Thursday, April 25, 2024

Tipping on a Cruise Ship The Ultimate Guide to Cruise Gratuities

tipping on a cruise

It’s important to have cash on hand for these tips, and US dollars are usually the currency of choice for the cruise lines mentioned above. An additional tip is always appreciated if you receive exceptional service during your spa treatments. The role of tips in compensating cruise ship staff must be considered.

Cruise Gratuities Frequently Asked Questions

Viking Cruises gratuities are $15.00 per person, per day for all staterooms. Jenna DeLaurentis enjoys exploring new ports of call around the world on a cruise ship, learning about new cultures, discovering beautiful landscapes, and trying diverse cuisine. She loves to get active while at port, whether cycling through mountains in the Caribbean or scuba diving under the sea. By giving tips to crew members individually, you may be taking potential gratuities away from other hard working crew members you don’t meet in person.

Holland America Line Daily Gratuity Amount:

If you wish to adjust the amount you pay, this can be done onboard at guest relations. Daily service charges are not the only cruise tips you will pay on board. Many cruise lines will tack an automatic gratuity charge onto the bill for extra-fee drinks, restaurant meals and spa treatments. When you pay for specialty dining on your, even if it’s a perk in a package from cruise lines like Norwegian, you’re going to be paying a mandatory gratuity when booking. Knowing we’re paying an automatic tip means that the service should be special to consider tipping extra in the specialty dining restaurants on a ship.

tipping on a cruise

How do I tip? Do I pay in cash on the ship?

Virgin Voyages is one of the few mainstream cruise lines that include gratuities and service charges in their sailing cost. An exception is Costa Cruises, which considers the service charge integral to the cruise fare, and does not allow adjustments. Cruise lines typically provide guidelines for gratuities, either as a daily per-person amount or as a recommended total for the duration of the cruise. These amounts can vary, but they generally range from $15 to $25 per person per day, depending on the cruise line and cabin category. Some cruise lines automatically charge gratuities to your onboard account or add it to your cruise fare, while others leave it to your discretion.

With the cruise lines imposing this additional fee, cruisers often wonder if they need to tip more on a cruise. Generally speaking, the entertainment staff is very well paid and on contract from an outside entertainment company. These talented folks don’t rely on tips and don’t expect any additional gratuities while performing on board. There are a few occasions, however, when we’ve observed passengers & guests tipping singers and musicians. This usually can be seen when there is live music in one of the bars. It’s not uncommon to see a passenger hand a musician singing solo a few dollars or even buy them a drink (depending on the rules of the cruise line).

Additionally, shouldbecruising.com participates in various other affiliate programs, and we sometimes receive a commission from purchases made through our links. Most cruisers tip anywhere from $2-$10 per person (or the equivalent in the local currency) to the tour guide, and hand a couple of dollars to the driver. You can adjust this based on the length and complexity of the tour. I’d give a much larger tip to a knowledgeable tour guide who led us on an intensive nine-hour experience compared to a guide who did a basic three-hour city walking tour. If your kids had a great time at the kids’ club on board, giving a tip at the end of the cruise to their favorite staff members is always appreciated. So, while the decision to tip on a cruise is up to you, hopefully, you have a better sense of what other cruisers typically do during a sailing.

These days, the gratuities are set daily amounts paid by each passenger. Instead of one passenger paying a lot and another paying hardly anything, these set amounts ensure that everyone pays the same. On the other hand, many luxury and boutique cruise lines (like Azamara, Regent Seven Seas and Silversea) have no-tipping policies in place. In these cases, the staff gratuities are built directly into the all-inclusive fares, and their crewmembers are paid accordingly. Tipping on a cruise might be the most discussed and debated topic among both novice and seasoned cruisers.

Royal Caribbean Raising Gratuity Rates for All Passengers - Cruise Hive

Royal Caribbean Raising Gratuity Rates for All Passengers.

Posted: Wed, 01 Nov 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

What tipping structures are in place for cruises?

The extra cost of the automatic gratuity charges can be a shock to first-time cruisers. And, unlike the typical service fee or resort fee found at a land resort, they are not per room. Do you tip crew members in addition to the daily service charges? Drop us an anchor below to share your tipping behaviors on vacation. We’ve been on cruises where we’ve witnessed the typical tipping behavior, leaving a dollar or two per drink or per round for a bartender. While many people will feel like this is ‘greasing the palm’ of the cabin steward, it’s showing appreciation for their proactive attempt at starting the cruise right!

Royal Caribbean Raises Gratuities By $2 Per Person, Per Day - TravelPulse Canada

Royal Caribbean Raises Gratuities By $2 Per Person, Per Day.

Posted: Wed, 01 Nov 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Similarly, in the main dining room, we tip our waiter around $6 to $8 per day for the two of us, averaging around $50 for a 7-night cruise. Keep in mind, we normally dine at least 5 nights in the main dining room. I'm a global nomad at heart, and the dedicated editor behind CruiseGear.

tipping on a cruise

Many cruise passengers from Britain and a few European countries where tipping isn’t a common practice, prefer to have the automatically-added tips removed from their account. Don’t pre-pay gratuities and if there’s an increase, you’ll pay a bit more at the end of your cruise. If you’re paying for a family, it could be a very costly added expense. If you want to get the daily cruise tipping fees out of the way before your cruise and avoid last-night sticker shock, I always suggest that you pre-pay gratuities. In reality, the cruise staff on board want you to be satisfied, so this is the time address a problem.

Cunard‘s daily gratuities are set at $11.50 per person, per day for guests in standard cabins. The cost is $13.50 per person, per day for guests in Grill Class suites. The average daily gratuity on a cruise is $14-15 USD per person  – approximately $30 per day, per couple in a cabin. A couple should budget about $200 in gratuities for a 7 day cruise. Most cruise lines charge for children as well, although there are some exceptions for very young children on select cruise lines. Casino dealers do not receive a cut of Cunard's automatic gratuities, so consider tipping deserving staff.

On the other hand, many people choose to instead pay the gratuity charges automatically through their onboard account once on the ship. Each day there will be a gratuity charge — or a lump sum added at the end of the trip. Room service fees have become the norm on many major cruise lines. Room service waiters are also part of the tip pool for autogratuities. Cruise lines say they pass the money collected from service charges to the shipboard crew. They say the money is shared not just with front-of-house crew, such as room attendants and waitstaff, but also with behind-the-scenes workers.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Hidden House Coffee Santa Ana, Santa Ana Menu, Reviews 220, Photos 52

Table Of Content We Can’t Stop Thinking About These Five Things From the 2024 Specialty Coffee Expo Behind the Bar: Hidden House Coffee Roas...