Paying on board charges

[bellybee]

Hello

I am a newb going on my first cruise in June on Arcadia. Do you know if the charges like tips and drinks etc can be paid using a credit card or is it debit card only? I am very excited for my cruise and have 2 of my posh dresses already (ebay jobbie lol)

[Kendhni]

Hi bellybee and welcome to the forum and wonderful world of cruising.
Yes you can pay by credit card (or debit card or even by cash). Tips will be added to your on board account on a daily basis (at a rate of £3.10 per person per day - this is going up to £3.50pppd at the end of March). Note that while on board it is a cashless system .. you charge everything to your cruise card and then settle the bill at the end.

Arcadia is a great ship and I can recommend the Orchid restaurant .. costs extra but great for a special meal.

[Quizzical Bob]

Hi Bellybee,

When you check in at Southampton (or elsewhere) you will be asked for a card which will be registered against your onboard account. This can be a credit card. If you are sharing a cabin and you register the same card for both accounts then any On Board Credit (OBC) will be shared between the two cabin accounts. If you register a different card against each of the cabin occupants then the OBC is treated individually and cannot be merged. At the end of the cruise you will receive a statement showing what you have spent on board. This will then be taken off the registered card unless you choose to settle it in cash or other kind. You can ask for an interim statement at any time by going to the Reception Desk. Have fun, and be warned-cruising is addictive!

[david63]

You can pay by debit card but not all debit cards are accepted as P&O need to be able to authorise charges daily and this facility is not available with some cards.

You can find more details of what P&O allow for the settlement of on board accounts here

[bellybee]

Thanks everyone, I will register my credit card with them and hope I don't spend over my limit. I certainly hope I don't but I don't know how tempting those cocktails will be.

[Kendhni]

I can recommend the Cool Colada mocktail ... nothing better if lying in the sun

[david63]

bellybee - one thing to be aware of when you register your CC is that every night the ship will authorise your daily spend against your CC before taking the full amount at the end of the cruise.

There have been reports in the past that with some CCs that the authorised amounts have not been automatically removed when the final payment is taken so if you feel that your credit limit may be an issue then it might be an idea to check this with your CC company before you sail.

[Boris+]

First of all - welcome and well done! Arcadia is a smashing ship, and no doubt you will have a lovely time.

Somewhere in the dim and distant past I seem to recall that either a credit or debit card was fine - but not anything like visa electron.

Oh well, no doubt checkin will go so smoothly and quickly you will hardly notice it - and then you'll come home and book another one.

Em

[Keechy]

Hi Bellybee and welcome to cruising. I fell foul of incompetence with my new credit card from Santander which offered no charges on foreign transactions. I used it in Malaga to buy something on shore and the following morning, there was a letter from the purser telling me that my card had been declined. (They send your day's spending to the banks overnight for authorisation) It turned out that when I informed Santander that I would be using the card abroad, they had the ports of call in the wrong order and thought we had been to Gibraltar which was in fact our last port of call. I was allowed to use the satellite link to call the bank to sort it out. A couple of days later, the same thing happened again and I had to sort it with the bank again. It turned out this time that they could only accept three countries as ports of call but forgot to tell me that the first time! I had then to give them the next three. A big thank you to P and O for allowing me to use the phone!

I made sure that I didn't use the card on shore again (in fact I haven't used the card anywhere since then) but I checked with P and O Customer Service and was told that all transactions on board are classed as UK purchases. I now use my Yorkshire Bank card without any problems.

Enjoy your cruise and start saving for the next one 'cos it will happen