Oceania adds Fuel surcharge

[brian_uk]

So how many gallons in a Barrel..............?

 

Brian

[brian_uk]

That would probably depend on the conditions on which ship is motoring under.

If heavy seas it would be more to maintain a constant speed against the waves and if they were going full throttle or simply cruising along etc etc...

 

Accepting what you say LHT there must be a mean average over a 12 month period. Some days the winds are favourable, others not etc.

 

How many miles are covered on an average 2 week cruise bearing in mind that many in the Med have the Ships in Port for up to 3 days at a time when virtually nothing is being used.

 

Brian

[Jancruz]

I don't mind paying the surcharge as it seems to be a fact of life these days.

 

 

Also if I book a cruise right now am I subjected to the surcharge or has it now been built into the cruise fare. Perhaps Jan or FDR can answer that question. I am definitely for being fair as long as a two way street is maintained.

 

Since I believe FDR is out of the country I can answer this..if you book right now the surcharge will be added, they have not built the $7 a day per person into any of the 2008/2009 prices that are being advertised

Jan

*****

[LHT28]

Accepting what you say LHT there must be a mean average over a 12 month period. Some days the winds are favourable, others not etc.

 

How many miles are covered on an average 2 week cruise bearing in mind that many in the Med have the Ships in Port for up to 3 days at a time when virtually nothing is being used.

 

Brian

 

I think there are so many variables it would be hard to get an average from year to year.

 

We have strayed so far OT.

The reality is Oceania along with other cruise line is charging a fuel surcharge...like it or not!! :eek:

 

We all have choices in life and if you object then don't cruise or write to the "powers that be"!

 

Just my $$ worth! :D

[meow!]

For those who are engineers among you, I read somewhere that most cruise ships use diesel engines to generate electricity, and then use that electricity to drive motors which drive the propellers (to push the ship forward). Why won't they drive the propellers directly with the diesel engines, saving a step in-between and therefore the loss of efficiency in the conversion, thereby saving some fuel cost? Just curious.

[Druke I]

I am not an engineer, but:

 

With electric drive, it is easier to control shaft/prop speed, thus enhancing maneuverability and fuel efficiency.

 

Most ships have multiple diesel motors with constant speed rpm, and they are used alternately for ship's propulsion power, standby, and hotel power.

[XTEACH281]

I just want to know if anyone has heard of a cap in place for maximum charge ?

thanks .

[hondorner]

I am NOT and engineer and I hope those who are jump in to make corrections, but I believe a diesel-electric hybrid can be more efficient that a direct diesel drive. There are several reasons for this, but the most important is that it's easier to get high efficiency at multiple speeds from an electric motor, which a diesel engine efficiency varies all over the place as RPMs vary.

 

Here's a site which goes into it in more detail, but perhaps this single quote from that article will be sufficient: "What you are relying on is that you can improve the efficiency of other parts of the system by more than the new losses you have introduced. Fortunately, if the electrical system losses are relatively low, this isn’t too hard to do. It turns out that there are many limitations inherent in conventional direct diesel drive that waste fuel. By making more efficient use of the engine and propeller it is possible to more than offset the electrical conversion losses."

 

{EDIT} As I have grown to expect, Druke has once again posted the correct information in fewer words than me, while I was wasting time researching and composing.

[Rickey 88]

So how many gallons in a Barrel..............?

 

Brian

 

Herein lies the problem! Heavy Bunker oil (such as is used as fuel) is measured in tons - and not gallons, barrels, ounces, or litres....

 

It would be most difficult for those of us who have trouble figuring out our own automobile mileage to calculate the cost of propelling a cruise ship.

 

Let's just bite our lips and pay!!

 

(That's what we're all doing every time we got in to fill up our gas (petrol) tanks)

[Penzance]

I've just been told, by my online TA, that Oceania will not be refunding the surcharge if the price of oil goes down. Has anyone else heard this? Today I hear on the news that the price of a barrel of crude has already dropped by $4 per.

 

To pay, or not to pay, that is the question.

[meow!]

Druke and Hondorner: Thank you kindly for your informative replies!

[serendipity1499]

Herein lies the problem! Heavy Bunker oil (such as is used as fuel) is measured in tons - and not gallons, barrels, ounces, or litres....

 

Guess I should have mentioned the tons of Fuel used by the Diesel Generators on our Prinsendam last year....Our cruise log states we used 750 tons (26,420 gal) per day..

 

Our ship went a Total Distance of 8018 NM from NYC (28 days-we boarded in Fort Lauder. 25 days)) I calculated this to be 9228.7 Statute Miles...(One NM = approx.1.151 Statute mules or 1.852 Kilometers).

Rickey, I agree with you, we either pay it or not, we all have free choice.. Right now we are not going to stop cruising..However if both the fares & the fuel increases much more, we may have to curtail going on our long cruises which we love..Right now we are happily getting ready for thanksgiving next week & our Amazon Cruise on the Regatta in 12 days.. :D :D

 

Today at our local gas station fuel went up to $3.19.9 per gal .:( .

 

Penzance...How I understand it is; All Cruise lines & Airlines buy "Oil Futers"....So even though the price went down today, they probably contracted to buy their fuel at the higher rate..And Oceania most likly has contracted to purchase it for all cruises through April of 2009....Even though it went down today they must pay the higher or contracted price.. Therefore no refund...I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong..

 

Cheers.:) .Betty

[WindrunnerII]

The actual increase in revenue to Oceania is $33,418 per week based upon 682 passengers. If this represents the additional $40 based upon the rise in fuel from 60 - 100 $ a barrel it means (assuming that my math is average) that the running costs of fuel per week is in the region of $83,500.

 

Has anyone any idea what consumption of fuel is on an O Ship ?

 

Brian

 

I'm not an expert by any means, but I would guess-timate an average consumption of 50 tons per day. Based on an "at the pump" price of $390 per ton, that would equate to $140,000 per ship, per week.

 

Another thing to consider is that while oil has not doubled in price, many marine fuels have more than doubled. Couple that with a falling dollar vs the euro and a heavy increase in demand, the price of marine fuels may have effectvely close to tripled in the past year.

[cruzagain]

Hi Susan, here is a reply from my TA today.

""

I agree that the fuel surcharge on a 32 day cruise is a big increase.

 

There is no cap with Oceania. I know it may be better for some passengers if they did, but then folks on other Oceania cruises would have to pay a higher per diem charge to make up the fuel cost loss. There is also no cap for a 3rd/4th guest, Oceania is charging them the same 7.00 per person per day.

 

Keep in mind that the big guys (Carnival/Royal/Princess) have many more ships in their fleets to help equalize these charges amongst their guests. Oceania is very limited as they are a much smaller company with a much smaller financial pool to pull from. When the cost of oil almost doubled from the time Oceania created the pricing for all cruises up through April 2009 it a definite hardship on them already.

 

 

Your additional cost is $7 x 32 days = $224 x 2 people = $448 additional cost.

 

The previous Air taxes/fuel surcharge was for the air only.

This additional fuel surcharge is for the cruise fuel.

 

To send an email complaint/concern to Oceania;

ressupervisors@oceaniacruises.com

""

I don't think it will change anything if we send a complaint to O, since they have already implemented the increase. So, it's either to cruise or not to cruise!!

[Soccerfan]

I've just been told, by my online TA, that Oceania will not be refunding the surcharge if the price of oil goes down. Has anyone else heard this? Today I hear on the news that the price of a barrel of crude has already dropped by $4 per.

 

To pay, or not to pay, that is the question.

 

I decided to pay the balance now for our 15 day cruise in March 09. Saved me $210. I know it's much steeper for other people.

 

It was a lot of money though that I didn't want to pay out right before Xmas :( and I have 2 other cruises booked prior to this one for 2008. So much for my budget idea of spreading the cost over the next year or so!

 

At lease Oceania gave us a deadline to avoid paying the surcharge, the other cruiselines are implementing it for all sailings after Feb 08 whether your booked already or not.

 

Just roll with it, not a lot we can do about it to change things. I still think cruising is an excellent value for money :)

[XTEACH281]

we will most likely pay up, also....for our 14 day Transat. the fuel charge is $98 each , and I don't think the amount we still owe on our cruise would earn $196 in interest if it sits in the bank until next August, so.......

[travelingduo]

If you pay in full now and then have to cancel -- say before the final payment would have been due-- would you get a full refund?

[hondorner]

I did a quick calculation, so fast that I may have goofed up. We're cruising in Dec, 2008, 16 days. The total invoice was $11,400. We paid a $1,000 deposit. The balance due is $10,400.

 

The cruise is 16 days. At $7 per day, that comes to $224 for the two of us.

 

The final payment is due on Sep 21, 2008. That's a little more than 10 months from now. We get better than 5% in a CD at many banks. 5% on $10,400 for 10 months is $433. No brainer -- we keep our money. We're going to need it to help pay for our fuel increases in our day to day lives.

 

By the way, I calculated it to be less than a 2% increase. That amount will vary based on which level you have booked; we are somewhere in the middle with an A2.

[Druke I]

I agree with Hondorner.

 

For our cruise 3-22-08, I authorized the travel agent to go ahead and pay the fuel surcharge now, before the deadline.

 

For our cruise 1-22-09, I told her no, I did not want to pay the surcharge now. I make more on interest in the year or so before final payment is due.

[Druke I]

Duplicate post - server acting up again.

[happy cruzer]

 

Also if I book a cruise right now am I subjected to the surcharge or has it now been built into the cruise fare. Perhaps Jan or FDR can answer that question. I am definitely for being fair as long as a two way street is maintained.

 

I had this same question. On the Carnival lines for new bookings, the cruise line fuel surcharge is being listed in the Cruise taxes and fees quote. So on those booking if you never heard of this issue, you will just see one number that included surcharges, taxes, and fees.

 

I too hate surcharges. It does seem you will never get a refund if what you are being charged for goes down. In my case, my electric bill was approved by the state to be raised 30% after Katrina. When the oil prices returned to the old level, no adjustment down in the price. So for the last two years or so we have been paying based on the emergency post Katrina prices. just my two cents.

[dest1ny]

CNN post on Carnival fuel surcharge from07NOV

 

http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/newstex/AFX-0013-20805811.htm

[LHT28]

If you pay in full now and then have to cancel -- say before the final payment would have been due-- would you get a full refund?

 

I checked with my TA & Yes you get a full refund ...

[Penzance]

LTH28 did your TA actually check with Oceania? My TA said she called O and they said NO!

[LHT28]

LTH28 did your TA actually check with Oceania? My TA said she called O and they said NO!

 

I do not know if she actually called them but I would think the cancellation fees would apply no matter when you pay.

If you cancel prior to final payment they should refund the full amount you paid.

http://www.oceaniacruises.com/docs/OnlineCatalogs/WinterBrochure07/2007-08winterBrochure_light.pdf