Royal Caribbean Gratuities 2026: What You Pay Per Day
Updated: Sep 28
The current daily rates, what they cover, and whether an increase is coming
Last updated: 28 September 2026
Royal Caribbean gratuities in 2026 are $18.50 per guest, per day for standard staterooms and $21.00 per guest, per day for suites. Those rates have not changed since 1 November 2024. Every guest pays, whatever their age, and the charge lands on your SeaPass account daily unless you prepay it before you sail.
That is the answer. The reason people keep searching it right now is that four of Royal Caribbean's rivals have already put their rates up in 2026, including its own sister brand. So the real question is not what you pay today. It is how long you will keep paying it.
Key facts
Standard staterooms (interior, ocean view, balcony, Junior Suites): $18.50 per guest, per day
Suites (Grand Suite and above): $21.00 per guest, per day
Last increase: 1 November 2024, up 50 cents per person, per day
18% is added separately to drinks, beverage packages, specialty dining, room service and mini bar
20% is added to spa and salon purchases
Gratuities can be adjusted or removed at Guest Relations before the morning of disembarkation
A 7 night cruise for two in a balcony cabin comes to $259 in daily gratuities alone
How much are Royal Caribbean gratuities in 2026?
$18.50 per person, per day in a standard stateroom. $21.00 per person, per day in a suite. Both figures come straight from Royal Caribbean's own gratuity FAQ, checked on 30 August 2026.
One thing worth flagging, because it trips people up constantly: a Junior Suite is not a suite for gratuity purposes. Junior Suites pay the $18.50 standard rate. Grand Suites and above pay the $21.00 rate. If someone has quoted you the higher figure for a Junior Suite, they are wrong.
You will also see the suite rate written as $20.50 in various places online, including in some coverage published this summer. That was the old rate. It went to $21.00 in the November 2024 change, and Royal Caribbean's site still says $21.00 today.
Here is what that actually costs on a real booking:
3 nights, two guests, balcony: $111
4 nights, two guests, balcony: $148
7 nights, one guest, balcony: $129.50
7 nights, two guests, balcony: $259
7 nights, family of four, balcony: $518
7 nights, two guests, Grand Suite: $294
A family of four on a week in the Caribbean is handing over more than five hundred dollars in daily gratuities before anyone has bought a single drink. That is the number people underestimate.
What do the daily gratuities actually cover?
The daily charge is pooled and shared across the crew who look after you. Royal Caribbean lists dining, bar and culinary staff, stateroom attendants, hotel services teams, and other crew working behind the scenes.
What it does not cover is anything you buy separately. Drinks and drinks packages carry an 18% gratuity of their own. So do specialty restaurants, specialty dining packages, room service and the mini bar. Spa and salon treatments carry 20%.
So if you have a Deluxe Beverage Package, you are paying the daily gratuity and the 18% on the package price. They are two different charges. The 18% is baked into the package price when you buy it, so you are not expected to tip again per drink at the bar, but plenty of people do for a bartender who looks after them.
Excursions, photos and casino play sit outside all of this entirely.
Is Royal Caribbean about to raise gratuities?
Nothing has been announced. But the pressure is obvious, and I would not be planning around today's rate lasting into next year.
Celebrity Cruises, which sits under the same parent company, raised all of its automatic gratuities on 29 July 2026. Standard cabins went to $19.50, Concierge and AquaClass to $20.50, and The Retreat to $24.50, all per person, per day. Royal Caribbean Blog reported it the same day and noted that increases at one Royal Caribbean Group brand have historically been followed by the other, even though there is no formal link between them.
Celebrity was not first, either. Carnival went to $17.00 standard and $19.00 suites in April. Princess followed shortly after. Holland America moved in June. Royal Caribbean is now one of the few big mainstream lines that has held its rate through the whole of 2026.
There is one more signal. In May, Royal Caribbean added a question to its post-cruise survey asking guests how they had handled gratuities, including whether they had opted out of the automatic charge. Lines do not usually ask that question for fun.
To be clear about what is known and what is not: Royal Caribbean has confirmed nothing, has sent no email to booked guests, and has not changed the figure on its website. Anyone telling you a specific new rate or a specific date right now is guessing.
How do Royal Caribbean gratuities compare with other lines?
Royal Caribbean sits in the middle of the pack on the standard rate, and that is a change from a couple of years ago when it was one of the highest.
Cruise line | Standard cabin | Top tier |
Disney Cruise Line | $16.00 | $27.25 (concierge and suites) |
Carnival Cruise Line | $17.00 | $19.00 (suites) |
Princess Cruises | $18.00 | $20.00 (suites) |
Holland America Line | $18.00 | $20.00 (suites) |
Royal Caribbean | $18.50 | $21.00 (suites) |
Celebrity Cruises | $19.50 | $24.50 (The Retreat) |
Norwegian Cruise Line | $20.00 | $25.00 (The Haven) |
Virgin Voyages | $20.00 prepaid | $22.00 if paid onboard |
All figures are per guest, per day, as reported at the end of August 2026. Rates move without much warning, so check your own booking before you sail.
The gap between the cheapest and the dearest here is $4 per person, per day. On a week for four people that is a $112 swing, which is not nothing, but it is rarely the thing that decides which line you book.
Can you remove or adjust Royal Caribbean gratuities?
Yes. Royal Caribbean's policy allows gratuities to be modified at the guest's "sole discretion" at the Guest Relations desk, at any time before the morning you get off. Once the sailing has ended, you cannot change them.
Two practical points.
First, prepaying locks the current rate. If you prepay $18.50 per person, per day now and Royal Caribbean raises the rate before you sail, you keep the old figure. That is exactly what happened around the November 2024 change, and it is the single most useful thing in this article if you have a 2027 booking sitting there.
Second, and I will be straight with you: removing gratuities does not save the crew from anything, it just takes them out of the pool. If you genuinely think service was poor, that is a conversation for Guest Relations. If you would rather tip in cash directly, that is your call, but do it knowing your stateroom attendant loses their share of the pooled amount either way.
FAQ
How much are gratuities on Royal Caribbean per day?
$18.50 per guest, per day in a standard stateroom and $21.00 per guest, per day in a suite. The charge applies to every guest in the cabin regardless of age, and it is applied for every day of the sailing.
Have Royal Caribbean gratuities gone up in 2026?
No. The current rates have been in place since 1 November 2024. Several rival lines raised theirs during 2026, including Celebrity Cruises on 29 July, but Royal Caribbean has not announced any change.
Do Junior Suites pay the suite gratuity rate on Royal Caribbean?
No. Junior Suites pay the standard $18.50 rate. Only Grand Suites and above are charged the $21.00 suite rate.
Are gratuities included in the Royal Caribbean drink package?
The 18% gratuity is built into the price of the beverage packages when you buy them, so you are not charged again per drink. That 18% is separate from, and on top of, the daily gratuity.
Can you remove gratuities on a Royal Caribbean cruise?
Yes, at the Guest Relations desk on board, any time before the morning of disembarkation. You cannot change them after the cruise has finished, and prepaid gratuities are handled separately.
Should I prepay Royal Caribbean gratuities?
If you think a rate rise is coming, yes, because prepaying locks in the current amount. It also means your onboard account starts at zero, which makes the week feel a lot less like a running tab.
Do children pay gratuities on Royal Caribbean?
Yes. The daily charge applies to every guest in the stateroom regardless of age, which is why a family of four adds up so quickly. A 7 night sailing for two adults and two children in a balcony cabin is $518.
What is the 18% charge on my Royal Caribbean bill?
That is the automatic gratuity added to drinks, beverage packages, specialty dining, room service and mini bar purchases. Spa and salon services carry 20% instead. Neither replaces the daily gratuity.
Are gratuities included in a Royal Caribbean cruise fare?
No. Unlike port fees and taxes, gratuities are not included in the fare. They are either prepaid before you sail or charged daily to your SeaPass account. Some promotional offers and travel agent packages do include them, so check your booking confirmation.
Which cruise line has the cheapest gratuities?
Of the lines in the table above, Disney Cruise Line at $16.00 per guest, per day in a standard cabin, then Carnival at $17.00. Norwegian is the most expensive of the big mainstream lines at $20.00, rising to $25.00 in The Haven. Royal Caribbean sits in the middle at $18.50.
How do I prepay gratuities from the UK?
Log into the Royal Caribbean UK site or call 0344 493 4005 before you sail. Your travel agent can also add them to your booking. If they are not prepaid, they are added to your onboard account automatically once you board.
The bottom line
$18.50 and $21.00, unchanged since November 2024, and quietly looking overdue. If you have a booking on the books for later this year or 2027, prepaying costs you nothing extra and protects you if Royal Caribbean does what four of its rivals have already done in 2026.
I will update this page the moment anything changes. If you want the update the day it lands rather than finding a surprise on your final invoice, subscribe to The Walking Cruiser on YouTube. And if you have prepaid ahead of a rise before, tell me in the comments how much it saved you, because that is the sort of number worth sharing.
