Maximum pre purchase OBC?

[triptastic]

Hi,

I will be on the Epic in March. My question is, is there a maximum about of OBC I can buy? I want to ensure that I have more than enough in my account to cover anything I may spend at my current favorable Canadian exchange rate. There are 4 of us. Would $6000 be permitted to buy?

Thanks!

[casofilia]

Can't help but I am interested in the answer!!

 

Mike

[Shawnino]

I bought $5000 last time, no questions asked.

[casofilia]

I bought $5000 last time, no questions asked.

 

That is nice to know, I got $500 to cover a couple of Future Cruise Certificates when we cruise in March. Must get some more.

 

Mike

[dans0202]

It appears the results are all over the place. I too am trying to take advantage of the favourable f/x rates. I was cut off at 2000 so I bought another 1000 in spouses name. Was not allowed to purchase in kids name. Traveling on escape.

[hamrag]

I bought $5000 last time, no questions asked.

 

What happens if you don't spend all of it, is it classed as refundable and credited back to your credit card?

[casofilia]

What happens if you don't spend all of it, is it classed as refundable and credited back to your credit card?

 

Less than USD can be refunded on board.

More than that can be obtained through the casino at 3% charge

Otherwise it is returned as a cheque to your home address.

 

There is no chance of a refund to your credit card.

 

Mike

[Salsa_Sailor]

I bought OBC last February outside the US and had about $50 left. The invoice said they would deliver it by cheque but nothing happened. After some emails and phone calls they decided to put it in my bank account. The exchange rate had changed until they managed the transaction and they gave me this better exchange rate. Waiting some weeks was worth it [emoji2].

[Shawnino]

What happens if you don't spend all of it, is it classed as refundable and credited back to your credit card?

 

I got a cheque in the mail about 10 days after getting home.

[Mscruisin]

Just off the Epic today. I had pre-purchased $1500 obc at a good rate. It didn't show up on my account so I had to go to guest services with proof that I had purchased it. It took 3 days to show up on my account. In that 3 days I withdrew $1400 in the casino with a 3% casino charge. I was using some of it in the casino. Once it showed up on my account and I tried to withdraw the last $100 a supervisor appeared and very rudely told me that refundable or non refundable obc could not be used in the casino. Since I had already withdrawn the $1400 they couldn't take it back but I couldn't get the last $100. They told me to go to guest services where I was told to contact their shore offices when I got home. They couldn't refund me the last $100. I ended up spending it on board. If it had of shown up on my account the first day I don't think the casino would have let me withdraw anything. I can't understand their policy because it's posted in the casino you can withdraw on your account for a fee. I think when they see it on your account that's when things change. I wouldn't chance it again. It would have been refunded hopefully after the cruise but that would have left me with no US money.

[vicocala]

I don't know for sure, but an educated guess would be the ten thousand limit that you have to report to customs and/or the IRS.

[Mr and Mrs C]

Hi,

 

I will be on the Epic in March. My question is, is there a maximum about of OBC I can buy? I want to ensure that I have more than enough in my account to cover anything I may spend at my current favorable Canadian exchange rate. There are 4 of us. Would $6000 be permitted to buy?

 

Thanks!

 

 

We booked in Canadian funds, I was under the impression that everything charged to my card was in Canadian funds? If that is true why the need to buy the obc?

I was sure that's how it worked last year, correct me if I'm wrong?!

[casofilia]

On the cruise the cabin card is charged on board in USD as are all purchases on board. However if you give them a CAD credit card at check-in it is charged in USD and converted by the bank to CAD at the rate on the day; at present nearly 1.38.

 

If you buy OBC in CAD you will receive on your ship-board account in USD at the NCL rate you are tied to. That is you pay CAD118 for USD100 if you are tied to 1.18.

 

If you give a USD credit card at check-in the debt is just taken out as the USD you have run up on the boat.

 

Mike

[Mr and Mrs C]

So I'm sure this has been asked one hundred times before but I don't recall sorry, can I purchase obc to pay for the daily service charge? Or is the service fees in Canadian funds like my cruise rate was?

[casofilia]

So I'm sure this has been asked one hundred times before but I don't recall sorry, can I purchase obc to pay for the daily service charge? Or is the service fees in Canadian funds like my cruise rate was?

 

If you buy OBC it just goes on your on-board account; but see below.

 

If you pay your Service Charge before you sail you will be charged in CAD at the rate applicable when you booked; there have been two increases in the last 12 months. Also remember you have a locked in NCL exchange rate which is possibly 1.18.

 

If you leave it till you are on board the Service Charge will be added to your bill in USD at the "going" rate. If you give a CAD credit card at check-in your bill will be charged in USD and the bank will convert at that day's rate; at present about 1.38.

 

Personally I would get it paid unless you can see the rate falling to par!! :D :D :D

 

Mike

Edited December 19, 2015 by casofilia

[Mr and Mrs C]

If you buy OBC it just goes on your on-board account; but see below.

 

 

 

If you pay your Service Charge before you sail you will be charged in CAD at the rate applicable when you booked; there have been two increases in the last 12 months. Also remember you have a locked in NCL exchange rate which is possibly 1.18.

 

 

 

If you leave it till you are on board the Service Charge will be added to your bill in USD at the "going" rate. If you give a CAD credit card at check-in your bill will be charged in USD and the bank will convert at that day's rate; at present about 1.38.

 

 

 

Personally I would get it paid unless you can see the rate falling to par!! :D :D :D

 

 

 

Mike

 

 

Thanks so much for the info!

[Ontario cruise duo]

We booked in Canadian funds, I was under the impression that everything charged to my card was in Canadian funds? If that is true why the need to buy the obc?

I was sure that's how it worked last year, correct me if I'm wrong?!

 

Everything you charge onboard is also charged to your credit card in US dollars. How long ago did you book your cruise and what was the exchange rate that you paid and when are you sailing??? But regardless, I would call your cruise consultant and/or travel agent and purchase as much onboard credit as you think you will need/use/want to leave the ship with if you are staying extra after your cruise in the US. The rate to buy US $$'s right now in Canada is around .43 cents on the dollar:eek: Can you say "yikes". Anyhow, on our recent cruise I pre-purchased OBC at .11 cents on the dollar. So my Canadian charge card was charged $111.11 for every $100.00 US I purchased.

Beats the current exchange of $143.00 for every $100.00 US. I bought several hundred dollars :D at that rate, cashed out at the casino for a 3% "convenience fee", used very little in the casino, and left the ship with extra:D US $$'s to spend during our extra day and a half in Florida and even brought some home. When I think about it now, I almost wish I had bought more (would that be greedy of me) I think not, after all it is still my money!

Edited December 19, 2015 by Ontario cruise duo

[calgaryhhr]

Everything you charge onboard is also charged to your credit card in US dollars. How long ago did you book your cruise and what was the exchange rate that you paid and when are you sailing??? But regardless, I would call your cruise consultant and/or travel agent and purchase as much onboard credit as you think you will need/use/want to leave the ship with if you are staying extra after your cruise in the US. The rate to buy US $$'s right now in Canada is around .43 cents on the dollar:eek: Can you say "yikes". Anyhow, on our recent cruise I pre-purchased OBC at .11 cents on the dollar. So my Canadian charge card was charged $111.11 for every $100.00 US I purchased.

Beats the current exchange of $143.00 for every $100.00 US. I bought several hundred dollars :D at that rate, cashed out at the casino for a 3% "convenience fee", used very little in the casino, and left the ship with extra:D US $$'s to spend during our extra day and a half in Florida and even brought some home. When I think about it now, I almost wish I had bought more (would that be greedy of me) I think not, after all it is still my money!

 

We just got off the Escape on Dec 19 and did the same thing. We purchased $1500 in onboard credits each and walked off the boat with just under $2900USD. We had some additional onboard credits from our travel agent that covered some of our onboard charges and the casino had no problems providing us with $400 whenever we went down to get some cash. The final night we got our remaining $9 from guest services.

[RobTheGob]

We have two B2B trips in April - I've found that I can't buy more than $2000 for each leg (so - $1000 each, times two legs = $4000 in total). I'd like a bit more - our total number of nights is 30.

 

If I try to buy more - the online system processes for a bit then states that the OBC is "unavailable" for the date I've chosen. Changing the date doesn't appear to help (I tried a few other dates). Initially, I couldn't complete the sale until I dropped the OBC down to $2000 ($1000 each). I started at $3200.

 

As long as I have the bulk of the OBC purchased - I'll wait until we've made our final payment and then try again. If the online system fails at that point, I'll probably call in...

 

BTW - we booked about three weeks ago and our rate is 19%. I think the group rate was locked in some time ago.

Edited December 22, 2015 by RobTheGob
Added exchange rate info.

[Mscruisin]

Just an update on my previous post. After I returned home I checked my credit card. If the $1500 OBC that I had bought before the cruise had been applied I would have owed $4.89. My account on the last night showed that I owed $4.89. When we left the ship the next morning there was no bill left outside our door. I went to guest services but the line was very long and since I thought I only owed such a small amount l left. Not sure why my account didn't reflect what they were going to charge me on the last night. Today I see they charged me $1404.89. The $1400 was the money I withdrew in the casino plus I was charged the 3% fee on top of that. I assume they will mail me a US check for the $1400 left on OBC but I have already paid the favourable exchange rate once. Now I will have to pay a really bad rate on my credit card again and only get a portion of that when I cash it in for Canadian. It appears they aren't letting you cash out in the casino anymore. Anything I bought on the ship was applied to the OBC other than the casino withdrawls. I am going to call tomorrow anyways. What's the best number to call?

[RobTheGob]

Just an update on my previous post. After I returned home I checked my credit card. If the $1500 OBC that I had bought before the cruise had been applied I would have owed $4.89. My account on the last night showed that I owed $4.89. When we left the ship the next morning there was no bill left outside our door. I went to guest services but the line was very long and since I thought I only owed such a small amount l left. Not sure why my account didn't reflect what they were going to charge me on the last night. Today I see they charged me $1404.89. The $1400 was the money I withdrew in the casino plus I was charged the 3% fee on top of that. I assume they will mail me a US check for the $1400 left on OBC but I have already paid the favourable exchange rate once. Now I will have to pay a really bad rate on my credit card again and only get a portion of that when I cash it in for Canadian. It appears they aren't letting you cash out in the casino anymore. Anything I bought on the ship was applied to the OBC other than the casino withdrawls. I am going to call tomorrow anyways. What's the best number to call?

 

That's interesting - it will be interesting to hear of other peoples experiences...

[calgaryhhr]

Just off the Epic today. I had pre-purchased $1500 obc at a good rate. It didn't show up on my account so I had to go to guest services with proof that I had purchased it. It took 3 days to show up on my account. In that 3 days I withdrew $1400 in the casino with a 3% casino charge. I was using some of it in the casino. Once it showed up on my account and I tried to withdraw the last $100 a supervisor appeared and very rudely told me that refundable or non refundable obc could not be used in the casino. Since I had already withdrawn the $1400 they couldn't take it back but I couldn't get the last $100. They told me to go to guest services where I was told to contact their shore offices when I got home. They couldn't refund me the last $100. I ended up spending it on board. If it had of shown up on my account the first day I don't think the casino would have let me withdraw anything. I can't understand their policy because it's posted in the casino you can withdraw on your account for a fee. I think when they see it on your account that's when things change. I wouldn't chance it again. It would have been refunded hopefully after the cruise but that would have left me with no US money.

 

Just an update on my previous post. After I returned home I checked my credit card. If the $1500 OBC that I had bought before the cruise had been applied I would have owed $4.89. My account on the last night showed that I owed $4.89. When we left the ship the next morning there was no bill left outside our door. I went to guest services but the line was very long and since I thought I only owed such a small amount l left. Not sure why my account didn't reflect what they were going to charge me on the last night. Today I see they charged me $1404.89. The $1400 was the money I withdrew in the casino plus I was charged the 3% fee on top of that. I assume they will mail me a US check for the $1400 left on OBC but I have already paid the favourable exchange rate once. Now I will have to pay a really bad rate on my credit card again and only get a portion of that when I cash it in for Canadian. It appears they aren't letting you cash out in the casino anymore. Anything I bought on the ship was applied to the OBC other than the casino withdrawls. I am going to call tomorrow anyways. What's the best number to call?

 

Based on your first post, I assume what happened is that because you were withdrawing money at the casino before any onboard credit had been added to your account those transactions were being billed to you account.

 

We had $3000 in pre purchased onboard credit on the Escape on Dec 12 which was in our account on the first day of our cruise. We took out $2800 over the duration of our cruise and got the remaining $9 in our account from guest services on the last night. There was no charge to our credit card for the casino moneys.

[Ontario cruise duo]

Based on your first post, I assume what happened is that because you were withdrawing money at the casino before any onboard credit had been added to your account those transactions were being billed to you account.

 

We had $3000 in pre purchased onboard credit on the Escape on Dec 12 which was in our account on the first day of our cruise. We took out $2800 over the duration of our cruise and got the remaining $9 in our account from guest services on the last night. There was no charge to our credit card for the casino moneys.

 

We you charged the 3% "convenience charge" at the casino when you withdrew your money?

[Ontario cruise duo]

Just an update on my previous post. After I returned home I checked my credit card. If the $1500 OBC that I had bought before the cruise had been applied I would have owed $4.89. My account on the last night showed that I owed $4.89. When we left the ship the next morning there was no bill left outside our door. I went to guest services but the line was very long and since I thought I only owed such a small amount l left. Not sure why my account didn't reflect what they were going to charge me on the last night. Today I see they charged me $1404.89. The $1400 was the money I withdrew in the casino plus I was charged the 3% fee on top of that. I assume they will mail me a US check for the $1400 left on OBC but I have already paid the favourable exchange rate once. Now I will have to pay a really bad rate on my credit card again and only get a portion of that when I cash it in for Canadian. It appears they aren't letting you cash out in the casino anymore. Anything I bought on the ship was applied to the OBC other than the casino withdrawls. I am going to call tomorrow anyways. What's the best number to call?

 

 

Just curious, when you checked in, did you give a US credit card to charge your onboard charges to, or was it a Canadian Credit card. If it was a Canadian credit card, then this defeats the whole purpose of you purchasing your own "onboard credit" to use on the ship. I would highly dispute the way NCL handled this and it any event, it certainly wasn't in your best interest, that is for sure. Sounds like NCL may be on to us smart Canadians.

[Mscruisin]

We you charged the 3% "convenience charge" at the casino when you withdrew your money?

 

Yes I was charged the 3% when I withdrew the money and have a copy of the paper from the casino that says it will be charged to my sail and sign card.