woodscruise Posted August 31, 2010 #1 Share Posted August 31, 2010 The new Berlitz guide exposes cruise lines thatovercharge passengers fordrinks, transfers andcurrency conversion. DOUGLAS WARD, AUTHOR OF BERLITZ’S COMPLETE Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships 2011, has named and shamed the biggest rip-offs atsea.Double-dipping on tipping is highlightedas the main money-grab by the major cruiselines.This occurs when signable receipts includean additional “gratuity line” for passengersto insert an amount, despite alreadycharging an automatic 15% tip.Ward warns people to look closely at theirbills at the bar, beauty salon and cafésserving extra-cost coffees.Crucial for Australians, currencyconversion is another area that drives up thetotal on onboard accounts.According to Ward, the price on an item isrecalculated into a ‘guaranteed’ price whichcan be higher than the rate quoted by banksor credit card companies.Additionally, the calculation may not bedone on the actual day of the transactionbut later in the month when rates couldchange to a passenger’s disadvantage.Passengers only find out the true costwhen they receive their credit cardstatements after their cruise, he says.Ward also considers the fee for airporttransfer buses in European ports, especiallyAthens, Barcelona and Civitavecchia(Rome), “unacceptably high”.Bottled water is typically overpriced, hesays, picking on Celebrity Cruises’ US$4.50charge plus a 15% tip “for your convenience”. Even bingo does not escape criticism, with Ward declaring $40 too much for four bingocards on Norwegian Cruise Line.Princess Cruises comes under fire for its$150 raffle to win tickets for ‘The UltimateShip Tour’.Ward believes it is generally not worth themoney for bridge tours, which provide a“behind the scenes” view from the roomwhere the ship is commanded.Ward’s advice to save money is to bookcruises on old (pre-1980) ships, or duringthe off-season, in an inside cabin.He also recommends researching cruisesonline and then booking through “a realcruise-travel agency”.Considered the “bible of the cruiseindustry” for the past 25 years, the newBerlitz guide is due to be published inOctober and covers 285 cruise shipsworldwide, including previews of 20 new ships set to debut between 2011 and 2014. Source Cruise Weekly 31August 2010 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
donaldsc Posted August 31, 2010 #2 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Double-dipping on tipping is highlighted as the main money-grab by the major cruise lines. This occurs when signable receipts include an additional “gratuity line” for passengers to insert an amount, despite already charging an automatic 15% tip. If you are suggesting that that bar staff is adding a tip that you did not write in, I doubt it very much. It is not worth their job for them to do that. However, if you are paranoid about this potential problem. all you need to do it put a line through the additional tip area when you sign the bill. DON Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thied Posted August 31, 2010 #3 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Double-dipping on tipping is highlighted as the main money-grab by the major cruise lines. Ward’s advice to save money is to book cruises on old (pre-1980) ships, or during the off-season, in an inside cabin. This one book Id like to get Considered the “bible of the cruise industry” for the past 25 years, the new Berlitz guide is due to be published in October and covers 285 cruise ships worldwide, including previews of 20 new ships set to debut between 2011 and 2014. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingstone Posted August 31, 2010 #4 Share Posted August 31, 2010 If you are suggesting that that bar staff is adding a tip that you did not write in, I doubt it very much. It is not worth their job for them to do that. However, if you are paranoid about this potential problem. all you need to do it put a line through the additional tip area when you sign the bill. DON What is being said is passengers should check the bar bill for added service charges before adding a tip. I don't know about you, but when I buy a drink I don't check the bill because what it cost is what it costs and looking at the bill won't change any thing. I would also say that for me and many others I would just likely add a tip unaware that one has already been added. So for me to check to see if 15 percent has been added before tipping is good advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzaw Posted August 31, 2010 #5 Share Posted August 31, 2010 Watch out for "dynamic currency conversion" ( Google it for an explanation) and ESPECIALLY "back office" Dynamic currency conversion. I have just had an interesting situation develop only yesterday along these lines. The cruise company involved has a British arm and an Australian arm - and both are owned by a parent company. When booking a cruise with the UK arm of this company, I was quoted in Aussie dollars by an Aussie TA and the cruise price was approximately consistent with the price (in UKP) being quoted on the British arms website. Having now paid the full fare for the cruise, I received an email from the British arm offering me some extra "services" ( including Internet time) which can be pre-purchased before sailing at a price quoted in UKP. However when attempting to purchase this , I found that only a UK phone number was given for contact. I emailed the UK to find out how I could (as an Australian) make this purchase . I then received a reply from the Australian arm saying that they can do the sale - and to please send an amount of AUD which would equate approximately to a GBP/AUD exchange rate of 38 pence to the dollar- whereas the current exchange rate is approximately 57 pence to the dollar. When I then queried this , the reply was " We can only charge and quote you in Australian Dollars as it appears in our system." Now I am nervous that they will attempt this same rort for purchases that I make while onboard ( these purchases will be quite a considerable amount) . My TA assures me that this will not happen - however as we only know what is going on AFTER we receive our credit card bill, It all looks VERY DODGY to me. I have contacted the cruiseline regarding this and wonder what response I will receive. Barry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Big_M Posted September 1, 2010 #6 Share Posted September 1, 2010 When I then queried this , the reply was " We can only charge and quote you in Australian Dollars as it appears in our system." Now I am nervous that they will attempt this same rort for purchases that I make while onboard ( these purchases will be quite a considerable amount) . My TA assures me that this will not happen - however as we only know what is going on AFTER we receive our credit card bill, It all looks VERY DODGY to me. I have contacted the cruiseline regarding this and wonder what response I will receive. i doubt this will happen. Onboard prices everywhere I have seen are always in a single currency. How you get charged when you come to pay at the end may vary e.g. some lines may try to convert the UKP total to your card themselves as you have a foreign card or foreign booking, though this is meant to be at the cardholder's choice. Accounting wise they have a local price in the local office rather than converting for every single transaction (i.e. a different price every day). When you pay locally they then record that as a credit/purchase on your onboard account (folio) so that you don't have to pay that onboard the ship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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