I saw a television interview with an anguished couple who had been presented with a 9.9 per cent fuel supplement charge for their Mediterranean cruise. This is at a time when newspapers are full of “half-price cruise offers”, “£250 on-board credit allowance”, etc.

Are we to expect that this couple's predicament was a one-off, limited to the type of holiday they chose, or is it a sign of things to come? Are we really going to be attracted by “40 per cent off” offers, and then hit by fuel charges, or have most cruise companies already factored in anticipated increased fuel costs? - Stuart Vasey, via e-mail

Times travel expert Julia Brookes responds: A spokeswoman for the Passenger Shipping Association said that its members had little option but to introduce fuel surcharges. The cost of fuel was factored in when brochures and prices were published for 2008/2009, and in some cases 2010, but this was a considerable time ago and fuel costs have since escalated far beyond what was anticipated. “Cruise lines are monitoring fuel costs and where necessary will react to changing circumstances,” she said.

So, yes, in today's economic climate, it is quite possible that having been seduced by a cut-price cruise offer, you could then be faced with an extra bill for fuel.

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