Cruise gratuities in Australia: what changes when you sail overseas?

Booking in Australian dollars doesn't settle it

Princess Australia confirmed this to CruiseClarify in October 2026. An Australian who books an Alaska or Mediterranean cruise through Princess Australia, pays in AUD and sails on a ship operating in US dollars can still have daily Crew Appreciation added to the onboard account. For two people in a standard cabin on a seven-night cruise, that's US$252, unless it has been prepaid or is covered by an eligible package.

Other lines use different rules. Royal Caribbean includes certain crew charges for Australian-site or AUD bookings, even on ships that depart overseas. MSC and Norwegian Cruise Line have Australian booking conditions that can apply beyond local departures. And on Carnival cruises leaving Australian ports, tipping isn't required.

Knowing which rule applies matters before you buy a drinks package or budget for gratuities.

At a glance: six cruise lines compared

This comparison is written for Australians. New Zealand is included only where the cruise line's published policy specifically covers it.

A = cruises departing Australia or New Zealand. B = overseas departures booked under Australian arrangements. Some rules depend on departure port, others on residence, booking market or onboard currency.

The table covers the policies we verified. It doesn't mean every charge is included, or that every itinerary uses the same onboard currency. Carnival's package rates apply to eligible departures from Australia, not New Zealand.

Carnival Australia

Local departures: no compulsory daily tipping

Carnival says tipping is welcome but not required on cruises departing Australian ports. That isn't the same as saying a set gratuity amount is included in the fare, and Carnival doesn't claim that in its Australian tipping policy. For passengers, it means no compulsory daily gratuity under that policy, though tipping remains an option.

Drinks and Wi-Fi

Carnival publishes Australian prices for several onboard extras.

The Wi-Fi figures are starting rates. Check the devices covered and the final price at purchase.

CHEERS! is available on cruises of seven days or longer departing Australia. If one adult buys CHEERS!, every adult aged 18 or over sharing that cabin must also purchase it. For many couples, that rule matters more than the price of any one cocktail.

Two adults buying CHEERS! in advance pay A$222 for each charged day. If that covers seven billable days, the total is A$1,554. In the material we reviewed, Carnival doesn't say how many days it bills on a seven-night sailing, so the checkout total is the one to trust.

If you're sailing overseas

Don't assume Carnival Australia's tipping rules or package prices carry over to a cruise leaving Miami, Barcelona or another overseas port. Carnival says some international departures include room gratuities, but it doesn't say which voyages. The charges for your sailing come from its booking conditions.

For package limits, exclusions and more Australian pricing, see Carnival cruise pricing explained. It also contains US figures, so use its Australian section for local departures.

Royal Caribbean

Crew gratuities: the Australian booking can matter overseas

Royal Caribbean's current Australian guidance says daily service charges for stateroom attendants and dining room staff are included when a voyage is booked through an Australian website or priced in AUD. Its Australian booking conditions say the same for Australian residents. Neither limits the inclusion to departures from Australia.

That's a clear contrast with Princess: an overseas departure doesn't automatically mean an Australian Royal Caribbean guest pays separate daily crew gratuities. You still need to confirm which booking conditions apply to your reservation.

Drinks and dining packages follow another rule

For sailings departing Australia, Royal Caribbean says service charges are already included in beverage-package prices. It says the same for specialty-dining packages. On sailings departing other countries, additional service charges may apply.

Individual purchases aren't always treated like packages. Royal's Australian guidance specifies an 18% service charge on spa and salon purchases. Older official guidance also mentions service charges on bar and in-room dining, but no current Australian rate is published for those.

One local restriction: the Deluxe Beverage Package isn't sold on cruises of two to four nights departing Australia. Royal doesn't publish one reliable Australian-dollar Deluxe price for every sailing. The price shown for your ship and departure is the one that counts.

For the detailed package maths, see Royal Caribbean drinks packages and gratuities. Its main examples use US pricing, with specific Australian notes.

Princess Cruises

An Australian booking doesn't automatically remove Crew Appreciation

Princess is the clearest example of why overseas cruising needs separate treatment.

In October 2026, CruiseClarify asked Princess Australia how Crew Appreciation applies to an Australian resident who books and pays in AUD for an Alaska or Mediterranean cruise operating in US dollars. Princess replied in writing that daily Crew Appreciation will be added to the onboard account unless it has been prepaid or is included through an applicable package.

What changes between local and overseas voyages

Princess's published daily Crew Appreciation rates are:

For two adults in a standard cabin over seven nights, US$18 × 2 × 7 is US$252. Confirm it before you sail, not on your final onboard statement.

Princess Plus and Premier: Australian prices

Princess's Australian terms, updated 13 October 2026, set package prices by the ship's onboard currency.

Per guest, per day. On USD-operated ships, qualifying packages include Crew Appreciation. Packages purchased before 13 October 2026 may be subject to different conditions.

On an eligible AUD-operated departure, Crew Appreciation isn't added separately and isn't a Plus or Premier benefit. On USD-operated ships, a qualifying package can cover the Crew Appreciation that would otherwise appear on your onboard account.

Neither tells you whether a package is worth buying. That depends on whether you'll use the drinks, Wi-Fi and dining it includes.

Which voyages operate in AUD?

Princess lists Australian round trips and Sydney–Auckland one-way voyages, in either direction, among its AUD-operated itineraries. It also says "select" repositioning voyages between Asia and Australia are priced in AUD, but it doesn't name them. Sun Princess and Star Princess need checking against the individual itinerary. For these exceptions, don't rely on departure geography alone.

Research note: Princess Cruises Australia answered CruiseClarify's Alaska and Mediterranean questions in writing in October 2026. The reply confirms those scenarios. It doesn't give a policy effective date or settle every repositioning itinerary.

See Princess's Australian onboard FAQ and the Plus/Premier Australian terms.

Our Princess Plus and Princess Premier guides explain the US packages in more depth. Don't substitute their USD figures for the Australian rates above.

Celebrity Cruises

Australian departures: listed drinks prices include service charges

Celebrity's Australian/New Zealand onboard FAQ says service charges are included in the fare on departures from Australia or New Zealand. It also says listed beverage prices and pre-cruise purchases already include them. The displayed price is what counts: adding another 18% or 20% would overstate your budget.

Overseas sailings: two official percentages

Celebrity's Australian booking conditions, effective 1 January 2026, say an 18% service charge is added to beverages, minibar items, and spa and salon purchases. Its global gratuity guidance says 20%. Celebrity's Australian-site gratuity page also shows US-dollar daily gratuity amounts, even though its regional onboard guidance describes different arrangements for local departures.

Celebrity's sources don't settle which percentage applies on every overseas sailing booked in Australia.

What you can rely on is that crew charges and charges on optional purchases are separate. The Australian contract includes crew charges. Drinks and other purchases on an overseas cruise need checking against that sailing's terms and your checkout screen.

Read Celebrity's Australian onboard FAQ for the regional rules. Our Celebrity gratuities guide covers US-market charges, not Australian prices.

MSC Cruises

Booking date determines eligibility under Australian terms

MSC's Australian booking conditions (clause 5.7) include the hotel service charge in the price of bookings made from 15 January 2024, for passengers over two. It's a booking-condition rule, and the clause doesn't require the ship to depart Australia. So it can apply to local departures and to overseas cruises booked under those conditions.

It doesn't mean every service charge disappears. Beverages, specialty dining, spa services and packages are separate questions. MSC doesn't publish a reliable Australian-dollar hotel service charge in the material we reviewed, so there's no daily figure to add. What matters is whether the charge is already in your booking. Older bookings, or reservations made under another country's contract, may differ.

Source: MSC Australian booking conditions, clause 5.7.

Our MSC pricing guide covers general US-market costs and inclusions.

Norwegian Cruise Line

Included crew charges don't remove the extra 20%

NCL's Australian guest contract (clause 14) includes service charges for stateroom attendants and dining room staff on eligible bookings made from 1 July 2022. The clause doesn't make departure from Australia a condition. A separate 20% service charge applies to beverages, spa and salon services, specialty dining and entertainment-based dining.

That matters for passengers who see "service charges included" on a booking and reasonably assume it covers everything. It doesn't.

Local or overseas departure?

For a qualifying Australian booking, the crew-charge provision isn't limited to Australian departures. Older bookings have different wording, including conditions for Australian and New Zealand guests sailing from their home region. For a current booking, check which version of the guest contract applies to your reservation, and treat charges on optional purchases separately.

Source: NCL Australian terms, clause 14.

Our NCL Free at Sea guide explains the US package structure, which isn't the Australian booking offer.

What the differences can cost

Separating these charges from the fare shows what they can add.

These aren't like-for-like quotes. The first two concern compulsory crew charges, the third is an optional drinks package, and the fourth shows what a percentage does to an optional purchase. The NCL line doesn't mean NCL and Celebrity sell the same drink at the same base price. It only shows what an extra 20% does to a stated price.

Before you buy a package

First, establish the conditions attached to your booking. Australian residency, booking through an Australian website, departure port and onboard currency aren't interchangeable.

Next, separate the daily crew charge from service charges on drinks, dining and spa purchases. One can be included while another is still payable.

Finally, check that a package covers things you'll actually use. On Carnival, a couple has to assess the cost for both adults together. On Princess, Crew Appreciation is treated differently under qualifying AUD- and USD-operated package arrangements. A package with more inclusions isn't better value unless you'd use them.

Frequently asked questions

Is Carnival CHEERS! available on short Australian cruises?

Only on sailings of seven days or longer departing Australia. If one adult buys CHEERS!, every adult aged 18 or over sharing that cabin must also purchase it.

What does Princess charge for Crew Appreciation?

US$18 per guest per night in a standard stateroom, US$19 in a mini-suite or specified categories, and US$20 in a suite. On an eligible AUD-operated departure it isn't added separately.

Which Princess voyages operate in AUD?

Princess lists Australian round trips and Sydney–Auckland one-way voyages in either direction among its AUD-operated itineraries. It also says "select" repositioning voyages between Asia and Australia are priced in AUD but doesn't name them, and Sun Princess and Star Princess need checking against the individual itinerary.

Does Celebrity charge 18% or 20% on drinks overseas?

Celebrity's sources don't settle it. Its Australian booking conditions say 18% on beverages, minibar items, spa and salon purchases. Its global gratuity guidance says 20%. Check your sailing's terms and the checkout screen.

Does MSC's hotel service charge cover drinks?

No. Under clause 5.7 it is the hotel service charge included in eligible bookings. Beverages, specialty dining, spa services and packages are separate questions, and MSC doesn't publish an Australian-dollar bar or package price in the material we reviewed.

Does NCL's included service charge cover drinks?

No. Attendant and dining-room charges are included on eligible bookings from 1 July 2022, but a separate 20% service charge applies to beverages, spa and salon services, specialty dining and entertainment-based dining.

Keep reading

For Australian passengers:

• International cruise guides: CruiseClarify's country-specific research.
• Cruise travel insurance for Australians: why medical and evacuation cover deserve separate attention.
• Carnival onboard pricing: including Australian-specific charges.
• Royal Caribbean drinks and gratuities: including local service-charge exceptions.

The Onboard Cost Reference and cruise calculator are useful for exploring costs, but their default prices are mostly US-market figures. Don't treat them as Australian sailing quotes.

Sources and methodology

Last reviewed: 21 October 2026

CruiseClarify reviewed the Australian booking and onboard policies of Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Princess, Celebrity, MSC and NCL. We separate compulsory crew charges from charges on optional purchases and from costs already included in packages.

Principal sources:

• Carnival Australia: CHEERS! and onboard purchase conditions
• Royal Caribbean: Australian crew gratuity policy
• Royal Caribbean: Australian beverage-package gratuities
• Princess: Australian onboard policies
• Princess: Australian Plus and Premier terms
• Celebrity: Australian onboard FAQs
• Celebrity: Australian booking conditions
• MSC: Australian booking conditions
• NCL: Australian guest contract

Princess Cruises Australia also gave direct written confirmation in October 2026 about Crew Appreciation for Australian residents on USD-operated Alaska and Mediterranean cruises. CruiseClarify keeps the correspondence in its research records.

Prices in this article are either published Australian rates or labelled illustrations. They aren't cruise-fare estimates, and we haven't substituted unverified Australian-dollar prices where a line publishes none.

CruiseClarify is independent and affiliate-free.