Should You Prepay Cruise Gratuities or Pay Them Onboard?

Cruise gratuities are one of those expenses that first time cruisers do not always think about when looking at the advertised cruise fare.

So is it better to prepay them before the cruise or have them added to your onboard account?

For me, the biggest advantage of prepaying gratuities is knowing another part of the vacation is already paid for before you board.

That can make budgeting easier.

Paying them onboard can also work if you would rather keep more of your money until the trip.

Before deciding, I would look at:

• The cruise line’s current gratuity policy
• How many people are traveling
• Length of the cruise
• Whether gratuities are already included in your fare
• Your total vacation budget
• Whether you prefer paying expenses before or during the trip

This is also where comparing cruise lines gets interesting.

Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, Disney Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Viking River, Viking Ocean, Margaritaville at Sea and other cruise lines can handle onboard inclusions and gratuities differently.

So I would never assume one cruise line’s policy applies to another.

I’m a Baltimore area Travel Advisor, and I think one of the best ways to avoid cruise budget surprises is to look beyond the advertised fare and understand what you will actually pay before and during the vacation.

Do you normally prepay your cruise gratuities, or do you wait and pay them onboard?