I’m always surprised when people are using the ATM on Cruise Ships, especially for small amounts, or use the Guest Assistance Desk as the fee structure for either service is a complete rip-off.
The general rule of traveling is that one should only use ATM’s of real consumer banks and never apply the Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) option when taking cash out.
We have covered “scam ATM’s” and their high surcharges as well as ways where they try to try users into choosing the expensive convenience conversion into their home currency (DCC) many times.
I just got off a two week cruise with Celebrity Cruises in the Mediterranean and I couldn’t believe how often I’ve seen people use the ATM on board the ship (EDGE) and there were even receipts laying around, showing small amounts of withdrawals.
Keep in mind, that every time you make a withdrawal on a Celebrity cruises onboard ATM you incur a $6.50 charge plus whatever your bank charges for using an ATM outside their system. These fees can add up quickly and keep in mind that the onboard currency
The same goes for the exchange of cash at the Guest Assistance Desk. I overheard a conversation where a gentleman tried to exchange 50 Euro to US Dollar and he was offered an even $40. Never mind that it’s usually almost impossible to get an even exchange amount, this was on a day when XE showed me pretty much parity (US$50 = 50.02 EUR). Why on earth would Celebrity take a $10 fee on such a small…
