Goodbye Fuel Surcharges!

		The following article from cruisecritic.com sums up the state of fuel surcharges after Carnival's announcement Thursday. If you have questions regarding your specific booking, please call or e-mail me. December 5, 2008
		Update: 10 Cruise Lines to Suspend Fuel Supplement
		Despisers of fuel surcharges, this is your moment. As the price of a barrel of oil continues to fall, Carnival Corp., Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. have all announced plans to eliminate fuel surcharges. Carnival Corp. was the first to announce that it will suspend fuel surcharges for cruises on six of its lines departing on or after December 17, 2008. Carnival Corp.'s lines include Carnival Cruise Lines, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and Seabourn. Norwegian Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (consisting of Azamara, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean) have followed suit, both suspending fuel supplements for all voyages departing on or after January 1, 2009. Surcharges were first established in fall 2007, then increased, then increased again as the price of oil skyrocketed. But the barrel fell significantly during summer 2008, prompting lines to announce the demise of surcharges, with most targeting 2010 as the year when surcharge-free cruises would begin again. Most lines also enacted byzantine protocol for refunding fuel surcharges (in the form of onboard credit) if the price per barrel reached a certain value and stayed there for a certain amount of time. For Carnival at least, no one will have to ponder the convoluted refund system anymore. Plain and simple, if you're cruising prior to December 17, you won't be eligible for any fuel surcharge refunds. Cruising after that date? You'll get a refund. Likewise for NCL and RCCL, but the dates are slightly different. If you're cruising before January 1, 2009, you're ineligible for potential surcharge refunds. Cruise any time in 2009, and you'll get a refund. More specifically: Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Effective December 8, if you are paid in full on a cruise that departs on or after January 1, your fuel supplement will be refunded to you in the form of onboard credit. If you have an existing booking for a cruise departing on or after January 1, but have not paid in full, the amount of the fuel supplement will be removed from the final payment total due. All new bookings made on or after December 8, 2008, for cruises departing on January 1, 2009, or beyond will not be assessed a fuel surcharge. For Royal Caribbean and Celebrity cruises taken before January 1, you'll be paying, or have already paid a fuel supplement of between $5 and $10 per person, per day for the first two passengers in a cabin and between $3 and $5 per person, per day for additional passengers in a cabin. For Azamara cruises taken before January 1, you'll be paying, or have already paid a fuel supplement of between $5 and $15 per person, per day for the first two passengers in a cabin and $3 per person, per day for additional passengers in a cabin. Norwegian Cruise Line If passengers are within the "final payment period" on a cruise that departs on or after January 1, a refund will be issued in the form of onboard credit. In other words, if you're paid in full, you'll get shipboard credit in the amount of the fuel surcharge. If your booking is outside of the final payment period for departures on or after January 1, the amount of the fuel supplement will be removed from the final payment total due. For NCL cruises taken before January 1, you'll be paying, or have already paid a fuel supplement of between $7 and $11 per person, per day for the first two passengers in a cabin and between $3 and $5 per person, per day for third and fourth passengers in a cabin. Carnival Corp. If passengers are within the "final payment period" on a cruise that departs on or after December 17, a refund will be issued in the form of onboard credit. The final payment period varies depending on line and when you've booked your cruise; Carnival's standard final payment period begins 75 days before departure date, for instance. If your booking is outside of the final payment period for departures on or after December 17, the amount of the fuel supplement will be removed from the final payment total due. For all Carnival Corp. lines but Seabourn, if you're sailing before December 17, you'll be paying, or have already paid a fuel supplement of between $5 and $9 per person, per day for the first two passengers in a cabin and between $2 and $4 per person, per day for third, fourth and fifth passengers in a cabin. Seabourn's surcharge is between $5 and $15 per person, per day. Want to see what other lines are doing? Check out our At Your Service: Fuel Surcharges. --by Dan Askin, Assistant Editor