Dreaded fuel surcharges coming back to cruising?
Cruise lines are paying more to operate their ships fueling speculation that unpopular surcharges may make a return, a concern of particular interest to travel agents who continue to handle the bulk of reservations.
But the chairman and chief executive officer of the world’s largest cruise operator said there are currently no plans to reinstate the surcharges, even though oil prices far exceed levels that the company has said could trigger such a move.
“While we reserve the right to impose a surcharge, we have at this point no intention of doing so, based on today’s environment,” said Micky Arison of Carnival.
Fuel prices are currently in the range of $85 a barrel — well above the $70-a-barrel threshold Carnival has long said could prompt a return to the fuel surcharges.
Meanwhile, as the economy is recovering, cruise prices are moving upward.
Carnival Vice Chairman Howard Frank said ticket prices on bookings taken over the last nine weeks have risen 26 percent from a year earlier at Carnival’s North American brands, and they are up 6 percent for European brands. Frank called the turnaround “a very positive indication the consumer is coming back.”
Carnival operates 11 brands around the globe.
British cruise operator Fred Olsen Cruise Line, citing the high cost of Brent crude oil, said it was reinstating the supplement in May.
But other North American cruise lines have made no such announcements. So far at least.
When the cruise lines eliminated their fuel supplements, they established fuel price thresholds at which they reserved the right to reinstate the surcharges.
For Norwegian Cruise Line and the brands of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., it was $65 per barrel. For the Carnival Corp. lines, it was $70.
By David Wilkening
David
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