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Cruise Ship tipping

Cruise Ship tipping

There’s always been a huge gap between British cruise lines, where staff tend to receive minimal tips (or even none at all) and American lines where it’s been usual to add around $10 per person, per day, to the account being run for each passenger – including children.

However, Royal Caribbean has started to review this policy, because around a third of British passengers refuse to pay the ‘gratuity’ or make tips in cash to cruise staff rather than through their bill. It’s a real issue for staff, as they may have been relying on the tips to bolster their salaries. Following the Royal Caribbean statement, MSC Cruises has also said it will review its tipping policy.

If you want to sail with a cruise line that doesn’t add a charge for service to you bill, choose Island Cruises, Ocean Village, Regent Seven Seas, Silversea Cruises, Thomson and Yachts of Seabourn.

The lines that add a service charge (which you can always alter or remove from your bill) are: Celebrity Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Princess Cruises. Remember these charges are added per person, per day and may be on a sliding scale according to the size of cabin you have.

And some cruise lines even make a mandatory charge that can’t be removed from the bill, such as Costa Cruises which operates a daily service charge for cruises of more than eight nights.

Featured Offers

Cruise and Stay

Canada & New England from Boston with Stay

Date: 3 Sep 2024

Duration: 10 nights

Ship: Norwegian Jade

Line: Norwegian Cruise Line

CRUISE CONFIDENCE
ABTA - 100% SAFE
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
£1,849
INSIDE
Per Person
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE

£2,099 OUTSIDE

£2,679 BALCONY

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Cruise and Stay

Fire & Sunset Soirees with Miami Beach Stay

Date: 18 Mar 2024

Duration: 7 nights

Ship: Scarlet Lady

Line: Virgin Voyages

CRUISE CONFIDENCE
ABTA - 100% SAFE
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
£2,099
INSIDE
Per Person
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£2,279 OUTSIDE

£2,399 BALCONY

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Cruise and Stay

Weekend Rivieras from Barcelona with Stay

Date: 24 Sep 2024

Duration: 6 nights

Ship: Azamara Onward

Line: Azamara Club Cruises

CRUISE CONFIDENCE
ABTA - 100% SAFE
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
£1,229
OUTSIDE
Per Person
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE

£1,329 INSIDE

£1,349 BALCONY

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Cruise Only

The Life & Landscapes of Iceland from Rosyth

Date: 22 Jul 2024

Duration: 11 nights

Ship: Balmoral

Line: Fred Olsen Cruises

CRUISE CONFIDENCE
ABTA - 100% SAFE
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
£1,746
INSIDE
Per Person
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE

£2,134 OUTSIDE

£3,783 BALCONY

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Cruise and Stay

Italy, Spain & France from Rome with Stay

Date: 30 Aug 2024

Duration: 9 nights

Ship: Seaside

Line: MSC Cruises

CRUISE CONFIDENCE
ABTA - 100% SAFE
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
£1,679
INSIDE
Per Person
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE

£1,749 OUTSIDE

£1,849 BALCONY

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Cruise and Stay

Greek Isles & Istanbul from Athens with Stay

Date: 9 Apr 2024

Duration: 15 nights

Ship: Silver Spirit

Line: Silversea Cruises

CRUISE CONFIDENCE
ABTA - 100% SAFE
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
£6,899
SUITE
Per Person
BEST PRICE
GUARANTEE
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