diamonds international

[johneeo]

The only thing I will say is; they are not to be trusted.

 

A good rule of thumb is anyone trying to sell you a diamond should not be trusted.

[6rugrats]

Buy any expensive jewelery at home. Never purchase a diamond ring; always buy the diamond and setting separately. Never pay the marked price, any jewelery store will discount to make the purchase. If they don't, find another store.

 

I wouldn't consider purchasing anything of value in the Caribbean, no matter how many people post about their "fabulous" bargains and inflated appraisals. But, if they are happy, that's fine. I prefer to know what I'm getting and not making an expensive purchase while on a "vacation high".

[CrusinCyndi]

This is the best advice you can receive ... it's right on the money (pun unintended). The natural train of thought here is that if one received an appraisal for three times the price paid, the item was purchased for 1/3 of its true value ... hardly. If that were the case, every retail jeweler in the US would be buying from DI. Your "port and shopping guide" is essentiually a salesperson, who benefits from your purchases from the "recommended" merchants (translation: kickbacks to both them and the cruise line). The "duty-free and tax-free" pitch is enticing ... but remember, DI and the others pay good money to be on thoses lists. It's nothing more than a business arrangement. Take heed ... and enjoy your cruise.

 

Al

 

Have to say I agree 100%

[Esmerelda]

A good rule of thumb is anyone trying to sell you a diamond should not be trusted.

 

Not the case, as I have bought numerous diamonds over the years (it's my birthstone) and had no problems.

 

Unfortunately, in this case we were threatened and thought we were going to jail in Mexico. It was an extremely tense 70 minutes of my life that I will never get back and do not care to ever repeat.

[mikedw]

We were just in St. Thomas on the July 2nd Carnival Dream sailing celebrating our 10 year anniversary. My wife bought me a Hamilton Viewmatic Automatic watch at the DI watch store there and they were absolutely great. I love both antique and new Hamilton Watches and I know a lot about them, unfortunately, very few jewelers in my area carry them. The sales people were great there. Then we went down the street to the regular DI store and my wife bought a ring with one regular surrounded by two canary diamonds. Yellow is her favorite color and it was the color of the brides maid dresses. We liked the deal we got and our happy with the merchandise.

 

We found the sales people in St. Thomas to be much more pleasureable to deal with and very low pressure. Will definately buy again at DI in St. Thomas.

[johneeo]

Not the case, as I have bought numerous diamonds over the years (it's my birthstone) and had no problems.

 

 

My personal opinion follows.

 

Diamonds, no matter where you buy them, you are getting taken.

 

Buy a diamond from any jeweler, say for $1,000. Go back to that jeweler, and try to sell them the diamond, and you will get an offer for less than $100.

 

Diamonds are marked up 10 times the cost.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

I think we have bought there 5 times

[Lucille Bluth]

My husband and I were in Grand Cayman in January and stopped into a DI store just to look around. I wanted to buy a black diamond ring for a long time (still do, just haven't found the right one). I was not going to buy anything but just wanted to see what they had. They were extremely pushy to the point of being rude. I couldn't believe some of the tactics they were using! I got insulted (and that is not easy to do) and we left. They are way worse than any jewelry store in the US.

[Fore on the Floor]

Even if you WANTED to buy from Diamonds International, good luck finding one.

[bus man]

Even if you WANTED to buy from Diamonds International, good luck finding one.

 

Oh, they're easy to find. Just take a cruise to the Caribbean, and get off the ship wherever it stops. Walk no more than 20 steps in any direction, and there you are!

 

It never fails to amaze me how many people must buy diamonds in the Caribbean, as evidenced by how many DI stores there are. Why would anyone make such a major purchase while on vacation (i.e. with an on-vacation, brain-turned-off frame of mind) in a foreign land where they know they'll never see you again, so they don't need to worry about such niceties as customer service, honest dealing, etc.? I just don't get it.

[jewopaho]

We seem to keep going around in circles here, straying from the topic, then coming back. I'd like to try and sum things up as succinctly and directly as possible. My background includes years in jewelry-related businesses, so I think I'm qualified to do so. Here goes ...

 

To answer the OP's question in a word ... NO! There are no bargains at DI or any other Caribbean jeweler. Gold and diamond prices are essentially universal, so nobody gets a big enough break to sell you high-end jewelry for pennies on the dollar, as they'd want you to believe. Your only guaranteed saving is the sales tax. This could be significant to some ... maybe a few hundred dollars, depending on where you live ... but if you think that you can pick up that $5000 ring for $2000 at DI, you're sadly mistaken.

 

Grading is huge! Most diamonds sold here are certified by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). As with anything involving the human element, there's a bit of subjectivity ... but overall, it's the benchmark. Most diamonds sold in cruise ship ports carry a European Gemological Laboratory (EGL) certificate, if any at all. That organization's standards are far more imprecise then GIA's ... in layman's terms, diamonds are usually graded higher. In the instance of color and clarity, for example, a stone labeled SI-1, H color by GIA criteria could well be graded VS-1, F color using EGL standards. On the open market, that could be a difference of close to 20% in price, meaning that you'd be paying for a better diamond, while actually getting one of lesser quality. Do you really want to take such a chance? Rule of thumb: if there is no GIA certificate, don't touch it.

 

Appraisals are useless when determining value. They are for insurance purposes, and in no way indicate what the piece is worth. As long as you're willing to pay the premium, you can insure it for pretty much any amount you wish. Incidentally, most carriers will opt to replace the lost or stolen item, rather than cut a check ... it's less expensive for them, another indication that the "appraised value" is nothing more than an amount on which they base the cost to insure it. Once again, if you purchase a ring for $2000, and the appraisal is for $4000, it does not (repeat, DOES NOT) mean that you bought it for half-price. This is the most common misconception about jewelry purchases in the Caribbean.

 

"Recommended" merchants such as DI pay big bucks to the cruise lines, as well as commission to the "port and shopping guides." This is the reason that retailers ask what ship you're on. FYI, these "guides" go out of their way to appear as if they're employees of the cruise lines ... they're not. They are actually independent contractors, whose income is derived from the sales they generate at the "recommended" shops. They are generally free to negotiate their own compensation arrangements, and can earn a substanmtial living. You'll almost always see them in port, churning the waters and encouraging passengers to "shop 'til they drop." If such a job appeals to you, you too can become an expert shopper by attending this school ... http://www.portshopping.com. Take a look ... it's quite revealing.

 

Hopefully, we can put this thing to bed ... although I doubt it.

 

Al

Edited July 21, 2011 by jewopaho

[mr green]

D.I. is bad news. Notice that the store only shows up where cruise ships dock.

 

john

[t60]

Are DI still giving out those free ´gold´charms?

 

Sandy in Spain

[rawding]

Extremely unhappy with this company. Bought a Crown of Light diamond ring while on a Carnival cruise in Aruba in July and 2 of the small chip diamonds already fell out and were lost. I put in a claim to Diamonds International and they want to charge me for the diamonds. They will do the repair for free but not replace the diamonds that fell out because of there workmanship. I paid over $6000 for this ring and it is already falling apart. You would expect that for that price the diamonds should not fall out after 6 months. Do not buy from them because they do not stand behind there product at all.

[cruznjan]

I bought a diamond bracelet from Diamonds International (actually two since I upgraded). I haven't had any problems.

[SuiteTraveler]

I'm a wedding planner and chef and often I help a bride select a wedding band for her fiancé or I help the man choose an engagement ring for his fiancee, so I'm pretty familiar with what is available at various stores and can easily match someone with the store that carries the best merchandise in their price range. I was at DI in St. Thomas and looked at a white gold and diamond men's band that I had seen in Dallas, just curious about the price. I acted like I was thinking of buying it, examined it closely. There were a lot of visible to the naked eye inclusions which made the quality of the diamonds that were obviously I1 or worse - basically they were nearly industrial grade, color was J at best. I asked the price. It was $5,000. In Dallas, the identical ring with high quality VS1 diamonds, D color was $3,000. At any rate, most of the settings you see in the Caribbean are commonly available at jewelry stores across the US - generally the lower end ones. If you want better settings, then you need to shop designer rings and these rings are almost always set with much finer stones. I personally don't see anything wrong with a young couple starting out with a less valuable ring as long as they pay only what it is worth and then trading up as finances permit. But I hate to see people get ripped off on vacation.

[donaldsc]

Neither me or my wife wears jewelry. However, people who do know and wear jewelry have told me that if you do not know jewelry, make sure that you know your jeweler. I think that is applies in this case. You definitely do not know your jeweler if you buy from DI. You only know that they pay the cruise line a whole lot of money to be the "official" cruise line jeweler.

 

DON

[Keith1010]

My recommendation is to buy jewelry at home from your local jewelry.

 

The reality is that nothing is perfect and even at a local jeweler something might go wrong.

 

The benefit of buying local from a reputable store is that if something goes wrong you can easily take care of it.

 

Keith

[Cruzaholic41]

Why do you think Diamonds International only exists in cruise ports? Because it's a rip-off and they target cruise passengers who don't know any better, that's why.

[cruzeluver]

Why do you think Diamonds International only exists in cruise ports? Because it's a rip-off and they target cruise passengers who don't know any better, that's why.

 

And the cruise passengers are only there for a very brief time, so therefore must make quick decisions.

 

Avoid DI.

[moniquet]

Pleased to see not many of you are fooled by DI. A lot are, saw lots of bags with their name on when getting back on ship.

[AKman2495]

Why do you think Diamonds International only exists in cruise ports? Because it's a rip-off and they target cruise passengers who don't know any better, that's why.

 

So, you're saying that most cruise passengers are suckers? Or idiots? or worse?

 

They are there because they have a steady supply of customers. The fact that they hype deals in the Caribbean is just that-hype. Sphere in Alaska, they talk about Copper River salmon as being somehow magically superior to all other salmon....That's why they charge a lot more per pound....And people snap it up.

 

As for Diamonds, this threads all over the place from being horribly ripped off to getting an unbelievable bargain. As usual, the truth lies between these two extremes. I'm sure someone did get a good deal. Others may have not.

 

As for me, I would buy the ring locally because it is a lot easier to get it serviced,

 

I did go there in Curacao to buy a watch. I found a watch I likes at a good price. Peter I found the same watch on line for a little more that I paid. I have had it for almost 2 years and it is doing fine.

 

FWIW.

[iancal]

We would no more buy diamond jewelry at Diamond International than we would at one of those chain jewelry stores in a shopping mall.

 

For our money, it would be one of Blue Nile, Costco, or from the independent we know who handles insurance claims, does custom work/repairs, and operates from a whole in the wall location with a loyal and long standing clientele.

 

We really have no knowledge of what we are buying. Appraisal certificates are meaningless-especially the ones for so called 'insurance purposes'. Select the setting, then buy the stones.

 

Cannot imagine getting off a ship for a few hours, being in a relaxed holiday mood, and buying something of value from someone I do not know or will not see again once we sail in 3 hours. From a high commission salesperson to boot! No thanks.

[4x4bob]

Here is our diamonds International (DI) adventure.

 

A few years ago my Wife attended the presentation in the Ships Theater by DI, came away with map showing the location and all ready to go shopping.

 

Our Ships Tour bus stopped in the Golden Triangle right in front of DI.

 

She found a ring she must have. It was Tanzanite. After the sale, the clerk offered to take it into the back room and polish it and pack in small box.

 

When he came back he opened the box and showed the ring to my Wife.

 

Back at the ship she took her New Ring out to put it on her finger and found a crack across the stone. While at the store I had inspected the ring with a jewelers loupe and found no defects.

 

Since we had 3 hrs until departure we left the ship, caught a 3 wheeled cab and told the driver where we wanted to go. Asked him to hurry straight to DI, we were not interested in a city tour.

 

Wife felt the driver was going the wrong way so she held her map up in front of face. I grabbed her and pulled her back pointing out that he is driving, leave him alone. Did I mention she was a tad upset?

 

We walked back into the shop and laid the DI warranty paper down on the counter when the clerk walked up. Told him we are back from our shopping here 1 hours ago. And, here is your broken stone ring back. We want our money back or the stone we purchased. That went over like a lead balloon.

 

At first the Clerk tried shrugging his shoulders and indicating he had lost his ability to speak English in the hour we had been gone. The wife leaned over the counter right in his face and said no problem I speak Spanish.

 

Then the store manager offered all kind of "Good Deals" requiring more money from us. Finally they remounted a good stone and away we went.

 

Have not and will not go back to DI.

 

Bob

[Flatbush Flyer]

Here is our diamonds International (DI) adventure.

 

 

 

A few years ago my Wife attended the presentation in the Ships Theater by DI, came away with map showing the location and all ready to go shopping.

 

 

 

Our Ships Tour bus stopped in the Golden Triangle right in front of DI.

 

 

 

She found a ring she must have. It was Tanzanite. After the sale, the clerk offered to take it into the back room and polish it and pack in small box.

 

 

 

When he came back he opened the box and showed the ring to my Wife.

 

 

 

Back at the ship she took her New Ring out to put it on her finger and found a crack across the stone. While at the store I had inspected the ring with a jewelers loupe and found no defects.

 

 

 

Since we had 3 hrs until departure we left the ship, caught a 3 wheeled cab and told the driver where we wanted to go. Asked him to hurry straight to DI, we were not interested in a city tour.

 

 

 

Wife felt the driver was going the wrong way so she held her map up in front of face. I grabbed her and pulled her back pointing out that he is driving, leave him alone. Did I mention she was a tad upset?

 

 

 

We walked back into the shop and laid the DI warranty paper down on the counter when the clerk walked up. Told him we are back from our shopping here 1 hours ago. And, here is your broken stone ring back. We want our money back or the stone we purchased. That went over like a lead balloon.

 

 

 

At first the Clerk tried shrugging his shoulders and indicating he had lost his ability to speak English in the hour we had been gone. The wife leaned over the counter right in his face and said no problem I speak Spanish.

 

 

 

Then the store manager offered all kind of "Good Deals" requiring more money from us. Finally they remounted a good stone and away we went.

 

 

 

Have not and will not go back to DI.

 

 

 

Bob

you may want a trusted jeweler at home to check and make sure you didn't get a cubic zirconia.