port charges, taxes, etc- please explain!

[leavin'town]

farily new to cruising here. I know these fees are not usually included in the amount on the cruise and they are necessary. What I would like to know is is there any way to calculate them with out calling on every cruise you want to know a full price for? Are the port charges and taxes the same for each cruise out of one port or do they change (for example- all miami cruises equaly 1 price) or for each port of call? Are there any websites with published info or are there ball park figures you can generally use for certain types of cruises (for example 7 day to eastern caribean)? thanks so much!

[Cotton]

Your questions are confusing to me.:D

 

All I really know is that whenever my Carnival PVP quotes me a price for a cruise, she immediately says, "And with port charges and taxes, the total is_____." I'm assuming that the port charges vary with each port-of-call, as well as the port of embarkation.:confused:

[cruisead]

You will have to do a whole lot of research because port fees and taxes are not the same for every ship or every port. It's all dependent on the size of each ship, each individual port and the number of passengers and crew---not all port taxes are the same just because you cruise out of Miami or whatever. I guess I don't understand why the need to calculate port taxes. You have to pay them no matter what and there's no getting around them regardless if you can figure them out or not. And they don't change whether you cruise out of Miami, Ft Lauderdale or New Orleans---like I said, the charges reflect each ship and each itinerary. Get yourself brochures for each cruise line you're interested in. For each itinerary they list the port taxes and charges.

[Happy ks]

I have always assumed that port charges are applied by the different ports and countries. When I check prices online, the taxes and port charges are always the same (for identical cruise, not for every cruise), no matter what online TA I check. So, I don't think there is any "set" price, but the final quote you will be given by a TA (cruiseline, online, land based) will include these charges. I will have to say, though, the charges for the tax or port charge can be increased after you book, rarely, but it can happen. There is nothing the cruiseline can do about increases in taxes or port charges, those are set and controlled by government.

[DougYWG]

If I buy an airline ticket, there are plenty of taxes and charges these days but they are listed so that you can know exactly what each tax is and its amount. I have never been able to get the same info on cruising. Why is that? Are cruise lines charging amounts which they keep?

 

How are taxes and port charges assessed? What is the big secret? Can somebody say that if you heave into Cozumel, they want five bucks per? I can understand that, it's like landing fees and the facility has to be paid for. Who can shed some light on this?

[Happy ks]

For every cruise we have been on, the port charges and taxes are added to the final bill at the time we book, there is no mystery involved. There are no additional port charges added as you cruise into different ports. It's all there in print when you contract to take the cruise, just like when you purchase an air ticket.

 

Edit: Excuse me, I read your post wrong. You want the charges broken down for each port and tax from each government? Perhaps you could ask the cruiseline for that info, I've never needed to know exactly what amount goes to each port and government. Sometimes, though, I have had the taxes and port charges (lumped together) separated on an invoice. I just don't understand what benefit you would gain to know the breakdown of these charges. I guess I'm just not interested in things I cannot change.

[leavin'town]

Did someone say that they publish port charges and taxes in the brochures the cruise lines give you? I just haven't looked at one at all. I've done all my research online.

[Cotton]

Yes, someone did say that.....however, it's not true. I have a Carnival big brochure in front of me. Each itinerary lists only the List Price and the Super Saver price.....no mention of port charges and taxes. Of course, everybody knows these are added items, but they aren't broken down.

 

When I book my cruises through my Carnival PVP, I receive an invoice, and it shows price of cruise, port charges and taxes listed directly underneath.

 

I, too, don't understand why it should matter about different pc and tx...??? What difference does it make? It has to be paid with your cruise fare no matter what it is.

[leavin'town]

I just wanted to see if they make huge differences in the price of the cruise without wanting to contact a person for every cruise I am trying to price. If a 7 day cruise says 799/ person and the extra charges are going to add another 200/ person then I'm going to look at a different cruise. Just trying to make shopping and comparing prices a little easier.

[DEL67]

Most od the major cruise sites include port charges in the price the listed price; however government taxes and and booking fees are not detailed until you get to the final price.

[takeavacation]

Tell him/her the cruises you are interested in and he/she will tell you the total price including port charges and taxes - you won't have to do any work at all! It always works for me!!

[Juliadlf]

On the same subject, can you tell me why if you live in certain states you don't pay any tax? Port charges, yes but no tax. Is it because certain states don't have sales tax?

 

Thanks, just wondering why they always ask what state you live in when pricing.

[puffer46]

Whenever I get prices from my TA I always ask to have the total price broken down. I like to let my group know where there money is going and how it is broken down after cruise price only. It has always been $139.00 for port chgs. and the taxes/fees have changed a bit. When we booked last year for this Feb. the taxes/fees were $67.71. I think they are now $72.61.The same thing goes for air to San Juan from N.Y.(for example) It has always been $499.00 with the cruise line. :confused:

[CaptData]

The reason they ask which state or Province is so that if there is a special rate they can apply it to your cruise. Example, Fl gets a 5% discount this week for X cruise but NJ gets 10% if they phone on Tues. Free air may be offered but only from certain airports, JFK, LAX, ect. They also need to know if you have sailed before with that line. If you are over 55 ect. It reflects in the fare you pay.

[DougYWG]

I don't dispute that taxes and charges have to be paid and there's nothing I can about that. What intrigues me is that comparison shopping I did some time ago showed that the total of these 'add-ons' (on top of the fare) could vary considerably for a similar itinerary, sometimes by a factor of three to one. I was also curious as to why the airlines list all the taxes in great detail and the cruise lines never do. Leading me to wonder if, in fact, all the taxes, charges etc are indeed handed over to the taxing authorities or do the cruise lines ever keep a chunk of change for themselves and fool you into thinking these are taxes that you just have to pay? Still waiting for someone to shed some light.

[kitty9]

captdata, I have a Crystal, Radisson and Cunard book and they show port taxes at the bottom of each itinerary price list. I guess some put them in their brochures and some don't probably because the port charges are changing so often.

[Guest nhrich]

What are commonly referred to as "port charges" are more accurately called "non-commissionable fares (NCF's)". They include port charges, and any other $$ that the cruise lines don't pay commission on. The cruise lines are not restricted in what they can include in that, and usually for any given cruise line the amount is based on the number of days (i.e., Carnival's 7-day cruise "port charges" are $139, regardless of the itinerary). There was a lawsuit several years ago regarding this, and that's why the change in terminology.

 

Most of the advertised prices that you see do include NCF's, but not taxes.

 

Rich, ACC

Carefree Vacations