Why are Carnival's Port Fee/Taxes so high??

[buddylover]

Can someone explain the tremendous difference in Port Fees/Taxes charged by Carnival as compared to their competition (i.e., RCI, NCL etc). We have recently cruised on other lines and CCL's fees/taxes are always higher (most of the time between 50%-100%) their competition.

 

To make a completely fair comparison....in January 2015 we are sailing the RCI Jewel Southern Carib route out of San Juan....the Port Fees/Taxes we paid are $57.93 p/p. We are getting off the Jewel then right onto CCL Valor - the itinerary is almost identical Southern Carib itin (minus Martinique and Antigua), both are for 7 days, both are in balcony cabins, but Carnival's Port Fees/Taxes are $86.44?? WHY???? are they 50% higher?

[Shmoo here]

Can someone explain the tremendous difference in Port Fees/Taxes charged by Carnival as compared to their competition (i.e., RCI, NCL etc). We have recently cruised on other lines and CCL's fees/taxes are always higher (most of the time between 50%-100%) their competition.

 

To make a completely fair comparison....in January 2015 we are sailing the RCI Jewel Southern Carib route out of San Juan....the Port Fees/Taxes we paid are $57.93 p/p. We are getting off the Jewel then right onto CCL Valor - the itinerary is almost identical Southern Carib itin (minus Martinique and Antigua), both are for 7 days, both are in balcony cabins, but Carnival's Port Fees/Taxes are $86.44?? WHY???? are they 50% higher?

 

Size of ship? Length of time in port? What facilities/concessions does the ship need? Past history?

[loxley]

I personally think Carnival plays fast and loose with those taxes and fees.

 

I have questioned forever what are they really? Why are they constantly going up and down?

 

I have decided it is like when you buy something on ebay and the item cost $2 but shipping and handling is $25. Then when you get it, it has a 49 cent stamp on it.

[ferfoodle]

Can someone explain the tremendous difference in Port Fees/Taxes charged by Carnival as compared to their competition (i.e., RCI, NCL etc). We have recently cruised on other lines and CCL's fees/taxes are always higher (most of the time between 50%-100%) their competition.

 

To make a completely fair comparison....in January 2015 we are sailing the RCI Jewel Southern Carib route out of San Juan....the Port Fees/Taxes we paid are $57.93 p/p. We are getting off the Jewel then right onto CCL Valor - the itinerary is almost identical Southern Carib itin (minus Martinique and Antigua), both are for 7 days, both are in balcony cabins, but Carnival's Port Fees/Taxes are $86.44?? WHY???? are they 50% higher?

 

The cruises you list each have 5 ports, but only St. Thomas and St. Lucia in common. The logical guess would be that the port fees for St. Maarten, St. Kitts and Barbados (Valor) are higher than Grenada, Martinique and Antigua (Jewel).

 

I just read how fees are accessed for Panama canal transits. Cruise ships are charged by the number of berths on board. Occupied berths are $115 and unoccupied berths are $92. I would imagine all ports either charge by the head or by the size of the ship (Valor is 20,000 tons bigger than the Jewel and carries over 800 more passengers).

 

But not knowing how each port accesses fees, who really knows. If you take two similar sized ships that are going to identical ports on identical dates and still have a significant difference, then one might have a gripe.

[TPFKAH]

I personally think Carnival plays fast and loose with those taxes and fees.

 

I have questioned forever what are they really? Why are they constantly going up and down?

 

I have decided it is like when you buy something on ebay and the item cost $2 but shipping and handling is $25. Then when you get it, it has a 49 cent stamp on it.

 

Intend to agree with you. They are doing everything they can to keep as much out of the base fare as the can to have those "low fares". For some reason, many Carnival passengers don't use the "+" sign to figure out what they are actually paying. That base fare + taxes + fees + tips + excursions + on board sail and sign charges, a $549 fare can suddenly be $1200, the same as many paid for a cruise 20'years ago.

[camper49]

All i know is we booked our Sunshine 2015 cruise while on the Liberty in Jan...and since then the port fees/taxes have gone up $48.18..

[ferfoodle]

All i know is we booked our Sunshine 2015 cruise while on the Liberty in Jan...and since then the port fees/taxes have gone up $48.18..

 

Did your itinerary change? Perhaps going to Bonaire now instead of Curacao? Port changes do change the fees. I also have seen the taxes/fees change multiple times before each of my sailings sometimes up, sometimes down. If you look in your cruise docs, they do say they are subject to change and if they go down, you will get an OBC at sailing. If they go up, they reserve the right to charge you the addition even if paid in full. I have never heard anyone nor experienced myself CCL charging the extra though.

[camper49]

Did your itinerary change? Perhaps going to Bonaire now instead of Curacao? Port changes do change the fees. I also have seen the taxes/fees change multiple times before each of my sailings sometimes up, sometimes down. If you look in your cruise docs, they do say they are subject to change and if they go down, you will get an OBC at sailing. If they go up, they reserve the right to charge you the addition even if paid in full. I have never heard anyone nor experienced myself CCL charging the extra though.

 

No changes..we are western...hoping they don't charge us more even though they "have the right to do so"

[Sparky2]

Did your itinerary change? Perhaps going to Bonaire now instead of Curacao? Port changes do change the fees. I also have seen the taxes/fees change multiple times before each of my sailings sometimes up, sometimes down. If you look in your cruise docs, they do say they are subject to change and if they go down, you will get an OBC at sailing. If they go up, they reserve the right to charge you the addition even if paid in full. I have never heard anyone nor experienced myself CCL charging the extra though.

 

 

 

Our taxes also have gone up for our B2B January 2015 that we booked this past January.

 

They will raise the taxes to the current amount if you request a price drop. We recently had our 1st price drop on one of our Jan 2015 cruises. It was for $100, but when they upped the taxes, we actually received $75.66 a price drop.

Edited June 1, 2014 by Sparky2

[TennesseeTater]

My PVP told me recently that port charges and fees fluctuate from day to day. When you book your cruise they charge you fees based on an "estimated guess". As passengers we are only charged for the port fees on the actual day we visit or embark that port. When you visit these ports you usually have paid too much so when you check your sail and sign account that's why you always see little credits of 2 or 3 dollars. (At least I always see them). My guess is if they under charge you they can't charge you the difference to make up for it so they over charge knowing some will be credited back to you. Hope that makes sense.

[Elaine5715]

Each port negotiates its own fees. The amounts change as agreements change. You can only compare the port fee for the same port on the same day.

[firerunner]

Each port negotiates its own fees. The amounts change as agreements change. You can only compare the port fee for the same port on the same day.

 

And not just the same port on the same day but also

 

1) Number of passengers

2) Tonnage of ship

3) Anchorage dues

4) Dock Fees

5) Tugboat/pilotage fes

4) Services rendered (sewage, water etc)

 

In order to be far in accessing the differences in fees we would have to have two identical ship, (weight, length #passengers) using identical services for the same amount of time in port..

 

Ya port fees and taxes stink..but it is a necessary evil

[xitappers2bx]

Can someone explain the tremendous difference in Port Fees/Taxes charged by Carnival as compared to their competition (i.e., RCI, NCL etc). We have recently cruised on other lines and CCL's fees/taxes are always higher (most of the time between 50%-100%) their competition.

 

To make a completely fair comparison....in January 2015 we are sailing the RCI Jewel Southern Carib route out of San Juan....the Port Fees/Taxes we paid are $57.93 p/p. We are getting off the Jewel then right onto CCL Valor - the itinerary is almost identical Southern Carib itin (minus Martinique and Antigua), both are for 7 days, both are in balcony cabins, but Carnival's Port Fees/Taxes are $86.44?? WHY???? are they 50% higher?

 

 

i think the best way to determine the port charges and taxes would be to find two of the exact same itinerary on similarly sized ships. from what i've been told by friends that work within the industry it's not the cruise line, it's the port and country you're in.

[Jana60]

Can someone explain the tremendous difference in Port Fees/Taxes charged by Carnival as compared to their competition (i.e., RCI, NCL etc). We have recently cruised on other lines and CCL's fees/taxes are always higher (most of the time between 50%-100%) their competition.

 

To make a completely fair comparison....in January 2015 we are sailing the RCI Jewel Southern Carib route out of San Juan....the Port Fees/Taxes we paid are $57.93 p/p. We are getting off the Jewel then right onto CCL Valor - the itinerary is almost identical Southern Carib itin (minus Martinique and Antigua), both are for 7 days, both are in balcony cabins, but Carnival's Port Fees/Taxes are $86.44?? WHY???? are they 50% higher?

 

I think you're comparing cruises with different ports. I just checked and a NCL cruise with 3 ports of call in the Eastern Caribbean had port charges and taxes of $114. The Carnival cruise I checked had four ports of call and the port charges and taxes were $123. So not a significant difference when you consider Carnival had an extra port to pay port charges for. Also of note, the NCL cruise was over $100 more per person than Carnival.

 

 

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Edited June 2, 2014 by Jana60

[buddylover]

Size of ship? Length of time in port? What facilities/concessions does the ship need? Past history?

 

Would agree if I didn't just give you an example.....ships are fairly comparable, time in port on RCI actually is LONGER, ships need nothing different in facilities/concessions (but really don't understand what you mean by facilities and concession). We are not talking about a very small ship vs The Oasis of the Seas....we are talking fairly comparable...but LESS on RCI than CCL by 50%.

[buddylover]

I think you're comparing cruises with different ports. I just checked and a NCL cruise with 3 ports of call in the Eastern Caribbean had port charges and taxes of $114. The Carnival cruise I checked had four ports of call and the port charges and taxes were $123. So not a significant difference when you consider Carnival had an extra port to pay port charges for. Also of note, the NCL cruise was over $100 more per person than Carnival.

 

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Forums mobile app

 

Both ships are doing the Southern Caribbean route.....both are doing St. Thomas, and St. Lucia, both are doing 5 ports, as a matter of fact, the RCI ship is going further south to Grenada and Martinique......still a stunning difference in fees/taxes etc.

[DavyJoneses]

Size of ship? Length of time in port? What facilities/concessions does the ship need? Past history?

 

I think you might be correct. Fees could be based on size, number of passengers, time in port, etc. I wonder if they could also be based on the specific day you are in port?

[RuthlessBoss]

I think you might be correct. Fees could be based on size, number of passengers, time in port, etc. I wonder if they could also be based on the specific day you are in port?

 

I think there is more to pricing than we know;) I've had OBC on my bill, but didn't know why. Turns out they reimburse you if you've paid too much in the beginning. As one poster said, maybe the prices actually do fluctuate.

[ferfoodle]

Both ships are doing the Southern Caribbean route.....both are doing St. Thomas, and St. Lucia, both are doing 5 ports, as a matter of fact, the RCI ship is going further south to Grenada and Martinique......still a stunning difference in fees/taxes etc.

 

That is because each port accesses fees/taxes differently. Not knowing how each one does or the $ amount, one can only surmise. Perhaps Grenada only charges $5 per head but Barbados charges $20 per head, and so forth with the other ports?

 

To list comparable cruises check out CCL Paradise on 1/5/15 - a 5 day out of Tampa going to Cozumel and Grand Cayman. Then check out RCI Brilliance of the Seas also out of Tampa for 5 days and also going to Cozumel and Grand Cayman on 1/3/15. The fees/taxes for Paradise are $89.05 and for Brilliance $89.06. There is no difference - the penny is probably just a rounding factor.

 

Bottom line: the cruises on the Jewel and the Valor are both Southern Caribbean cruises, but going to only 2 common ports with 3 different ports each. Therefore, one would expect the taxes/fees to be different and sometimes that difference can be quite a lot.

Edited June 3, 2014 by ferfoodle

[andy.capitan]

All Carnival can do is estimate the taxes. They can go up or down. It is not unusual to see a small OBC on your Sail and Sign if they estimated high.

[n6uqqq]

My last cruise to the Mexican Riviera in late March were 65 per person and now for next year the same exact itinerary is 100 per person for port fees. Either the port fees are going up drastically or Carnival has done some sort of sleight of hand with the fees to make the basic cruise fare appear to be less. I am guessing it is the latter. Kind of like why the gratuities will never be included in the price, to keep the basic fare to appear as low as possible.

[TEXASMUNK]

Several years ago all the cruise lines were involved in a major suit over these charges. Since then they are regulated, checked, cross-checked and validates.

You might think you are getting ripped off, but the government is closely watching these charges today

[andy.capitan]

Port taxes and fees are the same, per person, whether in the cheapest stateroom, or the most expensive suite.

 

The ticket contract has more information

 

©Cruise Fare does not include Government taxes and fees imposed or sanctioned by the U.S. Government or other Governments. “Government Fees and Taxes” may include any and all fees, charges, tolls and taxes imposed by U.S. and/or foreign governmental or quasi-governmental authorities including, but not limited to, U.S. Customs fees, head taxes, Panama Canal tolls, dockage fees, wharfage fees, inspection fees, pilotage, air taxes, hotel or VAT taxes incurred as part of a land tour, immigration and naturalization fees, and Internal Revenue Service fees, whether assessed on a per passenger, per berth, per ton or per vessel basis. In the case of per ton or per vessel assessments, those assessments will be spread over the passenger capacity of the ship. Government Fees and Taxes are subject to change and Carnival reserves the right to collect any increases in effect at the time of sailing even if the fare has already been paid in full.

[dadroy]

Years ago we did two cruises from Tampa, to New Orleans for Fat Tuesday for Mardi Gras. The ship stayed in port Monday Morning to Wednesday 2am. The cruise is no longer offered. One of the reasons may be the cost of staying tied up to the dock for all those hours and the cruise line not wanting to pay the fees to stay there that long.

 

I mean seriously, a room in town on that weekend is $400 pp, who would not pay to be there for the biggest party time of the year, except the fees would make the cruise more expensive than comparable 7 day cruises.

[ferfoodle]

My last cruise to the Mexican Riviera in late March were 65 per person and now for next year the same exact itinerary is 100 per person for port fees. Either the port fees are going up drastically or Carnival has done some sort of sleight of hand with the fees to make the basic cruise fare appear to be less. I am guessing it is the latter. Kind of like why the gratuities will never be included in the price, to keep the basic fare to appear as low as possible.

 

I see that your March 2015 cruise is going to Cabo, Puerto Vallarta AND Mazatlan. Did your March 2014 cruise also go to Mazatlan? I think Carnival just recently added this port back in, and therefore, the logical assumption is the fees/taxes are higher because of this port.