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Did we say dollar? We meant euro

June 18, 2008

Back in the day of dollar/euro parity, it didn’t make much of a difference which currency you paid with when you were on vacation. But with one euro now fetching a mind-boggling $1.55 (this chart tells the whole unfortunate story) the way you pay could make a huge difference to your bottom line.

Cruise lines are being particularly devious about the euro/dollar confusion, according to passengers such as Donald Merlino, who recently returned from a 17-day repositioning cruise from Ft. Lauderdale to Savona, Italy, on the Costa Fortuna.

All of our onboard purchases were charged in euro even though for the first 12-days we were either in the Caribbean or on open seas. In fact, our fuel surcharge refund was credited back to us in euro, not dollars. And to add insult to injury, our first charge of 92 euro was made while we still in Ft. Lauderdale — two hours before the ship embarked.

Why charge in euro? I’ll bet the cruise lines would dismiss this as nothing more than an accounting error, but it’s an error that favors the company and takes advantage of passengers.

Making the psychological transition to a second currency takes time. When you’re charging in euros while still in port in Ft. Lauderdale — well, you don’t need me to tell you that’s exploitative.

Merlino checked on several transatlantic Cruises leaving from Ft. Lauderdale next year. Two other lines, MSC and Costa, charge in dollars. Making matters worse, the travel agencies that sell these cruises are often confused about currencies.

I just contacted Vacations to Go to get pricing info on the Costa Fortuna for a 2009 sailing and was told that Costa charges in dollars and that it was MSC charged in euro. That’s the complete opposite that the cruise lines themselves told me. Even the travel agents don’t know what’s going on.

Has anyone else seen this dollar/euro confusion? And what happens when you point out the discrepancies to your travel company or agent?

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

8 comments

  • MarkA

    Chris – maybe I’m just being thickheaded this morning, but I don’t know if I understand the problem. Are you saying that THEY – the big THEY – are quoting prices – via menus, price sheets, whatever – in dollars, but actually charging in euro? If that’s the case then, by all means, that is defiinitely a big no-no. But if they’re simply charging in euro – and not hiding the fact – and passengers are ASSUMING dollars, then I really can’t find fault with the cruise lines on this one. That is, of course, unless the prices are in big, bold, 36-point font, and the disclaimer “Prices quoted are in euro” is in teeny, tiny, 2-point font on the back of the menu.

  • http://www.jetsetlife.tv Jet Set Life

    The Euro mess is killing us!. We own a company called http://www.jetsetlife.tv that caters to the jet set traveler and we’re heading to Greece for a month next week and we’re scared to see what those nasty conversions reveal.

  • Jasper

    @ Jet Set Life: The conversion factor will simply reveal that a euro is about $1.60-1.70.

    It is not surprising that the dollar has slid over the years as the current policy of the US is not to care about the exchange rate of the dollar, because ‘the American economy is strong’. Only recently, the president has said that he has a ‘strong dollar policy’. However, nobody is really sure what that policy is. Regardless, I haven’t heard any democrats complain, so I have to assume they agree.

    Just to throw in another quote on the US exchange rate policy. A couple of years ago, when EU members showed their concern about a possible weakening of the dollar value due to the double US deficit, the answer from the administration was, that if the (massively negative) American trade-balance was a concern to the Europeans, perhaps they could make it smaller by purchasing some fine American products. I.e.: “We are not going to stop importing so much, but we’ll be happy to export more”.

    Regarding the oil price, in other currencies it hasn’t increase nearly as much as in dollars (about 15% over the last year in euroland). Oil producing countries simply see the sliding dollar, and make sure that they are getting the same value for their oil.

    Oh, and in Europe, the EU is nicely increasing taxes on diesel (yeah, and actual tax increase in stead of a tax holiday). Nobody really knows why, but French president Sarkozy was laughed at for suggesting to max that new tax on diesel (i.e. make sure that the tax which is levied as a percentage of the price, can not go over a certain fixed value in cents). The Dutch PM responded with “We should not lower oil prices, we should use less oil”.

    I am digressing. Sorry Chris. I apologize.

    @ JetSetLife: Do your Jet Set Lifers really care about money? I would guess that a real Jet Setter is so wealthy, (s)he does not care.

  • Sorrell

    I am the Director of Customer Service at Vacations To Go and I regret that you were not able to get the most current information when you called our company. Chris, we appreciate you bringing this to our attention and we have updated our website to reflect every instance where onboard charges are in Euros instead of dollars.

  • Charlotte

    It is not only the cruise lines, et al. who profit from charging Euros, but your credt card/ bank make a killing on administration fees, exchange fees, percentage fees – alas all fees – that are piled upon the initial charge. On a recent dining experience, which cost me 60 euro, a total of $22 was added to my credit card statement for that one event.

    I have sinceI realised that cash is a much better alternative, and costs less even in ATM withdrawal fees.

  • BriCo

    I wonder if this is just another scam by the cruise lines (remember “fuel surcharges” AFTER payment had been received?), or even a couple of unscrupulous travel agents. In every Sunday Travel section for the last several months I have read about the “cruise bargains” for cruising/cruise tours in European countries because “cruise ships charge in dollars, not euros”. Once you’re on board, or even before (since you’ve already paid and won’t receive a refund), you are stuck!

  • Nigel Appleby

    Some cruise lines charge in the currency of the issuing bank of the card used to pay on board. Some years ago we used a UK card even thought we are resident in Canada. The cruise line converted US$ to pounds and then charged the card. I would have got a much better exchange rate if the card had done the exchange rather than the cruise line.
    A few years later and a different cruise line wanted to do the same. I still have the UK card but all my otheres are issued by Canadian institutions so I have to be vigilant and ensure that they will charge in US$.
    Perhaps something similar happend in this case?
    Hope this helps.

  • Richard

    Sorry mate, but you’re transferring from a second currency (USD) to a primary one (EUR). We’ve now overtaken you.

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