Princess Cruises Increases Gratuities

[rocklinmom]

Thanks again to the OP - I just prepaid our gratuity for our third child (the rest of us got free gratuities thanks to the 3 for 1 sale) for our June cruise. It saved us a whopping $14.50 but hey money is money, and that price difference will buy me a few mochas on the ship :-)

[jmcmo]

If I prepay my gratuities today will my credit card be charged now or does it go on the onboard account?

[AlaskaGolden]

If I prepay my gratuities today will my credit card be charged now or does it go on the onboard account?

 

It will be charged immediately to your credit card. Paid our months ago, and they hit the Princess Rewards Visa Card as "pending" for a day or two, and then processed as a regular charge. It was just enough to "push us over the edge" for 10,000 points and $100 OBC!

[joe d]

From a Canadian perspective the cost of gratuities has gone up significantly. A few years ago the Canadian dollar was on par with the US dollar but now Princess charges 1.35 Canadian dollar for a US dollar. The increase for us is from $11.50 Canadian to $17.48 Canadian (52%).

 

I realize that most of this is the result of a strong US dollar. While the strength of the US dollar has resulted in a significant increase for us it has also resulted in a significant gain to anyone receiving US dollars and converting them to a weaker currency.

[shanecindy21403]

Thanks to the OP! I went on today and prepaid the gratuities for my next 4 cruises and saved over $150 that's alot of money!

[ILShipmates]

I spoke to customer service representative Jody this afternoon. She was a wealth of information for my up coming cruise and cruise of the future. If she didn't have the answer, she went to another source. She was able to give me answers to every question I asked.

 

Yes, if you pre-pay by October 15, then you are under the old gratuity scale. After that date, you are going to have to pay the new rate.

 

Now, I know that one representative does not always have the answers, but Jody was an exception. She answered all of my questions honestly and sincerely. I believe her.

 

So, if Princess is the definitive source of information,.... someone from my Jan. 19 cruise called Princess and was told the the deadline is October 31. Also, the place I had seen the Oct. 15 date on Princess' web site is now gone.

[helovestrains]

Our first cruise with Princess will be in February 2016. We visited our TA on 13 October to pre-pay our gratuities. When he called Princess to do this we were told we would get the lower rate yet when it was entered it came up at the higher price. After about 30 minutes and my TA speaking to a supervisor at Princess we were able to get the difference in OBC. Not sure why it happened this way.

[karabear15]

I have checked the cruise personalizer and it shows the current (old) rate for gratuities. It does not say anything about paying before Oct 15 or any other date to receive this old rate. I am guessing that the web site has not been updated to show the new gratuity rate. It also doesn’t seem logical to me that Princess would have some people paying at the old rate and others at the new rate. This would not be fair to the staff who benefit from gratuities. I also am guessing that if I prepay now for the old rate there is a good chance that the difference will be added on my portfolio while on the ship.

 

I was just curious about the statement being made and no one giving any source for it.

 

I'm confused by this. Everyone is stating that the old rate was 11.50 per day, which yes, thats what it was. Now everyone is stating it being raised to 12.95 per day. I go into my cruise personalizer and it doesn't show an old rate of 11.50, but shows daily gratuities being 12.00 per day. There is nothing stated about prepaying by a certain date or of it changing after the Jan date stated above. It really doesn't bother me either way, but how is it that everyone either has the old rate, or the new rate and I'm stuck in the middle with this random 12.00??

[TravelingEA]

11% is quite a COLA

 

That all depends upon how long it has been since there has been an increase.

[Griller]

I'm confused by this. Everyone is stating that the old rate was 11.50 per day, which yes, thats what it was. Now everyone is stating it being raised to 12.95 per day. I go into my cruise personalizer and it doesn't show an old rate of 11.50, but shows daily gratuities being 12.00 per day. There is nothing stated about prepaying by a certain date or of it changing after the Jan date stated above. It really doesn't bother me either way, but how is it that everyone either has the old rate, or the new rate and I'm stuck in the middle with this random 12.00??

 

What sort of room do you have booked?

[msmoger]

I'm confused by this. Everyone is stating that the old rate was 11.50 per day, which yes, thats what it was. Now everyone is stating it being raised to 12.95 per day. I go into my cruise personalizer and it doesn't show an old rate of 11.50, but shows daily gratuities being 12.00 per day. There is nothing stated about prepaying by a certain date or of it changing after the Jan date stated above. It really doesn't bother me either way, but how is it that everyone either has the old rate, or the new rate and I'm stuck in the middle with this random 12.00??

 

If you booked a mini suite or full suite the old daily gratuity is $12.00 per day. Balcony and below it is $11.50.

[Colo Cruiser]

$12.95 does not sound right. I have heard about the increase to $12.

[Griller]

That all depends upon how long it has been since there has been an increase.

 

I can't see what all the fuss is about - if you don't wish to pay the increase just go to passenger services onboard and adjust the amount.

It may be a long line of course.

[Renmar]

I can't see what all the fuss is about - if you don't wish to pay the increase just go to passenger services onboard and adjust the amount.

It may be a long line of course.

 

There you go, the start of the "Remove the gratuity" discussion.;)

 

Theo

[Lucky TGO]

I just like to know why so many are prepaying there gratuities Don't you like to see the workers get a raise :confused: Just curious.

 

Tony

[AlaskaGolden]

If you booked a mini suite or full suite the old daily gratuity is $12.00 per day. Balcony and below it is $11.50.

 

Correct, and mentioned in the first post of this thread to avoid confusion. Guess that didn't work too well.:confused:

[RocketMan275]

I just like to know why so many are prepaying there gratuities Don't you like to see the workers get a raise :confused: Just curious.

 

Tony

 

That question has been asked before but never answered. One would think that considering how much the hardworking crew deserves their gratuities that prepaying to avoid these increases would not be popular. Do you think they are prepaying so they will have more funds to tip those who have given them such great service?

[karabear15]

What sort of room do you have booked?

 

Balcony. I checked again after I typed this...and it's back at the 11.50 rate, so who knows what was happening on there.

[karabear15]

That question has been asked before but never answered. One would think that considering how much the hardworking crew deserves their gratuities that prepaying to avoid these increases would not be popular. Do you think they are prepaying so they will have more funds to tip those who have given them such great service?

 

I prepay normally because I try to budget out everything. I know what excursions I'm doing and put that cost off to the side, and do the same with gratuities. If I can pay them way beforehand, that is one less thing I need to worry about. Love seeing the crew members getting raises, and I normally leave extra behind for our cabin steward.

[Steelers36]

$12.95 does not sound right. I have heard about the increase to $12.

 

I'm surprised, but maybe this became news while you were at sea.

 

From KNOW BEFORE YOU GO:

 

To simplify the tipping process for our guests, a discretionary gratuity of $12 per person for mini-suites and suites, and $11.50 per guest in all other staterooms per day (including children) will be automatically added to your shipboard account on a daily basis. Effective on voyages departing on or after January 1, 2016, the gratuity charge will be $13.95 per guest for mini-suites and suites, and $12.95 per guest for interior, oceanview, and balcony staterooms. This gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who help provide and support your cruise experience, including all waitstaff, stateroom stewards, buffet stewards, and housekeeping staff across the fleet.

 

Who knows why they went with the $.95 thing - like why not just make it what it essentially is - $13 and $14? Retail pricing tricks like this don't fool anyone.

 

It is also the case that if people pre-pay by tomorrow for future cruises, they can lock in the old rate and that has stirred much debate as to whether the hard-working staff should be denied their increase (apparently Princess is going to make up the difference).

Edited October 14, 2015 by steelers36

[azbirdmom]

We just received this email from Princess regarding our February cruise on the Coral Princess, so 10/31 is the official date to prepay after all:

 

Dear Princess Guest:

 

To ensure our guest service on board remains among the best in the cruise industry, Princess Cruises has increased the daily gratuity charge for all voyages departing on or after January 1, 2016.

 

The new daily gratuity amounts are $13.95 USD per guest for mini-suites and suites, and $12.95 USD per guest for interior, oceanview, and balcony staterooms (including children).

 

The gratuity rate increase is comparable to cruise industry standards and is Princess Cruises’ first increase since May 2011. The increase underlines our commitment toward our crew for the excellent service they provide our guests.

 

You have the opportunity to prepay your daily gratuities at the current rate through October 31, 2015. You may prepay through your Cruise Personalizer at

http://www.princess.com

under Payments and Credits, or contact us at 1-800-774-6237. Guests booked with promotions that include paid gratuities will not be affected by this rate increase.

 

Thank you for your attention to this notification. We look forward to welcoming you aboard.

Sincerly,

 

Princess Cruises

[RocketMan275]

I prepay normally because I try to budget out everything. I know what excursions I'm doing and put that cost off to the side, and do the same with gratuities. If I can pay them way beforehand, that is one less thing I need to worry about.

 

That's great. But you are the only one on this thread (that I have seen) that justifies prepayment on other than a desire to avoid an increase in compensation for the crew, an increase that is less than the cost of a soft drink PP PD.

 

Love seeing the crew members getting raises, and I normally leave extra behind for our cabin steward.

Remember, there are others included in this increase in compensation than the cabin steward.

[Pushka]

I pre paid my tips for June 2016 about 2 months ago so it is out of the way. Then a few weeks later I read this thread. My pre payment has nothing to do with the price rise but about the current exchange of AUD to USD offered by Princess.

[elliair]

Thanks to our upcoming Roll Call as posted by loonline (thanks Rhonda and Brian!), it was just announced that the gratuities automatically billed to guests on their stateroom portfolios will be increased.

 

Effective on voyages departing on or after January 1, 2016, the gratuity charge will be $13.95 per guest for mini-suites and suites, and $12.95 per guest for interior, oceanview, and balcony staterooms.

 

The current charges per day are $12 per person for mini-suites and suites, and $11.50 per guest in all other staterooms per day (including children).

 

All guests who have pre-paid their gratuities before October 15, 2015, will have their current daily gratuity amount protected. If you have a cruise sailing after January 1, 2016, you may want to prepay your gratuities before October 15 in order to lock in to the older rates. This can be done by logging in to your cruise personalizer and choosing the pre-pay option when prompted.

 

Above was copied in part from another site I can't mention here.

 

The email I received said if you pay BEFORE 10/31/2015 you will be charged at the current rate. It comes out to $43.50 more in gratuities. I received the email today:

 

ear Princess Guest:

 

To ensure our guest service on board remains among the best in the cruise industry, Princess Cruises has increased the daily gratuity charge for all voyages departing on or after January 1, 2016.

 

The new daily gratuity amounts are $13.95 USD per guest for mini-suites and suites, and $12.95 USD per guest for interior, oceanview, and balcony staterooms (including children).

 

The gratuity rate increase is comparable to cruise industry standards and is Princess Cruises’ first increase since May 2011. The increase underlines our commitment toward our crew for the excellent service they provide our guests.

 

You have the opportunity to prepay your daily gratuities at the current rate through October 31, 2015. You may prepay through your Cruise Personalizer at www.princess.com under Payments and Credits, or contact us at 1-800-774-6237. Guests booked with promotions that include paid gratuities will not be affected by this rate increase.

 

Thank you for your attention to this notification. We look forward to welcoming you aboard. Sincerly,

 

Princess Cruises

 

I think I'll prepay and save the $43.50, that's a bottle of wine.:cool:

Edited October 14, 2015 by elliair

[AZbeachboy]

I just received the email today as well. I will be paying for four people at the new rate. That is a big increase that I did not plan on.

Edited October 14, 2015 by AZbeachboy