CCL-Carnival Cruise Line's gratuities and tipping policy - do you have to and to whom you give your tips. Prepaid gratuities - when and how you can change the number of tips, what goes where and who gets what from the automatic tipping charge. This page is interlinked with our Carnival cruises prices hub. You can compare CCL's "tipping numbers" with those of the main competitor - Royal Caribbean (gratuities/tipping policy).
Carnival cruise tips - the tipping policy
Tips are charged Per Person Per Day.
- USD 12,9513,99 14,50 pp (standard staterooms - interior, oceanview, balcony, both adults and kids)
- USD 13,95 15,99 16,50 pp (suites). Suite perks (in addition to priority embarkation/debarkation in all ports, confirmed main dining room preference) also receive priority tender service, free in-cabin bottled water, 1 complimentary bag of laundry (per cruise), enhanced turndown service.
- Carnival cruise gratuities for children - tips don't apply to kids less than two years of age.
- On Carnival cruise ships departing from Australian ports tipping is not compulsory,
- On Carnival Cruise-To-Nowhere, the amount of gratuities PP per day is USD 12,95 13,99.
- For Carnival Barbados deals (any Carnival cruise itinerary visiting Barbados), all gratuities will be prepaid and added during booking.
- Room Service staff tipping is not compulsory.
- Daily gratuity is an automatic service charge added to the passenger's onboard account each day.
- Passengers can prepay gratuities.
- The amount of gratuities is split between the ship's staff (dining, housekeeping, cabin stewards).
NOTE: Since May 1, 2022, Carnival's onboard gratuity rate is increased. From that date forward, passengers staying in standard staterooms are charged US$14.50 per person/per day, while those in suite accommodations pay daily US$16.50 per person.
Carnival cruise prepaid gratuities - how, to whom, where
Carnival Cruise Lines Service Tips (gratuities) are automatically charged to the guest's onboard "Sail & Sign" (S&S) account. Follows the breakdown of the tips on Carnival cruises (in USD, per day, per person):
- Housekeeping staff - USD 4,05 (standard cabins) USD 5,05 (suites)
- Dining/wait staff - USD 6,40
- Alternative Services (kitchen, entertainment, passenger services, other hotel staff members) - USD 2,50
- For drinks purchases, an automatic 15% 18% gratuity is added to the bill. Charges are applied directly to the onboard account. An automatic 15% 18% gratuity is added to the "Chef’s Table" (dining package) cover charge and applied directly to the onboard account.
- NOTE: Carnival Cruise Line passengers now have to pay an 18% gratuity on alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks, even those who buy the company's CHEERS! beverage package. The cruise line increased the gratuity by 3% overnight on November 27, 2018. Previously, the drink gratuity price was 15%. A change to Carnival Cruise Line’s website gratuity section already states that for beverage purchases, automatic 18% gratuity is added to the bill. In the case of individual purchases, it is simply added to the price charged to the guest's Sail & Sign account. When buying a beverage package, the gratuity is automatically factored into the overall price. The change in gratuity also applies to the Bottomless Bubbles soda package.
When purchasing alcohol and soda drinks on board, 15% 18% of your bill will be automatically added to the S&S charge. You are free to tip the Room Service staff if you wish so. Your specialty restaurant dinner price (the cost of the Carnival Steakhouse dinner is currently around $35) is inclusive of gratuities, but everyone is more than welcome to add more.
If you're not satisfied with the level of service you receive while onboard, you may contact the "Guest Services" desk on your ship. It's up to you to adjust the amount of tipping at any time while onboard and tips will be deemed undisputed.
You should know, that the Carnival service staff on board don't make a salary (their salary per month is around USD 100). This means your gratuities are their salaries. On cruise ships "tipping" doesn't mean "something extra" - it means "salary".
The following table shows the total amount of gratuities (per person) based on itinerary duration:
| Cruise length / / tips (suite) | Tips (standard cabin) | Tips (suite) |
|---|---|---|
2 days | $25.90 27.98 | $27.90 31.98 |
3 days | $38.85 41.97 | $41.85 47.97 |
4 days | $51.80 55.96 | $55.80 63.96 |
5 days | $64.75 69.95 | $69.75 79.95 |
6 days | $77.70 83.94 | $83.70 95.94 |
7 days | $90.65 97.93 | $97.65 111.93 |
8 days | $103.60 111.92 | $111.60 127.92 |
9 days | $116.55 125.91 | $125.55 143.91 |
10 days | $129.50 139.90 | $139.50 159.90 |
11 days | $142.45 153.89 | $153.45 175.89 |
12 days | $155.40 167.88 | $167.40 191.88 |
13 days | $168.35 181.87 | $181.35 207.87 |
14 days | $181.30 195.86 | $195.30 223.86 |
15 days | $194.25 209.85 | $209.25 239.85 |
16 days | $207.20 223.84 | $223.20 255.84 |
17 days | $220.15 237.83 | $237.15 271.83 |
18 days | $233.10 251.82 | $251.10 287.82 |
19 days | $246.05 265.81 | $265.05 303.81 |
20 days | $259 279.80 | $279 319.80 |
Carnival cruise tipping tips
- According to the Carnival cruise tipping policy, if you prefer to tip the staff personally, you can go to the guest service desk and ask to have tips removed from your S&S (Sail&Sign) card - they will ask you why and you'll tell them you prefer to tip cash, or you could also just leave the tips to them and tell them who you want to get how much. But know that if you do so, you will be shortchanging a few people - those are the staff who you'll never see behind the scenes areas that will not get their share of your tip.
- If you have a service problem, speak first with your cabin steward, then (if the problem remains) with the hotel manager, and if the problem still remains - then adjust the gratuities.
- (optional) You may also tip in cash your waiter - bar server - room steward if you're satisfied with his/her service.
- You can pay your fixed gratuities in advance (on booking), otherwise, you'll be billed on your S&S card on your first embarkation day.
- (optional) additional cash tips
- Tipping porters (staff members that bring the bags to your cabin) - the standard tip is $2 per bag or $5 for 2-3 bags.
- optional (but highly recommended) is to give $5 per day per child at Camp Carnival.
If you want to show the staff that you appreciate their hard work, you can always pay in cash some extra tips (usually at the end of your sailing, but you can tip them also on a daily basis). The list of staff you can tip directly includes cabin stewards and MDR waiters (during the trip), bar servers and room-service delivery (as you use their services), and a proper tip would be $10 to 20 each. As a "playing safe" policy, some guests tip cabin stewards & MDR waiters the first and the last night of the voyage.