Zuiderdam May 2013 Fuel Fee Applied

[Typhoon1]

Received an e-mail overnight from HAL notifying us that they have charged us an additional $8.02 per cabin for the surplus fuel charge. Our cruise has been paid in full for two months and does not sail until May 2013. Will they refund the fuel fee if the cost drops? Doubt it. Seems really "cheap" for a cruise line with HAL's reputation to be charging this small a fee on a fare of over $4000 per cabin. I have e-mailed them about this and am awaiting their response. Will post the answer if and when it is received.

 

Cheap? Just take a look at the airlines, they have made millions by charging for things like luggage, better seats etc.

 

I recently read, the total in additional fees exceeded the actual revenue from fares by the airlines.

[IRL_Joanie]

Certainly not surprising. I think I had predicted a fuel surcharge sometime ago when crude started to rise again.

 

After all, HAL reserves the right to add a fuel surcharge. Read your cruise contract carefully.

 

The point is that it is NOT a Fuel Surcharge Increase!!! It is a Government Port/Tax Fee that was estimated on the low end when we booked our cruise to Alaska.

 

HAL cannot give an exact amount for Taxes/Port Fees because the various Federal/State/County/City/Township, whatever, changes their taxes/Port Fees all the time (at least once annually.) HAL has no control over these charges and therefore has to estimate what those Taxes/Fees are going to be.

 

Kudos to HAL for keeping us informed on what it is and why it is.

 

Now if we can just get our Federal/State/County/City/Township Governments to do the same:D

 

Joanie

[PathfinderEss]

The point is that it is NOT a Fuel Surcharge Increase!!! It is a Government Port/Tax Fee that was estimated on the low end when we booked our cruise to Alaska.

 

HAL cannot give an exact amount for Taxes/Port Fees because the various Federal/State/County/City/Township, whatever, changes their taxes/Port Fees all the time (at least once annually.) HAL has no control over these charges and therefore has to estimate what those Taxes/Fees are going to be.

 

Kudos to HAL for keeping us informed on what it is and why it is.

 

Now if we can just get our Federal/State/County/City/Township Governments to do the same:D

 

Joanie

Thanks Joanie for clarifying that this was not a fuel surcharge.:D:D:D

[KirkNC]

I was wondering if it was a tax change (which seems to happen all the time) instead of a fuel charge.

[HAL_PR]

Thanks to all for your comments and input on this topic. To clarify, all travel agent representatives and guests that booked directly with HAL on the May 18, 2013 sailing of ms Zuiderdam were provided with the following information:

 

Government Fees and Taxes are subject to change. Actual Government Fees and Taxes for this voyage now exceed the estimates used by Holland America Line at the time this voyage was originally released for sale. As a result, an increase of $8.02 per person has been applied to your booking.

[OVgirl]

HAL PR, thank you for posting and giving us the information about the increased fees.

We are aware that this can happen at anytime before or even when boarding our cruise.

[sapper1]

Count me in as another who doesn't need to be informed of fluctuations in port charges before final payment. I know it happens and the amount is not significant. We have also received OBC for charges that were lowered after final payment.

[kazu]

Thanks to all for your comments and input on this topic. To clarify, all travel agent representatives and guests that booked directly with HAL on the May 18, 2013 sailing of ms Zuiderdam were provided with the following information:

 

Government Fees and Taxes are subject to change. Actual Government Fees and Taxes for this voyage now exceed the estimates used by Holland America Line at the time this voyage was originally released for sale. As a result, an increase of $8.02 per person has been applied to your booking.

 

thank you so much for the final clarification - that nominal amount is negligible when looking at a total cruise cost.

 

Appreciate you coming on the boards:)

[Sunshine91]

Thanks to all for your comments and input on this topic. To clarify, all travel agent representatives and guests that booked directly with HAL on the May 18, 2013 sailing of ms Zuiderdam were provided with the following information:

 

Government Fees and Taxes are subject to change. Actual Government Fees and Taxes for this voyage now exceed the estimates used by Holland America Line at the time this voyage was originally released for sale. As a result, an increase of $8.02 per person has been applied to your booking.

 

Thanks much HAL PR person. It's nice to know for sure for sure that you really & truly are reading these boards. :)

 

This whole thread reminds me of the childhood game of telephone-tag. Anyone else remember it? :D

 

I'm just wondering how the OP got "surplus fuel charge" out of this very clear, concise statement re:taxes & fees. :confused:

[Salacia]

deleted

[Baileybasset]

Sorry, sorry, sorry to all readers on this thread for jumping to the wrong conclusion on this fee. We were looking at our Booking Confirmation where it said about the right to reinstate the fuel supplement charge up to $9. When we saw the $8.02 we assumed this was the reason for the fee. The original e-mail wording did not adequately clue us in to exactly what area the fee was being applied.

 

I guess we are just dense. We are not as experienced with cruising as some of you and have never been charged additional amounts after we paid the total amount due on any of our previous cruises, Holland included. We've always believed what you are quoted is what is due. Apparently, this is not the case and we are now aware of this fact and won't be surprised to see additional charges, but hopefully, there won't be any.

 

On that note, Holland did respond quickly to my e-mail and below is their reply. Again, I am so sorry for the confusion.

 

"Thank you for your recent correspondence with Holland America Line regarding Government Taxes and Fees. The Government Taxes and Fees are in addition to your cruise fare.

 

They are defined as charges imposed by governmental or quasi-governmental authorities, including port authorities, relating to any aspect of your cruise or tour. If governmental action results in any element of Taxes exceeding the estimates used by us for purposes of computing the quoted amount, we reserve the right to pass through the extra amount. Similarly, we reserve the right to impose or pass through fuel supplements, security supplements or similar incidental supplemental. No right of cancellation exists under either of these circumstances.

 

For further information please go to http://www.hollandamerica.com. At the bottom of the home page click on Legal and Privacy. The full Cruise/CruiseTour Contract can be viewed here.

 

Please let us know if we may be of further assistance. Our toll free number is 877-724-5425. Holland America Line is confident our signature of excellence will surpass your expectations. "

[solocanadian]

I don't want my TA wasting her time (and flooding my email) sending me a notification every time HAL increases/decreases taxes or port fees. Just at final is fine with me. ;) Now, if it's a price drop, I want to know right away so I can do a little celebratory jig! :D

I'm with you, Marcia - pardon the pun. Now that will keep everyone guessing.:):D:)

[solocanadian]

Thank you HAL Public Relations Manager for the clarification. On my recent Zaandam cruise to and from Alaska there were 2 Port Fee increases on my onboard account. Just wish they had stated which ports increased their fees. These Alaska runs are enought to drive a person to drink with port fees and head tax.

[languageartslady]

I recently got an email for my cruise that said there was a change, and I needed to log in to the site and check the reservation immediately.

 

I was worried that they had dropped ports, or changed our room, but it turned out to just be they were LOWERING the cost of our cruise, due to the taxes and port charges going down.

 

It was really hard to figure out what had changed, but I was quite relieved. Honestly, it was a lot of stress for $4 per person!

[Galley Slave]

We read the Seattle Times every day and there was an article last week about cruise lines having to use better fuel when they are within 200 miles of the US and Canadian coastlines. It stated that this would be an additional charge that would be passed on to the customers. It looks like all of you are on Alaska cruises--- maybe this is the additional fee for HAL using less harmful fuel.

[IRL_Joanie]

Sorry, sorry, sorry to all readers on this thread for jumping to the wrong conclusion on this fee. We were looking at our Booking Confirmation where it said about the right to reinstate the fuel supplement charge up to $9. When we saw the $8.02 we assumed this was the reason for the fee. The original e-mail wording did not adequately clue us in to exactly what area the fee was being applied.

We've all been there and done the exact same thing!! It is not being dense or whatever else anyone wishes to call it:) What it is is EXCITEMENT!!! And that is a good thing:)

 

My problem was not with your posting of what you assumed to be a Fuel Surcharge!!

 

My intention(s) were to clear up and explain what it actually was and that this happens quite a bit, and why.

 

If others would have read the entire thread before replying to your original post, this would have died down long ago.

 

Look at it this way, it made everyone read their contracts, etc....:)

 

Joanie

[sapper1]

We read the Seattle Times every day and there was an article last week about cruise lines having to use better fuel when they are within 200 miles of the US and Canadian coastlines. It stated that this would be an additional charge that would be passed on to the customers. It looks like all of you are on Alaska cruises--- maybe this is the additional fee for HAL using less harmful fuel.

 

It is not a fuel charge and this has been confirmed in a post by HAL PR.

It is an increase in port taxes, over which HAL has no control.

[Typhoon1]

Thanks Joanie for clarifying that this was not a fuel surcharge.:D:D:D

 

Sorry to burst both your bubbles. The OP stated it was a fuel surcharge in post 1. It was amended later in the thread.

[PathfinderEss]

Sorry to burst both your bubbles. The OP stated it was a fuel surcharge in post 1. It was amended later in the thread.

And my first posted was after the charges was declared not a fuel surcharge Typhoon, so no bursting bubbles here. Same with Joanie's.

[Salacia]

Received an e-mail overnight from HAL notifying us that they have charged us an additional $8.02 per cabin for the surplus fuel charge. Our cruise has been paid in full for two months and does not sail until May 2013. Will they refund the fuel fee if the cost drops? Doubt it. Seems really "cheap" for a cruise line with HAL's reputation to be charging this small a fee on a fare of over $4000 per cabin. I have e-mailed them about this and am awaiting their response. Will post the answer if and when it is received.

 

Balieybasset, may I suggest that you request that the title of your thread be corrected since we all now know that the charge was not a fuel surcharge? I think you can request this of the moderator by clicking on the triangle in your original post, if so desired. Regards, S.

[jtl513]

Balieybasset, may I suggest that you request that the title of your thread be corrected since we all now know that the charge was not a fuel surcharge? I think you can request this of the moderator by clicking on the triangle in your original post, if so desired. Regards, S.

Then the first 16>17 posts wouldn't make any sense. If it bothers you, ask a Host to delete the thread completely. ;)

[serendipity1499]

Is there a reason why you paid this bill so many months out from the cruise date?

 

We don't pay until the final due date.

 

Krazy Kruizers..We're on the 68 day SA cruise on the Prinsendam Jan 5..HAL offered us a discount if we paid in full by May 31..We did this & saved about 2.5% of our fare..Assume the OP was offered the same & saved about the same..

cheers...:)Betty

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Krazy Kruizers..We're on the 68 day SA cruise on the Prinsendam Jan 5..HAL offered us a discount if we paid in full by May 31..We did this & saved about 2.5% of our fare..Assume the OP was offered the same & saved about the same..

 

cheers...:)Betty

Betty I think the OP just has a 7 day Alaska cruise of which case they do not offer that.

You would actually be quite surprised how many pay off the cruise early. For some they just do not want the bill hanging out there, for others while they have it available they just as well pay if off. And yet others like myself started making payments of $400 to $500 a month early so that when it comes time to make final I am not taking from my savings to pay off my credit card statement. This new way has made far more sense to me and makes final a lot easier to handle. After I finish paying one I am start to pay on the next one after that :D

[serendipity1499]

HAL PR & Joanne,

Thank you for posting & clarifying the extra assessment...

It seems to me that once we were given a small increase on board, but not sure when it was..

We're booked on the Prinsendam Jan 05 to S.A. & Antarctica.. I'm wondering if it's possible that we will have an increase in our Govt. Fees & Taxes too, or is this unique to Alaska?

Has anyone else ever been assessed an increase in Gov. fees other than Alaska ?

Betty

[serendipity1499]

Betty I think the OP just has a 7 day Alaska cruise of which case they do not offer that.

You would actually be quite surprised how many pay off the cruise early. For some they just do not want the bill hanging out there, for others while they have it available they just as well pay if off. And yet others like myself started making payments of $400 to $500 a month early so that when it comes time to make final I am not taking from my savings to pay off my credit card statement. This new way has made far more sense to me and makes final a lot easier to handle. After I finish paying one I am start to pay on the next one after that :D

 

Thanks Lisa...That makes sense..So does HAL only offer a discount if you are on a Grand or World cruise & pay it early, or was this just a one shot deal this year?

Cheers...Betty