What Do Prepaid Gratuities Cover On Carnival Cruise?

Carnival Cruise offers prepaid gratuities, which cover the service provided by dining room staff, cabin stewards, and other housekeeping service personnel. These gratuities do not cover additional services like spa treatments or gratuities added to bar purchases. Carnival currently charges guests 16.00 per person, per day for most rooms, including interior, oceanview, and balcony cabins. Suite guests pay 18.00 per person, per day.

Prepaid gratuities are an option that allows for better budgeting and prevents additional charges during the cruise. All Carnival guests are asked to pay gratuities, and you can either prepay your gratuities prior to departure or have them added to your Sail Sign account. Most large ship cruise lines, such as Celebrity Cruises, Holland America, Princess, and Royal Caribbean, have a policy of automatically adding a set gratuity amount to your onboard account. Prepaid gratuities are for the housekeeping and dining services personnel only, and you will still be charged gratuities for bar and spa services.

One important person covered by gratuities is your cabin steward, who maintains the room each day. The tips they charge to you daily cover all the folks who are supposed to be tipped on your behalf for cabin and dining services. It usually involves 20% of your total bill, called gratuity. Even if you prepay the gratuities for your cruise fare, you will still be charged an 18% service fee for other applicable purchases onboard.

Standard Staterooms cost 16.00 USD per person, per day, while Suite Staterooms cost 18.00 USD per person, per day. You may pay this daily gratuity in two different ways: Sail Sign®, Carnival’s cashless on-board credit program, or by paying the automatically added tips when booking the cruise.

How do I avoid gratuity on a Carnival cruise?

Go to the passenger services desk. You can request to reduce, eliminate or increase the daily gratuities. So much for rewarding exceptional service! Yes, just go to the service desk and ask that gratuities not be charged to your account, as you are going to tip in cash.

Can you decline gratuity on a Carnival cruise?

You can opt out of automatic gratuities on Carnival Cruises by visiting Guest Services and requesting removal. However, tipping is customary and expected by the crew, so opting out could affect the service you receive.

Can you decline gratuity on Carnival cruise?

You can opt out of automatic gratuities on Carnival Cruises by visiting Guest Services and requesting removal. However, tipping is customary and expected by the crew, so opting out could affect the service you receive.

Do you still tip on a cruise if gratuity is included?

Similarly, if you’re on a higher-end ship that lists gratuities as being included in the fare, that means just what it says. You don’t have to tip on these cruises because the line is already paying gratuities to the staff on your behalf. Additional cash gifts are not expected.

Still, some people do leave a little extra for crew members who go above and beyond. Others tip their room service or waitstaff at their favorite bar, either early in the cruise in the hope of getting better service or at the end to thank them for enhancing the vacation experience. How much to tip extra on a cruise is entirely up to you because it is in no way required.

Related: 10 times you do not need to tip on a cruise.

How do I get out of paying gratuities on Carnival Cruise?

Yes, just go to the service desk and ask that gratuities not be charged to your account, as you are going to tip in cash. I usually do that as i do not trust the cruise line to give all the tips to the employees, and some employees I get no direct service from.

Is it better to prepay gratuity on Carnival Cruise?

Regardless of what way you choose to go about it, having your gratuities prepaid before your vacation begins is a surefire way to ensure that you don’t get any hidden surprises at the end and further enjoy the luxury of convenience. Potentially, you could board your cruise and not spend another penny.

You could possibly save money. In early 2023, Carnival increased their gratuities rates. Standard cabins saw an increase of $1.50 per person! Those who prepaid before March 31 were able to lock in the lower rate.

A party of two staying in a balcony stateroom paid $203 for a 7-night cruise instead of $224 by prepaying for their gratuities.

Can you remove prepaid gratuities on a Carnival cruise?

If you would like, you can speak to a Guest Services team member when you get on the ship and either have the daily rate adjusted or removed. Some guests prefer to give cash tips to crew members who directly serve them throughout the cruise.

Whether you prepaid your gratuities or are waiting to deal with them once onboard, here is what you need to know about removing cruise ship gratuities.

Read more: 10 do’s and don’ts of cruise ship tipping.

Can you remove prepaid gratuities on Carnival cruise?

If you would like, you can speak to a Guest Services team member when you get on the ship and either have the daily rate adjusted or removed. Some guests prefer to give cash tips to crew members who directly serve them throughout the cruise.

Whether you prepaid your gratuities or are waiting to deal with them once onboard, here is what you need to know about removing cruise ship gratuities.

Read more: 10 do’s and don’ts of cruise ship tipping.

What happens if you don’t prepay gratuities on a cruise?

What happens if you don’t prepay gratuities?. If you don’t choose to prepay gratuities, they will likely be added to your onboard account when you sail.

Of course, gratuities are not mandatory, and you can ask to have them removed from your statement, usually by visiting the guest services desk. But keep in mind that it isn’t just the people you interact with on the ship that depend on your gratuities for a portion of their income.

Should you prepay, pay on board, or tip as you go?. There are two big reasons to prepay gratuities on your cruise. First (and the main reason I always do it) is so I can get all of my major expenses out of the way before I step on board. I’d rather have as little as possible charged to my credit card at the end of my trip. And second, cruise ship daily gratuities tend to increase over time. By prepaying, you’re locking in the current rate if the cruise line’s gratuities increase before you sail and you didn’t prepay, you may have to pay a higher rate.

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Will Carnival refund prepaid gratuities?

The Total Fare is defined as Cruise Charges, Transfer Services, Pre/Post Cruise Vacation Packages and Fly2Fun Air(please note thatFly2Fun Restricted Air which is non-refundable at time of booking). Government Taxes and Fees, as shown on your cruise invoice, as well as any prepaid Service Gratuity, will not be subject to a cancellation penalty and will be refunded in case of cancellation.

(“Cruise Charges” means the combination of the “Cruise Fare” and “Required Cruise Fees and Expenses”. “Cruise Fare” means the amount paid for the cruise which includes full board, ordinary ship’s food during the voyage, but not charges or expenses for goods or services voluntarily or incidentally incurred by Guest, including, but not limited to, for spirits, wine, beer, soft drinks or mineral waters, shore excursions, salon and spa services, room service or dining in specialty restaurants, charges for any medical services received onboard, or Service Gratuities (as described in your Ticket Contract). “Required Cruise Fees and Expenses” means all mandatory third-party fees and expenses for services on board and in port. “Government Taxes and Fees” includes government-imposed taxes and fees for the performance of the cruise and related purchases, such as port head taxes, VAT, air, and hotel taxes and similar fees and taxes assessed on the transaction.)

If you have purchased Carnival’s Fly2Fun air, please note the following as it pertains to the cancellation ofthe air portion of your booking:

Do I have to tip if I prepaid gratuities?

Pre-paid gratuities means that we {Cruise Specialists} have negotiated a special offer for you and you are not expected nor will you be charged for tips.

On most big-ship mainstream lines, the service crew members are dependent on the generosity of travelers for the vast majority of their salary. Luxury cruise lines often have no-tipping policies where the gratuities are already included in the fares.

VARIED POLICIES. Tipping is a source of some confusion (and much discussion among some passengers) because policies vary from line to line and often it is not sufficiently explained by the cruise lines once passengers are on-board.

Cruise line tipping policies generally fall into three different categories: