Need advice

[Badger169]

Me & my son are currently on our first cruise. After 2 days of being on the ship I had a letter left on my bed saying that unfortunately a sea pass account could not be set up with the card details I had given them, and could I please go to Guest Services, so that’s what I did. I was told that I had to contact my bank as it was them who were declining my card. I rang my bank (Nat West), and they said that a block had been put on my card as it had tried to be used for more than £50.00, via the magnetic strip. Apparently the bank has an overall set limit on debit cards (i don’t have credit cards), and when using the magnetic strip only, that limit is £50.00, anything more and it will automatically be declined. So my bank advised me to tell Guest Services to put the card through for £50.00 and it will work, so that’s what I did and hey presto...my sea pass account is up and running. However, I am now worried that when I come to the end of my cruise, and want to settle my sea pass account, if it’s more than £50.00 (which it’s highly likely it will be), if they try to put my card through without a PIN number, it isn’t going to work....so does anyone know if they do chip & pin on Royal Caribbean?.....if they don’t, does anyone know how I will be able to settle my account? Thank you 

[paul929207]

Could you get money from an ATM on one of the islands. Be sure it is a currency the ship will accept.

[Badger169]

7 minutes ago, paul929207 said:

Could you get money from an ATM on one of the islands. Be sure it is a currency the ship will accept.

My son thinks there is an atm machine on the ship, but I think the max I can withdraw per day is 250sterling 

[jlp20]

I'm GUESSING that once the 50 is spent, your cruise card will be declined.

[Sauer-kraut]

A good rule to be aware of for ANY cruiser new or not.  NEVER ever use a debit card for your shipboard account.  There are too many holds, charges put through and other things that the passenger isn't aware of.  Many cruisers have had issues after departing the ship as well as during the cruise.

IF you only have a debit card.....please pre-pay as much as you possibly can (the daily service charge, purchase gift cards or onboard money, etc.), then bring CASH to apply to your account while onboard.

Edited November 24, 2018 by Sauer-kraut

[Clarea]

4 minutes ago, Sauer-kraut said:

A good rule to be aware of for ANY cruiser new or not.  NEVER ever use a debit card for your shipboard account.  There are too many holds, charges put through and other things that the passenger isn't aware of.  Many cruisers have had issues after departing the ship as well as during the cruise.

IF you only have a debit card.....please pre-pay as much as you possibly can (the daily service charge, purchase gift cards or onboard money, etc.), then bring CASH to apply to your account while onboard.

 

Another way to use a debit card on Royal and minimize potential issues is to opt for a cash type account.  Royal allows a cash account to charge up to $500 before asking that the account be paid down.  Then use the debit card at the end of the cruise to pay off the account.  No holds this way.

[Underwatr]

5 hours ago, jlp20 said:

I'm GUESSING that once the 50 is spent, your cruise card will be declined.

Since they only drew £50 from your account you'll need to provide another £50 when the first amount is spent down. The purser's desk won't risk you not having the funds in your account to cover your final bill.

[cb at sea]

If you have a check, they will accept that, I believe...check with the Customer service BEFORE the cruise ends....or, go down daily and pay of the previous day's charges.  I know they will only CASH a check for $200 per cruise, but to pay your bill, it may be different.

Lesson learned...next time, bring CASH, or get a credit card specifically for you to use on cruises!!!

[klfrodo]

A couple of things you should have done before hand and maybe you can do online.

 

Always, always, always, call the bank or credit card issuer and let them know you'll be out of country, what dates, and where you're going.  The bank security did their job in this instance. They protected you and the bank.

 

Tell your bank what you plans are and set up a temporary increase in daily withdrawal amounts. Also note that some banks set up max purchase amount limits on debit cards. (example, can't make a 1 time purchase of any product or service more than $500)

 

You're most likely in a world of hurt at the end of the cruise. That 50 bps that they just ran is ONLY an approval or a (hold). It really means nothing. The cruiseline is still going to try to run your final bill at the end and it won't work. You need to get this cleared before the end of the cruise. Otherwise you're going to be put into an embarrassing situation. Call your bank again and get ahead of this.

[Sauer-kraut]

3 hours ago, klfrodo said:

Always, always, always, call the bank or credit card issuer and let them know you'll be out of country, what dates, and where you're going.  The bank security did their job in this instance. They protected you and the bank.

 

 

Capital One no longer needs nor wants the information one is out of the country.  I have called every time I was travelling and was told it is not necessary to do this any more.

[klfrodo]

2 hours ago, Sauer-kraut said:

 

Capital One no longer needs nor wants the information one is out of the country.  I have called every time I was travelling and was told it is not necessary to do this any more.

BofA, Citi, and my credit union still want it.

[sparks1093]

I would ask at guest services if they could do a PIN transaction on the last night of the cruise. They do have an ATM on board and you could withdraw your $250 each day until you had enough to cover your final bill (the fee will be more than what a land based ATM charges).

[Badger169]

On 11/24/2018 at 8:56 PM, jlp20 said:

I'm GUESSING that once the 50 is spent, your cruise card will be declined.

No, it was only to set the sail pass account up. I asked them to put the card through for $50 and it was accepted. My concern was that at the end of my cruise, if Royal Caribbean dont have chip & pin machines on the ship, how would I pay. It seems my bank has an overall set limit when using the card via the magnetic strip only, and this limit is $50.00. This is a limit set by the bank for everyone, and not just for me, and I only found this information out after I had been on the ship 2 days. 

[Badger169]

On 11/24/2018 at 9:36 PM, Sauer-kraut said:

A good rule to be aware of for ANY cruiser new or not.  NEVER ever use a debit card for your shipboard account.  There are too many holds, charges put through and other things that the passenger isn't aware of.  Many cruisers have had issues after departing the ship as well as during the cruise.

IF you only have a debit card.....please pre-pay as much as you possibly can (the daily service charge, purchase gift cards or onboard money, etc.), then bring CASH to apply to your account while onboard.

Unfortunately I only have a debit card. Personally I dont like credit cards, never have. But if I had know this information regarding debit cards on the ship, then I would of applied for a credit card just for my cruise. I have never ever done a cruise before in my life, and I was told by my cruise concierge, that debit cards are accepted.

[Badger169]

On 11/25/2018 at 2:41 PM, klfrodo said:

A couple of things you should have done before hand and maybe you can do online.

 

Always, always, always, call the bank or credit card issuer and let them know you'll be out of country, what dates, and where you're going.  The bank security did their job in this instance. They protected you and the bank.

 

Tell your bank what you plans are and set up a temporary increase in daily withdrawal amounts. Also note that some banks set up max purchase amount limits on debit cards. (example, can't make a 1 time purchase of any product or service more than $500)

 

You're most likely in a world of hurt at the end of the cruise. That 50 bps that they just ran is ONLY an approval or a (hold). It really means nothing. The cruiseline is still going to try to run your final bill at the end and it won't work. You need to get this cleared before the end of the cruise. Otherwise you're going to be put into an embarrassing situation. Call your bank again and get ahead of this.

I did contact my bank a good week or two before I left for my cruise. I told them exactly the dates that I would be out of the country from, and which destinations I would be visiting. I have now resolved the situation, and increased the amount that I can draw out via an atm, so I will be paying cash at the end. 

[Badger169]

13 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

I would ask at guest services if they could do a PIN transaction on the last night of the cruise. They do have an ATM on board and you could withdraw your $250 each day until you had enough to cover your final bill (the fee will be more than what a land based ATM charges).

I have already asked at guest services, and they have told me that they do not do chip & pin transactions on the ship. So I have contacted my bank to increase the amount of cash that I can draw out, so that on the final day I can pay my account. In fact, I got a balance so far, and have paid that, so I know that what ever etc is spent between now and the end of my cruise (1st Dec), will be very little. 

[Badger169]

Thank you everybody for your replies and advice. It seems that Royal Caribbean don't have chip & pin machines on their ships (if only someone had told me this before we got on). Anyhow, I went to guest services yesterday and asked them for a balance of my account so far. Then I used the atm machine on the ship to draw the money out. There is still a small amount outstanding, but at least I know that the majority of it is paid and what ever is left, I can draw the extra cash out when we leave the ship on the 1st Dec. This certainly has been an experience, and at least I know that if I decide to do another cruise, I will apply for a credit card (even though I don't really like them). Unfortunately though I was told that Royal Caribbean ships do accept chip & pin machines. Thanks again everybody for all your advice :) 

[sparks1093]

8 hours ago, Badger169 said:

Thank you everybody for your replies and advice. It seems that Royal Caribbean don't have chip & pin machines on their ships (if only someone had told me this before we got on). Anyhow, I went to guest services yesterday and asked them for a balance of my account so far. Then I used the atm machine on the ship to draw the money out. There is still a small amount outstanding, but at least I know that the majority of it is paid and what ever is left, I can draw the extra cash out when we leave the ship on the 1st Dec. This certainly has been an experience, and at least I know that if I decide to do another cruise, I will apply for a credit card (even though I don't really like them). Unfortunately though I was told that Royal Caribbean ships do accept chip & pin machines. Thanks again everybody for all your advice 🙂

Glad you were able to sort it out. 

[John Bull]

It's a little late to suggest this, but .....

drawing cash to pay your on-board account makes sense if your own currency is the same as ship's currency, hence the advice from our American cousins.

But yours isn't, and you'll be caned on cash currency exchange. Especially using ship's ATMs. 

 

Altho it's a pain,  going to the ship's purser (guest relations) each day to pay in £50-worth on your card would significantly reduce that exchange cost.

 

If you settle your on-board account by card, the cruise line will offer to charge your card in sterling "for your convenience".

DECLINE that offer - they'll screw you with a poor exchange rate. Always, but always, leave any foreign charges in the currency in which they're billed because your card issuer will always give you a far better exchange rate.

Same applies to card transactions ashore - keep the charge in local currency.

 

Heed the advice given about "holds". 

Like car rental agency deposits & some hotels, the ship will hold (freeze) a set amount of money in your account. On cruise ships that's to ensure money is available to them at the end of the cruise to settle your on-board account.  With car rentls its to cover unknown potential further charges such as damage, returning the car without refuelling, speeding & parking tickets etc. With hotels its for further potential charges like bar & dining charges, using the room phone, etc.

The money isn't taken from your account & won't show on your bank statements but it's held / frozen / reserved. 

The krunch is that the hold isn't usually released for up to ten days after you've actually settled your on-board account. If you run a low bank balance this can result in you not being able to draw cash & direct debits etc not being honoured. 

It's exactly the same with credit cards, but since most folk have a far more generous credit limit than they normally use it rarely creates the same problem.

If you don't understand my poor explanation, ask your bank about "holds".

 

And don't use ship's purser to exchange money for spending ashore. Ships' exchange rates (all cruise lines) are lousy . And you'll get a double-dose of those lousy rates - sterling to USD then USD to local currency.

 

A CREDIT card solves a lot of those problems, as well as the protection it gives.

If you plan to cruise / travel in the future it's well worth getting a credit card that doesn't charge a foreign exchange fee such as Capital One or Halifax Clarity or Nationwide Flex (members only) or the Post Office credit card. 

If you don't like credit cards, use it only for foreign travel & settle the bills when due. It will save you a bundle and won't cost you a penny. 

 

Steep learning curve, and the rookie mistakes you've made are pretty common so don't fret about it.

 

JB 

Edited November 27, 2018 by John Bull

[pacruise804]

11 hours ago, Badger169 said:

Thank you everybody for your replies and advice. It seems that Royal Caribbean don't have chip & pin machines on their ships (if only someone had told me this before we got on). Anyhow, I went to guest services yesterday and asked them for a balance of my account so far. Then I used the atm machine on the ship to draw the money out. There is still a small amount outstanding, but at least I know that the majority of it is paid and what ever is left, I can draw the extra cash out when we leave the ship on the 1st Dec. This certainly has been an experience, and at least I know that if I decide to do another cruise, I will apply for a credit card (even though I don't really like them). Unfortunately though I was told that Royal Caribbean ships do accept chip & pin machines. Thanks again everybody for all your advice 🙂

 

I'm glad you were able to get it all sorted out.  It's very frustrating to have researched and ask the right questions (wise preparation) only to discover you were given inaccurate information.  The bright side is that even when inconvenient, there is usually some type of work around when the unexpected happens.  

We also don't use credit cards (or any debt - even the mortgage is paid off), so we will be certain to have everything pre-paid for our RCCL cruise next year and if necessary dip into the extra cash we bring if US cards have the same issues.

 

35 minutes ago, John Bull said:

snip

Heed the advice given about "holds". 

Like car rental agency deposits & some hotels, the ship will hold (freeze) a set amount of money in your account. On cruise ships that's to ensure money is available to them at the end of the cruise to settle your on-board account.  With car rentls its to cover unknown potential further charges such as damage, returning the car without refuelling, speeding & parking tickets etc. With hotels its for further potential charges like bar & dining charges, using the room phone, etc.

The money isn't taken from your account & won't show on your bank statements but it's held / frozen / reserved. 

The krunch is that the hold isn't usually released for up to ten days after you've actually settled your on-board account. If you run a low bank balance this can result in you not being able to draw cash & direct debits etc not being honoured. 

It's exactly the same with credit cards, but since most folk have a far more generous credit limit than they normally use it rarely creates the same problem.

If you don't understand my poor explanation, ask your bank about "holds".

 

 

JB 

 

John gave great advise overall (and even better that is from a UK vs. US perspective), but I especially wanted to point out the part about holds.  If you do decide to get a credit card, be sure it has a high enough credit limit or you may encounter the same problems.

Back when we did use credit cards we also maintained a large available balance.  Now we keep a healthy cushion in our checking account that would act the same way.  At least in the US, if the card says VISA and is run as a Visa transaction it is supposed to have the same protection regardless of if it is a credit or debit card.  Foreign currency transactions (Canada, Mexico) are processed at Visa's rate.

 

I hope overall you enjoyed your vacation and won't let this scare you off from future cruises.