Canadian cruisers!!

[Paddy41]

FYI

My son just put $450US onto his onboard credit this morning. He says it cost him $495 which is the exchange everyone else has mentioned. He checked with the bank and it would have cost him $568 at the bank.

 

He also asked if this exchange rate would be the same for awhile and he was told that rumour was that it would be changed in March. So if you want to get in on the deal, do it now.

 

I think someone just answered this question. But here it is again anyway....if he phones back or his wife does, can he add another $499US onto the same account. Would it have to be a different credit card?

 

So glad I found this thread as I added the onboard credit to each of my B2B cruises already. Thanks to everyone.

[HorrorFan]

I think someone just answered this question. But here it is again anyway....if he phones back or his wife does, can he add another $499US onto the same account. Would it have to be a different credit card?

 

.

 

He can call back as many times as he wishes, with the same card. Up to $499 each time.

Edited February 24, 2015 by HorrorFan

[Toddcan]

If you put your money down as OBC then yes, it is refundable. If you are given OBC as part of a promotion I do not think it is refundable (perhaps someone else can chime in). If it isn't, you can always cash it in at the casino but you have to pay a premium.

 

That is correct. If the OBC was a promotion through Royal Carribbean, it is not refundable. The OBC that you purchase is refundable.

 

It was also explained to me that the non-refundable OBC us used up first when you by stuff.

[trev71]

Which credit cards are the ones that don't charge the extra 2.5%?

 

 

sears financial

[jtdlmc]

Which credit cards are the ones that don't charge the extra 2.5%?

 

Sears MasterCard is one. I'm also thinking Capital One Platinum MC does not charge conversion fee but I'm not 100% sure on that one. TD Bank US$ Visa card - you purchase in US$ and pay in US$.

[jmr1970]

Do we phone RC to purchase the OBC? We're Canadian but we phoned RC to book our cruise & we paid in US $. Can we still purchase the OBC at 10%?

[Clarea]

Sears MasterCard is one. I'm also thinking Capital One Platinum MC does not charge conversion fee but I'm not 100% sure on that one. TD Bank US$ Visa card - you purchase in US$ and pay in US$.

Capital One cards do not charge a transaction fee, and reimburse up to $30 per month for ATM fees.

[robtulipe]

Do we phone RC to purchase the OBC? We're Canadian but we phoned RC to book our cruise & we paid in US $. Can we still purchase the OBC at 10%?

 

No, it's only available to those who purchased their cruise in $CAD. Sorry.:(

[son3cruisers]

Which credit cards are the ones that don't charge the extra 2.5%?

 

Any US dollar credit card...

BMO has one, as does CIBC.

 

charge in US dollars , and pay it off with US dollars.

It's great when you make a reservation in the US that requires a deposit, but then need to cancel. ( like a cruise deposit, or hotel etc)

You are charged in Us and refunded in Us with no exchange fees...that can be quite costly.

[goodml]

Any US dollar credit card...

BMO has one, as does CIBC.

 

charge in US dollars , and pay it off with US dollars.

It's great when you make a reservation in the US that requires a deposit, but then need to cancel. ( like a cruise deposit, or hotel etc)

You are charged in Us and refunded in Us with no exchange fees...that can be quite costly.

 

Scotiabank has one too now.

[Paddy41]

sears financial

 

 

A Sears MC would not be the same I guess. I'll have to look it up.

[Paddy41]

Sears MasterCard is one. I'm also thinking Capital One Platinum MC does not charge conversion fee but I'm not 100% sure on that one. TD Bank US$ Visa card - you purchase in US$ and pay in US$.

 

 

Oops, should have looked a bit further. Thank you for info on Sears MC. I can use that.

[Paddy41]

Scotiabank has one too now.

 

 

RBC also has a US credit card now.

[Paddy41]

I did get the onboard credit but then I started wondering about paying for excursions or specialty restaurant or beverage package and wondered if the same great exchange rate applied.

 

My son looked up and compared the excursion prices and they were a lot higher in CAD he says.

 

I would like to book Giovanni's for the first night at least, as I understand it is 20% off the first night. But I don't cruise until July and my booking tells me I have to wait. Is there a 90 day window? (For doing online check-in it tells me I have to be within 90 days.)

Is Giovanni's $39US? Does anyone know what it is in CAD?

 

How about the beverage packages? I checked the one that is $23.37CAD against a US site which says it is $19US so that means we pay 23% extra which I guess is still less than the 28-29% charged by the bank. But the package that is $49.20CAD is $35US so that is a 41% increase. BEWARE! Not a good deal to pay in CAD. I didn't work out the other packages.

 

So my best bet would be to put another $35x7=$245US on to my account as an onboard credit and then buy the package onboard. Am I right?

 

Has anyone bought this package before? I am most interested in the wine and since they no longer have a wine package this looks like my best option.

[Clarea]

...I would like to book Giovanni's for the first night at least, as I understand it is 20% off the first night. But I don't cruise until July and my booking tells me I have to wait. Is there a 90 day window? (For doing online check-in it tells me I have to be within 90 days.)

Is Giovanni's $39US? Does anyone know what it is in CAD?...

Giovanni's is USD 25 for dinner.

[Host Jacquelyn]

What an excellent thread. Thanks to the OP for posting this info!

[mackfam]

Thanks so much for this info. I just called and got $450 US for $495 Cdn. I will likely call back and get some more once I figure out how much I need to purchase the beverage packages.

I have been cringing every time the $Cdn drops lower in value and the price of a beverage package nears a mortgage payment!

 

The 10% exchange rate is much easier to swallow.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[disneykins]

I assume if you cancel your cruise, they will put the obc back on your credit card at the 1.10 rate?

Tony

[Ourusualbeach]

I assume if you cancel your cruise, they will put the obc back on your credit card at the 1.10 rate?

Tony

 

The refund would be the exact same amount that you paid for it and to the same credit card in the same currency, so yes it would be at the 1.10 rate. No different than having a shore excursion or drink package refunded.

[Paddy41]

I couldn't decide on a beverage package vs just getting wine by the bottle so decided to just put another obc on my cruise and decide on board.

10% exchange rate for obc vs 20% exchange rate on each beverage package so I'll still be ahead of the game.

I just heard that they expect the wine packages to be reinstated sometime in 2015 due to customer complaints. Glad there are a lot more like me that like wine best. Has anyone else heard this rumour?

[The Sunset Glow]

I couldn't decide on a beverage package vs just getting wine by the bottle so decided to just put another obc on my cruise and decide on board.

10% exchange rate for obc vs 20% exchange rate on each beverage package so I'll still be ahead of the game.

I just heard that they expect the wine packages to be reinstated sometime in 2015 due to customer complaints. Glad there are a lot more like me that like wine best. Has anyone else heard this rumour?

 

I haven't heard about the wine packages coming back but I hope it happens too. I bought one every cruise.

[TravelerThom]

Which credit cards are the ones that don't charge the extra 2.5%?

Any US dollar credit card...

I recognize that this is one Canadian replying to another Canadian correctly about a very specific situation. Note that most US issued credit cards do charge a Foreign Transaction Fee on anything charged outside of the US.

[Josie2]

Paddy - in response to your question, we just came off Oasis yesterday. A wine package was offered - 5 or 7 bottles and the price came out to about $32 per bottle including service fee I believe. It was a smaller list but there were lots to choose from in white/red/sparkling varieties. Also, in the dining room they had printed on the menu "Wine of the day available by the glass or bottle at 20% off." This was also a limited menu, and we didn't actually use it as we had bought the beverage package. On the cruise compass when they were advertising the wine package they noted that it was back by popular demand and in response to comments from guests. I don't know if they plan to formally reinstate it and make it available for pre purchase fleet wide, but this was our experience on Oasis.

 

Sorry to hijack thread. We are also Canadian and had bought on-board credit. For anyone with any questions about that, it was fully refunded in US dollars at the end of the cruise, back to our credit card.

[TravelerThom]

...We are also Canadian and had bought on-board credit. For anyone with any questions about that, it was fully refunded in US dollars at the end of the cruise, back to our credit card.

So if you bought US$100 for Cdn$110, and used none of it (I know this is not realistic, but for the sake of understanding), you would be refunded US$100 which is currently worth approximately Cdn$125 for a profit of Cdn$15? Good Deal:) [Yes, I know that exchange rates could change in the interim.]

[Josie2]

I never thought of it that way but you're right! I should not have used the words fully refunded. I meant any unused portion was refunded. There had been questions about refund ability.

Edited March 1, 2015 by Josie2