Lower than one 12 months after their final gratuity enhance, Royal Caribbean is about to extend gratuities for passengers as soon as once more.
Beginning November 1, 2024, the cruise line will elevate the day by day gratuity fee by 50 cents per day, bringing the brand new fee for normal cabins to $18.50 per individual, up from $18.00, and suites to $21.00 per individual, up from $20.50. It’s the identical quantity for all passengers, no matter age.
Nonetheless, in case you’ve already booked your crusing, you’ll be able to prepay your gratuities prematurely to lock within the present fee and get monetary savings. In the event you wait till you are onboard and are cruising after Nov. 1, you can be topic to the upper fare.
Normal staterooms embrace inside, ocean-view, and balcony cabins, in addition to Junior Suites. Sky Junior Suites, Grand Suites, and above are thought-about full-scale suites and can be topic to the upper gratuity fee.
Journey brokers had been knowledgeable of the change in a weekly publication despatched by way of electronic mail.
“Beginning November 1st, Royal Caribbean will enhance gratuities by $0.50 per individual per day. The day by day gratuity is shared amongst eating, bar & culinary companies employees, stateroom attendants, and different resort companies groups,” the discover reads.
“Visitors booked previous to November 1st, 2024, can choose so as to add pay as you go gratuities earlier than crusing to reap the benefits of the present charges. In the event that they’d favor to pay onboard, their gratuity cost can be utilized to their onboard account on the new fee.”
Royal Caribbean final raised their gratuities in Nov. 2023. Earlier than that, the day by day cost was $16.00 per individual for normal cabins and $18.50 for suites.
All Royal Caribbean sailings booked on or after November 1, 2024, will mechanically replicate the elevated fee.
Furthermore, Royal Caribbean quietly elevated the service cost for salon and spa companies. In response to their web site, an 18% gratuity will mechanically be added to beverage and beverage packages, room service and mini-bar purchases, and specialty eating and specialty eating packages.
Nonetheless, pre-cruise and onboard spa and salon purchases are topic to a 20% service cost. This matches Movie star Cruises’ salon/spa coverage.
What are gratuities?
Day by day gratuities are to make sure hardworking crew members are tipped all through the voyage. Fairly than carrying round spare greenback payments and being chargeable for managing suggestions, main cruise strains mechanically add a day by day gratuity to passengers’ onboard accounts to simplify the method.
Visitors even have the choice to prepay them prematurely to assist break up up the price of their trip. For the reason that gratuities are added to your total cruise value to be paid by the ultimate fee date, you’ll be able to higher funds in your trip and keep away from any surprises as soon as onboard.
As exemplified by the second enhance inside the previous 12 months, prepaying gratuities may also assist get monetary savings. If Royal Caribbean does enhance the price, those that have already pay as you go their suggestions are grandfathered in, which means they will not must pay something further.
If you’re booked on a Royal Caribbean cruise and want to lock within the present pricing, name 866-562-7625 earlier than Nov. 1. Visitors who made their reservation by means of a journey agent ought to contact them as quickly as doable.
Are passengers required to pay gratuities?
Royal Caribbean stipulates that gratuities are on the discretion of every visitor. To make the method simpler, they mechanically add the advised day by day gratuity quantity to every passengers’ folio account; nonetheless, company might go to Visitor Providers as soon as onboard to regulate the quantity.
“We hope company discover these advised quantities to be an correct reflection of their satisfaction and are grateful for his or her beneficiant recognition of the Royal Caribbean employees,” reads their FAQ.
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