Any problems with jewelers in port?

[BaskGal]

I don't know if this is the correct forum for this, but just wanted to know if anyone has ever had any problems in purchasing jewels at ports of call. Did they mislead you in your purchase? Did you grossly overpay? Have you had problems since you returned home with your purchase? Did you have the item appraised and had to deal with the company afterwards?

If there is another forum dedicated to this kind of stuff, please advise and I will get out of your hair :D

 

Thanks!

[mrdood]

lots of stuff on the Internet... you could google it maybe. It really isn't about cruising, and it isn't about Carnival, it is about buying jewels out of the country.

 

Many have said on here, that if you don't know what you are doing, you will be taken advantage of, price what you want at home, know what you are buying.

 

The jewelry people are trying to make a profit, how much they make depends on your knowledge of what you are buying and your ability to negotiate.

[msolberg]

We purchased a diamond and emerald ring from a jeweler in St. Thomas - one of the ship recommended stores. One of the stones fell out and I called Carnival. They gave me instructions on how/where to send the ring and we received it back in no time at all just like new with the stone replaced. There was no charge. Hope this helps. :)

 

Don't ever be afraid to ask any questions on this board. If its in the wrong section - one of the friendly hosts will move the post to the more appropriate place.

 

Diane

[cruisinjerseygirl]

We purchased about $2500 worth of jewelry in St Thomas and we made sure to haggle the best that we could...I did find better deals in Mexico at one well known store though..but anyway we made sure that we took the information and card for each store that we purchased from just in case and some of them even took our mailing and email address and we receive information from them all the time so if need be we can contact them but honestly we haven't had any issues with any of the jewelry we have purchased...

[LHP]

I have done business with Diamonds International for years. Never had a problem until I ran into a salesman in Belize, who tried to convince me that lazer drilling had no affect on the price of a stone. This is not true, it depreciates the value by as much as 1/3rd. (which is why they are required to note it on the Certificate)

 

So you do have to be aware. I have gotten good prices at DI (no real steals). I buy more from them because they do their own designs. I don't like the "cookie cutter" jewelry that is on the market. Plus I avoid the almost 10% sales tax we pay in Tennessee....so that is of some savings as well.

 

If you are serious about a particular piece...price it before you leave the States. Know specifics. Also remember that the jewelry purchased on a Carnival cruise ship is run by an independent company. They do warranty their sales for one year. (even for buyer's remorse) We purchased our son a Fossil watch on the Pride and 6 months later the minute hand fell off. We sent it back to the "Starboard Cruise Services" and our money we refunded without question. Do remember to keep ALL receipts.

[BeanCountingCruiser]

Several years ago I purchased a beautiful sapphire and diamond ring from one of the recommended jewelers in St. Thomas. I wasn't that concerned if I got a "good" deal because I loved the stones and set. When I got home and had it appraised by my jeweler the ring was valued at almost double what I paid. That may be the exception but I was excited all over again with my purchase.

 

Just enjoy what you get - if it's really expensive or really special - know what you're doing.

 

Good luck...

[cls624]

I bought a pair princess cut diamond earrings in St. Maarten.

I think we paid around $500.00 for them.

When we got home, I took them to a jeweler, to have them checked out.

I just wanted to make sure they were real, and we didn't get scammed!

We did get a good deal!! They weren't perfect clarity, but we knew what we were buying.

 

Like anything. You'll hear some good, and bad stories about purchasing jewelry!!

 

I would probably do it again.:D

[dromMOM]

I don't know if this is the correct forum for this, but just wanted to know if anyone has ever had any problems in purchasing jewels at ports of call. Did they mislead you in your purchase? Did you grossly overpay? Have you had problems since you returned home with your purchase? Did you have the item appraised and had to deal with the company afterwards?

If there is another forum dedicated to this kind of stuff, please advise and I will get out of your hair :D

 

Thanks!

 

Bought a Tanzanite ring with opals from the recommended jeweler that Godfrey suggested while in St. Thomas. We did haggle.. etc. Found the same ring with larger stones cheaper in st. maarten..

 

But I do like my ring.. such is life..lol

[denisey]

The theory that works for me is to not spend more than I can afford to "lose." I have a pretty good eye for jewelry, but I know that I certainly could be fooled. So if I bought a $500 ring that I really liked and found out it was fake, or not exactly what I thought it was, or wasn't worth $500, I'd be okay with it. It would be a different story with $10,000. I save the big purchases for home, where I know my jeweler.

 

So far everything I've purchased has appraised for more than what I paid for it. Sometimes it has been a little more, some things have appraised for 4 x's the purchase price.

 

I was disappointed in St Thomas when I was there in February. I didn't see much I liked, the prices weren't very good (vendors wouldn't bargain much). I like St Maarten much more for jewelry shopping.

[FastFreddie]

I have purchased 2 items at different times in St. Thomas. One was a Seiko watch. I payed $240 for it and thought it was a good deal and came home to find it on the net for $195. We also bought an Emerald Ring from Diamond International. I thought the price was fair. (60% below stated price). If a store dosen't make a profit it soden't stay in business. Caviat Emptor.

 

 

FF

[psychboss]

I don't know if this is the correct forum for this, but just wanted to know if anyone has ever had any problems in purchasing jewels at ports of call. Did they mislead you in your purchase? Did you grossly overpay? Have you had problems since you returned home with your purchase? Did you have the item appraised and had to deal with the company afterwards?

If there is another forum dedicated to this kind of stuff, please advise and I will get out of your hair :D

 

Thanks!

 

If you are going to St. Maartin email me, I have some good information for you. tridentcruises@comcast.net

[BaskGal]

I got my ring checked out by a neutral party and I got exactly what I was told I was getting. I did overpay a little, but was reassured that I did well. :) Thanks for all the tips! I will remember them for next time...when..or if....my hubby buys me more ;)

[VentureMan_2000]

Did you grossly overpay?

 

 

No... we just overpay'd the traditional amount... :D

[rickcop44]

My wife and I (well, mostly my wife, but I help) design and make jewelry and are most familiar with the ever changing price of gemstones, gold, etc. We have been purchasing jewelry and loose gems in the Caribbean since we started cruising in 1992. Our last cruise was the 2/25 Eastern Caribbean on Valor. We have found that over the past few years, prices have been better in St. Maarten than St. Thomas. That said, my wife bought a diamond forever pendant in St. Thomas for $280 that appraised out at $900. In St. Maarten, she purchased a diamond and platinum ring for $1100 that appraised for just under $3200 and she bought a diamond and white gold bracelet for $1400 that appraised at $4000. Just to add an interesting sidenote to the bracelet, the salesman and my wife haggled over the bracelet for over an hour. It started out at $2500 and after an hour, she'd gotten the price down to the $1400. Me, I was just sitting there drinking everything they put in front of me. My missus finally looked at me with that inquiring eye of hers as if to say, "Is it time to purchase or leave?" I like to collect watches and I was ambivalent about the bracelet, but I knew my DW wanted it. So I told the salesman I'd buy it if he'd "give" me a Citizen Eco Drive watch I'd been looking at. The watch retailed in St. Maarten for $575. To my surprise, he walked over to the display case, pulled out the watch and set it in front of me and said, "Deal." So for $1400, we got a diamond and white gold bracelet and an Eco Drive watch. By the way, I took the watch to a jeweler as well and he confirmed that it was not a knock off. It was indeed a genuine Citizen Eco Drive. So happy shopping!! Oh, one other piece of advice. Just because a store is not on the cruise lines preferred list, do not ignore the place. We learned long ago that most of the "non-preferred" stores will offer better deals on their jewelry than the preferred stores and will generally go out of their way to ensure you have a good time. The only reason a store is on the preferred list is because it has paid a certain amount of cash to the cruiseline to get listed. Feel comfortable going into the non-preferred stores. Over the years, we have purchased countless pieces of jewelry and loose gems and have never been disappointed. About 80% of the purchases came from stores not found on the cruise lines' preferred shopping list.