I just went back and reread all of my e-mails between myself and Blue Tang. Also reread their web page, and the only mention I find of the 10-15% gratuity to be added at check out in their travel tips section, buried in a section on currency. My credit card has already been charged for the entire amount of our stay, plus airfare between San Pedro and BZE. I guess I will just have to wait and see what comes up at checkout time. I plan on tipping for service as usual, and will contest any charges added to my credit card for 'service'.

In europe it is the resort hotels/with full meal plans(and by no means all) but you can remove the gratuity from your bill-my point or from what I have seen is that the hotel in question would not let the people remove the forced charge -this is WRONG and I will find out the law tomorrow.

Gratuity from Websters unabridged

\Gra*tu"i*ty\, n.; pl. Gtratuities. [F. gratuit['e], or LL. gratuitas.] 1. Something given freely or without recompense; a free gift; a present. --Swift.

2. Something voluntarily given in return for a favor or service, as a recompense or acknowledgment

Please explain how this can be a forced charge-sounds to me that it is illegal.

hmmmmmm I went to the Blue Tang website and sure enough, hidden away in a little box called "Travel Tips" is a currency section. Only there does the hotel mention that "Gratuity is not automatically added to the bill. We request 10-15% gratuity be left at the hotel front desk upon checkout." Now, why isn't that under Room Rates???

Also there is a passage that says "Traveler's Checks are accepted at the Blue Tang Inn, but you may have trouble cashing them at local boutiques and restaurants" which is nonsense. Carry your ID with you and make sure they're YOUR travellers cheques and you will have NO problem anywhere cashing travelers cheques.

Slightly off-topic, but from what I can gather, you people posting here would have an answer, if anyone would!
We are booked at a reputable place in San Pedro (from what I have read) and we paid via credit card weeks ago, for a certain agreed upon amount, in US$. The credit card statement showed up with an amount about $60 higher, and the hotel tells us it is a Belizean/U.S dollar currency issue?! WHAT??
They told us to contact our bank, and they also mentioned that others have had this happen to them too.
Very strange that the problem wouldn't have been worked out then...
Whatever--WE are being charged for a rate higher than agreed upon. What do we do?
We are well traveled and this has never happened before.

What happens when you charge with a Belize merchant the transaction goes thru the Belize bank in Belize dollars and is converted to US dollars on your account even though the price is quoted in US$. Credit card company charges range anywhere from 2-5% on the conversion. My Master Card figures out to 3.9% It is not the Belize hotel that is doing this, it is the credit card company. Hope this helped.

I have paid for my hotel and diving on a credit card and come home wondering what my bill would be. Well, interestingly enough, even though my spending had to be converted from BZ$ to US$ to Cdn$, there was virtually no difference in the amount that I had expected to see on my credit card. The variances have been less than $20, certainly not in the $60 range. I suggest that you get the hotel to fax you a copy of your bill and then take it up with your credit card company. It is going to be a lot easier to deal with this before you arrive than after you have departed.

Peter: before you start condeming the hotel, you had better make sure you have your facts correct. Some credit card companies charge for foreign transactions. Do a search for topics already discussed on this board about the same and you will see what people encounter. A Belize merchant that has a Belize account with a Belize bank will get paid in Belize dollars less the bank charge for the credit card handling. The customer will be charged by his credit card company based on their foreign exchange rate and any fees they charge for foreign transactions. It differs from company to company. When I use my US credit card in Belize, if I buy something that cost me $100BZ, I get charged $50US plus 3.9% in fees. The Belize merchant gets none of that 3.9%. It all goes to the credit card company. Check your facts.

Whoops, it happened again. Before I could finish my reply to Pedro, his post got zapped.

I called visa in england and they do not have this charge-however it depends on where the card was issued and what card you are using-apparently they are all different,and rules vary.

Thanks to all of you. I will get a copy from the hotel and look into it further.

Peter: did you zap your post after you realized you miss-spoke, or was it the evil moderators again? :p