How do you remove gratuities on a cruise?

If you would prefer not to pay for gratuities before boarding, there is sometimes the option to opt out when you book your cruise. If it's not apparent when making your reservation, you can call a cruise line booking agent instead to book your cruise and ask that the prepaid gratuities be removed.



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The gratuities that you either prepay or are charged at the end of your cruise are similar to the tip at a restaurant: In theory it's optional, but it's the main source of crew wages for folks you interact with (and in the case of cruises also for the folks behind the scenes supporting the on-deck crew), so please ...

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Paying gratuities and tipping the staff aboard a cruise ship is not compulsory but is considered the right thing to do. Cruise Tipping is a gesture of goodwill to reflect your gratitude for the service provided and to say a big “Thank You” to the crew members.

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Benefits of Prepaying Gratuities Another advantage is that cruise lines regularly raise gratuity amounts. So if you book a cruise for a year from now, the gratuity price may be higher when you sail. People that pay beforehand are grandfathered in under the rate they've already paid.

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You would just need to visit the Guest Services desk and explain your decision, and the cruise line will remove them for you. You may be asked for your reasoning. This isn't to apply pressure to you to retain them, but just so that it's clear you understand the impact that removing the gratuities has on the crew.

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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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Again, cash might be the only thing they will take, and in most of the Caribbean you can tip in U.S. currency. As a side note, it can be nice to have some cash on your cruise so you can also tip people like street performers while in port.

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Cruise Cash is sold for specific revenue areas on the ship such as Bar, Photo, Shore Excursion, Spa, etc. Guests will be able to purchase: Cruise Cash ($25, $50, $75 and $100) – Can be used for any expenses on the guest's Sail and Sign account. This includes staff gratuities.

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Cruise gratuities or service gratuities are daily service charges automatically added to your onboard account. The total cruise bill is charged at the end of the cruise to the credit card on your account. Cruise gratuities are used by the cruise line to tip crew members throughout the ship.

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How much should you tip cruise waiter? The cruise gratuities cover the wait staff, so you're not obligated to give them any more of a cash tip. However, if you received outstanding service from a waiter and would like to show them your appreciation with a cash tip, $5 per day per passenger is the suggested amount.

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Prepaid gratuities are refundable even in places which have different cancellation policies than the US. I always used to prepay them and would have had them refunded if I cancelled the cruise.

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As mentioned above, not all members of the ship staff receive a share of the gratuities paid by passengers. Bartenders, main show entertainers and third-party shop employees are some of the more obvious ones, but they're not the only ones.

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