WARNING to CANADIAN passengers

[Edward50]

Hi Melbur/Broberts

I had an experience just last December, I had booked the 4 day pre-inaugural on the Oasis in US$ when a Canadian residency discount of $580 came up for my balcony category (after I had made my final payment) so I immediately called the D+ desk and was told because I had booked in US$ I was not entitled to the Canadian residency discount even although I lived in Ontario.

I talked to 4 or 5 different sales people plus even a couple of supervisors over 3 days and was told the same thing. I told them I didn't understand how I pay has got to do with where I reside. They told me those were the rules.

So I did a 24 hr courtesy hold on the new cabin, then phoned and cancelled my original booking, (lost my $200 deposit) and activated my courtesy hold cabin and saved an additional $380 and I was able to change to the same cabin. Go Figure!

Cheers,

 

Very interesting. Thanks for that.

 

So can I assume that you could not received a discount in US dollars if a reduction to the US rate had occurred in the States. If so, it would sound like RCCL would like to encourage passengers to book in the currency of their country. I think everyone would be happy to do this if they were offered reasonable exchange rates in all cases.

 

Don't forget that you lost more than $200 for your US deposit. I can only hope that your bank was applying the rate of exchange to the deposit:)

 

Again thanks.

[NorbertsNiece]

Thanks, NorbertsNiece, it makes of course sense that the staff will be paid in US$. My question was rather about conversion rate.

 

When I prepaid the gratuity in CAD$ during the booking, the RC website suggested 9,75CAD$ per day per passenger, and this is what I paid. At the same time, their site US pages says that recommended gratuities are 9,75US$.

 

Now I wonder whether RC exchanged/will exchange that amount 1:1 and pay the staff 9,75US$, or they will give them less, if 1 CAD$ is worth less than 1 US$ at the time of the cruise?

 

I have a headache. I am going to lie down in a dark room until I can head out for my cruise!

 

Another good question. Do we apply logic here and say they pay them in US $ at the stated US $ rate and pocket any difference? :rolleyes::confused::

[broberts]

Hi Melbur/Broberts

I had an experience just last December, I had booked the 4 day pre-inaugural on the Oasis in US$ when a Canadian residency discount of $580 came up for my balcony category (after I had made my final payment) so I immediately called the D+ desk and was told because I had booked in US$ I was not entitled to the Canadian residency discount even although I lived in Ontario.

. . .

 

I wonder if the different experiences are because of how the bookings were made - through a TA or direct. Or if they are due to a policy change at some point - my experience was 3 - 4 years ago?

[Edward50]

Thanks, NorbertsNiece, it makes of course sense that the staff will be paid in US$. My question was rather about conversion rate.

 

When I prepaid the gratuity in CAD$ during the booking, the RC website suggested 9,75CAD$ per day per passenger, and this is what I paid. At the same time, their site US pages says that recommended gratuities are 9,75US$.

 

Now I wonder whether RC exchanged/will exchange that amount 1:1 and pay the staff 9,75US$, or they will give them less, if 1 CAD$ is worth less than 1 US$ at the time of the cruise?

 

 

You mention that on the website it states that the daily rate is $9.75CAD. I just signed into RCCL selected "change country" in the top right corner and when I selected FAQ the website indicates that the rate is $9.75US per person per day. Could you please provide the link that indicates that it is $9.75CAD. I phoned RCCL today and they have confirmed to me that IF you have booked your cruise in Canadian dollars and you are pre-paying gratuities that the daily rate is 12.40CAD. You might also want to check your credit card to varify the 9.75CAD charge. If it was $9.75CAD then it was an error by RCCL in your favour.

 

That being said let us deal with the question of RCCL paying their staff. I believe that without question RCCL always pays their staff the correct amount of $9.75US for daily gratuities no matter what currency they collect it in. They have no reason to do otherwise. Let me provide my trip as an example:

 

For my 14 day cruise with my spouse RCCL has stated on the phone (3times now) that they will collect $340.64CAD from me for pre-paid gratuities. Remember I MUST pay in CAD as I booked in CAD. Also, if I want the My Time Dining program I have no choice.

 

Anyone who can pay in US dollars will be charged $273US for pre-paid gratuities for the same trip ($9.75US X 2 Persons X 14 days).

 

As I mentioned in the original thread my bank through VISA charges me 1.10 for converting US charges to Canadian. (daily rate of 1.07 plus premium of 3 cents). Today 10% is considered fair. This also works in the inverse (converting Canadian into US).

 

This means that for every $1US charge on my VISA my Canadian bank would charge me $1.10CAD.

 

For every $1CAD that I send to RCCL, they would have their US bank convert the Canadian to US. Using the 10% example RCCL would receive about .90cents US for every Canadian dollar.

 

So let us use the 10% example with the $340.64CAD that RCCL is requesting from me. When RCCL takes the $340.64CAD to their bank they will be given approximately $306.58US. From this amount they can now pay their employees the $273US that they are owed. After paying their staff the correct amount they are left with a tidy profit from my payment of $33.58US! That is just 2 Canadians on a 14 day cruise! I have no idea how much they are taking from the UK ect.

 

How did RCCL do this? Quite simple really. $340.64CAD divided by the $273.00US works out to an outrageous rate of 1.25. Remember that my VISA only charges 1.10.

 

Surprisingly RCCL charges about the same 10% rate as VISA once you are on board. For pre-cruise charges the rates they charge are all over the place. A real shell game. They seem to range from 1.05 to 1.25. Unfortunately if you want the "my time dining" you must pay in advance at 1.25 rate. If you wait until you board to look for the better rate you may not be able to book the dining times you would like.

 

I do hope that this helps. Bottom line is this. Employees will be paid what they are owed no matter what currency it is collected in. And RCCL will always collect more than is reasonable from the passengers.

[humaniste]

Could you please provide the link that indicates that it is $9.75CAD. I phoned RCCL today and they have confirmed to me that IF you have booked your cruise in Canadian dollars and you are pre-paying gratuities that the daily rate is 12.40CAD. You might also want to check your credit card to varify the 9.75CAD charge. If it was $9.75CAD then it was an error by RCCL in your favour.

 

Thanks for detailed info, Edward50. I booked my cruise last summer, and already paid off the full balance, everything in C$, on RC website. All bills and my issued RC docs shows total of 234C$ prepaid gratuities. Divide that amount by 2 (persons) then by 12 (nights) and it gives 9,75C$ / pers / day. This is how I concluded that the recommended amount is 9,75C$.

 

You pointed out that it is currently not true. At the same time I remember not having entered the amount manually, it was automatically calculated by the system during the booking. Just to double check, I simulated few minutes ago a new booking for a 2011 12 nights cruise, and indeed, the gratuities amount is not changeable, it is simply a checkbox for the option “Add gratuities at a cost of $145.99 CAD.”

 

In other words, 6 month ago RC site calculated and billed the gratuities using 1:1 exchange rate! I will not complain about it :) My only potential concern was that they would convert the prepaid amount of 234C$ in a lesser amount in US$ before passing it to the staff. Such action would be unfair both to the staff (who would get less that the normal amount) and to the customer (who selected to abide by RC suggestion at time of booking and would end up by tipping less than recommended amount).

 

But your post indicates that this will probably not happen. Then it is perfect :)

 

By the way, I converted today Canadian cash to US cash in an exchange office in downtown, at the rate of 1,08 (no commission). Knowing that RC is currently charging 1,25 rate, as you said and as shows the booking simulation above, it is quite profitable for them to have people booking in C$ and prepaying the gratuities :rolleyes:

[firsttimeRCcruiserMay2010]

Well at first I was paniced thinking that this vacation is costing me more after reading what you all wrote. Then I went to look over my cc bill and even though I booked in Canadian the exchange is very little. Our cabin were $859 US or $899 Can. The excursions we booked - we were charged in Canadian funds since we booked in Canadian funds no extras. As far as the tips - I paid $11. PP Can. which works out to be very close to the 9.75 US. I'm feeling much better knowing I'm not being over charged - yet!

[Edward50]

Well at first I was paniced thinking that this vacation is costing me more after reading what you all wrote. Then I went to look over my cc bill and even though I booked in Canadian the exchange is very little. Our cabin were $859 US or $899 Can. The excursions we booked - we were charged in Canadian funds since we booked in Canadian funds no extras. As far as the tips - I paid $11. PP Can. which works out to be very close to the 9.75 US. I'm feeling much better knowing I'm not being over charged - yet!

 

That is odd. I followed the advise of Huministe and went to the RCCL site and changed the country code to Canada. I selected balcony room and then proceeded as if I was booking in Canadian dollars for your trip. The total per person prepaid gratuity came up as $85.16CAD. That works out to 12.16CAD per day and not $11.00. Your $11 figure sounds more like a c.c. conversion of $9.75US. What was the total CAD that you were charged for 7 days?

 

As for the original bookings in Canadian dollars vs US dollars. I agree with you as I have indicated in my original text. The difference at the moment between the US and CAD when paying for a cabin is very reasonable. It encourages Canadians to book in Canadian currency. What I am trying to do is alert Canadians to PRE-CRUISE charges. The conversion to CAD can range from 1.05 to 1.25. No reason to panic just want you to be aware. Work out the rate. If it is too high wait until you are on-board.

 

Have a great time. Looks like a great agenda.

[Edward50]

I have tried to resolve this by phone but customer service indicates that they do not know why there is a wide range of rates. I will send an email to RCCL and will ask for a response and will let you know their answer.

 

 

It is two weeks and counting since I sent an email to Customer Service asking for an explanation. The RCCL web-site indicates that they will reply within 48 hours.

 

I sent a second email today and will continue to update until I get an answer. Wish me luck!

[oldguysandgalls]

Canadians here:

We always have all cruise charges billed in US $, by checking off the option for our credit card company do the exchange/conversion.

 

I am not sure where, but in the sail pass documentation there are 2 options how to have your on board, in US dollars, purchases to be converted. The best option is to have them bill you in US dollars and have your own Bank take care of the exchange/conversion. It makes a big difference in the end.

 

Just be sure that the purser's office has entered that option on your account, check the purser's desk during your cruise.

 

Also, always have an extra copy of your completed pre-cruise sail documentation indicating your option, so that there's no misunderstanding.

 

 

We have lots of Canadians here, hopefully some can offer their advice. I know it is an issue as I've read about it many times here on cc.

[pkrchkr]

if you are active/or retired from the the armed forces ,fire fighter ,airlines etc. You may also qualify for interline rates that can save hundreds of dollars..and RCCL is one of the cruise companies that honrs the Canadian service men and women, active or retired with these rates. Theya re advertised on the the RCCL website but if you go thru and interline company it still can be cheaper.

This is one of the reasons we are back with Royal..my DH is military, DS in military and I am retired military..

just something to share with you

[nikioliveira]

so forgive me if im a complete moron, but, if i booked and paid in CDN on my visa, when we are done our cruise will we be charged in CDN without any need for exchanging or will we be charged in USD and then it will convert to CDN?

:confused:

[oldguysandgalls]

From what I understand is if you paid your cruise in CDN $ and were charged CDN $ on your visa at the time of booking, remember your cruise must be paid in full well before the cruise date, there should be no further exchange charges on that portion of your cruise.

 

The only remaining items subject to exchange rates are for charges while on board, i.e. drinks, special dinners, cruise excursions etc. since all prices are in US $ and will show up on your Visa statement in CDN $.

 

Hope this helps.

 

 

so forgive me if im a complete moron, but, if i booked and paid in CDN on my visa, when we are done our cruise will we be charged in CDN without any need for exchanging or will we be charged in USD and then it will convert to CDN?

:confused:

[santa24]

So I understand what everyone is saying and understand how the entire billing should be and I don't want to throw a wrench into everyone's thinking but here is what happened to us.

On our first cruise we booked in US $. Everything was paid for on our US credit card. When we got our final bill last day it gave us both amounts and being new to us, I thought that was very nice of them to show us the difference. When we got our US credit card statement, we had been billed in Cdn and the credit card co. had converted it back to US for the US card. I was paying for 2 conversions. I did dispute it and got some back but not all of the difference.

This last cruise I booked it in Cdn $. Because of what happened the 1st time I thought I may be able to have my onboard acct. billed to my US card and asked(twice). They explained that because I had paid in Cdn. if would be converted 2x so I left it on my Cdn card. I hadn't requested the amount be billed to my card in US funds because, to be honest, in all that was going on I forgot and didn't really worry about the difference it would be when I did realize I had forgotten. Now the credit card billing comes in and I was billed in US amount on my Cdn card so my credit card co. did the conversion. With Murphy's law thrown in there, if I had used the US card I probably would have had the same thing happen as did the first cruise.

I'm not complaining that it was billed in US, just want to tell our circumstance.

[jascal]

Simplest answer is to get a US Visa card for the on board purchases. You can book the cruise and pay in Canadian dollars on your Cdn Visa card. When you check in on the day of the cruise ask the agent to switch all billing from then on to your US Visa card number..there will be no conversion. Once you get your bill when you are home go to the bank, purchase US $$ and pay your Visa. I have done this for several cruises and never had a problem.

[santa24]

Simplest answer is to get a US Visa card for the on board purchases. You can book the cruise and pay in Canadian dollars on your Cdn Visa card. When you check in on the day of the cruise ask the agent to switch all billing from then on to your US Visa card number..there will be no conversion. Once you get your bill when you are home go to the bank, purchase US $$ and pay your Visa. I have done this for several cruises and never had a problem.

I actually tried to get them to switch to my US mastercard and they said they could but they would still be charging me in Cdn $ on that card, therefore the double conversion. If you got them to do that you were far luckier than I was.

[jascal]

I actually tried to get them to switch to my US mastercard and they said they could but they would still be charging me in Cdn $ on that card, therefore the double conversion. If you got them to do that you were far luckier than I was.

 

 

The charges on board will always be in US $$..tell them at Guest services if they won't do it at check in that you want to be billed in US on a US Mastercard and do not want a conversion . I think if you ask for a supervisor if there is a problem they will be able to have it resolvsed. It can be done as I have done it for several cruises. The actual cruise payment when I booked the cruise originally was in Canadian $$ on a Canadian Visa.

[Edward50]

Quote: Originally Posted by nikioliveira

so forgive me if im a complete moron, but, if i booked and paid in CDN on my visa, when we are done our cruise will we be charged in CDN without any need for exchanging or will we be charged in USD and then it will convert to CDN?

:confused:

 

From what I understand is if you paid your cruise in CDN $ and were charged CDN $ on your visa at the time of booking, remember your cruise must be paid in full well before the cruise date, there should be no further exchange charges on that portion of your cruise.

The only remaining items subject to exchange rates are for charges while on board, i.e. drinks, special dinners, cruise excursions etc. since all prices are in US $ and will show up on your Visa statement in CDN $.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Yes it is true that all charges on board are in US. It is also true that you can have this amount converted to Canadian by RCCL or your bank. Both offer a fairly reasonable rate of exchange.

 

However what my thread is trying to warn Canadians about is this:

If you originally paid for your cruise in Canadian and purchase anything in advance of boarding such as pre-paid gratuities the rate of exchange is not consistent and not always at a fair rate. You would have to read all the posts for detail but as an example if you choose to pay MY TIME DINING (MTD) you must pre-pay gratuities before you travel. If you booked in Canadian you have no choice but to pay the MTD in Canadian. RCCL will charge you 25% more than they charge US citizens for the same service. You will not be given choice to pay in US and have your bank convert to Canadian. RCCL will convert and convert at whatever rate they like.

 

I have asked RCCL to explain why there is such a wide range for conversion rates BEFORE you board.

 

Hope this helps.

[Edward50]

I have tried to resolve this by phone but customer service indicates that they do not know why there is a wide range of rates. I will send an email to RCCL and will ask for a response and will let you know their answer.

 

 

It is two weeks and counting since I sent an email to Customer Service asking for an explanation. The RCCL web-site indicates that they will reply within 48 hours.

 

I sent a second email today and will continue to update until I get an answer. Wish me luck!

 

Well it is now almost a month since my first email. As promised here is another update. My second email went unanswered so I phoned customer service. On Friday I spoke with a supervisor I she agreed that the US conversion rate does sound way out of line and is probably just a error or it had not been updated in over a year. She said that she would follow up personally with their Finance Department and would send an email reply no later than Friday. We shall see.

 

It is interesting to note that when I first sent my email almost a month ago the US/CND rate was 1.07. This morning it was 1.03. This makes the RCCL conversion rate of 1.25 even more disgusting.

 

Bottom line: If you are Canadian and you booked your holiday in Canadian do not take MTD BEFORE the cruise. It is a rip-off. Wait until RCCL resolves the issue. It is not so much the cost of $16 per person it is the principle. I will follow up again in a couple of weeks or when I receive a reply from RCCL.

[orchid4me2003]

When we had booked our cruise in January, the gal has asked if I wanted the amount converted to CDN. I thought she was just converting if for me so I can get an idea of how much it would cost us. Well once I logged onto the website, I saw the amount was showing in CDN. After reading these posts of yours, I emailed RCCL and asked to be put back into US rates. Well after a while I got back a reply which said "No". They were not about to go changing it each time the exchange rate changed.

 

That didn't sit well with me so the other day I phoned RCCL and got this really wonderful representative who was able to answer my questions. He did confirm that if I booked any tours or specialty dining (requiring covercharge), I would be billed in CDN dollars and at the rate first quoted. That does not seem proper either. But the sweetie suggested that if I wanted to be switched, he could do it but we would be taking a wee chance. It meant cancelling the first reservation and quickly rebooking the cruise again by indicating I wished to leave my account in US dollars. We are travelling with another couple and have an adjoining room. Luckily it all worked and and get this... we saved $950 per couple! (we have a back to back booked so that was for the 2 cruise total). That is how much of a difference they were going to milk out of us doing their conversion. Would much rather leave it to visa to convert. Thank you so much to all of you for bringing this matter to my attention.

 

Muriel

[Host Jacquelyn]

I have had a number of negative experiences with RCI and their billing to Canadian CC. Even when one specifically requests that amounts be billed in US $ RCI trends heavily to ignoring the request and billing in CA $ with their service fee tacked on.

 

+1

 

This has happened to me several times. After speaking with a bunch of people and getting it in writing that they would bill in US$, I was still billed in Canadian Dollars at some exorbitant exchange rate. After that, I pretty much gave up, as it was clearly a waste of time :(

 

At least the rate is still better than the late payment interest rate my cell phone company informed me of today... 42.58% per year :eek:

[twoputt.plusone]

I'm sure that I'll regret posting but here's my take on it.

 

We Canadians are dealing with foreign currencies, we're used to it. We all know that they fluctuate. If the rate of exchange you receive is that important to you, maybe you should have opted to pay in US $ from the begining. My point is, it's a risk. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. I wonder if you'd be posting if the situation were reversed and you got a good deal on the exchange. In the past, RCI gave us a very good rate when the Canadian loonie was tanking.

[orchid4me2003]

When we booked, the gal did not explain that my account would be recorded in CDN dollars if she just gave me the Canadian coversion over the phone. She did not ask if I want my account in CDN or US. I would have told her to leave it in US if she had. This was my first time booking with RCCL. But thanks to this group, my eyes are open wide.

 

I'm sure that I'll regret posting but here's my take on it.

 

We Canadians are dealing with foreign currencies, we're used to it. We all know that they fluctuate. If the rate of exchange you receive is that important to you, maybe you should have opted to pay in US $ from the begining. My point is, it's a risk. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. I wonder if you'd be posting if the situation were reversed and you got a good deal on the exchange. In the past, RCI gave us a very good rate when the Canadian loonie was tanking.

[toras]

Regarding paying for your cruise in CDN and getting 1.25, that's not just limited to cruising. When you buy books, electronics etc. the Canadian Price is not based on the current exchange rate (which is close to 1 now). Nowadays it really makes sense to have a US$ card, but of course there's the annual fee of such cards to consider as well.

[Edward50]

I'm sure that I'll regret posting but here's my take on it.

 

We Canadians are dealing with foreign currencies, we're used to it. We all know that they fluctuate. If the rate of exchange you receive is that important to you, maybe you should have opted to pay in US $ from the begining. My point is, it's a risk. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. I wonder if you'd be posting if the situation were reversed and you got a good deal on the exchange. In the past, RCI gave us a very good rate when the Canadian loonie was tanking.

 

Sorry to take so long to reply but I was enjoying a transatlantic cruise with a extended stay in Italy.

 

Thanks twoputt.plusone for your input. You should never regret posting. Differences of opinion are what makes Cruiscritic so interesting.

 

In my original post I mentioned that I booked in Canadian because the rate was reasonable. I also mentioned that once onboard I can make and keep my purchases in US. You mentioned that RCCL once gave you a very good rate when the Canadian was tanking. That is great. But what if they turned around and took it all and more back when you booked pre-cruise activities?

 

The problem lies in the fact that once booked in Canadian all pre-cruise items must be paid in Canadian. RCCL did not have a reason why. I can pay for any of these items once on board in US but if it is prior to the cruise you must pay in Canadian. This would not be a problem if RCCL provided a reasonable rate for all pre-cruise items such as MTD. I disagree that we Canadians should have to put up with this. If I can book in Canadian at a reasonable rate then why not have all activities prior to the cruise at a reasonable rate?

 

The point of my thread was just to warn Canadians that IF you book in Canadian be sure to check the rate of all pre-cruise activities. Some are reasonable and some are outrageous.

 

Finally you asked if I would be complaining if the rate was reversed and to my advantage. To that I can only say that I am positive that RCCL monitors that kind of fluctuation and would ensure that an adjustment would be made before their loss is too great. They do not seem to be in such a hurry when it is to their advantage. As mentioned above all the rates that I checked for pre-cruise were either reasonable or outrageous. There were none that were a 25% loss to RCCL.

 

I would rather not lose or make money on the rates. RCCL is making something that is very simple into a crap shoot. Just give us a reasonable exchange rate. If banks and other businesses can do it I am sure RCCL could figure out a way.

 

Just as a side note: the cruise on Navigator of the Seas was fabulous. Only one problem. When we got our invoice they converted the US to Canadian. And yes, we did clearly mark on our all documents that we did not want the US converted. I even check 2 days before landing in Rome to make sure that I would be charged in US. The pursor's office apologized and even though they could not reverse the error they gave me an equivalent credit. The rate they charged in the conversion by the way was a very reasonable 2.5% when the Canadian dollar was almost at par with the US. If they have figured out how to do it while on board surely they could do it before boarding.

[CVU]

Sadly, this is absolutely the norm. We have had this same issue every RCI cruise. It stinks. It makes me want to take American cash with us and pay the bill on the last night just so it won't go through on the credit card. Ridiculous. I shouldn't have to be worrying about things like this on my vacation. RCI should be doing it right in the first place.

 

We book in US$, pay on the last night with our US$CC and list Cash as our payment method on the Set Sail.

Only way around it, we have been through the waiting the front desk thing because they have converted it too many times...... :( We have a US$ CC to pay when booking it on board or over the phone with RCL.