RCL Forex ripoff

[Flaming Homer]

With 3 RCI cruises in the past (2 RCL, 1 Celebrity), Royal Caribbean never honoured the "Do not exchange" indicator on the SetSail pass. On this last cruise (3rd RCL - Mariner on October 5), it wasn't enough that:

 

1. Checked the "do not exchange" on SetSail

2. Noticed on morning of departure that my final bill said it would be exchanged by them to Canadian $, I waited in line to get it corrected

3. Got home, and notice they charged me CAD$ anyways, on a US$ MasterCard

 

Now comes the part of faxing them, PROVING it to them that I was double-exchanged, and perhaps they will grace me with the difference. I know RCI wants to make that very tempting Forex profit on 'foreigners', but enough is enough. Since they have a > 2.5% markup on exchange, and the back charges the same to convert it back to US$, this is basically a 5% surcharge that I assume RCI hope people wouldn't fight it.

 

RCI - Stop this practice. If you want to "force" your passengers to accept your Forex rate, then just say so and I'll be happy to use a CAD$ credit card instead. Don't make people jump through hoops just so that you can make an easier buck while giving the impression of a choice.

 

Funniest part ? The US$ 200 NextCruise was charged correctly, and I selected the "Charge my SeaPass account" option (not the credit card on reservation option) but it showed up as a separate charge, go figure....

 

Sorry if my explanation seems disjointed, those of you "foreigners" probably understand what I'm saying more. Gotta hurry to get this @#%^% fax out to them by 5 PM

[lovemylab]

I encountered the same thing last November. It did get corrected but I agree with you completely that it is a pain to fix.

[HorrorFan]

Go with a cash account when you board and then pay with a card at the end. That works apparently. At least that was what I was told to do.

[Lynnees]

Go with a cash account when you board and then pay with a card at the end. That works apparently. At least that was what I was told to do.

 

 

That is exactly what I intend to do on our cruise in November to see if it works. It's a short cruise and we won't be spending much but I want to give it a try.

[ecmcm]

Go with a cash account when you board and then pay with a card at the end.

 

That's what we did the last time and will do in the future. Our Next Cruise charge went through our credit card correctly but then the LA was a Canadian. She didn't say anything when we complained about the Forex we had on the first cruise probably because she heard it every day.

 

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[CVU]

Go with a cash account when you board and then pay with a card at the end. That works apparently. At least that was what I was told to do.

 

After arguing Many times with them changing our account to CA$, we say Cash on our Sea Pass and pay with a CC on the last day. Works for us now.

[Flaming Homer]

Do you need to put down cash "deposit" to go with a cash Seapass account ?

 

On this trip I had to use Medical. US$ 108 for the doc, US$ 144 for a 7-day child supply of antibiotics (are you kidding me ?!? They're CAD$ 30 at most here including dispensing fees), would have overwhelmed a cash deposit that I would have started with...

[dirtgirl]

The same thing happened to me last year, and it took 3 months before I got my money back. I also wrote on my Set Sail Pass to bill me in US$. I now photocopy that document, sign and date it, so I can fax it to MasterCard if need be. RC insisted that they charged me in US$ even though my cc bill showed differently. I sent a very long letter to MasterCard detailing what happened. I had at least 3 visits to the Purser's desk to get it straightened out before I left the ship, to no avail.

 

I find if you have an OBC on your Seapass (like Next cruise or Shareholders), whatever currency you have that in, is what you will be billed in. I don't think they can change currencies on your SeaPass once you have something on it. I had no OBC for that cruise, so they had no excuse.

[Flaming Homer]

I find if you have an OBC on your Seapass (like Next cruise or Shareholders), whatever currency you have that in, is what you will be billed in. I don't think they can change currencies on your SeaPass once you have something on it. I had no OBC for that cruise, so they had no excuse.

In my case:

 

1. I had US$ 100 OBC (from shareholder benefit)

2. I booked through a US travel agency

3. Only way the knew I was Canadian was by the nationality of the passport used

 

So no, they can screw you even if you have US$ OBC...

[dirtgirl]

In my case:

 

1. I had US$ 100 OBC (from shareholder benefit)

2. I booked through a US travel agency

3. Only way the knew I was Canadian was by the nationality of the passport used

 

So no, they can screw you even if you have US$ OBC...

 

 

OK, nix that, then!:rolleyes:

[robtulipe]

I find if you have an OBC on your Seapass (like Next cruise or Shareholders), whatever currency you have that in, is what you will be billed in. I don't think they can change currencies on your SeaPass once you have something on it. I had no OBC for that cruise, so they had no excuse.

RC Seapass accounts are in US$ so that won't change but they can (and as you know do against your request not to when filling out your cruise boarding documents) convert your final bill to the currency of the country of your credit card provider (even if the credit card is US$ account).

 

In my case:

 

1. I had US$ 100 OBC (from shareholder benefit)

2. I booked through a US travel agency

3. Only way the knew I was Canadian was by the nationality of the passport used

 

So no, they can screw you even if you have US$ OBC...

Your nationality does not matter. It is the location, as in country, of the provider (bank, CU, etc.) of credit card you gave RC on your Seapass onboard account billing document that determines your home currency.

[Flaming Homer]

RC Seapass accounts are in US$ so that won't change but they can (and as you know do against your request not to when filling out your cruise boarding documents) convert your final bill to the currency of the country of your credit card provider (even if the credit card is US$ account).

 

 

Your nationality does not matter. It is the location, as in country, of the provider (bank, CU, etc.) of credit card you gave RC on your Seapass onboard account billing document that determines your home currency.

Well, considering RCL customer service's 800 number still doesn't have my Seapass account billing, I somehow doubt the ship itself can crack the nationality of the credit card - or better yet if they can determine the nationality of the credit card used, you figure they can determine the CURRENCY that it's based on. And if your explanation is correct, that does not explain the NextCruise being properly charged (separately) unlike the the SeaPass account

 

Bottom line is no matter what you say to them on your SetSail or waste time on-board about not converting the currency, RCI (RCL & Celebrity in my case) do it anyways and make you fight for it to get in back. Believe me, when I call them, they understood EXACTLY what I meant and there is zero argument that it actually takes place. I often read here that RCI scans these boards on a regular basis, well, here you go, PLEASE CLEAN UP YOUR ACT...

[bubbadog]

i think i would just bring enough cash with me to pay the cruise off at the end in cash,they make it so hard,greed is very ugly at times:D

[dirtgirl]

My Next Cruise was also billed properly in US$. It came out as a separate charge on my cc bill.

[lovemylab]

How does a cash account work? Do you have to make an initial deposit?

 

What is the maximum that you can charge on a cash account before having to make a payment?

 

I do like the idea of setting up a cash account next time. However, I don't want the embarrassment of my seapass card being declined either.