Carnival to include taxes and port fees in advertised prices as of July 1

[BlerkOne]

3 hours ago, ChinaShrek said:

There is a wide variety in port fees. The length of the cruise often has nothing to do with the port taxes. For one 7 night cruise,  I have paid around $100 in taxes, while an 8 night had over $500 (a Panama Canal cruise) in charges. It would be nice to know this before I am on the final page ready to book.

Length of cruise or cabin category have nothing to do with port taxes.

[BlerkOne]

3 hours ago, simplelife said:

About time. Sometimes when comparing cruise prices, the one advertised as more will actually be less when fees figure in. the new policy will make it easier to compare

But does it really? The "optional" costs vary greatly - drink packages or individual drinks, shore excursions, specialty dining, bingo, gratuities, etc., etc. You still won't see the total cost of your vacation.

[ChinaShrek]

28 minutes ago, n6uqqq said:

It shows you the total right from the page where you choose room type. Now your room cost may go up if you choose a higher category but the port fees and taxes are included.

 

Yes, you are correct. But this is where I look first and where I want to see prices include taxes:

 

[staceyglow]

4 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

Will be interesting, because all Carnival can do is estimate the port taxes and fees. They can't control them.

 

 

Carnival knows how much they quote you for port fees and taxes when you book. That is what they would advertise.

[BlerkOne]

2 minutes ago, staceyglow said:

Carnival knows how much they quote you for port fees and taxes when you book. That is what they would advertise.

But the numbers can change. If you reprice a cruise, the port taxes and fees often change and not always lower. That would be a violation as I read it.

[staceyglow]

10 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

But the numbers can change. If you reprice a cruise, the port taxes and fees often change and not always lower. That would be a violation as I read it.

If they are making a good faith effort to quote the most current amounts, they should be fine. I don't think the government  expects anyone to predict the future, even in California. 😁

 

 

 

Edited May 16 by staceyglow

[BlerkOne]

3 minutes ago, staceyglow said:

If they are making a good faith effort to quote the most current amounts, they should be fine. I don't think the government  expects the to predict the future, even in California. 😁

That is exactly what they are doing when they quote a price for port taxes and fees. They are predicting how many cruisers they will have.

[n6uqqq]

10 minutes ago, BlerkOne said:

That is exactly what they are doing when they quote a price for port taxes and fees. They are predicting how many cruisers they will have.

Carnival may end up estimating higher port fees and taxes from the get go now with many more sail and sign refunds coming on future cruises. I don't think giving money back would be a crime under the bill but would also provide Carnival a degree of protection for increase in port fees/charges. I know they already reserve the right to charge more if costs increase, but in 24 cruises I have never been charged more. Now, with this law, I don't think Carnival will have the right to increase these port fees at a later date at all. This may muck up their ability to add fuel surcharges also.

Edited May 16 by n6uqqq

[BlerkOne]

1 minute ago, n6uqqq said:

Carnival may end up estimating higher port fees and taxes from the get go now with many more sail and sign refunds coming on future cruises. I don't think giving money back would be a crime under the bill but would also provide Carnival a degree of protection for increase in port fees/charges. I know they already reserve the right to charge more if costs increase, but in 24 cruises I have never been charged more. Now, with this law, I don't think Carnival will have the right to increase these port fees at a later date at all. This may muck up their ability to add fuel surcharges also.

Guessing too high puts them at a competitive disadvantage compared with a cruise line that cuts it closer. Right now Carnival refunds port charges and fees for missed ports. Royal only does so if they collected too much to begin with and have a surplus. I can see Carnival moving to something similar and perhaps not refunding anything. At the end of the day, I see this costing the consumer more money.

[n6uqqq]

1 minute ago, BlerkOne said:

Guessing too high puts them at a competitive disadvantage compared with a cruise line that cuts it closer. Right now Carnival refunds port charges and fees for missed ports. Royal only does so if they collected too much to begin with and have a surplus. I can see Carnival moving to something similar and perhaps not refunding anything. At the end of the day, I see this costing the consumer more money.

Most everything CA does ends up costing the consumer more money, so no surprise there 😉 .

[Old Fart Cruisers]

7 minutes ago, n6uqqq said:

Carnival may end up estimating higher port fees and taxes from the get go now with many more sail and sign refunds coming on future cruises. I don't think giving money back would be a crime under the bill but would also provide Carnival a degree of protection for increase in port fees/charges. I know they already reserve the right to charge more if costs increase, but in 24 cruises I have never been charged more. Now, with this law, I don't think Carnival will have the right to increase these port fees at a later date at all. This may muck up their ability to add fuel surcharges also.

 

If everything is included in the price, and costs go down, I don't see them giving a refund as they do now. 

[2022cruisey]

For everything we buy in Australia they have to show the total price including taxes.  It is why gratuities are included for Carnival in our prices.  We definitely get refunds for ports missed, as they cannot charge for a service not received - if we don’t get to a port they can’t keep that component of the overall total.

What is shown on the website when we go to book is a base rate for the lowest price cabin, you then get shown upgrade options and then a final total before booking.  It makes it much easier to budget and compare.

[BlerkOne]

1 hour ago, 2022cruisey said:

For everything we buy in Australia they have to show the total price including taxes.  It is why gratuities are included for Carnival in our prices.  We definitely get refunds for ports missed, as they cannot charge for a service not received - if we don’t get to a port they can’t keep that component of the overall total.

What is shown on the website when we go to book is a base rate for the lowest price cabin, you then get shown upgrade options and then a final total before booking.  It makes it much easier to budget and compare.

This is also shown on the AU website

 

Taxes, Fees & Port Expenses are subject to change and Carnival reserves the right to collect any increases in effect at the time of sailing even if the fare has already been paid in full.

[VentureMan_2000]

3 hours ago, BlerkOne said:

I don't see a single cruise line referenced in that report, much less for that statistic.

Hence... "The 'cruise industry' does keep track and reported that 45% of global cruise travelers in 2019 were first-time cruisers"

[BlerkOne]

7 minutes ago, VentureMan_2000 said:

Hence... "The 'cruise industry' does keep track and reported that 45% of global cruise travelers in 2019 were first-time cruisers"

Still waiting for a verifiable reference to any cruise line.

[StephPS79]

2 hours ago, Old Fart Cruisers said:

 

If everything is included in the price, and costs go down, I don't see them giving a refund as they do now. 

Why?  The only thing that is changing is the first displayed per person price will include taxes and port fees.  Literally nothing else is changing except the first advertised price.  The final booking amount is still the final booking amount, the process isn’t changing.  Now you just see the final price at an earlier point.

[n6uqqq]

1 minute ago, StephPS79 said:

Why?  The only thing that is changing is the first displayed per person price will include taxes and port fees.  Literally nothing else is changing except the first advertised price.  The final booking amount is still the final booking amount, the process isn’t changing.  Now you just see the final price at an earlier point.

That depends on how Carnival proceeds. On their Australian website it shows cruise price and the fees are just listed as "included" with no breakdown of cost. 

[mfs2k]

11 hours ago, Old Fart Cruisers said:

With the now rule, if the cruise lines are required to disclose the total before you book a cruise, they will probably be forced to charge a higher fee to cover any unforeseen expenses, rather than making an adjustment as costs increase (or more likely, decrease).

Costs change all the time. That doesn’t mean each increase or decrease gets passed on to the passenger.

if the price of chicken goes up between the time you book and the time you sail, you don’t get charged extra. 
Same with a port fee once it’s included in the price per cabin. 

[Old Fart Cruisers]

2 hours ago, mfs2k said:

if the price of chicken goes up between the time you book and the time you sail, you don’t get charged extra. 
Same with a port fee once it’s included in the price per cabin. 

 

That isn't the way it has been in the past.   The actual port charge changes (often a decrease) was reflected on your final bill.  That's what that mysterious little credit on the bill was for.

[jimbo5544]

13 hours ago, n6uqqq said:

Most everything CA does ends up costing the consumer more money, so no surprise there 😉 .

Bingo!  We have a winner.  It does not change a thing.  I have never met a person who did not know what they paid for a cruise.  If they do not, the answer lies in the mirror.

[ohioNCLcruiser]

Maybe I'm lucky but I can't remember in any of my 70 cruises or so did the port fees go UP after booking where the fee was passed onto me. Almost every cruise has a partial refund put as OBC. I don't see how Carnival needing to show the port fee costs in real time which you can book will have any negative impact. I think this will also be a great change to hotels that charge insane "destination" or resort fees. All my "free" nights in Vegas can easily cost $70 a night still with fees. 

Edited May 16 by ohioNCLcruiser

[mfs2k]

1 hour ago, ohioNCLcruiser said:

I think this will also be a great change to hotels that charge insane "destination" or resort fees. All my "free" nights in Vegas can easily cost $70 a night still with fees. 

If this ever affects Vegas rooms, youll pay still $70 in fees.  But it will be shown when you book.

You're not going to save money.  The resorts aren''t going to give up that revenue. 

[ohioNCLcruiser]

3 minutes ago, mfs2k said:

If this ever affects Vegas rooms, youll pay still $70 in fees.  But it will be shown when you book.

You're not going to save money.  The resorts aren''t going to give up that revenue. 

Oh I know, I'm just saying its nice that they will have to show people the actual cost. They still want their resort fees so they don't have to pay any commissions on that money.

[BlerkOne]

7 hours ago, mfs2k said:

Costs change all the time. That doesn’t mean each increase or decrease gets passed on to the passenger.

if the price of chicken goes up between the time you book and the time you sail, you don’t get charged extra. 
Same with a port fee once it’s included in the price per cabin. 

Cruise lines contract for enormous amounts of food well in advance. They aren't impacted by spot price changes at your local Walmart. Port fees and taxes are not commodities.

[mrpayroll]

When you buy a car, they advertise the price before the tax is added on. I don't see what the big deal is. Grocery stores advertise the price for an item. They don't say PLUS tax. Much to do about nothing.