Debit Card vs Credit Card

[judithann423]

We have just returned from Bali and the Hotel would not accept our Debit Card - we had to pay cash for all expenses ie food and drinks each time we made a purchase - not a problem.

 

This is our first time travelling without a credit card.

 

Are we going to have problems on Princess ?  Will we need to take some extra cash to put onto our onboard account as a guarantee?  If so, how much will Princess require?

 

Would appreciate your advices - Many thanks

 

 

 

 

[Hogbay]

Only have visa debit had no problems on two Coral Princess . Only put $200 cash on account and did not spend any . Had drink package .

[Aus Traveller]

Princess will accept a debit card or a credit card. They charge 1.1% on credit card balances, but nothing on a debit card. I have heard that, if you use a debit card, Princess will put a hold on a certain amount of your funds to make sure they have enough to cover your on-board account. Apparently they only release it some time after the cruise ends.

[OzKiwiJJ]

35 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

Princess will accept a debit card or a credit card. They charge 1.1% on credit card balances, but nothing on a debit card. I have heard that, if you use a debit card, Princess will put a hold on a certain amount of your funds to make sure they have enough to cover your on-board account. Apparently they only release it some time after the cruise ends.

With holds the cruise line, hotel or whatever usually releases them when the account is settled but the banks don't release them immediately.

[Aus Traveller]

13 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

With holds the cruise line, hotel or whatever usually releases them when the account is settled but the banks don't release them immediately.

I wasn't aware of the technicalities, but I have heard of people being 'caught short' when they get home from a cruise only to find that their bank account had a sizeable hold on it.

[OzKiwiJJ]

34 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

I wasn't aware of the technicalities, but I have heard of people being 'caught short' when they get home from a cruise only to find that their bank account had a sizeable hold on it.

Yes, it's a trap for the unwary. Best to put cash on your onboard account if you're using a debit card.

[arxcards]

They do take debit cards with no card fee and rarely an issue.

 

As is outlined already, a lingering bank hold can freeze some of your account balance and reduce your "available balance". They usually resolve within 48hrs, but give the appearance of being double charged until they do.

[judithann423]

Many thanks for your replies..yes I think the easiest way is to put some cash onto our account with Princess.  We have plenty of onboard credit and also the drinks package so can't see us spending too much, if any.

 

Presume the cash we put on will be refunded on the last day.

 

 Perhaps we should look at getting a credit card with minimal yearly fees to use purely for travelling. We thought we were simplifying our life by getting rid our old one.

 

 

[Aus Traveller]

Just now, judithann423 said:

Many thanks for your replies..yes I think the easiest way is to put some cash onto our account with Princess.  We have plenty of onboard credit and also the drinks package so can't see us spending too much, if any.

 

Presume the cash we put on will be refunded on the last day.

 

 Perhaps we should look at getting a credit card with minimal yearly fees to use purely for travelling. We thought we were simplifying our life by getting rid our old one.

If you put cash into your on-board account, get a statement on the last evening, then withdraw any credit balance remaining. At first, charges onto the account would be debited against your on-board credit and only after that has been extinguished, would charges go against cash you put into the account.

 

Depending on the type of travelling you do, sometimes a credit card is required for a person to hire a car, or even stay in some accommodation. We have found the latter to be more common overseas than in Australia.

[OzKiwiJJ]

10 minutes ago, judithann423 said:

Presume the cash we put on will be refunded on the last day.

 

 

 

I believe they only refund small amounts in cash on the last day. Anything over whatever the limit is will be refunded by cheque.

[Aus Traveller]

4 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

I believe they only refund small amounts in cash on the last day. Anything over whatever the limit is will be refunded by cheque.

We were told in the past that anything over $25 would be refunded by cheque. Therefore it would probably be better if Judithann waited until the last day then only put enough money into the account to cover any debit balance. We have done that on occasions.

[MicCanberra]

I prefer the credit card to debit as any holds are on the banks money and not mine.

[OzKiwiJJ]

If you're going to use a debit card  you need to ensure it has double (or more) the funds you expect to spend on your trip to allow for the reality that holds don't always come off as quickly as you expect.

 

And with a credit card you need to ensure your credit limit fits under the same rule.

[OzKiwiJJ]

1 hour ago, MicCanberra said:

I prefer the credit card to debit as any holds are on the banks money and not mine.

The holds go against your credit limit though.

[MicCanberra]

1 hour ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

The holds go against your credit limit though.

Of course, but it is in the banks interest that I have as much credit to use as possible, so there may be less delay, and my credit limit would always be much higher than any funds I have on  debit card

[Elorac123]

On 8/23/2022 at 4:32 PM, Aus Traveller said:

We were told in the past that anything over $25 would be refunded by cheque. Therefore it would probably be better if Judithann waited until the last day then only put enough money into the account to cover any debit balance. We have done that on occasions.

Why would they do that ?

If I gave them cash to cover I would want the cash back and not wait for months to get my money back, a nice little earner for them that is.

Cheers Carole

[Aus Traveller]

47 minutes ago, Elorac123 said:

Why would they do that ?

If I gave them cash to cover I would want the cash back and not wait for months to get my money back, a nice little earner for them that is.

Cheers Carole

There is a way to avoid having your money tied up. Keep it in the cabin safe and only pay what is required on the last night. Take the rest home. This also saves the cruise line the administrative cost of processing the refund.

[Elorac123]

4 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

There is a way to avoid having your money tied up. Keep it in the cabin safe and only pay what is required on the last night. Take the rest home. This also saves the cruise line the administrative cost of processing the refund.

I got the idea from somewhere you were obliged to either give them a  credit or debit card or cash upfront ?

CheersCarole

[Aus Traveller]

Just now, Elorac123 said:

I got the idea from somewhere you were obliged to either give them a  credit or debit card or cash upfront ?

CheersCarole

Yes, that is so. We always provide a credit card to the cruise company, but we have often checked our debit balance on the last night then paid that amount in cash leaving a nil balance.

[Elorac123]

17 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

Yes, that is so. We always provide a credit card to the cruise company, but we have often checked our debit balance on the last night then paid that amount in cash leaving a nil balance.

I have always done that when travelling with my husband but he is not able to go on the next cruise so taking a newcomer with me.

She does not want to use her credit card after Princess charged her 3 times (on her first ever cruise with me in June) for a future cruise deposit and said she will use cash upfront for our Feb cruise,she will not be impressed if she hands over cash and ends up with Cheque.

She will load what little onboard spending before  we go and has the plus package so will not likely use any of the cash deposit.

Cheers Carole

[Aus Traveller]

1 minute ago, Elorac123 said:

I have always done that when travelling with my husband but he is not able to go on the next cruise so taking a newcomer with me.

She does not want to use her credit card after Princess charged her 3 times (on her first ever cruise with me in June) for a future cruise deposit and said she will use cash upfront for our Feb cruise,she will not be impressed if she hands over cash and ends up with Cheque.

She will load what little onboard spending before  we go and has the plus package so will not likely use any of the cash deposit.

Cheers Carole

As you say, she wouldn't run up much on her account. Maybe she could keep hold of her own cash and pay it into her on-board account in increments as it is required but the ship will always want a sizeable credit balance when they don't have a credit or debit card.

 

If she had paid the money into her account, I think she should be able to get it refunded. We did on one occasion when we paid a sizeable amount into our account (against my advice - I wanted to keep it in the safe). When we were in Papeete I wanted to buy some pearls at a shop that wouldn't accept a credit card. I dashed back to the ship and went to the reception desk where they were quite happy to give me the credit amount remaining in our account. With that cash plus what we still had in the safe I had enough for my purchase.🙂

 

[qbay46]

12 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

Yes, that is so. We always provide a credit card to the cruise company, but we have often checked our debit balance on the last night then paid that amount in cash leaving a nil balance.

I have done exactly this many a time on our cruises, get $US before going on the cruise and pay the bill in cash on the last night.

[judithann423]

Some great ideas and good advice.

 

I can't seeing us spending the onboard credit but if we are getting close will just pop down and put on a bit of cash. 

 

Many thanks fellow cruisers