On board credit and gratuities

[PDXNative]

Does Princess allow on board credit to be used for gratuities, and how is that done? Thanks.

[Colo Cruiser]

Does Princess allow on board credit to be used for gratuities, and how is that done? Thanks.

 

 

 

ANY obc on one's account gets used up with ANY charges. Gratuities would be a charge so yes.

You start with a positive balance and the charges use up all the credits first.

[skynight]

Does Princess allow on board credit to be used for gratuities, and how is that done? Thanks.

Yes, it's automatic. OBC's are credits posted on your on board account. Any money spent on board, including the daily auto-tip, is debited to your account for a running net account balance. On Princess all OBC's are stackable.

[JF - retired RRT]

Also, if you have refundable and nonrefundable OBC, the nonrefundable is used first.

Examples of refundable include OBC that you purchase or are gifted to you and veteran's (if you're a current or former member of US or Canada military, send in your docs and receive OBC on every cruise). :D Thanks Princess!!

[crows nest club]

We also get it in the U.K. My husband did 2 years National Service and he gets $250 for our next cruise.

[Coveguy4]

Princess really takes care of us! Also, you can reserve your tours in advance, but don't have to pay in advance( maybe Alaska has changed not sure but as of last May it hadn't) and then use your OBC to pay for them.

[easyboy]

Does Princess allow on board credit to be used for gratuities, and how is that done? Thanks.

Yes it is allowed. You don't have to advise Princess. Their system handles it.

[rccampbell]

First time cruiser here :-) So if I understand correctly, If I put X number of dollars into my on board account, it will go against all charges incurred while cruising and if I do not use it all up, I will get the remainder back at the end of the cruise?

Thinking of doing this ahead of time instead of buying the beverage package because we probably would not be drinking alcohol on port days, but the hubby could put away a few on sea days.

[Colo Cruiser]

First time cruiser here :-) So if I understand correctly, If I put X number of dollars into my on board account, it will go against all charges incurred while cruising and if I do not use it all up, I will get the remainder back at the end of the cruise?

Thinking of doing this ahead of time instead of buying the beverage package because we probably would not be drinking alcohol on port days, but the hubby could put away a few on sea days.

 

 

 

Yes OBC that you purchase is fully refundable.

[fishywood]

First time cruiser here :-) So if I understand correctly, If I put X number of dollars into my on board account, it will go against all charges incurred while cruising and if I do not use it all up, I will get the remainder back at the end of the cruise?

Thinking of doing this ahead of time instead of buying the beverage package because we probably would not be drinking alcohol on port days, but the hubby could put away a few on sea days.

 

What you will get is a check in the mail a few weeks after you return home from your cruise,not a cash refund as you leave the ship. So try to underestimate the amount of OBC to purchase rather than overestimate.

[rccampbell]

Thanks All

[GRAYTech]

What you will get is a check in the mail a few weeks after you return home from your cruise,not a cash refund as you leave the ship. So try to underestimate the amount of OBC to purchase rather than overestimate.

 

Why not just let the balance roll to your credit card when the cruise ends?

 

If prepaying is to lessen the shock at the end put those same funds aside at home for use when your credit card bill arrives.

[Sunchaser46]

So you don't have to alert Princess staff that you are planning to use your OBC to pay your gratuities?

[Colo Cruiser]

So you don't have to alert Princess staff that you are planning to use your OBC to pay your gratuities?

 

 

No, any OBC on your account is a credit. Any charge that comes through (ie-gratuities) will be deducted from that credit until it's all used up.

[Sunchaser46]

No, any OBC on your account is a credit. Any charge that comes through (ie-gratuities) will be deducted from that credit until it's all used up.

 

Good to know! Thank you. I was under the assumption that you had to notify ship staff that you were planning on using your OBC for gratuities ahead of time.

[riclop]

Does Princess allow on board credit to be used for gratuities, and how is that done? Thanks.

 

Yes you can.

[easyboy]

Why not just let the balance roll to your credit card when the cruise ends?

If prepaying is to lessen the shock at the end put those same funds aside at home for use when your credit card bill arrives.

I would do the same instead of "buying OBC instead of the beverage package".

[Wehwalt]

That is, assuming that what you mean by "gratuities" is the standard per day autotip.

[VTX-AL]

So you don't have to alert Princess staff that you are planning to use your OBC to pay your gratuities?

 

Good to know! Thank you. I was under the assumption that you had to notify ship staff that you were planning on using your OBC for gratuities ahead of time.

 

When you book your cruise and fill out all of the required passenger information, part of that info is your credit card info, and from that point on, ANY AND ALL onboard purchases, charges, etc will automatically be debited to your onboard folio account. For example, if you pre-pay your daily room gratuity charge in total and/or pre-purchase any onboard goods and services, including OBC when you arrive on board your folio will show a credit balance which will subsequently be debited on a purchase by purchase basis, including the daily auto-gratuity charge. You can then track these charges for accuracy by printing a copy as required from the onboard kiosks. I believe that there is now a method of tracking the charges on your smart phone, but we have not used it to date.

 

Hope this all makes sense :)

 

...VTX-Al

[KSUWildcat93]

3 questions -

 

For our cruise the automatic charge is $13.50 per passenger per day ($162.00 per person for a 12 day cruise). Does that sound right?

 

Does Princess still hand out envelopes on the last day for additional gratuities even though there is an automatic daily charge on your ship account?

 

If they do hand out envelopes, then I saw on another thread that you could go to the desk and apply left over on board credit to gratuities and ask them to print a receipt. Then you could put the receipt in the envelope to hand out to your waiter and room attendant for the extra gratuities on the last night. Just wondering if this works on Princess?

[Colo Cruiser]

3 questions -

 

For our cruise the automatic charge is $13.50 per passenger per day ($162.00 per person for a 12 day cruise). Does that sound right?

 

Does Princess still hand out envelopes on the last day for additional gratuities even though there is an automatic daily charge on your ship account?

 

If they do hand out envelopes, then I saw on another thread that you could go to the desk and apply left over on board credit to gratuities and ask them to print a receipt. Then you could put the receipt in the envelope to hand out to your waiter and room attendant for the extra gratuities on the last night. Just wondering if this works on Princess?

 

 

No envelopes handed out anymore since the auto gratuity was implemented.

There are envelopes available at the PSD. Usually laying out.

 

Never heard of handing out a receipt. Are you sure that was Princess?

The crew would rather have additional cash I am sure.

[easyboy]

For our cruise the automatic charge is $13.50 per passenger per day ($162.00 per person for a 12 day cruise). Does that sound right?

Yes it does.

[caribill]

When you book your cruise and fill out all of the required passenger information, part of that info is your credit card info, and from that point on, ANY AND ALL onboard purchases, charges, etc will automatically be debited to your onboard folio account. For example, if you pre-pay your daily room gratuity charge in total and/or pre-purchase any onboard goods and services, including OBC when you arrive on board your folio will show a credit balance which will subsequently be debited on a purchase by purchase basis, including the daily auto-gratuity charge. You can then track these charges for accuracy by printing a copy as required from the onboard kiosks. I believe that there is now a method of tracking the charges on your smart phone, but we have not used it to date.

 

Hope this all makes sense :)

 

 

...VTX-Al

 

If you have pre-paid gratuities (not just bought OBC to pay them), then neither the payment you made pre-cruise nor the daily gratuity charge will show up on your statement.

[srpilo]

What you will get is a check in the mail a few weeks after you return home from your cruise,not a cash refund as you leave the ship. So try to underestimate the amount of OBC to purchase rather than overestimate.

 

If your balance is under $25.00 they will pay you in cash the last night

 

 

Srpilo