Prepaid Gratuities

First time cruisers here. Leaving on Sep 19 on Island Princess for a Panama Cruise.

What is the advantage of prepaying the gratuities?

Thanks

For me, it's all about getting it out of the way so you have less of a bill when you get off the ship.....:):):)

Bob

As the above post says, it is mainly to avoid a large bill to be paid after the end of the cruise.

But you should know that the cruise lines have learned that people who do prepay, knowing that there would not be a large charge at the end of the cruise, tend to spend more on board than those who know they will have a big bill to pay after the cruise ends.

Nothing more than a slightly lower final bill.

I have never understood prepaying for something when there is no clear advantage for doing it. I would rather keep my money until it is due. There are times when plans change and if something is prepaid then you must take extra steps to retrieve the money. Of course if prepaying saves time or money it could make sense.

Pay now or pay later.

I have never understood prepaying for something when there is no clear advantage for doing it. I would rather keep my money until it is due. There are times when plans change and if something is prepaid then you must take extra steps to retrieve the money. Of course if prepaying saves time or money it could make sense.

I just like getting things out of the way. One less thing to worry about.....:):):)

Bob

Sometimes you might be able to buy a cruise line gift card at a discount and thereby save a little when you use it to prepay the grats, or if your credit card has some sort of deal if you spend it now rather than later, would make it beneficial to pay early.

We have never, ever had bad service on a cruise unworthy of the standard tip. So we pre-pay to get it out of the way (that way you can spend more on pictures onboard, right?) As others have said, it's all about the budget. I'm positive we didn't pre-pay on the first cruise but pretty sure we did on the second.

If you have lots of On Board Credit to cover all or part of the gratuities plus your other expected expenses then it's best to wait and have the daily gratuities charged to your on board account. Otherwise, it's your financial choice. No cost advantage.

Depending where you are from the exchange rate when you prepay could be beneficial as well - we are Canadian and always prepay and buy obc to get the better exchange rate.

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I enjoy any vacation a lot more if all, or nearly all, of it is paid for before we go.

I just consider it as part of the fare & taxes. Might as well pay for it ahead of time.

Especially since I'm not going to make a whole lot of interest off that money in the bank! :')

When we signed up for the cruise that you will be on, Princess was offering a 3 for free incentive. Our gratuities were free, free on board credit, etc. Since I am vet, I get OBC, too. Along with stock ownership, more OBC. More than $1000 OBC for a 22-day itinerary. No too shabby. Especially with no gratuities at the end.

Jim

If you have a Princess credit card you will get the points. It could make a little difference if you are on a long voyage. If you added to your other points it just might put you into a higher category. But I like paying as much as I can in advance so I don't have bills when I get home.

If we don't have free gratuities, we always pay them before we go. If it makes a difference in the points on the Princess Visa, we pay them far enough ahead to up the OBC from the points. Otherwise, we pay them about 2 weeks before the cruise. We figure it as part of the cruise expenses and like to have everything paid before we go. Then whatever we spend over the OBC amount is the bill at the end.

Tai

I usually have enough onboard credit from being a Carnival Corporation stockholder and a veteran to cover the gratuities so I do not pre-pay them. For those without the onboard credit, prepaying will cause you to have less of a hit on your credit card at the end of the cruise. That can be important if the timing of other charges to your credit card causes you to be near your card's credit limit.

Our gratuities were free,

Jim

This brings back to mind something I’ve wondered about for quite some time.

If PCL provides “free gratiuities” as a passenger perk, does PCL then put that same sum of money into the tip pool on behalf of said passenger or because they ARE the cruise line and are paying all those salaries, does that money simply vanish?

Maybe it’s just the cynical side of my brain at work but I’m thinking maybe the latter.

Who would really know?

We like to prepay as much as we can. So, we prepay gratuities if we did not book with a sale that included them.

I prefer to make the cruise feel as much all inclusive as possible. We pre-book/pay for specialty dining too. Taking OBC into consideration, we try to get as close as we can get to a zero $$ tab at the end of the cruise.

It's a personal choice, some people pay up front, some wait till cruise time. It's all the same in the end :)

This brings back to mind something I’ve wondered about for quite some time.

If PCL provides “free gratiuities” as a passenger perk, does PCL then put that same sum of money into the tip pool on behalf of said passenger or because they ARE the cruise line and are paying all those salaries, does that money simply vanish?

Maybe it’s just the cynical side of my brain at work but I’m thinking maybe the latter.

Who would really know?

Who knows?

In all honesty who cares?

Who knows?

 

In all honesty who cares?

I would certainly think you and everyone else would care if the crew are being stiffed.

Free anything is seldom free.

First time cruisers here. Leaving on Sep 19 on Island Princess for a Panama Cruise.

 

What is the advantage of prepaying the gratuities?

 

Thanks

Nothing , you pay now or later.

No advantage to pre paying the optional daily service fee. Do you pay for your cruise in full a year before you sail when you book the trip or do you wait until due? Why would you pre pay for a service before you have that service? Some will say to have a lower bill at the end. That just means they do not understand how to budget. Put the money aside and pay when it is due. If you believe in paying this optional fee.

I would certainly think you and everyone else would care if the crew are being stiffed.

 

Free anything is seldom free.

If the crew and line are happy with its none of my business.

If the crew and line are happy with its none of my business.

(y)