Fred Olsen changes fuel supplement charge

From Wednesday January 19th 2011 Fred Olsen Cruise lines is changing the way it calculates its fuel supplement.

Currently the fuel supplement is charged on a per person day rate which is a lot more realistic, however from the 19th the supplement will actually be charged as a percentage of the overall cruise fare.

What does this mean for the passenger? Basically it means if you were to book for example a deluxe cabin or suite you will in fact pay more than another passenger who books a standard inside cabin on the same voyage. The new percentage will be 5% of the total fare where as currently it is a day rate of £4 per person. The current argument with this decision is obviously your cabin choice does not affect how much fuel is used so how is this a fair decision for those who already spend a little extra on their cruise holiday by picking a more expensive cabin.

Fred Olsen said it brings them into line with the EU Package Directive and ABTA guidelines that require charges to be "proportionately rated to the cruise fare invoiced".