"Knock-Off purses" on Western Carib. Cruise

[tammymacb]

I don't mean to be snarky. Really. But, why in the world do you even want a fake purse? No matter what you want to believe, you can easily tell the difference....

 

Last May, I was taking DD into the straw market in Nassau to buy some bathing suit wraps, I was carrying my "real" purse and walking through and heard a woman comment on my bag ( a local vendor ) to another woman.."See, she's got a REAL one.."

 

If I can't afford a real one, I'll find nice, non designer bag that's affordable, and be happy with that. But, you won't see me carrying a fake..

[Kurbanfan]

O.K. the "OP" is back from the cruise !!!!!! I went with my daughter who also went with me a year and a half ago. She bought a "knock off" then, uses it daily and was still using it on this cruise and it is still in great shape !!! For anyone interested, Belize IS the place to look for them...... Thanks for all the input on both sides of the issue :D

 

Glad you found what you wanted.......thanks for the info:)

[a3593]

O.K. the "OP" is back from the cruise !!!!!! I went with my daughter who also went with me a year and a half ago. She bought a "knock off" then, uses it daily and was still using it on this cruise and it is still in great shape !!! For anyone interested, Belize IS the place to look for them...... Thanks for all the input on both sides of the issue :D

 

Well, glad you enjoyed yourself. Just ignore the Cruise Critic "police." :rolleyes: It's not really our business what you purchase, unless you specifically pose that question to us.

[NutsAboutGolf]

O.K. the "OP" is back from the cruise !!!!!! I went with my daughter who also went with me a year and a half ago. She bought a "knock off" then, uses it daily and was still using it on this cruise and it is still in great shape !!! For anyone interested, Belize IS the place to look for them...... Thanks for all the input on both sides of the issue :D

 

 

Thanks for the follow up :)

[laylac]

I have read ALL the posts in this thread and have found it very amusing.

 

As for "anybody who has been around real ones" being able to spot a fake, I know I couldn't. (unless it was real junk)

 

And yes, I have a number of real designer bags at varying price points, both big names and lesser known designers including Gucci, Prada, Chanel, Mui Mui, Kate Spade, Coach, Fendi, Harl Taylor, Luella, etc, etc.

 

I also have bags from Target, Marshalls, and Burlington Coat Factory.

 

(I just realized that maybe I have too many bags. lol)

 

I promise that when I walk by you I am not looking to see if your bag is real. I really don't care. And as said before, I don't have any idea how to tell. I have not "studied" the designer bags I have such that I could spot the differences, and frankly, I don't know anyone who has.

 

I will say that if I walk into a shop, bedraggled and in old jeans after a hard morning with the kiddos, I get far better service if I am carrying my Gucci diaper bag than I do carrying my Skip Hop one.

 

To the OP, I hope your daughter loves her new bag.

[NKG6002]

I don't mean to be snarky. Really. But, why in the world do you even want a fake purse? No matter what you want to believe, you can easily tell the difference....

 

Last May, I was taking DD into the straw market in Nassau to buy some bathing suit wraps, I was carrying my "real" purse and walking through and heard a woman comment on my bag ( a local vendor ) to another woman.."See, she's got a REAL one.."

 

If I can't afford a real one, I'll find nice, non designer bag that's affordable, and be happy with that. But, you won't see me carrying a fake..

 

My daughters intent is NOT to try to impress "unknowing people" that the bag they are carrying is very expensive and that it elevates them to some

higher and impressive social strata. THEY LIKE THE DESIGN !!!!! When my daughter gets a compliment she readily says "oh, this is my"faoch", meaning fake-coach. I surely wish we had a more flexable financial state to be able to think nothing of spending hundreds of dollars on a handbag....but that ain't gonna happen with priorites of home, family, education etc. Then charities would step on so I guess we will never see a reason to spend so much on so little. BTW... we were in the Coach outlet in San Juan years ago.... NO purses in the $50 range !!! Wallets were..not purses. Anyhow, I am signing off this thread forever....... Happy New Year everyone !!!

[laylac]

In case you are still reading, just not replying...the Lake George, NY area Coach Outlet has many BAGS in the $50 or less category. They are what I gave two of my neices for Christmas this year. The Coach Store in our mall does not have any such deals. Always amuses me since the 2 stores are almost the same distance from my home.

 

Just mentioning it because If you can find an Outlet near you, it might make for a really special gift at (a much more affordable price) for your daughter at some point in the future.

[HAULNTA]

Belize . . not in the main "mall" area but off to the right.

I Agree

[kwbound]

In case you are still reading, just not replying...the Lake George, NY area Coach Outlet has many BAGS in the $50 or less category. They are what I gave two of my neices for Christmas this year. The Coach Store in our mall does not have any such deals. Always amuses me since the 2 stores are almost the same distance from my home.

 

Just mentioning it because If you can find an Outlet near you, it might make for a really special gift at (a much more affordable price) for your daughter at some point in the future.

 

 

I'm envious! There are two Coach outlet stores that I shop in, one in Cypress, TX and one in San Marcos, TX, and I've never seen any bags for $50, or even close. I shopped for a wallet for months and could never find one cheaper than $68 and that was on the 50% off table, with an additional 20% coupon. I wanted one of the larger wallets, so maybe the smaller ones might have been cheaper. The smallest amount I paid for a bag was $90 and it was so small that after trying to use it a time or two I gave up and gave it to my niece. (Here in Texas we still like big hair and big bags!....or at least I do!)

[laylac]

I'm envious! There are two Coach outlet stores that I shop in, one in Cypress, TX and one in San Marcos, TX, and I've never seen any bags for $50, or even close. I shopped for a wallet for months and could never find one cheaper than $68 and that was on the 50% off table, with an additional 20% coupon. I wanted one of the larger wallets, so maybe the smaller ones might have been cheaper. The smallest amount I paid for a bag was $90 and it was so small that after trying to use it a time or two I gave up and gave it to my niece. (Here in Texas we still like big hair and big bags!....or at least I do!)

 

Well, we may be able to get "more Coach for our money" up here, but I bet you can get far more house for yours (plus better weather!) so don't be TOO envious!

[NutsAboutGolf]

What I find amusing is people who claim they can spot fakes from a mile away...This is really only true with BAD fakes...Many fakes you can get today is made by the exact same child laborers who make the real ones. TRAINED EXPERTS at Coach and L.V. have problems with spotting counterfeits...People will buy handbag from them and return them for whatever reason. Some fraudsters buy a real one and try to return a fake one and often get refunded by the trained expert.

 

The exterior of the bag is generally the hardest to tell if it's fake as that is where the makers spend the most amount of time and energy on. Overwhelming majority of the exteriors of fakes are identical to the real ones. The zipper and inside lining is usually the only way to tell fakes...

[CJHAN]

1. They are junk!

 

2. You are supporting criminals. They may be independent criminals but that's unlikely. More likely they have ties to the drug trade and/or terrorists.

 

3. Your daughter is taught that being a phony has your blessing!

 

 

Image is NOTHING!

 

Integrity is everything!

Is Fear a ggod way to stop people from buying junk? I dont think so if people want the junk let them buy it and let them know its junk no neeed for the scare tatics.

[NutsAboutGolf]

Is Fear a ggod way to stop people from buying junk? I dont think so if people want the junk let them buy it and let them know its junk no neeed for the scare tatics.

 

The political tactic (he found it from gov site) is called fear mongering...

 

To get one's gears turning....

 

In our Afgan offensive, the military passes through all sorts of vast opium fields...They know the majority of it will be smuggled into the in the U.S. as heroin. The military does not destroy the crop to try and build support of the agfan people. So if you want to make a bigger impact of fight the drug war, you're better off getting a $40 bag and use the $360 in stamps to repeatedly write to your congressman :D

[Kstofflet]

We found the bags in Belize at the shops in the cruise compound area. I've never seen knockoffs in Grand Cayman. Not sure about Honduras. You will have no problems with customs. Heck they sell them all over the place at the flea markets in both the Tampa and Miami areas.

 

 

Those hunks of junk are not cheap. Expect to pay $45 and up. You can find them at most ports. Ask for their best price then offer lower.

 

Don't expect durability.

[Sarah@Sea]

My stay at home daughter is requesting a souvenir "knock-ff" designer purse from our cruise. Which port (Cozumel,Belize,Roatan,Grand Cayman) is the best to shop for them ? Any tips on "haggling" for the best price ? Any tips in general ? Thanks in advance !:)

 

Too bad you're not stopping in Key West...COACH outlet!!! I've seen people pay more for "knock-offs" than you can get REAL at the outlet. Outlets have even been e-mailing out 20% off coupons!!! Where are you sailing from? There is also one in Ft. Lauderdale area.

[tiyana4]

Too bad you're not stopping in Key West...COACH outlet!!! I've seen people pay more for "knock-offs" than you can get REAL at the outlet. Outlets have even been e-mailing out 20% off coupons!!! Where are you sailing from? There is also one in Ft. Lauderdale area.

 

You are so right! On the way to Las Vegas we stopped at the Tanger Outlets in Barstow, CA. I haven't seen prices that cheap in a while. They were giving out the 20% coupons, too. I just don't understand paying for counterfeits or fakes when authentic purses are so affordable.

[lillian marie]

You can get fined and arrested by customs for bringing a knock off purse into the US. Some folks get away with it but it is a risk, and one with big complications.

[NutsAboutGolf]

You can get fined and arrested by customs for bringing a knock off purse into the US. Some folks get away with it but it is a risk, and one with big complications.

 

You can get hit by lightning...

 

The following isn't directed to just you lillian but to any anti-knock off-er...

 

I would love to see a recent police log showing someone getting arrested or fined for bringing knock offs of a cruise ship...I've done my homework and have found nothing...

[nillachick]

If you really want to buy a knock off purse, go to Canal Street in Chinatown in NYC - you won't have to deal with customs either! :)

[lowbass]

Last year we went on our first cruise to Nassau. As you know the Straw market is very close to the cruise pier and they sell a lot of the "knock off" purses and things in the Straw market. So now I'm thinking,

 

A. Carnival and all the other cruise lines know that they sell "Fake" merchandise at the Straw Market, yet they don't say or do anything about it.

 

B. If the cruise lines know about it, than customs know about it. But they don't do anything either.

 

C. So are the fakes that they sell illegal? If so why aren't the cruise lines telling you to stay away from the Straw Market fakes and not to buy them?

[dandsfranklin]

3. Your daughter is taught that being a phony has your blessing!

 

 

Image is NOTHING!

 

Integrity is everything!

 

 

 

My daughter is 39 years old, a good, honest, sensitive, self-less, caring daughter, sister,wife, mother and friend who has an autistic son that she is raising using the same qualities. I doubt very much I need to teach her anything about integrity or image...she knows more about that than most people do.

 

Don't let these people's opinion offend you please. None of us know you or your daughter and certainly can't pass judgment. Asking this question or wanting a "knock-off" purse doesn't make one a terrible person. How many want to smuggle alcohol onboard and "rob" Carnival of their DOD revenue? (I don't care if you do that either, but don't criticize someone else for other things similar.)

I bought my daughters and my mom knock-offs in Nassau and they loved them. Get her one if you want and that's what she wants. I saw them for $30 in Cozumel last Sept. Didn't buy cuz didn't want it, but they're there. Enjoy!

[sailaway4]

In my opinion if I can't afford an original I don't want a fake.Kind of takes the joy out of having one when I know it is not real.I have bought several original designer purses from an online auction website and yes there are discounted stores in the US that sell the originals for a very good price.