I hope this helps. Check your Cruise Planner and see if it comes up to purchase. Details: Passengers staying in most cabins, including junior suites, pay $16. As a way to reward our crew members for their outstanding service, tips are shared . Why wouldnt they have the limit at $13 or do I have incorrect info? In Miami the worst place to board the ship. These can be a surprise to some people, especially first-time passengers. Thank you so much for this insight definitely helps with planning. Automatic gratuity charge: $16 to $18.50 per person, per day. Passengers in higher-level suites pay $18. To help explain everything about cruise line gratuities, weve answered a number of common questions that will make everything clearer before you set sail. Royal Caribbean no longer offers a wine package. For those who drink mostly coffee, Royal Caribbean offers a Cafe Select Coffee Card. Depending on your cruise line, you might find different language used than the word gratuities. Weve seen these charges called tips, gratuities, crew incentives, or service charges. Not to split them across all the employees equally. If youve never cruised, then there is no doubt that these questions and more might be floating through your head. ), Can You Work Remotely While Taking a Cruise? When you take a Royal Caribbean cruise, one of the costs to passengers are gratuities (tips) to crew members during, Royal Caribbean will be raising its recommended gratuities for sailings that depart on or after July 1, 2015.The new, Royal Caribbean will be raising its automatic daily gratuity amountthat guests pay night of their cruise beginning on, Royal Caribbean has announced it will raise itsrecommended gratuities for sailings that depart on or after May 01,, Royal Caribbean provides excellent service to guests of all ages, and with that service comes an automatic gratuity, Royal Caribbean Australia announced today a new fare structure that includesgratuities for stateroom attendants and. The staff works hard to ensure that your vacation is a great one. How much is the Royal Caribbean drink package? Thank you for answering all these questions! Thanks for the comprehensive review! Each passenger pays a daily gratuity that covers the services of the crew members they interact with the most, and this daily rate is charged automatically unless the guest pre-pays it prior to the cruise. Not sure if Id risk it though! How much is charged? Are tips required? We nearly always opt out of tips and tip whom we want directly. ? Starting Sept. 7, Royal Caribbean will charge guests in non-suite staterooms . or would i be charged for the whole pina colada with alcohol? If youre caught cheating the Royal Caribbean drink package by giving drinks to people who do not have a package, then you risk having your whole package removed without a refund. If you do absolutely nothing, then you can expect an automatic charge on your SeaPass account each day of the cruise. That seems pretty good to me. I had the drink package so I didnt get the answer to this. Thank you. To work out if a drinks package is worth it, you need to work out how many drinks you would need to drink each day to break even. Like what you see? I have a question Ive not seen answered. Included here are the baseline (i.e. So well have to pay the difference of $1 on almost every drink. The default amount of $12 can be adjusted. You can read more about this here: The Best Time to Buy A Royal Caribbean Drink Package. If you buy your drinks package in advance and then see that the price drops due to a promotion, you can cancel your drinks package, get a refund and then buy it again at the lower price. Do you plan to buy a drinks package on your next cruise? To begin with, the cruise line gave out paper straws which are sadly not fit for purpose when it comes to frozen cocktails. If I am having a soda can i order another right after 10 minutes or to I have to wait a certain time. Hi Jeff. This depends on your muster station. Is Every Passenger Charged Gratuities? Really, do they get an hourly wage thats so low they need tip to survive? Your positive feedback will go on their permanent file, which can help them to get promotions and pay rises. Norwegian Cruise Line also raised their gratuities in April, when they changed their rates: In July, Disney Cruise Line increased their gratuities to$14.50 per night, per person for standard rooms and $15.50 per night, per person for suite guests. You definitely dont need a drinks package. For cruises that start in North America, the minimum drinking age is 21. May 29, 2022. The tips are spread out between the room steward, dining staff, and others. I hope that helps! On the first day of your cruise, you may see signs offering Buy One Get One Free deals on drinks packages. Royal Caribbean is increasing its automatic daily gratuities by more than 10% next month for passengers in staterooms. It comes with fancy coffees, smoothies etc as well as alcohol. I too pay in cash and at times have given extra. Instead, gratuities on a cruise ship are highly automated, with most people just electing to prepay or being charged a set amount for each day on the ship. Im sure intentionally just over the 12.00 limit for the ultimate drink package. This occurs in the Australian cruise market. With the introduction of automatic gratuities, its much more difficult to avoid paying tips on your cruise. Even Babies? While the name sounds fancy, gratuities are nothing more than a tip paid to the staff members for service during the cruise. However, you can order a bottle of water at the bar and put it in your mini bar fridge for later if you like. Hi Anthony. On or after September 7, 2022, regardless of when the booking was created, gratuities paid while onboard are subject to the new, increased rates. Good luck! Paying a tip twice C. Paying a standardized tip for poor service. Years ago, you could buy five bottles of wine for $165, 7 bottles for $220 and 10 bottles for $300. This will reduce the overall balance you have available to spend. As of September 7, 2022,the automatic daily gratuity charge will increase: Royal Caribbean last raised gratuitiesJanuary 2, 2018. If you are uncomfortable standing, just let a staff member know and they will be sure to accommodate you. Since they are not . Click the button above to compare the prices of cruises from all travel agents. For example, a family of four who is taking a seven-night cruise would owe $406 for gratuities. We rarely buy anything on the ship of value. How Can I Know How Much I Will Be Charged in Tips? Jenni. If purchasing beverages la carte (without a package) is the recommended option, then the calculator estimates the savings achieved by Pay As You Go versus the lowest-cost beverage package, factoring in gratuities and upcharges. What do you do about the porters at the ports. The option to, Royal Caribbean has announced it will raise itsrecommended gratuities for sailings that depart on or after May 01,, Royal Caribbean will be raising its recommended gratuities for sailings that depart on or after July 1, 2015.The new, Royal Caribbean Australia announced today a new fare structure that includesgratuities for stateroom attendants and, When you take a Royal Caribbean cruise, one of the costs to passengers are gratuities (tips) to crew members during. Wines are available to purchase by the bottle. Princess: $14.50 per person, per day. You can opt into prepaying gratuities at any time, up to 48 hours prior to your sail date. Guests that booked directly with Royal Caribbean can pre-pay gratuities by calling 866-562-7625 or logging into www.royalcaribbean.com before their sailing. Second, any time that you purchase anything service related such as dinner at a specialty restaurant or a service at the spa expect there to be a tip added on to the cost. Gratuities, which on Royal Caribbean for the standard rooms is $14.50 a day, per person (suites are $17.50 a day, per person). I did wonder whether you could keep the cup and use it on your next cruise. I think these amounts are reasonable. So, in order to calculate the amount your family will owe for gratuities, you would multiply: $14.50 X Number of People in Cabin X Length of Cruise = Amount You Owe. So a couple traveling together will see about $30-$40 per day in gratuities, or about $200+ over the course of a week-long cruise. You can get the charge out of the way early, or hold onto your money until you actually sail. Its up to you. When you check in, youll be asked if you wish to set up the account with a credit card or debit card. After four years, Royal Caribbean is increasing the gratuity rate cruise ship passengers will pay for the service they receive from crew members onboard its ships. This makes paying for your cruise more manageable. 20102023Regal Sea Media LLC. There are three of us going on the cruise May 22nd my self, my wife, and a cousin. Extra envelopes are available at guest services. Do you know about when you'd like to sail? The automatic tip is USD 16.00 USD, or USD 18.50 USD for suite guests, applied to each guest's SeaPass account on a daily basis. Australians typically do not tip because the minimum wage in Australia is $20.33 AUD/hr ($14.56 USD/hr). What the real deal? If I bought the premium beverage drink do I have to pay an additional gratuites? For this reason, a drinks package may be better value on a cruise with lots of sea days, such as a transatlantic sailing. If you paid $13 for a cocktail and didnt like it, youd be pretty annoyed at yourself for choosing it. In my former job managing cruise websites for a travel agent, I saw cruise line campaigns change regularly and prices fluctuate almost daily. On most cruises, including cruises departing from the US, an automatic gratuity of 18% is added to the cost of each drink when you receive the bill. I have another question. #36. If youd like to calculate exactly what your gratuity amount will be before you book your trip, then you can use our calculator here. They will still go out of their way to make your cruise comfortable and enjoyable. Keep in mind that Royal Caribbean generally requires that if one adult purchases the Deluxe package, that all other adults over the age of 21 traveling in the same cabin purchase . If you are experiencing blank or invalid results, try refreshing your browser. With MyTime dining you will sit at a different table each night and be served by different crew members. Size of travel cots? When it comes time to settle your final bill at the end of the cruise, youll have the gratuity charges to pay as well. The gratuity is applied automatically to all average beverage costs and beverage packages, as well as applicable upcharges for beverages whose cost is not fully covered by a package. Is this due to the situation at the moment or have they stopped selling drinks package online. So, strictly speaking they would need their own. Beverage packages may not be available for purchase for cruises of less than four nights departing from Southampton, England. A 18% gratuity is automatically added to all beverages, mini bar items, and spa & salon purchases. MyTime dining is when you dont have a set dining time and instead, you can arrive at the main restaurant whenever you like. Is it worth it to by a drink package? The Royal Caribbean alcohol drinks package costs between $63 and $89 per person, per day and includes unlimited drinks worth up to $12 or $13 each (depending on the ship). Thanks! Royal Caribbean offers a choice of three all-inclusive drinks packages: Royal Caribbeans alcohol drinks package includes: Royal Caribbeans non-alcoholic drinks package includes: The Classic Soda Packages comes with a refillable souvenir cup which you can use at self-service machines across the ship. The number of nights affects the total cost of beverage packages. Be the first to rate this post. For staff members that rely on these dollars, that can be a major blow. Royal Caribbean drinks packages include all tips (also known as gratuities). What is Gratuity Calculator? Do we need separate soft drinks packages for the kids or can they share ours? Thats right, each time you order a drink, and 18% gratuity is added on to your bill. If you buy the drink package before you board you may be able to get it for cheaper as pre-cruise drink package prices fluctuate before the sailing date. Other than that, your gratuity charges cover the housekeeping and dining staff. I have some tips for you here: https://www.cruisemummy.co.uk/taking-a-baby-on-a-cruise-ship/ Jenni, Many thanks, very useful. If you booked directly with Royal Caribbean, you can either call Royal Caribbean or log onto their website and access your account to prepay gratuities. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 20 cruises.