3 Unwritten Tipping 'Rules' Every Cruiser NEEDS to Know

Curious about tipping "rules" on a cruise? In this video, we'll break down cruise gratuities and explain the "controversy" surrounding cruise tipping. Discover the controversial tipping "rules" on a cruise in this video. Get the breakdown of cruise gratuities and learn how to navigate tipping etiquette onboard.

Whether you're a first time cruiser or a frequent cruiser, cruise gratuities & who to tip on a cruise is confusing.

As cruise ship gratuities have been in recent cruise news, you may even be frustrated with increases in costs from cruise lines.

In today's video I go over the unwritten rules of tipping on a cruise, from who to tip to how cruise gratuities work. We also talk about one thing I don't like when it comes to tipping etiquette on cruise vacations.

Get the lowdown on controversial tipping "rules" on a cruise! From gratuity breakdowns to tipping tips, this video covers all you need to know about cruise tipping.

This cruise information is for you if you're sailing with any of the major cruise lines that do not include tips in the cruise fare. Whether you are cruising on Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Princess Cruises or any other popular cruise travel company these cruise tipping guidelines will be helpful.

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Please note that I am unable to give personal cruise & travel advice. If you leave a comment I try my best to answer.

ABOUT ME
Hi! I'm Ilana! I live in Montreal, Canada with my husband Frank. We can often be found dreaming about & planning future cruises, ideally to hot & sunny destinations!

Please note that I do not sell cruises on Life Well Cruised. Videos are for entertainment purposes only. I share my own opinions, personal experiences & info with other cruise travellers, which I hope can be helpful. Please contact your travel agent or cruise line for advice & information specific to your booking.

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Music Credit: Surf Time by Lux-InspiraMusicMusic

[pietschreuder]

For me as a Dutchman it is simple: Pay the crew decent wages and include those costs in the price of the cruise. Tips for porters and those that made your cruise more special is of course fine!

[hgitxnf]

We were recently on a Royal Caribbean cruise and yes we received “an envelope “ on the last night, we personally thought this was quite rude. We did prepay our gratitudes and tipped extra for extra service we did receive on our cruise, but placing an envelope in our cabin was not appreciated.
That is our personal opinion.

[margaretlusk]

Been on over 25 cruises. Only talked to maitre'de two times. Both less than 5 minutes each. Don't usually get room service and when I do, I tip the crew member that delivers my food. Don't see or talk to food prepares. My room steward and table wait staff have always gone over and above in their service to me. I do agree they deserve gratuities for that service. But spreading gratituities among all the crew they say gets a portion is unbelievable. The "back line workers' should be paid according to salary scale and not be dependent on tips from cruisers never seen. Cruise lines need to update pay scales for employees. Gratuities have never been mandatory and shouldn't be now. Just pay sufficient wages to the employees.

[garryej]

In the EU (and also UK), when we were living there, a law was passed that ALL fare must be the TOTAL price - port fees, gratuities luggage fees, port and starboard fees, back to the future fees (you get the idea) - all must be included in the ACTUAL price!

[lindagonzalez]

I agree if it is mandatory to tip then it should be included in the cruise fare. This will not prevent people from tipping extra and it would probably relieve stress for those people who do not choose to tip extra but may feel obligated.

[allenuic]

If a cruise line wants to make tipping mandatory, they should be mandated to include that as a part of the cruise fare. Same should be applied to those hotel "resort fee".

[MariaVeronica]

I went on a cruise a few weeks ago. I prepaid the gratuities. However, it was obvious that the staff expected extra gratuities. Our housekeeper, for example, left little gifts in our room each day. We received things such as lip balm and hand lotion. We didn't ask for these things. Some of the items were not things that we liked, but we felt obligated to leave an extra tip in the end. Honestly, I don't want to think about it. Should we, shouldn't we? I don't want to carry extra cash with me. I hate the whole tipping custom. I wish the cruise line would just have a policy of no "extra" tipping.

[sylvaindupuis]

Personnally, I think that staff should be paid enough that it's not necessary to give gratuities. The way it is now, it's just a disguised overcharge. I know that this would make cruise more expensive and cruiselines are afraid that some people would find it too costly, but if all cruise lines do it at the same time, clients would see by comparing real price what they pay for. I would like to give gratuities only when I feel that I have recieved a service over the norm and then what I give would go directly to the person who provided that superior service. I think that our North American view on tips is completely stupid, but so far, we are stuck with it and I follow the custom, I think that I'm usually a great tipper because I know that people work hard and they don't have great base salary, but I hate it.

[DeliaRHall]

I prefer to prepay my gratuities and then individually also tip as I go each day to some special folks who make my day brighter❤

[cuplady]

Gratuities should be part of the cruising fare. Period! Incentives for staff should be part of the cruise line to their employees and not the guests/passengers.

[charity]

I don’t like feeling pressured to tip. There needs to be a change in the system so that people just get paid a living wage and tips can literally go back to be if you want to.

[Wendy]

So confusing for us in Australia, we don't tip in normal life. People get paid properly. Re a cruise, they should be in the fare, for those who do not come from a tipping culture.

[MikeThePlumber]

We leave the gratuity on but also give cash tips on top of that. And find one crew member that doesn’t have the best job but doing it with a smile and bless them with a nice full envelope the last day.

[peekay]

I wish it was just included in the price. Why not?? At least we know what we really owe instead of just making price look good, then adding on to that. On one of our cruises, our steward kept our room well taken care of, but we never saw him. I am happy to tip the expected amount for his hard work. On another cruise, EVERY morning we were greeted my “Good morning, Mr & Mrs xxxx. What are we doing today?” Exceptional over and above customer service. We gave him and a few of our regular wait help extra tips during or after the cruise. They helped make this trip memorable!!

[carolinegist]

I have to agree. I just went on my first cruise last week and I was surprised by the tipping envelope!! I didn’t like that at all because it felt kind of aggressive. I did prepay the gratuities before my cruise. I decided not use the envelope. I gave extra tips to the workers directly and I was a lot happier with that.

[Akit]

I tend to these days to prepay the gratuities as an add on to my cruise fare, rather than get hit with the bill at the end of the cruise. But I still do bring cash onboard to provide cash tips to people who work directly with me or go above and beyond. Those people are: My room steward, people who deliver my luggage and room service, and those who remember me by name and the drinks I enjoy. I know that a lot of the crew are working in the industry because they are supporting their family at home, I'm fortunate that I'm able to afford to provide cash tips because I know they're working hard and will send some of it back home so their loved ones can live a better life.

[dromomaniac]

As an Australian, I’m all for the gratuities being included. It’s easy, it ensures that everyone has paid them & there’s no awkwardness or wondering if you’ve tipped enough.

[BroncoJoe]

Echoing a lot of the comments:

If it is essentially part of the crew's pay, just include it in the cruise price. Then, people can tip individuals as they care to tip them.

It doesn't have to be either/or. Pay the crew the base salary they deserve (no one seems to be disputing they should get paid sufficiently) and allow tips as they were originally intended, as an additional reward for good service.

Put another way, it is the CRUISE LINES that have manipulated the system by redirecting tips instead of paying the "behind the scenes" people what they should be paid.

[deniselawrie]

From 2 years ago when I first started following you, I have only been on 2 cruises. For both of them I made my own thank you cards and left extra tips for those that took good care of me. I feel those that look after my room, serve my dinner every night and a few others were all very deserving of a little extra.

[jonathanpowell]

As a Brit, we expect the price advertised to be the price you pay. This is the case in all British based cruise lines. The sticker price includes tips, taxes, even flights and that price doesn’t change, once you have paid your deposit. You certainly would not use cash whilst on board and only pay for stuff on your cruise card such as alcohol or premium dining. Again the sticker price for extras is what you pay.