Credit card minimum for onboard account?

[Viva_la_Vida]

Hi all, anyone know if celebrity sets a minimum for the line if credit you need available on your card?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[gimletgal]

Hi all, anyone know if celebrity sets a minimum for the line if credit you need available on your card?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I believe it is $50 per day.

[DebbieMacG]

Nothing is charged to your card until you spend anything, however when you do spend say $100 that $100 will be re authorised every few days this can add up by the end of a long cruise if it's authorised three or four times.

 

Some people have reported seeing a $200 pre authorisation but neither myself nor my travelling companions have ever personally had this happen.

 

You can put cash on your account if you wish :)

[Viva_la_Vida]

Great info, thanks!

[junetraveler2014]

Nothing is charged to your card until you spend anything, however when you do spend say $100 that $100 will be re authorised every few days this can add up by the end of a long cruise if it's authorised three or four times.

 

Some people have reported seeing a $200 pre authorisation but neither myself nor my travelling companions have ever personally had this happen.

 

You can put cash on your account if you wish :)

 

 

Any information on debit cards. What is the pre-authorization? Are there any other charges if you use it as a credit card? Thanks in advance!

[DebbieMacG]

Any information on debit cards. What is the pre-authorization? Are there any other charges if you use it as a credit card? Thanks in advance!

 

A debit card is the same, as I said I've never seen any pre authorisation until money is spent but then you may see multiple authorisations for the same transactions. i.e if you spend $100 they will authorise it and it will show as pending, then another few days later they will authorise it again. A $300 spend could end up been authorised four times on a 14 night cruise, holding $1200 on the card, obviously they won't all go through but can take a while (depending on your bank) to stop pending. This can tie up cash you may otherwise need.

 

If anyone isn't able to do this or hasn't got a large enough credit card limit then you can always deposit cash onto your ship board account, if you keep the account in credit there's nothing to be charged.

[Chicago Boy]

Any information on debit cards. What is the pre-authorization? Are there any other charges if you use it as a credit card? Thanks in advance!

 

 

We only use our Debit card at trusted ATM machines or when shopping at select stores. By using your debit card on board your cruise you are giving someone direct access to your bank account. You may want to check with your bank and find out what their policy is, if a vendor makes a mistake when processing transactions using your debit card account number. I think you may find you have more protection by using a credit card. Enjoy your cruise!:)

[Clydesmom7865]

A debit card is the same, as I said I've never seen any pre authorisation until money is spent but then you may see multiple authorisations for the same transactions. i.e if you spend $100 they will authorise it and it will show as pending, then another few days later they will authorise it again. A $300 spend could end up been authorised four times on a 14 night cruise, holding $1200 on the card, obviously they won't all go through but can take a while (depending on your bank) to stop pending. This can tie up cash you may otherwise need.

 

 

Actually that is not what happens. If on day 1 you charge $50 they authorize that amount. On day 2 you charge another $50 worth of stuff so another charge goes through and so on with each days charges. Until those pre-authorization charges disappear you may see multiple charges of the same amount depending on how much you spend each day. They do not push those daily authorizations through. At the end of the cruise they total the amount and charge the full amount one time. The problem comes into play when the last few days of the cruise authorizations are still holding space and they put through the entire amount. There could be a conflict with the credit limit at that point.

 

 

To avoid this I typically go pay off the balance or a portion of it with cash a few days before the end of the cruise if I don't want it on a credit card. I do not want them having access to a debit card ever. Too much risk.

[TommyD3]

Yes they put a hold on the credit card as charges occur to make sure the funds are available.

 

The problem I have is that they (on all ships except the Connie) put a hold for the amount of the "free" internet. Zenith members get $400 pp of free internet.

 

Last December they put a hold of $800 on my son's credit card for his $400 of free internet. It takes them several days to process the "free" coupon. He also charged $2000 of future cruise deposits. Since his credit line was only $3500, I had to add money to his credit card to keep him from exceeding his credit limit.

 

Fortunately on the Connie they now know the amount of "free" internet you qualify for and don't charge you for it. Hopefully that will spread across the fleet soon:)

[DebbieMacG]

Actually that is not what happens. If on day 1 you charge $50 they authorize that amount. On day 2 you charge another $50 worth of stuff so another charge goes through and so on with each days charges. Until those pre-authorization charges disappear you may see multiple charges of the same amount depending on how much you spend each day. They do not push those daily authorizations through. At the end of the cruise they total the amount and charge the full amount one time. The problem comes into play when the last few days of the cruise authorizations are still holding space and they put through the entire amount. There could be a conflict with the credit limit at that point.

 

 

To avoid this I typically go pay off the balance or a portion of it with cash a few days before the end of the cruise if I don't want it on a credit card. I do not want them having access to a debit card ever. Too much risk.

 

 

I think we are talking about the same thing :confused:

[Clydesmom7865]

I think we are talking about the same thing :confused:

 

Not exactly. You said they keep reauthorizing the same charge to keep the hold. They do not. Once that hold expires it is released by your bank according to banking policy. Now some will keep the hold the entire cruise until the cruise line releases it others give them a set time frame to put the charge through or the hold is released automatically.

 

While I have not cruised a lot they have never put through a daily charge more than once on my card to hold it. The cumulative effect would be devastating on a ten day or longer cruise for many people.

[DebbieMacG]

Not exactly. You said they keep reauthorizing the same charge to keep the hold. They do not. Once that hold expires it is released by your bank according to banking policy. Now some will keep the hold the entire cruise until the cruise line releases it others give them a set time frame to put the charge through or the hold is released automatically.

 

While I have not cruised a lot they have never put through a daily charge more than once on my card to hold it. The cumulative effect would be devastating on a ten day or longer cruise for many people.

 

Oh they defiantly do re authorise the charges. I was told this by Celebrity and it's actually on a sign on the counter of the guest services re:multiple holds) Each hold in theory should run out after approx 3 days but some can be pending for longer depending on the bank.

 

For example if by day two of a cruise you've spent $200 they will authorise that amount, then by day five you've now spent $300 they will authorise $300 because the hold for the first amount is due to expire BUT depending on the bank it doesn't always so now you've got a cumulative hold of $500 and by day eight you've spent $400 they will authorise the $400, by now the first hold for $200 has dropped from the system do you now have $700 held and so on.... If you've got a credit card with a decent limit and you can't see pending charges you may never see this happening. But for those with a low limit or a debit card it's more noticeable. Also if you are with a bank whose pending transactions drop quickly then you may also never really notice.

 

Basically you can end up with multiple holds. If you spent only $200 on day one and nothing more they would still have to re authorise that amount every few days as they only have a few days for the authorisation to match up with a final transaction.

[Clydesmom7865]

Oh they defiantly do re authorise the charges. I was told this by Celebrity and it's actually on a sign on the counter of the guest services re:multiple holds) Each hold in theory should run out after approx 3 days but some can be pending for longer depending on the bank.

 

For example if by day two of a cruise you've spent $200 they will authorise that amount, then by day five you've now spent $300 they will authorise $300 because the hold for the first amount is due to expire BUT depending on the bank it doesn't always so now you've got a cumulative hold of $500 and by day eight you've spent $400 they will authorise the $400, by now the first hold for $200 has dropped from the system do you now have $700 held and so on.... If you've got a credit card with a decent limit and you can't see pending charges you may never see this happening. But for those with a low limit or a debit card it's more noticeable. Also if you are with a bank whose pending transactions drop quickly then you may also never really notice.

 

Basically you can end up with multiple holds. If you spent only $200 on day one and nothing more they would still have to re authorise that amount every few days as they only have a few days for the authorisation to match up with a final transaction.

 

They did not do that on either of my cruises.

 

On day 1 I spent $45 and that was authorized. Day 2 $130, Day 3 $45, Day 4 $ 45 but by this point day one fell off because my bank has a strict 3 day policy to put the charge through or it is released. No duplicate charges were put through on any previous day once the hold was released. At the end of the cruise I had spent $485 and there was still three holds for approximately $50 each from the immediate previous days. The last night the $485 total was put through and within a day of getting home the other authorizations fell off and the total one pushed through.

 

The same thing happened with my traveling companions. At no time were daily charges double or triple authorized and I kept track as I was on a 14 day cruise.

 

My bank shows all pending transactions and as they were both port intensive cruises I checked my available credit before going in to port so that I knew where my balance was and avoided problems. I believe that sign means because they put through DAILY charges there may be multiple holds because of it being done daily to ensure payment rather than no pre-authorization for a flat amount and then having to credit passengers. I have yet to see them keep resubmitting the early days charges of a cruise once the credit hold is released until the final total billing which is different that authorizing that daily amount.

[DebbieMacG]

Well whichever way you look at it there were multiple holds on your account at any one time and this is something that someone with limited funds needs to be aware of :)

[Viva_la_Vida]

Just happened to notice on a recent Daily from Summit:

 

"If you used a debit card (Master Card or Visa only accepted) or credit card at check-in, be advised that issuing banks may hold off on releasing pre-authorized amounts for up to 21 days."

 

The two lessons I'm taking from this and from everyone's responses are: 1. I'll be depositing some cash when I check in 2. Hold time depends on your bank

 

So when I deposit cash, will they use that up first before hitting up my credit card? I wish X accepted Amex and Discover.

[DebbieMacG]

Just happened to notice on a recent Daily from Summit:

 

"If you used a debit card (Master Card or Visa only accepted) or credit card at check-in, be advised that issuing banks may hold off on releasing pre-authorized amounts for up to 21 days."

 

The two lessons I'm taking from this and from everyone's responses are: 1. I'll be depositing some cash when I check in 2. Hold time depends on your bank

 

So when I deposit cash, will they use that up first before hitting up my credit card? I wish X accepted Amex and Discover.

 

 

Yes they will use the cash first.

[gimletgal]

I wish X accepted Amex and Discover.

 

That's strange! Use these all the time with X.

[Lsimon]

Any information on debit cards. What is the pre-authorization? Are there any other charges if you use it as a credit card? Thanks in advance!

 

There are many threads here on Cruise Critic from people who have had great problems using debit cards on the ship. Debit cards are notoriously bad for any type of charge where the actual charge is authorized well in advance of the final charge in order to secure payment. Common examples are check in at hotels, cruises and rental cars. The common problem is that authorizations of some security deposit or spending limit is done at check in which takes the funds out of your checking account, although they are still held at the bank. Then when the actual charge comes through it often is done in a way that does not match up with the preauthorization so that your account is double dipped for a period that can be days or weeks until the authorization reverses.

 

Experiences vary greatly and the check-in clerks often do not have the actual information on how their company's computer system processes these holds so you cannot always rely on their information.

 

If at all possible avoid using a debit card for check-in. Get a credit card or set up a cash account. I believe that if you set up a cash account you can go to the front desk and make a lump sum, one time payment, at the end of the cruise to cover any charges beyond a cash deposit you've posted (if you even have to post one). I'm not sure if this is true or not as I've not tried it myself but if so it would be a way to use your debit card to pay your onboard account without a preauthorization being temporarily charged against your bank account.

[Pugwash123]

Hi, My wife and I are English and have just come off Celebrity Eclipse. I pre registered my credit card prior to boarding and then once on board I asked customer relations to remove the credit card and replace it with a pre-loaded dollar travel card. I have just checked my both my credit card and my pre-loaded travel card. My credit card shows no pending transactions from the ship and my pre-loaded travel card is in the process of being debited with the exact amount of my on board account and has not had any additional charges added. I have used a pre-loaded travel card before and find it a convenient and safe way to pay.