Bought a watch on the ship?

[Fat Paul]

I suppose you don't remember if they were selling Omegas on board? I know the Allure has them, but not sure about other ships.

 

 

I did not see any Omegas.

[riclop]

And I am going on the Navigator in two weeks and I am thinking about buying a watch on board.

 

Has anyone ever bought a watch on a cruise ship? If so, was it easy to pay the duty entering the country? What was the percentage you paid at custom when declaring the watch?

 

Sadly, there are no authorized dealers at any of the ports on my itinerary.

 

If there are any watch geeks, I am looking at the Omega Aqua Terra 150m Co-Axial 41.5mm with white face.

You must be crazy to buy a watch on a ship.

[Tennessee_Cruiser]

You must be crazy to buy a watch on a ship.

 

Care to offer an explanation or was this more of a hit and run attack? If the price is right and I like what I'm buying how does this make me crazy?

[sportsphotos]

What ever you do DON'T buy a INVICTA at no fault of the cruise ship INVICTA has the worst customer service in the watch Industry. I purchased a Invicta and had cracked the crystal it took over 6 months for it to be returned. I love the look of their watches but the service is the WORSTINVICTA WATCH !!!!!! And I am a very patient person!!!!!!!!!!!

[Fat Paul]

You must be crazy to buy a watch on a ship.

 

Call me crazy, I have purchased four watches on board RCI ships. The only one that I was unsatisfied with was an Invicta. I plan on buying another on my next cruise.

[Tennessee_Cruiser]

Call me crazy, I have purchased four watches on board RCI ships. The only one that I was unsatisfied with was an Invicta. I plan on buying another on my next cruise.

 

Guess we are both crazy, Paul!!! :eek:

[Fat Paul]

Guess we are both crazy, Paul!!! :eek:

 

I see that you will be on the Navigator later this month. We were on her early this month, RCI did a nice job on the upgrade earlier this year. Port of Galveston was fairly efficient, great cruise (they all are). Have a great cruise and drink one for me.

[Tennessee_Cruiser]

I see that you will be on the Navigator later this month. We were on her early this month, RCI did a nice job on the upgrade earlier this year. Port of Galveston was fairly efficient, great cruise (they all are). Have a great cruise and drink one for me.

 

Thanks! Will do!

 

Had a blast last time I was on the Navigator, and cannot wait to see the upgrades... And eat at Sabors!

[modes]

You must be crazy to buy a watch on a ship.

 

I agree with you and then you pay much more than its worth.

[riclop]

Care to offer an explanation or was this more of a hit and run attack? If the price is right and I like what I'm buying how does this make me crazy?

If you dont see why than buy them all!!!!!!!!!!!!

[SA Traveler]

I agree with you and then you pay much more than its worth.

Not necessarily true. Just research and know what you are getting. I know for a fact we paid less for DH's 6 Citizens than we could find anywhere else. I'm sure it is true in some cases but you can't know for sure that it is always the case.

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

[Fat Paul]

If you dont see why than buy them all!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I have gotten some very good buys on board RCI. With the internet it is very easy to research prices within minutes before purchasing anything. Or you could just make blanket, knee jerk statements. Whatever is your pleasure.

[riclop]

I have gotten some very good buys on board RCI. With the internet it is very easy to research prices within minutes before purchasing anything. Or you could just make blanket, knee jerk statements. Whatever is your pleasure.

Your banner is 3 years old.

[Fat Paul]

Your banner is 3 years old.

 

Oh the humanity!

[dabucs]

Bought a $430ish watch onboard Navigator. Citizen brand. Was approx $600 back in the US at the time. Great watch and I am very happy with it. I do agree, though, that you need to do your homework beforehand so you know if it is a deal or not. Declaring this purchase wasn't an issue due to the value.

[markeb]

There was a time when you could routinely find Omega at 30% off retail in the US; those days have become much less routine. Swatch Group has gone the "boutique" route (including a boutique in Nashville) and has pushed many if not most dealers in towns with a boutique out of Omega. Smaller markets that don't have a boutique still tend to 15-20% (and occasionally more) below MSRP from ADs with a full warranty.

 

In general, the discount in the Caribbean is about 15%; that's really only a good deal for Rolex or Panerai that are rarely if ever discounted in the US, and Rolex carries its own issues.

 

If you've found a 20% discount on the watch you want, from an authorized dealer with warranty, then I'd recommend (as a diehard watch geek), that you seriously consider it. Unless you know a small market Omega dealer well away from a boutique, in today's market, that's a pretty good deal, especially for a co-axial 8500 movement watch. This is a very popular watch in Omega's current lineup. The best you'll probably do in the Caribbean is 15%, and you'll have to deal with duty on top of that, and potentially usage tax in your state.

 

Under no circumstances should you buy a watch over about $500 in the Caribbean or on the ship unless you've thoroughly researched its going price in the United States! And retail is generally NOT the going price!

[OCruisers]

The only watches we have bought on ships are Swatch watches which we like to take with us in ports so we can leave our good watches in the cabin safe.

We actually LOVE our Swatch watches and are guilty of just using them rather than changing to our good watches. :)

LuLu

[ducklite]

My husband bought me a necklace (which should be levied the same as a watch) in French Polynesia. We were charged 3% duty on everything after the $1600 joint exemption. They were very pleasant and the entire transaction took about three minutes. They took cash and credit cards. Hope that helps.

 

PS--One thing I'd suggest is that you make sure the warranty isn't a "grey" warranty which you might have a hard time getting accepted in the US. As long as it's a US warranty and you are aware of the prices and duty, I say go for it if you can find a good deal on the ship.

Edited June 17, 2014 by ducklite

[LMaxwell]

Some pretty solid advice in here. Will just throw in, if paying with a credit card (which should offer you protections - check your user agreement to see which protections / warranties / guarantees your credit card offers) check to see if there is a foreign transaction fee as well.

[Wheeling_family_of_3]

We bought a very high dollar watch onboard on the first day while we were still in port so I could check prices online using my phone. The price was higher than amazon, but when you factored in sales tax, even factoring in duty, it was approximately the same price. And we wanted the "glamour" having my very fancy watch bought on our exciting and much anticipated vacation. We have been very happy with our purchase even though we got it at approximately the same amount we could have gotten on land.

[Philly Steve]

we wanted the "glamour" having my very fancy watch bought on our exciting and much anticipated vacation. We have been very happy with our purchase even though we got it at approximately the same amount we could have gotten on land.

 

Exactly. Planning to buy jewelry or electronics on a cruise can be a very fun part of vacation, whether it be at the onboard shops or a port stop. When I look at my America's Cup Citizen watch I think of the great time I had in Barbados.

[alfaeric]

Exactly. Planning to buy jewelry or electronics on a cruise can be a very fun part of vacation, whether it be at the onboard shops or a port stop. When I look at my America's Cup Citizen watch I think of the great time I had in Barbados.

 

You can say that again- when I look down at my America's Cup Citizen (which I wear every single day), I remember the great time I had in St. Maarten- sailing ON Stars and Stripes! With what I have gotten out of the watch, I realy don't care what I paid for it... back in 2004.

 

The notes about Swatch are interesting- being that Hamilton (the watch I recently bought on board at a very good price) is also a Swatch company. I'll have to look up all of their brands.

 

Oh, and to briefly put in a shoutout for a local company- Shinola is starting to have athorized dealers in ports- we know of Juneau and San Juan as a pair. We need to stop at their factory in Detroit. Their port prices are quite good as well.

Edited June 17, 2014 by alfaeric

[goodycruising]

We bought a citizen eco drive when my battery when flat on my usual watch. I have never seen one exactly the same, and it was not very expensive, but every time I wear it I remember where I bought it. :) If it was something more expensive I would tend to prefer to buy closer to home for warranty etc probably, and do more research at least.

 

Now, when it comes to the cheap handbags, watch out for magnets! They wreck your seapass magnetic strip :(

[Tennessee_Cruiser]

Exactly. Planning to buy jewelry or electronics on a cruise can be a very fun part of vacation, whether it be at the onboard shops or a port stop. When I look at my America's Cup Citizen watch I think of the great time I had in Barbados.

 

You can say that again- when I look down at my America's Cup Citizen (which I wear every single day), I remember the great time I had in St. Maarten- sailing ON Stars and Stripes! With what I have gotten out of the watch, I realy don't care what I paid for it... back in 2004.

 

I will add my +1 to this!! We are suckers for the Britto store on the Allure and cannot go home without a piece of art or something to put around the house. When I walk past my Britto piece in the foyer I smile every day because it reminds me of cruising! (It's a print of the original Britto on the Allure bridge.)

[Fat Paul]

I will add my +1 to this!! We are suckers for the Britto store on the Allure and cannot go home without a piece of art or something to put around the house. When I walk past my Britto piece in the foyer I smile every day because it reminds me of cruising! (It's a print of the original Britto on the Allure bridge.)

 

My wife has assembled a three piece set of Britto luggage from the shop on the Freedom. She is normally very reserved but always gets a big smile when using them.