Credit Card Conversion Fees for Onboard Account

[drakes2]

Sailing on the Vista in a week with my family of 7, there will be 3 separate accounts. We are all Canadian with CDN credit cards. Does the ship still charge a conversion fee or exchange rate, this has happened to me in the past, so I now just use US currency onboard and suggested this to my other family members. My bank will also convert at the current exchange rate plus 2.5%. It's been many years since I've used a credit card to pay my account so unsure if this is still the case. Thanks for all responses.

[SLCfirsttimer]

I'm not sure I understand the question, are you asking if carnival charges a conversion fee if you use your card on board? If that is what you are asking, it is typically the credit card issuer that charges a conversion fee, not the company who is charging your credit card.

 

 

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[riffatsea]

Agree that it is your credit card that charges a conversion fee to change from Canadian dollars to USA dollars.

I have heard that many Canadians have a USA bank account with a USA credit card to use for these sorts of situations.

[Essiesmom]

The question should be 'Do you want the ship to convert your bill from US$ to CDN$, or leave it for the credit card company to do it?' the answer is that the ship will give you a worse rate than the credit card company. So, if the ship asks this, tell them not to do it. On some lines, it's part of the boarding pass that you hand in at checkin. EM

[drakes2]

On our first cruise in 2005 I paid for our onboard account with my Canadian credit card. At that time, the cards were run through the system the night before debarkation, and a small fee was assessed by the company that did the conversion and then once the card hit the bank was charged again by the card issuer at whatever the exchange rate of the day was. Since I no longer use a card onboard, not sure if this is still done. My other family members were planning on using the CC, I plan on using the cash I have already purchased from my bank when I saw the rates were good. (not so good today) I also have a USD credit card, but was told the ship's system has no way of knowing the card should be charged in USD and was converting that as well. When I called Carnival they did not know the answer to my question so I figured these boards are my best source of information.

The question should be 'Do you want the ship to convert your bill from US$ to CDN$, or leave it for the credit card company to do it?' the answer is that the ship will give you a worse rate than the credit card company. So, if the ship asks this, tell them not to do it. On some lines, it's part of the boarding pass that you hand in at checkin. EM

[I Am Canadian, Eh]

Sailing on the Vista in a week with my family of 7, there will be 3 separate accounts. We are all Canadian with CDN credit cards. Does the ship still charge a conversion fee or exchange rate, this has happened to me in the past, so I now just use US currency onboard and suggested this to my other family members. My bank will also convert at the current exchange rate plus 2.5%. It's been many years since I've used a credit card to pay my account so unsure if this is still the case. Thanks for all responses.

 

Unless something has changed very recently, Carnival does not give the option for DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) the way some other lines do. It will be billed exactly in USD from Carnival and then your bank will do the exchange at whatever the current exchange rate is)

 

But as others have said, if confronted with that option in your travels (I've had that option on other cruiselines and at various stores, supermarkets and one gas station I believe) , definitely choose USD and then you know you're getting the current bank rate vs some unknown marked up rate.

 

I personally miss the cards just burying the 2.5% into the exchange rate, I'd rather not see it as a separate entry, but that's just me I suppose.

Edited January 25, 2017 by I Am Canadian, Eh

[drakes2]

Thanks for the information. My family is now going to pay the onboard account in Cash. I agree that Carnival does not seem to give you the option of having them or your bank do the currency conversion as other lines do. When I travelled to Europe this past summer, I used my MasterCard from Rogers Bank as at the time they did not charge foreign currency conversion fees, and I was so happy when I got my statement in the mail as I paid exactly what I was expecting with the bank just doing the conversion. (I think that has all changed now BTW, effective October 1, so now to offset the difference Rogers Bank is giving 4% cash back on foreign currency charges. Oh well, it's better than a kick in the butt!

Unless something has changed very recently, Carnival does not give the option for DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) the way some other lines do. It will be billed exactly in USD from Carnival and then your bank will do the exchange at whatever the current exchange rate is)

 

But as others have said, if confronted with that option in your travels (I've had that option on other cruiselines and at various stores, supermarkets and one gas station I believe) , definitely choose USD and then you know you're getting the current bank rate vs some unknown marked up rate.

 

I personally miss the cards just burying the 2.5% into the exchange rate, I'd rather not see it as a separate entry, but that's just me I suppose.

[Retired_to_Cruise]

It seems to me that however you do it, you will face conversion rate issues. Even if you have a U.S. bank account and U.S. credit card, when you take your Canadian dollars and move them to that U.S. account there will be conversion rate costs. You just have to determine which method has the best conversion rate.