Canadian booking in USD?

[urkidn]

I wish there was some sort of rhyme or rhythm with the way Celebrity adjusts it's currency exchange. Was about to book online in Cdn $. The difference between USD and CDN prices was approx. 3% which is less than current exchange rates. However, when I decided to do Select Dining, there was an almost 25% difference, same for beverage packages. I'm sure this will also apply to shore excursions, etc so these savings will far exceed the savings with the initial booking. As I don't want to take the chance of not getting Select Dining once I'm on board, I decided to pay in USD and can't figure out how. I thought I had changed currency on the site to USD but reservations still come up in CDN. Anyone know if I can book online using USD if I'm registered as a Canadian?

[elena7seas]

I wish there was some sort of rhyme or rhythm with the way Celebrity adjusts it's currency exchange. Was about to book online in Cdn $. The difference between USD and CDN prices was approx. 3% which is less than current exchange rates. However, when I decided to do Select Dining, there was an almost 25% difference, same for beverage packages. I'm sure this will also apply to shore excursions, etc so these savings will far exceed the savings with the initial booking. As I don't want to take the chance of not getting Select Dining once I'm on board, I decided to pay in USD and can't figure out how. I thought I had changed currency on the site to USD but reservations still come up in CDN. Anyone know if I can book online using USD if I'm registered as a Canadian?

 

Before you book initially, you can select either CAD or USD. Once you've selected, booked and made your deposit, you are locked in to that currency.

 

If you really need to change from one currency to another, you have to cancel the first booking (eg. in CAD) and rebook in the second currency (e.g. USD). It is best to do this on the phone with a Celebrity rep, as you run a small, but real, risk of losing your inital cabin booking. I have done this once when there was a huge exchange difference, but I had the Celebrity rep put my cabin on waitlist (it was AQ 1605...with the largest balcony) then cancel my first booking and rebook, pulling the desired cabin in through the waitlist option. It was a little complicated, and there are no guarantees that you will be first in line for the waitlist option for a very desirable cabin.

 

On the last cruise where I booked in Canadian funds (booked summer of 2008 when the CDN dollar was high), when I booked a few excursions some months later, Celebrity's exchange rate was ridiculously high...it bore no relation to the real exchange rate.

 

On the up side, Celebrity seems to update its exchange rates much more frequently than they used to.

[dmk]

Make sure that on X's Home Page that you have selected that you are from the US. If you did it correctly, it should show " Not from United States?"

[City_Woman]

I wish there was some sort of rhyme or rhythm with the way Celebrity adjusts it's currency exchange. Was about to book online in Cdn $. The difference between USD and CDN prices was approx. 3% which is less than current exchange rates. However, when I decided to do Select Dining, there was an almost 25% difference, same for beverage packages. I'm sure this will also apply to shore excursions, etc so these savings will far exceed the savings with the initial booking cost and all subsequent transactions). As I don't want to take the chance of not getting Select Dining once I'm on board, I decided to pay in USD and can't figure out how. I thought I had changed currency on the site to USD but reservations still come up in CDN. Anyone know if I can book online using USD if I'm registered as a Canadian?

 

If you have booked with Celebrity in Canadian dollars you can't switch part way through. The biggest savings (lowest exchange) seems to be with the initial booking. I book directly with Celebrity and I'm always asked whether I want to book in US or Cdn (the initial booking and all ONLINE bookings. I noticed the difference was 20%.

 

Not much you can do if you want Select Dining. You have to pre-pay. For CC class it's $14 / day CDN instead of $12 USD.

 

Judy

[Edward50]

I wish there was some sort of rhyme or rhythm with the way Celebrity adjusts it's currency exchange. Was about to book online in Cdn $. The difference between USD and CDN prices was approx. 3% which is less than current exchange rates. However, when I decided to do Select Dining, there was an almost 25% difference, same for beverage packages. I'm sure this will also apply to shore excursions, etc so these savings will far exceed the savings with the initial booking. As I don't want to take the chance of not getting Select Dining once I'm on board, I decided to pay in USD and can't figure out how. I thought I had changed currency on the site to USD but reservations still come up in CDN. Anyone know if I can book online using USD if I'm registered as a Canadian?

 

I had the same issue with RCCL (parent of Celebrity) last year. I sent them an email and asked why they were charging 25% more for pre-Paid gratuities when the going rate at the time was close to par. In an nutshell they replied that they had no control on this and the policy is set by their financial

wizards.

 

The initial booking rate can be very reasonable. The problem arises with some pre-cruise bookings like my time dining. If you wait to book once you are onboard you can pay in US funds. If you purchase before the trip the payment

must be in the currency you booked in.

 

Bottom line is if you wish to purchase tours or pre-pay gratuities before you leave you would normally be better off booking in US$. It is always best to compare before but as I have mentioned things have not changed in the last while.

[mjforfunca]

When you compare the fare between CDN and US, make sure you compare the total price includes port charges and taxes. There were times the exchange rate on the basic fare was good but the total would be much higher. In addition, you get a better price drop in US than in CDN.