Canadian to US

[tobancruiser]

I phoned Celebrity and purchased the OBC over the phone. Definitely a better rate than I could receive at my bank. So glad I read about this on CC.

 

Thanks for the info

Karen

[Ruthk]

Last Sunday evening I purchased 36 units of OBC which showed I would be charged $30.60 CDN for each unit (25.US/unit). excellent exchange rate! Several days later when I went on the internet to view my CDN. MasterCard transactions I saw that I was charged $36.68 CDN instead of the $30.60CDN. Therefore I was over charged $218.88CDN. in total.

 

 

I was prepared for a fight and had copied all my receipts and also noted every single person I spoke with from Captains Club. I had to send a fax of my M/c statement showing the Celebrity overcharge and also any relevant receipts from Celebrity.

 

I was happy to get a message from Celebrity today that they would honour the 30.60Cdn/unit and credit my charge card the 218.88CDN.

 

So I am very happy it all worked out in the end and I have 36 units at an extremely wonderful price.

 

I found the Celebrity people I spoke with courteous and friendly with a willingness to get things right. It did take two days.

 

Lastly, my cruise was booked with my US MasterCard. I don't see how that interferes with OBC's as others have stated. My OBC were paid with my CDN MasterCard.

 

So it all ended well or me!

[homers mom]

Last Sunday evening I purchased 36 units of OBC which showed I would be charged $30.60 CDN for each unit (25.US/unit). excellent exchange rate! Several days later when I went on the internet to view my CDN. MasterCard transactions I saw that I was charged $36.68 CDN instead of the $30.60CDN. Therefore I was over charged $218.88CDN. in total.

 

 

I was prepared for a fight and had copied all my receipts and also noted every single person I spoke with from Captains Club. I had to send a fax of my M/c statement showing the Celebrity overcharge and also any relevant receipts from Celebrity.

 

I was happy to get a message from Celebrity today that they would honour the 30.60Cdn/unit and credit my charge card the 218.88CDN.

 

 

 

So I am very happy it all worked out in the end and I have 36 units at an extremely wonderful price.

 

I found the Celebrity people I spoke with courteous and friendly with a willingness to get things right. It did take two days.

 

Lastly, my cruise was booked with my US MasterCard. I don't see how that interferes with OBC's as others have stated. My OBC were paid with my CDN MasterCard.

 

So it all ended well or me!

 

Glad to hear you are happy! I actually feel really sorry for all the agents at Celebrity who have had to deal with thousands of irate Canadians who purchased at one price and were charged at another. It certainly wasn't their fault yet they were the punching bags at the end of our phone lines.

However my big gripe lies with management as there were so many inconsistencies in the methods offered to fix the situation. Some people were told it was tough luck and had to fight for their rights. I was offered 4 extra non refundable credits to compensate. My brother was given a credit card refund. So I had to call back again and patiently wait an hour till I was number one in line and then got to speak to an agent. So much wasted time till I too got my credit card refunded.

I am sure Celebrity lost a big chunk of change from their error but wouldn't the right thing to do have been that they send a mass email to everyone who had bought at $30.60 telling them they would be refunded via their method of payment. Bingo, we all would have been happy and problem solved and hours of time saved for their staff and their customers. This whole experience kind of leaves me with a sour taste in my mouth.

Edited January 16, 2016 by homers mom

[Oceangoer2]

Just worked something out as an example. At my bank, the Cdn $ is now trading this AM at $1.4856. The X site has been amended to show exchange rate is 34.40. About .14c on the $.

 

Rounding out the numbers, I can purchase from X 5 units @ 34.40 = $172.00 Cdn or $125 US ($47 cost)....Cdn bank would sell me $120 US for $178 Cdn ($58 cost). $5 less US $ and $11 more in Cdn. Correct my math if I'm off base.

Edited January 16, 2016 by oceangoer2

[koolforkatz]

Check your grats too. Depending when you book it will be advantageous to prebook your gratuties. A friend of mine was just able to prebook her grats (in Canadian $) at a rate which worked out to about $1.23. Had she waited until on board, and then had her bank convert when she got back it would have cost her another $80 or so.

[homers mom]

Just worked something out as an example. At my bank, the Cdn $ is now trading this AM at $1.4856. The X site has been amended to show exchange rate is 34.40. About .14c on the $.

 

Rounding out the numbers, I can purchase from X 5 units @ 34.40 = $172.00 Cdn or $125 US ($47 cost)....Cdn bank would sell me $120 US for $178 Cdn ($58 cost). $5 less US $ and $11 more in Cdn. Correct my math if I'm off base.

If you buy from X you correctly pay CAD $172. However at the exchange rate at the bank if you ask for USD for CAD 172 you will get USD116.21. So for USD125 thru X you save CAD9.00. Doesn't sound like much but then you r talking about 5 units. If you buy more you are saving a significant amounted eg 36 units equals CAD1238.40 which equals USD 900. At the bank USD900 will cost you CAD CAD1332. A savings of CAD 100. The beauty of this is that if you use a cash account on check in you will be refunded in USD at the end of the cruise and you can stash it in a USD account at home to use if necessary. It has been mentioned by those in the know that our dollar could drop as low as 60 cents US, so it's a worthwhile investment if you are planning to travel again in the next year or so. It will be quite a while before our dollar rebounds so I think it's a pretty secure thing to do

[Oceangoer2]

Check your grats too. Depending when you book it will be advantageous to prebook your gratuties. A friend of mine was just able to prebook her grats (in Canadian $) at a rate which worked out to about $1.23. Had she waited until on board, and then had her bank convert when she got back it would have cost her another $80 or so.

We really have to be mathematicians to work all this out...! Dollar is sinking v US $. Down to .55c by end of year possibly so pressure is to book now at going rates. Decision has to be is the cruise experience worth it?

[Ruthk]

All I know is I bought 36 units @ $30.60 CDN.

Each unit is worth 25.00 US.

25.00 US x 36 units = 900.00 US

30.60 CDN x 36 units = 1,101.60 CDN - is what it cost me

BMO at today's rate of 1.4791 would have cost me 1,331.19

 

Therefore I saved $229.59 CDN

[Oceangoer2]

All I know is I bought 36 units @ $30.60 CDN.

Each unit is worth 25.00 US.

25.00 US x 36 units = 900.00 US

30.60 CDN x 36 units = 1,101.60 CDN - is what it cost me

BMO at today's rate of 1.4791 would have cost me 1,331.19

 

Therefore I saved $229.59 CDN

Good point...I was quoting TD bank rate 11am today at 1.4856 and X rate of 34.40 = a little difference in savings. DH wonders how long X allows us to do this.

 

Going to the bank right now to purchase US $$$$ as we're pretty certain it's not going to lose value for the rest of this year. Another investment isn't a bad idea with Cdn bank accounts not paying any interest.

[Elusive_Cruiser]

All I know is I bought 36 units @ $30.60 CDN.

Each unit is worth 25.00 US.

25.00 US x 36 units = 900.00 US

30.60 CDN x 36 units = 1,101.60 CDN - is what it cost me

BMO at today's rate of 1.4791 would have cost me 1,331.19

 

Therefore I saved $229.59 CDN

 

Exactly!

[Strathroy6onthego]

how do we go about purchasing OBC online.......new to this. Thanks

[gold1953]

how do we go about purchasing OBC online.......new to this. Thanks

Celebrity homepage

 

 

.. bottom and column on the far right you see.. Gifts By Celebrity.. ( make sure the country shown in this column is canada

 

Then to.... Delivery Aboard,, and on that page you will find onboard credit. The price shown is for one unit of $25 US

 

. You can buy up to 9 units but can repeat the purchase

[Strathroy6onthego]

Thanks Gold.....all worked out.

 

Couple of other quick questions if I may

 

1. Can I use the onboard credit to pay for gratuities at the end of the week, or does that need to be paid in cash?

 

2. Do you recommend converting this to a cash account once onboard, so that I can get back anything that may be unused from the OBC?

 

Very much ppreciate your assistance.

[Oceangoer2]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2099172

Thanks Gold.....all worked out.

 

Couple of other quick questions if I may

 

1. Can I use the onboard credit to pay for gratuities at the end of the week, or does that need to be paid in cash?

 

2. Do you recommend converting this to a cash account once onboard, so that I can get back anything that may be unused from the OBC?

 

Very much ppreciate your assistance.

The refundable purchased OBC is included in your account along with any non-refundable OBC perk received with your booking. The account has a declining balance according to your charges. Gratuities are charged daily and are one of your expenses so the OBC will be used against those charges.

 

Some posters say you should change your account from credit card to cash when you check in then withdraw any balance in cash when you leave. Never have done this so just repeating what others have said they've done. If you have a refundable OBC balance on your account at the end of your cruise, it will be credited to the credit card used at check-in. You lose any non-refundable OBC.

 

Lots of good answers to your question here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2099172

 

 

Hope this helps.

Edited January 18, 2016 by oceangoer2

[homers mom]

The purchased OBC is included in your account. The account has a declining balance according to your charges. Gratuities are one of your charges so the OBC will be used against those charges. However that is a refundable OBC; the non-refundable OBC given as a perk from X will be used before any refundable OBC.

 

Some posters say you should change your account from credit card to cash when you check in then withdraw any balance in cash when you leave. Never have done this so just repeating what others have said they've done. If you have a balance on your account at the end of your cruise, it will be credited to the credit card used at check-in.

 

Hope this helps.

 

The reason to ask for cash account is to get refunded in USD at the end instead of a credit on your card. I, too, have never done this before, but with the plunging CAD which may go as low 55 cents, it's well worth keeping your USD for the future when you may want to travel again. Wherever you go, somehow USD come into play somewhere along the line. I bought at 30.60 and it was a real win, but even now at 34.40 it still is about 10 cents cheaper than exchanging at the bank. TD quoted 1.48 this morning. 34.40 works out at 1.37. We may wait a long time to see our dollar recover. So this is a saving for the future

Edited January 18, 2016 by homers mom

[Ex-Airbalancer]

Thanks Gold.....all worked out.

 

Couple of other quick questions if I may

 

1. Can I use the onboard credit to pay for gratuities at the end of the week, or does that need to be paid in cash?

 

2. Do you recommend converting this to a cash account once onboard, so that I can get back anything that may be unused from the OBC?

 

Very much ppreciate your assistance.

 

We have a TD visa US credit card , we use that card on the ship, any refundable OBC was refunded to that credit card

[mickey89]

When you board get a cc account, on the last cruise day change to a cash account if you have OBR credit remaining. Guest Relations will give the balance to you in cash

[Dawg74]

When you board get a cc account, on the last cruise day change to a cash account if you have OBR credit remaining. Guest Relations will give the balance to you in cash

 

How do you actually go about changing to a cash account? Do you just go to guest relations and tell them you want to remove your credit card from the account and have a cash account? Then if it's the last day of the cruise, ask them for the money that's in it? I have never done this before so I just wanted to understand the process.

[Elusive_Cruiser]

Hoping some recent Equinox pax can pipe in with their experience with both pulling out cash mid-cruise and cashing out at the end.

 

As it is our intent to pull cash out as we go, I will definitely report back. Since our cruise is virtually AI, other than internet, for which we have X onboard credit to use, we will have no additional onboard charges. We will definitely make this a cash account when we check in. With $1K of purchased OBC, no reason not to. Have our backup plan in case we cannot draw cash as we go!

[opuscat1]

This was a very useful thread someone should start a Tips for Canadians sticky or something :)

 

So after searching for exchange rate information and reading through these pages my take away in a nutshell is:

 

1. Buy OBC where you can, much better exchange. But you would've had to have booked your cruise in Canadian Dollars. That part seems annoying and I wonder why but so be it.

 

I booked mine in U.S. dollars alas via an online TA that had a bunch of rooms in a group I figure quite a few people probably do something similar you seem to get a little better deal. Well, better than on the Celeb site directly.

 

I digress slowly to my end question ... so is the exchange rate posted only for buying OBC then? I've read in other threads it's a terrible idea to let Celebrity do my dollar conversion for me? But if they use the same exchange rate as OBC purchases I would be a fool not too. I've yet to check the box on my boarding pass on whether to just allow my CC company to do it or to let Celebrity do it. I suppose I could check with Guest relations when I'm on the boat and change it one way or the other? I don't sail til April so it's a little bit yet. Tx

[Oceangoer2]

The reason to ask for cash account is to get refunded in USD at the end instead of a credit on your card. I, too, have never done this before, but with the plunging CAD which may go as low 55 cents, it's well worth keeping your USD for the future when you may want to travel again. Wherever you go, somehow USD come into play somewhere along the line. I bought at 30.60 and it was a real win, but even now at 34.40 it still is about 10 cents cheaper than exchanging at the bank. TD quoted 1.48 this morning. 34.40 works out at 1.37. We may wait a long time to see our dollar recover. So this is a saving for the future

It's .4546 this morning, down the past 2 days from 1.50.......wonder if this indicates the start of a swing up for us against the US $? Economists think it'll stay depressed for a few years.

[Cruisennerable]

How do you actually go about changing to a cash account?

 

When I completed my online check in; I signed up for a cash account and did not add a credit card. If you have not completed your online check in you may do so then

[Elusive_Cruiser]

 

I digress slowly to my end question ... so is the exchange rate posted only for buying OBC then? I've read in other threads it's a terrible idea to let Celebrity do my dollar conversion for me? But if they use the same exchange rate as OBC purchases I would be a fool not too. I've yet to check the box on my boarding pass on whether to just allow my CC company to do it or to let Celebrity do it. I suppose I could check with Guest relations when I'm on the boat and change it one way or the other? I don't sail til April so it's a little bit yet. Tx

 

Have Celebrity let your credit card do the exchange - Celebrity rate is higher (unless things have changed in the past year)

Edited January 22, 2016 by Elusive_Cruiser

[homers mom]

Hoping some recent Equinox pax can pipe in with their experience with both pulling out cash mid-cruise and cashing out at the end.

 

As it is our intent to pull cash out as we go, I will definitely report back. Since our cruise is virtually AI, other than internet, for which we have X onboard credit to use, we will have no additional onboard charges. We will definitely make this a cash account when we check in. With $1K of purchased OBC, no reason not to. Have our backup plan in case we cannot draw cash as we go!

 

We are in exactly the same situation. I really only bought the OBCs because of the excellent exchange rate and plan to bring back most if not all of it. I have read so many conflicting reports re drawing money mid cruise, the general consensus is it cannot be done. I think it depends very much upon each ship and the purser. There doesn't seem to be a Celebrity rule across the board as I have already found out when we were all recently fighting for our quoted OBC price which they upped substantially when they were processed. If you are refused cash you can always get some at the casino where they charge 5% commission. We also have a nice chunk of non refundable OBCs and these are used first so I don't really mind if we lose a few dollars. May I ask what your back up plan is?

[homers mom]

This was a very useful thread someone should start a Tips for Canadians sticky or something :)

 

So after searching for exchange rate information and reading through these pages my take away in a nutshell is:

 

1. Buy OBC where you can, much better exchange. But you would've had to have booked your cruise in Canadian Dollars. That part seems annoying and I wonder why but so be it.

 

I booked mine in U.S. dollars alas via an online TA that had a bunch of rooms in a group I figure quite a few people probably do something similar you seem to get a little better deal. Well, better than on the Celeb site directly.

 

I digress slowly to my end question ... so is the exchange rate posted only for buying OBC then? I've read in other threads it's a terrible idea to let Celebrity do my dollar conversion for me? But if they use the same exchange rate as OBC purchases I would be a fool not too. I've yet to check the box on my boarding pass on whether to just allow my CC company to do it or to let Celebrity do it. I suppose I could check with Guest relations when I'm on the boat and change it one way or the other? I don't sail til April so it's a little bit yet. Tx

 

Have you actually tried buying OBCs yourself? I have read a few postings from people who bought the cruise in USD and were still able to buy OBCs on the Celebrity site. Do not let Celebrity do the exchange rate. It will be even worse than the credit card rate and that is bad enough as they charge a couple of percent more for their service. If you really cannot buy OBCs I would watch the exchange rate very carefully, it seems to be stabilizing at around 70 cents. If it goes up a few cents then my suggestion would be to buy USD cash and pay as much as possible as you can that way. Also check your bank's exchange rate versus what you would pay at a currency exchange place. I know from our cruise last year we got a much better deal getting Chilean pesos there. You can call around to various exchange places and see who offers the best rate. My brother got a better deal than I did so there is a definite variance in their rates.