ozblue_7 Posted September 7, 2015 #1 Share Posted September 7, 2015 (edited) With the falling dollar, I'm contemplating buying on board credit for my September 2016 Mediterranean cruise to cover gratuities. Does anybody know the current AUD/USD exchange rate offered by HAL, or will I be charged in US dollars, and be subject to my banks rate at the time? Edited September 7, 2015 by ozblue_7 added offered by HAL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Kruzer Posted September 7, 2015 #2 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Another option would be to simply buy the cash from your bank ,or whom ever you choose ,and then you would have US dollars locked in at todays rate. A problem we have struck in the past is that when we have done a deal ,or paid an account with the cruise line , they have held onto it and not presented it to the bank for 2 or 3 weeks , by which time the exchange rate has moved even more in their favour. Its a bit like Foreign Currency trading, you have to gamble depending on whether you think its going up or down..:eek: We have locked in cash before only to find that the rate improved before sailing..:rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dillpickle48 Posted September 7, 2015 #3 Share Posted September 7, 2015 If you buy OBC with Hal now they will charge you at today's rates. If the au Dollar goes down you win. If it goes up you lose. Can't see it going up, so I would buy OBC now. I have done this on each of my HAL cruises. I like to pay as much as I can so that I don't suffer from bill shock at the end of the cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fletch1 Posted September 7, 2015 #4 Share Posted September 7, 2015 As a comparison.....I am on a Princess cruise in November and pre purchased some OBC a couple of weeks ago. The exchange rate was AUD$550 for US$500, or just under .91 and still was a couple of days ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozblue_7 Posted September 7, 2015 Author #5 Share Posted September 7, 2015 Well, 91c is amazing, and on another thread cruisers are reporting 76c from other cruise lines. When I go on the HAL site, to buy $100US is billed as $100US, so I imagine if I click buy I will be charged at todays exchange rate. Is HAL different in this respect or am I missing something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aus Traveller Posted September 7, 2015 #6 Share Posted September 7, 2015 I understand that Princess set their exchange rate for the "season". This time we win, but often it is the other way around. I do not know if HAL works the same way or if you will simply be charged at today's exchange rate. If no-one can tell you definitely, maybe you could buy (say) $100 worth of OBC and see what the charge is in AUD. If it is really good, you can buy more pretty quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozblue_7 Posted September 9, 2015 Author #7 Share Posted September 9, 2015 I understand that Princess set their exchange rate for the "season". This time we win, but often it is the other way around. I do not know if HAL works the same way or if you will simply be charged at today's exchange rate. If no-one can tell you definitely, maybe you could buy (say) $100 worth of OBC and see what the charge is in AUD. If it is really good, you can buy more pretty quickly. Yes, looks like I'll have to just buy some as you suggest. Not today though dollar going up.:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dillpickle48 Posted September 10, 2015 #8 Share Posted September 10, 2015 Dollar did not stay up long. Did a test run on the Holland site by purchasing $100US. Took 2 days to appear on my account. Cost $148Au. As I remember from past purchases Holland uses the most recent exchange rate at the time of processing in the US plus a 1.5 to 2% exchange rate charge. If US raise their interest rates as predicted next week, we can expect further falls in the Aussie dollar. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozblue_7 Posted September 10, 2015 Author #9 Share Posted September 10, 2015 Thanks Dillpickle that confirms it, they use the current exchange rate which in your case was 67-68c. :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karennella Posted September 10, 2015 #10 Share Posted September 10, 2015 Seems the dollar could fall to 65. We buy cash when we can but it is a bit depressing at the moment! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubbles2014 Posted September 11, 2015 #11 Share Posted September 11, 2015 (edited) Can anyone tell me what the exchange rate if purchasing USA$$ on board for taking ashore. we will be on the Dawn Princes next week and only require a few USA $$$$$ spending money Trying to decide if to purchase a few $$$ before we go or as we need it onboard? thanks B Edited September 11, 2015 by bubbles2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Big_M Posted September 11, 2015 #12 Share Posted September 11, 2015 If you only want a small amount - 50US? - I'd just do it onboard. The hassle of shopping around, finding outlets with the right denominations, some with minimum order limits aren't worth the savings of say $5 at most. Of course, if you're talking $500US, it may be worth it. So depends what sort of amount you're considering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubbles2014 Posted September 11, 2015 #13 Share Posted September 11, 2015 If you only want a small amount - 50US? - I'd just do it onboard. The hassle of shopping around, finding outlets with the right denominations, some with minimum order limits aren't worth the savings of say $5 at most. Of course, if you're talking $500US, it may be worth it. So depends what sort of amount you're considering. yep only about that much....thanks for the confirmation :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare lyndarra Posted September 11, 2015 #14 Share Posted September 11, 2015 You can get US$ from your local post office. Check their rates too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now