Full Payment before the trip?

[waynel]

I dove in Belize two years ago. Going back next month. I put a fifty percent deposit down. Now the op wants full payment on the package in a few days. I've never been asked for full payment before. Didn't do it last trip to Belize. I don't know if we'll get to do all the dives because June is a rainy month. Dives could be cancelled. Is paying in full before you arrive common there? As I said didn't do it last trip.

 

[underthedeepblue]

I turned up and played one op off against the other until I got a deal of $25 a dive and then they just tallied me up at the end. I found my own accommodation.
I don't believe in pre-paying because then the ball is entirely in their court and they have no incentive to go the extra mile to give good service
What dive op is it?

 

[Gaz]

Its completely normal to pre pay for a Hotel/dive package normally a deposit is taken and the balance is due 45 days prior to arrival this is normal for Belize as it is for most other dive destinations.

June is a great month for diving and in all my years as a dive operator it would be very rare we cancelled a dive in June your more likely to have dive cancellation due to weather in March than in the summer months.

Check with your dive shop as to the cancellation policy on dives some will refund unused dives some wont you will have to check but dont feel it is something unusual to ask for full payment 45 days prior to arrival as it is standard booking procedure for Belize Hotels.

Dive Safe

Gaz Cooper

 

[peterbj7]

I would probably pay a deposit if I was sure I wanted that service, but I would never buy "a pig in a poke" and pay in full up-front. I don't know any reputable dive operator that even asks for it.

In my experience, the shops which are most insistent on payment up-front are those least likely to give a refund for dives not taken. When I ran my dive shop I never asked for full payment up-front. Although I was taken for a ride a few times, I still don't think I would request full payment up-front. It feels wrong to me even to ask for it, and if I were a customer I would resent it. Much as the OP here evidently does, or he wouldn't have posted.

 

[DandyDon]

Whatever the original deal was: If it was stipulated that you had to make a deposit followed by full payment by the date specified in advance, then you agreed to it. If this is a surprise request, nope! Weather is not the only reason for missing dives. I can see the Op wanting to know in advance what to plan for but some things cannot be helped, and sometimes we just don't want to get back on that boat again.

I have prepaid dives on packaged trips and missed them because of weather or illness. It sucks, even tho not the most expensive part of a trip.

 

[knowone]

Be nice to be able to pre-pay with a car, before a few plugs and a filter
turns into a motor.

 

[waynel]

Its completely normal to pre pay for a Hotel/dive package normally a deposit is taken and the balance is due 45 days prior to arrival this is normal for Belize as it is for most other dive destinations.

June is a great month for diving and in all my years as a dive operator it would be very rare we cancelled a dive in June your more likely to have dive cancellation due to weather in March than in the summer months.

Check with your dive shop as to the cancellation policy on dives some will refund unused dives some wont you will have to check but dont feel it is something unusual to ask for full payment 45 days prior to arrival as it is standard booking procedure for Belize Hotels.

Dive Safe

Gaz Cooper

Yes, Gaz I'm very experienced with "packages". I have been diving for a few years. And I have prepaid for the dives...when it was a combo package of hotel and dives, or even hotels, airfare, and dives. I understand that, because it increases the discounts. But I booked everything seperate for this trip. I dove in June on my last trip there. Got rained out two of the seven days. And I see an old Cozumel friend, Don, pitched in. And as Don knows, full payment up front is common in Cozumel (I've done six trips there) when it's the hotel and dive "package." But that's not the case for my Belize trip in 29 days. Again, I kept everything seperate because unlike Cozumel, there are options in Belize. If a two day storm hits the island, I can Tropic Air to a mainland destination for some on-land adventuring. In Coz, if you're not diving because of the weather you're just sitting in the bar. The stipulation with this op is that if weather cancels a dive, you get credit towards your next trip. Unfortunately, they don't extend the "credit" for a full year. In addition to a Coz or Belize trip, we do a couple of trips a year to Key Largo (it's cheaper). Getting a 6 month "credit" at a Belize op means...I will lose any prepaid money. I might not make it back to Belize for 18 months. I shopped very hard for a Belize op. My selection might still be great (op will remain unnamed, that would be tacky) but I'm starting to have my doubts. I did email back stipulating my concern and that I will pay for the remainder of the trip after the dives, and if that's a problem let me know so I can make other arrangements. There's a "30 day refund" policy on deposit. As of this morning it's 29 days out. I sincerely hope this doesn't become a problem. I'm going to Belize to get away from "business b------t" because I deal with it here in the states every day. Here's the thing that really scares me now. I didn't send my deposit directly to the op in Belize. I was instrcuted to send it to some (evidently) parent company in Oregon. The "beware of corporations" hairs on the back of my neck are beginning to stand up.

 

[Downing]

I think your concerns are absolutely valid, but I don't see why naming the dive op would be tacky. You would be helping your fellow divers by providing info that they probably wouldn't otherwise know.

Last year, much to my surprise The Great House in Belize City charged my credit card in full for a three night stay at the time I made my reservation, which was about four months in advance. I didn't have any issue about posting that info here.

In any case, I'm surprised to learn that a Belize dive op has a parent company in Oregon. I wonder if I know those guys, lol. If the company's in the Portland metro area and you need any help tracking down their address or phone number, let me know.

 

[Gaz]

Hmmm Ok diving only is a bit different the only thing I would say on that is when I was operating I only operated 2 boats with max 8 divers per boat and I would ask for pre payment as I was very often full and boat space was a premium, so I always asked for payment up front to secure the boat space, however if weather came in and we had to cancel we either made it up with an additional 2 dives in the PM or often we credited it to an offshore trip or we went on a full day Beach Barbe que up to Rocky point either way guests always got what they paid for especially if it was diving only.

I still work with a dive op that requires pre payment simply because boat space is at a premium but depending on where you are diving not sure its required these days on Ambergris with the big ops that have lots of boats and space available.

I dont see any issue with you naming the dive op its not tcky it allows divers to make an informed choice.

Im sure it will work out fine for you

Best regards

Gaz Cooper

 

[peterbj7]

I know big dive ops with lots of boats that charge up front, and I know smaller more personal ops that don't. I know which I prefer to deal with. I also know one op that at least used not to refund money whatever the circumstances, not even when mechanical failure of the boat was the cause.