Gratuities

[rpcv77]

LOL! :D The idea that different people like different things is still a hard one to grasp, I guess. ;)

 

That seems to be something quite common on cruise critic. I dearly love this forum but am often baffled as to why people can't accept this very basic idea.

[Treven]

To help with their budgeting. I'm on a fairly tight budget so the more expenses I can identify and allow for, the less stressful it is for me personally. It's the not seeing your cash in your wallet reducing that has me concerned. When I can actually SEE the amount of money I have to spend, I can be VERY self-disciplined. ...

 

 

Crochetcruise. :cool:

This is pretty much why I pay money up front of my cruises.

Edited November 3, 2014 by Treven

[AE_Collector]

Been through all these same questions and answers in the recent past here already. Some like to prepay everything possible, some cant understand paying a single dollar more than neccesary before absolutely neccesary.

 

I used to be in the latter category but I grew up in an era when you received interest on money left in the bank. I never pay credit card companies interest or an anual fee to use the card so pay now or pay a few months from now makes no difference to me. Also, I am a CCL shareholder which makes me more tolerant of allowing Princess the opportunity to actually make a dollar or two when I cruise with them.

 

Being Canadian and choosing to pay the Canadian price for the cruise (currently a 10% premium) gives me the option to pre purchase OBC at the same 10% rate. If I let my credit card company convert my US$ onboard spending to Canadian after the cruise it would easily be a 15% premium at the moment. So I SAVE 5 cents on the dollar by prepurchasing OBC. Thats the principle reason I have been prepurchasing OB?c on all cruises this year.

 

Terry

Edited November 3, 2014 by AE_Collector

[caribill]

 

Being Canadian and choosing to pay the Canadian price for the cruise (currently a 10% premium) gives me the option to pre purchase OBC at the same 10% rate. If I let my credit card company convert my US$ onboard spending to Canadian after the cruise it would easily be a 15% premium at the moment. So I SAVE 5 cents on the dollar by prepurchasing OBC. Thats the principle reason I have been prepurchasing OB?c on all cruises this year.

 

In the USA there are several credit cards available with no annual fee that charge no fee for foreign transactions.

 

Does Canada not have any cards like this?

Edited November 3, 2014 by caribill

[pablo222]

I'm unable to understand why anyone needs 13 question marks.

 

Can I get some sort of refund of questions marks at the purser's desk

at the end of the cruise?

[Jimmys Chippy]

Unable to understand why anyone would want to give Princess money before they have to at the end of the cruise.?????????????

 

 

If this is in response to my pre-purchasing of drinks packages, I do so because I don't want to mess around at the pier filling in forms and signing stuff then being given three souvenier cups to which I have to try and stuff into my bag somehow. Also I have $300 OBC, that will cover all gratuities, so all my drinks and tips are now taken care of which means I could actually leave the ship without owing anyone a single penny. It's how I choose to do my business which means at the age of 42 I have gone through my life without owing anyone anything (apart from my mortgage which is now paid off).

 

I sleep well at nights.

 

 

:)

Edited November 3, 2014 by Jimmys Chippy
Embarrassing punctuation.

[DaveinWhales]

In the USA there are several credit cards available with no annual fee that charge no fee for foreign transactions.

 

Does Canada not have any cards like this?

 

The UK does but although there might not be a fee as such, the credit card company can convert at an exchange rate which makes up the difference. That's the one area you have no control over and you have to wait until you see your statement to find out what they converted at.

[caribill]

The UK does but although there might not be a fee as such, the credit card company can convert at an exchange rate which makes up the difference. That's the one area you have no control over and you have to wait until you see your statement to find out what they converted at.

 

The USA cards I have use the current interchange rate with no markup. I can usually check the rate used online within 24 hours and it has always been equal or better than what I see posted as that day's exchange rate.

 

Example: two recent charges at LGH

UK Pounds 8.95 US $14.79 conversion rate .605 (1.6525)

UK Pounds 7.90 US $13.01 conversion rate .607 (1.6468)

This was very close to the official rate at that time.

[AE_Collector]

In the USA there are several credit cards available with no annual fee that charge no fee for foreign transactions.

 

Does Canada not have any cards like this?

 

I havent heard any f the Canadian banks advertising this feature but that isnt to say that they ont exist here.

 

Typically the CC companies convert at what they call the interbank rate at the time the transaction is posted. This is typically somewhere between .50 and .75 of 1 percent (or maybe of 1 cent, not certain which) above the true (exact) exchange rate. Then they add a "conversion fee" as well, typically another 2.5 cents on the dollar.

 

If a CC company claims "no exchange fee" I would assume that they are charging the .50 to .75 fee only as they say this is not them but the bank.

 

The current Princess 10 cents on the dollar fee is MUCH better. As of today, a credit card company charging this low "no exchange rate" fee would be charging about 14.5 cents on the dollar or about 17 cents on the dollar with normal exchange rate charges.

 

Terry

Edited November 5, 2014 by AE_Collector

[caribill]

 

 

 

The current Princess 10 cents on the dollar fee is MUCH better. As of today, a credit card company charging this low "no exchange rate" fee would be charging about 14.5 cents on the dollar or about 17 cents on the dollar with normal exchange rate charges.

 

 

I do not know how Canadian banks do it, but US banks that do charge a foreign transaction fee for all charges made outside of the USA do so if the transaction is in a foreign currency or in USA $.

 

For example, if I took a cruise on an Australia based cruise where the currency on board is Australian $$, then a USA bank that had a foreign transaction fee* would charge about 3% for the credit card charge. It would also charge that 3% if Princess first converted it to USA $$ (with Princess adding it's own 3% convenience fee), so I would have to in effect pay 6%.

 

So, will a Canadian bank skip that 3% charge if the charge was made outside of Canada and is posted in Canadian $$?

 

(* Note that they call it a foreign transaction fee, not a foreign exchange fee, so it will apply to foreign transactions in US $)

[AE_Collector]

So, will a Canadian bank skip that 3% charge if the charge was made outside of Canada and is posted in Canadian $$?

 

I have not encounter that extra charge scenario though it s rare to find a foreign company that will charge directly in Canadian $. Princess is now one that will charge directly in Canadian in certain circumstances and when it is processed properly there is no fee by the credit card company.

 

I think most Canadian CC companies converting other than US$ to Canadian first convert to US$ and then to Canadian. No doubt this involves even more fees.

 

Terry

Edited November 5, 2014 by AE_Collector

[Hawaiidan]

Unable to understand why anyone would want to give Princess money before they have to at the end of the cruise.?????????????

 

I am aware , or was aware that tipping is NOT part of Australian culture. I was told that ships operating out of Australia include the service charges in the their fares and do not have a daily add on service charge

 

Is this the case with Princess ships that operate totally in Australian waters and ports like Brisbane to Brisbane?

 

I am booking a Princess ship in 2016 solo and want to know.

 

Thanks

[Hawaiidan]

I havent heard any f the Canadian banks advertising this feature but that isnt to say that they ont exist here.

 

Typically the CC companies convert at what they call the interbank rate at the time the transaction is posted. This is typically somewhere between .50 and .75 of 1 percent (or maybe of 1 cent, not certain which) above the true (exact) exchange rate. Then they add a "conversion fee" as well, typically another 2.5 cents on the dollar.

 

If a CC company claims "no exchange fee" I would assume that they are charging the .50 to .75 fee only as they say this is not them but the bank.

 

The current Princess 10 cents on the dollar fee is MUCH better. As of today, a credit card company charging this low "no exchange rate" fee would be charging about 14.5 cents on the dollar or about 17 cents on the dollar with normal exchange rate charges.

 

Terry

 

I have been using my Marriott/Chase credit card all over the world and they have never charged me a fee for charging nor paying any bill on a ship /hotel etc....

I NEVER use foreign cash or ATM its either CC charge or no deal..

[Hawaiidan]

If this is in response to my pre-purchasing of drinks packages, I do so because I don't want to mess around at the pier filling in forms and signing stuff then being given three souvenier cups to which I have to try and stuff into my bag somehow. Also I have $300 OBC, that will cover all gratuities, so all my drinks and tips are now taken care of which means I could actually leave the ship without owing anyone a single penny. It's how I choose to do my business which means at the age of 42 I have gone through my life without owing anyone anything (apart from my mortgage which is now paid off).

 

I sleep well at nights.

 

 

:)

 

I keep all my travel funds invested in stocks that grow weekly daily and monthly and annually for the past 15 years. For me to pay in advance some 30 days prior to the cruise would loose me money in several ways.. One by not getting points or miles and second losing profits on

my stock

By using my credit card I get a a 30 to 45 day float after the charge which is a good 2 months after I have charged.

Were I to sell my stock 2 months before getting the bill I might loose $6 to$10 per share I sold

 

On $400 pre pay using a $65stock that would take selling 6 shares... which would have risen $6 to 10 a share in that 2 month.. so I lost somewhere between $36 to $60 by pre paying maybe more . The more you sell the more you loose.... of a $1200 pre pay and in could loose you $150-$250

 

Glad you paid off your home and that makes you comfortable.

Me, no way, Id rather put that money to pay off into good stocks that make a steady 15% year after year. Yes I will be paying 4.25% bit making 15% which is a 10.75% a year net net profit...Plus tax savings! so around so while you save 4 to 5 % interest you could be making 12% a year profit with a mort.....

 

Talk to your CPA...you could take out a loan on your home and purchase high quality securities and sleep even better

I am not the sharpest guy so I have to work smarter not harder....

[caribill]

I have been using my Marriott/Chase credit card all over the world and they have never charged me a fee for charging nor paying any bill on a ship /hotel etc....

I NEVER use foreign cash or ATM its either CC charge or no deal..

 

Must be difficult to take local transportation in various cities around the world without using local currency.

 

If it is CC charge or no deal, the people who normally get tips (example hotel bell boy who brings luggage to your room) must not be getting tips.

[AE_Collector]

Me, no way, Id rather put that money to pay off into good stocks that make a steady 15% year after year.

 

Are you sure that you have been doing this for years, not just planning in doing it soon? Usually one of the first things learned is that almost nothing brings in "steady" income at that rate. There are good years and bad years and only if you are extremely diligent or extremely lucky you "might" manage that for awhile.

 

Talk to your CPA...you could take out a loan on your home and purchase high quality securities and sleep even better.

 

I can assure you that re-mortgaging the house and investing it in the market, especially with the current (likely not over yet!) correction underway, even being on a cruise ship wouldn't be enough to help most people sleep better! Many lose sleep over investing in 100 CCL shares!

 

Terry

Edited November 5, 2014 by AE_Collector

[DaveinWhales]

As an aside, out of curiosity I set up two onboard accounts for our recent cruise . One in my name, one in my wife's.

One account was to be charged in $'s, the other to be converted from $'s into £'s and then charged.

I'm not sure what they did, the credit card bill does not show a foreign currency charge on either card and unfortunately I can't remember which card was designated for which charge method. The one thing I do know though is that on one card the rate was $1.58 the other $1.51 per £1 which is quite a difference considering current interest rates on savings.

The other thing I noticed too was that the onboard currency dispenser was not a good proposition, particularly for non $ exchange. If you put in say £'s, it changed the sum in to $'s ( giving a poor rate) then changed the $'s in to the requested currency (again a poor rate). On top of that you had a standard $4.50 charge for each transaction which was a maximum 8 bank notes at a time.

I hate to think what the charge worked out at but must have been 15% plus dependant on the value of the notes.

Avoid at all costs !