$2US to the £1 with Princess Cruises

abc123456

Just found this arrangement with Princess Cruises which applies to customers who have forthcoming cruises and booked, generally, last year.

If you purchase your onboard credit upfront, they will give you $2US to the £.

Thats a huge saving and reflects last years exchange rate. The onboard credit has to be used up during your cruise and or lost. There are no refunds on unused credit.

I booked my cruise last October and sail in July. Not sure if other cruise companies do likewise, but Princess certainly does. I bought $3000 for £1500 this morning. They only take credit cards for this payment (no extra charge) but do not take debit cards.
You can make great savings if you were planning to pay for your onboard cruise with a credit card anyway, then pay it all off.
Great money saving tip for those who qualify.

saveapenny

Do you know if this applies to new booking as well

abc123456

saveapenny wrote: »

Do you know if this applies to new booking as well

No, it seems restricted to bookings last year and probably about pre Nov 2008 when the exchange rate was higher. It seems when you quote your booking number to Princess Customer Services, which shows your booking and sail dates, thats when they decide if you have qualified for the higher rate, otherwise I believe the rate is $1.42 to the £.

mad_rich

I'm not an expert in the world of cruises, but to me this fails the 'too good to be true' test.

Either they're desperate for cash upfront (as all companies are), or the prices on board are so high that they can offer you whatever 'exchange rate' they like.

Remember that these aren't US$ you're getting, but a magic currency that can only be used onboard a ship, which turns into a pumpkin at the end of your trip, and which may come with all sorts of other restrictions.

Look carefully at what your protection is if the company were to get into financial difficulties. Are they FSA regulated, or equivalent?

abc123456

No, it it is good and it is true. It has also been done, and is done by other cruise companies.
They are not desperate for cash, Princess Cruises themselves are a massive company within the truly massive Carnival Group.
It is still dollars that we are getting, albeit a credit to buy whatever you like onboard. The only restriction is that the credit has to be used up or lost. Prices on Princess Cruise ships are quite favourable for drinks etc
This dollar "product" can only be paid for by credit card so is subject to Sec 75 protection. Princess Cruises are based in the UK.
See, it is good, and true!

smk77

My in-laws are going away on a Princess Cruise shortly. Just to confirm (so I don't give incorrect info) if my father-in-law pays for the credit before departure (is there a cut off date?) then he'll get $2 to £1.

btw, might be worth getting an American Express credit card with 5% cashback and I think £50 from quidco to purchase this credit.

EDIT: Also, can onboard credit be used for day excursions?

abc123456

smk77 wrote: »

My in-laws are going away on a Princess Cruise shortly. Just to confirm (so I don't give incorrect info) if my father-in-law pays for the credit before departure (is there a cut off date?) then he'll get $2 to £1.

btw, might be worth getting an American Express credit card with 5% cashback and I think £50 from quidco to purchase this credit.

EDIT: Also, can onboard credit be used for day excursions?

Depends on when he booked his cruise and when it sails, as per my first post.
Cruises booked, generally last year, before the currency falls, qualify.
yes you can pay with Amex, but it must be done by telephone to their Customer Services, 0845 3555 800 - option 5 - followed by option 2.
If he qualifies, this rate is available until one week before the sail date. Princess will tell you if he qualifies for this rate by providing them with the booking reference. Good luck.

getmore4less

This is an anomaly with US cruise companies they fix exchange rates on some services/puchases rather than use floating rates.

With princess they have onboard cash machines that used to give great rate for £->$ based on the inverse of $->£ which were no good at all(for US passengers). May still do?

NCL have some similar discrepancies
eg prepay service charge £6.50~~$12.

Great deal on the onboard credit gettng 2:1, milk it and buy some more.

If you buy too much you can transfer it to other people to use it up(we did this on princess a couple of years ago).

Another route is the casino use up the OBC and cash in. Princess may charge for casino(3%?) on the account but not enough to lose out on the 2:1 rate.

smk77

abc123456 wrote: »

Depends on when he booked his cruise and when it sails, as per my first post.
Cruises booked, generally last year, before the currency falls, qualify.
yes you can pay with Amex, but it must be done by telephone to their Customer Services, 0845 3555 800 - option 5 - followed by option 2.
If he qualifies, this rate is available until one week before the sail date. Princess will tell you if he qualifies for this rate by providing them with the booking reference. Good luck.

He booked a few weeks after getting back from the previous cruise which was June 08. I guess about August or September. Cruise is end of May.

We are hoping (v small chance based on a number of factors) to join them on the cruise so might be worth loading up his credit if we go as we won't qualify.

Thanks for the info!

abc123456

smk77 wrote: »

He booked a few weeks after getting back from the previous cruise which was June 08. I guess about August or September. Cruise is end of May.

We are hoping (v small chance based on a number of factors) to join them on the cruise so might be worth loading up his credit if we go as we won't qualify.

Thanks for the info!

If you decide to go, I think he can load up your shipboard account as he would qualify to do so. I just did it for my mother today, who is joining us on this cruise.