US TA with no success - payment declined. Today I called their US call centre to be informed that they no longer take UK cards. They assured me the card would be accepted onboard however I’ll be hit for the additional 15% gratuities that I could have avoided if they would let me pre-pay.

 

It’s my first booking with MSC and so far it’s been a fight

this seems a bit ridiculous because you can normally book future cruises on board , so as a UK resident if I were sailing in the US and wanted to book a future cruise with a UK credit card i wouldnt be able to !!!!! there must be a way around this . I would call someone else MSC call staff are well known for not knowing the facts. And if it is true then it really is ridiculous

You’ll be onboard in your example so it will be ok to make the booking.

The call centre did say they will accept my card onboard however they can’t accept it in the US call centre including your online account.

If you booked via the UK then it’ll be fine, the issue comes up when you’ve made a booking via the US. The call centre said it’s a recent change. I’d hazard a guess that they’re trying to protect their UK operations

this seems a bit ridiculous because you can normally book future cruises on board , so as a UK resident if I were sailing in the US and wanted to book a future cruise with a UK credit card i wouldnt be able to !!!!! there must be a way around this . I would call someone else MSC call staff are well known for not knowing the facts. And if it is true then it really is ridiculous

We asked about booking on board and were quoted the U.K. price and they wanted a 25% deposit! I have posted this previously btw.

We waited till we got home and used a UK TA and got price £250 cheaper each!

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I have just booked online a spa treatment with a non-US credit card and it all went okay. Nothing to worry about. Using a European creditcard (Mastercard) is still possible on the MSC USA website!

this seems a bit ridiculous because you can normally book future cruises on board , so as a UK resident if I were sailing in the US and wanted to book a future cruise with a UK credit card i wouldnt be able to !!!!!

The Cruise Consultant onboard can only sell you what's available in your own country including cabins allocated and at the current prices - with the relevant promotions - for that country. If you are from the UK, effectively, you're booking thru' the UK office as that's where your booking will be handled after you disembark (unless you opt to transfer it to a TA. If you've booked the cruise that you're on at the time through a TA, that's the only TA you can transfer it to (unless they've recently changed that rule).

The Cruise Consultant onboard can only sell you what's available in your own country including cabins allocated and at the current prices - with the relevant promotions - for that country. If you are from the UK, effectively, you're booking thru' the UK office as that's where your booking will be handled after you disembark (unless you opt to transfer it to a TA. If you've booked the cruise that you're on at the time through a TA, that's the only TA you can transfer it to (unless they've recently changed that rule).

That rule still stands.

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WJ ... Booking other than in your own country always has its risks, I guess this is now one another of them.

I have just booked online a spa treatment with a non-US credit card and it all went okay. Nothing to worry about. Using a European creditcard (Mastercard) is still possible on the MSC USA website!

I’ll make an assumption here that you’re not from the UK and from another European country. The call centre had a list of countries that they wouldn’t accept cards from and the UK was one of them.

I’ll make an assumption here that you’re not from the UK and from another European country. The call centre had a list of countries that they wouldn’t accept cards from and the UK was one of them.

We are from Holland. No problems here whatsoever.

With the low dollar, and cheap prices in the US it is for us much better to book in the US.

In Holland, cruising is very expensive. It is not very popular...Yet.

The Dutch like camping more (cheap)😊

So prices on Dutch website are 30-40 % higher on cruises. So for us booking at an American TA is better...

Both of my Canadian CAD and USD Credit cards (MasterCard) worked fine.

Works with a Belgian credit card as well. For me also a lot cheaper to book via an American TA (almost half the price).

As part of the agreement for American TA's to sell MSC, they are supposed to adhere to this policy within the Travel Agency Agreement.

So probably the less discussion of booking from outside North America, the better. ;p They go on to mention elsewhere in the Agreement they reserve the right to cancel any bookings they find to be in violation of their policies.

Not trying to scare anyone. Just giving a heads-up as to why problems with bookings/payments may be starting to show up.

Bret

They will not cancel your paid booking off course.

Lot of people from Europe take this detour to make reservations on cruising. Not only with MSC.

So no worries.

And on US travel agents you can set their website on International costumers....

;)

They will not cancel your paid booking off course.

Lot of people from Europe take this detour to make reservations on cruising. Not only with MSC.

So no worries.

And on US travel agents you can set their website on International costumers....

;)

Oef gelukkig ;) I was getting worried. I have not made final payment yet as I'm sailing end of December. Will that be a problem?

As part of the agreement for American TA's to sell MSC, they are supposed to adhere to this policy within the Travel Agency Agreement.

As of March 3, 2014, MSC Cruises USA no longer accepts bookings for guests who reside outside of North America. Therefore, it will be necessary for you to be sure that a notice is placed on your on-line sites. The goal of this notice is to clearly communicate that the rates shown are for residents of USA and Canada only. We suggest the following verbiage which is consistent with the messaging on our own website:

“Fares shown for MSC Cruises are applicable to residents of the U.S. and Canada only”

So probably the less discussion of booking from outside North America, the better. ;p They go on to mention elsewhere in the Agreement they reserve the right to cancel any bookings they find to be in violation of their policies.

 

Not trying to scare anyone. Just giving a heads-up as to why problems with bookings/payments may be starting to show up.

 

Bret

Thank you, Bret! :)

TA in the US:

Due to MSC Cruises' foreign credit card restrictions, if you choose to make payment with a credit card that is from one of the following countries, 4% of all charges made towards this reservation will be non-refundable:

Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Spain, United Kingdom

The 4% non-refundable aspect is in addition to the cruise line's regular cancellation policy. Please contact us prior to making a reservation if you have any questions, or if you would like to make a reservation over the phone using a different payment method.