Using Credit Cards or USD

[lhenry]

Can anyone tell me if when you use a credit card for a purchase in the resort shops or if you pay for a massage with a credit card if the resort adds a hefty service fee on top? The last time we were in Jamaica at a S resort, we had charged our massages and some stuff from the store and when we got our bill there was some sort of a charge on top of the purchase price. Does anyone know if Couples does this? We are going to CN Jan 15/11..
Tks..

[jon1963]

You can pay by credit at point of sale or just charge it back to your room. Couples do not charge a service fee.

Couples does not accept cash at the gift shops or spa. they are cash free.

[mrs2cool]

The resort doesn't add the fee to your credit card, some banks do (they say it is a foreign exchange fee or some bs like that). Not all banks do as the charges are always in US dollars. Check with your individual card company to be sure.

[Driverlady]

Couples does not. Your credit card company may charge an foreign exchange fee though. Check with them, as it varies from card to card

[RubiGal04]

You charge everything to your room, and then settle up when you ck out... no extra charges.

[Vee]

Unfortunately, it's not Couples that is doing it, but your credit card company. It's an international service fee and you can try to fight them about it, but good luck.

Honestly, I'm not sure if you can even avoid it, since Randymon recently reported that all resorts have gone cashless. You may be able to still pay your final bill in cash after having charged all your incidentals to your room, however, I can't speak definitively about that one. Sorry.

[Coloradojuli]

Vee is correct that you can pay cash at the end of your stay for the items you charged to your room.

[lhenry]

Ok....is that for sure that the resort will take cash if we charge our massages to the room??? We are armed with about $600 USD as we expected to pay for our massages with cash. If I can't pay for the massages with cash at the time of checkout then I don't want to bring all that money with us.

Who needs a tip in cash...the airport baggage handlers, shuttle driver, the catamaran guys and tips at the spa.....is there anyone else i left out that we would use money to tip?

[IACouple]

Dont bring a ton of cash, just charge everything to the room and settle up at checkout. We tip the baggage guys, bus driver ($20), spa employees, and well that is it.

[Vee]

I would contact the resort directly and verify that they will still accept cash at checkout, however, I believe they do. (Again, call the 800# just to verify, tho.)

[winlove]

While the resorts don't charge an additional fee, some credit cards charge an International conversion fee. One option is to find/use a credit card that does not charge a conversion fee, or the other is to use cash. Unfortunately Couples now processes reservations in Jamaica rather than in Miami thus causing a 3% conversion fee if using the US Air Mastercard. Rather than getting another cc, now going through a travel agent, thus avoiding the conversion fee.

[RubiGal04]

We used cash to settle up the charges to our room when we checked out. That is perfectly fine and acceptable if you don't want to charge anything on your credit card.

[Umberto]

When we checked out on November 23, I settled up with cash.

[lhenry]

Ok guys...thanks.....we will bring all our USD with us and just keep it in the safe until checkout and settle with cash..! Thanks for all the help!