Ketchikan has increased their port fees. It has gone up $1.00 pp. I thought fees just went up $50.00 pp (Alaska Fees) in January. $1.00 is not much and it will bring in $860,000.00 in extra money for the year!!

Q on port fees~ Are you saying that they will not let you into their city unless everyone on the ship pays $1?

Im not sure I understand port fees either, we never pay anything when we go there.

We received a note in our cabin the first day. It said a $1.00pp port fee charge would be added to your ship's account. You had no choice... the ship had already left.
A dollar is not alot but it adds up, and Alaska just increased the charge by $50.00 per person.
in January

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Im not sure I understand port fees either, we never pay anything when we go there.

Greyson
When were you there last? I believe the fees just started this cruise year.

Greyson, we sailed Princess to Alaska northbound and southbound this year (end of May, first week of June) and were not charged a $1 port fee for Ketchikan.

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You had no choice... the ship had already left.

...sounds more like extortion than a fee to me

There is a difference in the $50pp Head Tax and a port fee. The $1 port fee is a charge that Ketchikan is charging the cruise line for specific port related services. The $50 pp Head Tax was imposed by the state of Alaska simply for sailing on an Alaska cruise regardless of what port you visit. Those funds are used by the State of Alaska.

quote:

Cruise Guru
Posted July 04, 2007 02:47 PM Hide Post
There is a difference in the $50pp Head Tax and a port fee. The $1 port fee is a charge that Ketchikan is charging the cruise line for specific port related services. The $50 pp Head Tax was imposed by the state of Alaska simply for sailing on an Alaska

It is still a tax being charged to the cruiser. If I read the net correctly Ketchikan just increased their fees last yeat by two dollars, and now a dollar more.
They list their potential cruise guess at 853,654 for the 2007.

We were there in Aug/Sept 2006. I dont care about $1, I cant go to a movie or anything else around here that cheap. Whats a dollar when you spend how much in excursions and souveniers anyway.

There is the last straw or the straw that broke the camel's back

gdjoslin, I didnt give you that straw did I? I wasnt trying to be a smart ass, just made a statement. Sorry if I did upset you, that was not my intention.

Greyson
No you did not upset me. My words were probably used incorrectly.
Just do not like more tax, or fees.

Thanks Gary, I agree, its getting tiring getting taxed on everything we did. So much for throwing the tea overboard. Just think how rich we could all be if we didnt need to pay taxes. Just exactly what are they for anyway except to line the big-wigs pockets. Geez, Alaska doesnt even have a state tax up there and my cousins get paid to live there. Dont figure!

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The $1 port fee is a charge that Ketchikan is charging the cruise line for specific port related services.

Thanks for this clerification. It now appears to me that it is a cost of doing business for the owner of the ship.

Rather than absorbing the cost, they are just passing 100% of the cost to their valued customers.

quote:

The $1 port fee is a charge that Ketchikan is charging the cruise line for specific port related services.


Thanks for this clerification. It now appears to me that it is a cost of doing business for the owner of the ship.

Rather than absorbing the cost, they are just passing 100% of the cost to their valued customers.

It is a part of business to make a profit, that means passing as much expense as you can down the line. Ketchikan is to blame here.

We had fish and chip at a place of the dock. The gentleman there said that the tax that was passed in 2005 and collected in 2006 hurt his business. He pays a business tax so the city got less from him. I am not sure what tax he was talking about however I picked up a "2007 cruise ship calendar" from the tourist center. On the back page it show visitors in 2005 at 921,429. In 2006 they were 838,880, that is 82,549 less people. Is the tax and the drop in visitors related? I do not know, we were there last year. I do not think it wise to bite the arm that feeds you.
I have sent this thread link to Visit-ketchikan.com. Perhaps they will provide some insight.