The world's fifth-largest cruise brand has quietly raised the daily service charge it levies on customers to its highest level in the history of the company.
The new rate for what Princess calls a "crew appreciation" fee is now $17 per person, per day for those staying in most cabins.
That's a 6.25% increase from the previous rate of $16 — more than twice the rate of inflation in the U.S. over the past year.
Princess last raised its service charge rate Dec. 14, 2022.
As part of the change, Princess also is raising its service charge for passengers staying in suites to $19 per person, per day — a 5.6% increase from the previous rate of $18.
Passengers staying in minisuites, cabanas and Club Class cabins will now pay $18 per person, per day — a 5.9% increase from the previous rate of $17.
The news of a service charge increase at Princess comes just six months after sister line Holland America pushed through a similar increase to its service charge rate. Holland America also currently charges $17 per day in service charges for passengers in most cabins and $19 per day for passengers in suites.
With the increase at Princess, a family of four in a typical cabin on one of the line's ships will pay nearly $500 in automatic gratuities on a seven-night cruise.
That puts Princess ahead of several of its key competitors when it comes to gratuity fees. Among other major lines, Carnival Cruise Line, Cunard Line, Windstar Cruises and MSC Cruises add $16 per person, per day in service charges to passenger bills for most cabins.
Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean add $18 per person, per day, and Norwegian Cruise Line adds $20 per person, per day in such gratuities to passenger bills. Viking levies a $17 per person, per day service charge.
Related: Tipping on a cruise: What to know about cruise ship gratuities
Such sky-high service charges increasingly are a sore point for some cruisers, who see them as a veiled way for lines to hide the true cost of their sailings when posting their fares online.
In an explanation on its website, Princess says the money it collects from service charges is distributed to shipboard staff "in the form of compensation, including bonuses." In other words, the money is used to pay crew wages.
The recent fee hikes at Princess and Holland America come amid a surge in price hikes at cruise lines for all sorts of things, even as they cut back on service in some cases.
Rising fees at cruise lines
Most of the biggest cruise lines, such as Holland America, Royal Caribbean, Carnival and Norwegian, automatically add some sort of gratuity or service fee to passenger bills. Passengers often have the choice to prepay the fees when booking or have them added to their bill for onboard expenses, paid at the end of each sailing.
That said, the total number of lines with a service fee has been shrinking over the years. Many smaller and higher-end cruise operators have been folding these charges into their base fares.
Lines that now include gratuities in their fares include Azamara, Ponant Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours, Seabourn, SeaDream Yacht Club, Silversea Cruises and Virgin Voyages.
For those lines that do have them, service and gratuity charges are touted as a convenient alternative to the practice of cash tipping on ships — something that was once common.
The cruise lines with such charges typically increase their rates every year or two.
Note that, in some cases, passengers who are unhappy with the service they receive on Princess ships can adjust the amount of daily gratuities posted to their accounts while on board by visiting the Guest Services desk.
Related: The ultimate guide to Princess Cruises ships and itineraries
Adjustments are only allowed when gratuities are being charged to onboard accounts during sailings. Passengers who have prepaid gratuities cannot adjust the amount they have paid while on board.
The increase in service charge rates at Princess comes as the line pushes customers to buy a prepaid bundle of extras for sailings that include service charges, as well as dining in extra-charge specialty restaurants and a drinks package. The line recently added unlimited specialty dining and unlimited drinks to its top-tier bundle, which is called Princess Premier. At the same time, the line raised the fee for the Princess Premier bundle from $80 to $90 per person, per day.
Princess has been adding new fees across its ships as it pushes the bundles.
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