Can you pay cruise gratuities with onboard credit?

1. Gratuitites. You can usually use your Carnival onboard credit to pay for gratuities (tips), so long as you haven't prepaid them before you board the ship. However, onboard credit that comes from being a Carnival shareholder can't be applied to gratuities.



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Paying gratuities using onboard credits provides a wonderful way to avoid the bill when the cruise ends. Many say this is one of the best ways to use OBC, as you should pay gratuities for excellent service.

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Gratuities. Your credit can go towards tips if you haven't prepaid them before boarding. Tips generally cost $14.50 for each person daily for most rooms.

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Gratuities can be added at the time of booking or anytime up to the sail date. Guests who booked directly with Carnival may add their pre-paid gratuities on Carnival.com. If a guest booked with a travel agent, they may contact their travel professional to add pre-paid gratuities to their booking.

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Additionally, prepaying your gratuities does not negatively impact the service that you receive. On the other hand, if you have some onboard credit that you're not planning on using, putting those funds towards your gratuities at the end of your vacation could be a great way to use it.

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The onboard credit is non-refundable, non-transferable and has no cash value. Any unused portion of the onboard credit will be forfeited. Lowest Price Guarantee program may be discontinued or changed at any time.

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Cash is also a good option if you want to tip some workers extra for service that warrants it. If you've dined in mostly one spot every night of the cruise, you might want to give tips to especially attentive waitstaff on the last evening of the cruise.

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If you want to manage your budget more effectively, it's a good idea to prepay your gratuities for your Princess cruise. The only time you would be better off waiting is if you want to use any onboard credit towards the gratuity amount.

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Carnival gratuities are not optional, in that they are automatically added to your account. They can be removed, but only if you visit the Guest Services desk on the ship and ask them to take them off your account. Otherwise, you are expected to pay.

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If you do not opt to prepay gratuities, a daily charge will appear on your SeaPass account every day of the cruise for the daily gratuity rate per guest.

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Most cruise lines will allow you to pre-pay your tips at the time of booking, or charge them to your on-board account and pay them on the last evening of the cruise.

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The amount you pay will vary by cruise line, but they are all in the same ballpark. You can expect to pay about $15-$20 per person, per day. 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.

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But most cruise lines also give you the option to prepay your gratuities – paying for them in advance. You can sometimes add this option as you book your cruise, otherwise, you would log into your account with the cruise line and add them on once the booking has been made.

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The average Carnival Cruise Line salary in the United States is $44,168 per year. Carnival Cruise Line salaries range between $23,000 a year in the bottom 10th percentile to $81,000 in the top 90th percentile. Carnival Cruise Line pays $21.23 an hour on average. Carnival Cruise Line salaries vary by department as well.

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If your cruise steward goes above and beyond, a cash tip at the end of your stay to show your appreciation. We recommend tipping your cruise steward $3-5 per person daily.

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Carnival Cruise Line Automatic gratuity charge: $14.50 to $16.50 per person, per day. Details: Passengers in most cabins pay $14.50. Those in suites pay $16.50. Children younger than 2 are exempt from the charges.

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While the automatic service charges will cover their basic gratuities, it's generally considered good form to tip them a bit extra for a job well done, especially if you have made any special requests. Should you choose to, for a seven-night cruise, consider tipping about $2 to $3 per person, per day.

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