What does the Royal Caribbean fare actually include?
Your stateroom, Broadway-style shows, main dining, Adventure Ocean kids' club, pools, and most onboard activities. Gratuities, drinks, Wi-Fi, and specialty restaurants are all separate charges.
What should two people budget beyond the fare on a 7-night cruise?
It depends how you drink. À la carte: gratuities, Wi-Fi, drinks as you go, and modest specialty dining typically land around $400–$600 per person — a rough range, not one fixed total. Package-heavy (pre-cruise): the cost table later in this guide adds port fees, the Deluxe Beverage Package at the fleet median ($75/day plus 18% for two), gratuities ($259), Wi-Fi (~$280), and two specialty dinners to ≈ $2,230–$2,330 for two before the fare. Your real number sits between those examples, or outside them, depending on how much you drink, whether you buy Wi-Fi, and how often you book specialty venues.
Why do those two totals look so different?
They're different scenarios. The lower figure assumes you pay for drinks individually. The higher figure is a full pre-cruise package example for two — not a minimum, and not what every guest spends. Same line, different habits.
Is the Deluxe Beverage Package automatically worth buying?
No — it's not part of the fare. At a fleet median around $75 per person per day plus 18% (about $88.50 all-in), it adds a lot to your total, and both adults in a stateroom generally have to buy it. It pays off only for steady daily drinkers. The companion guide owns the break-even math, port-heavy logic, and stateroom rules.
Who should think twice about Royal Caribbean's pricing?
Light drinkers, port-heavy itineraries, and anyone drawn in by a low headline fare without budgeting add-ons. Families leaning on included kids' club and shows may spend less; couples wanting quiet evenings should look past Icon-class mega-ships — Radiance-class sailings are a different product. Run your own sailing through the calculator before you book.
Royal Caribbean builds the largest cruise ships in the world and fills them with more onboard amenities than you can get through in a week. Their base fares often run higher than mass-market competitors like Carnival or Norwegian, and that gap is real, but the ships are more ambitiously designed, with a broader range of included activities than any direct rival. Royal Caribbean is also very good at selling you extras once you're aboard.
Royal Caribbean's newest ships are built primarily for families and groups who want a high-energy vacation with plenty going on. If you're a couple looking for quiet evenings and space to breathe, the calculation is different, and the right ship for you probably isn't Icon of the Seas.
Common questions
How much are gratuities on Royal Caribbean — and do suites pay more?
$18.50 per person, per night in standard staterooms ($21 in suites), added to your onboard account daily and applied to every guest including children. It's separate from the 18% already added to bar drinks and specialty dining. Prepaying locks the rate before any increase. Full gratuities breakdown →
What does the Deluxe Beverage Package actually cover — and what's excluded?
Cocktails, beer, wine by the glass, premium coffees, bottled water, and most bar drinks up to a $14 per-drink cap — plus CocoCay. Licensed Starbucks, souvenir glassware, and drinks above the cap are extra. Both adults in a stateroom generally must buy the same package. Break-even is roughly five-plus drinks a day at fleet-median pricing. See the full break-even →
How much is Wi-Fi on Royal Caribbean — and can one plan cover a couple?
VOOM Surf + Stream runs about $20 per device, per day bought pre-cruise — up to about $39 onboard. One plan covers up to four devices, so a couple sharing one login pays once. The package also works at Perfect Day at CocoCay. Wi-Fi plans and how to save →
The ships: bigger than they feel
The newest ships — Icon of the Seas (2024), Star of the Seas (2025), and the Oasis class including Utopia of the Seas — carry between 5,600 and 7,600 guests. They manage this through an eight-neighborhood layout that distributes guests naturally across the ship rather than funneling everyone to a single pool deck. In practice, the ships feel less crowded than the numbers suggest.
One rule applies regardless of which Royal Caribbean ship you're on: book extras before you leave home. Specialty dining, Broadway shows, shore excursions, spa appointments, FlowRider time slots, and My Time Dining reservations are all available pre-cruise through the Royal Caribbean app and the My Royal Cruise website. On the newer ships, popular restaurants and shows fill before the ship leaves port. Loyalty members with Crown & Anchor Diamond status and above get earlier access to booking windows — if this is your first Royal Caribbean sailing, act as soon as your booking window opens.
Prefer something quieter? The Radiance class ships sailing Alaska, Europe, and South America are a different product entirely: smaller, fewer crowds, ports the mega-ships can't reach.
Entertainment: what's included in the fare
Royal Caribbean is one of the few cruise lines staging full Broadway musicals at sea, and they're included in the fare. Current productions include Hairspray on Symphony of the Seas and Mamma Mia! on Allure of the Seas; Star of the Seas launched with Back to the Future: The Musical. AquaTheater high-dive shows, ice skating productions, and main theater performances are also included across the fleet. Pre-book through the Royal Caribbean app — seats go fast on the newer ships.
Dining: what's included and how it works
The main dining room
The main dining room is included in your cruise fare. You choose your table time when completing your booking: traditional dining (assigned early seating around 5:30 pm or late seating around 8:00 pm, same table and waiter each night) or My Time Dining (flexible, roughly 6:00–9:30 pm, reservations strongly recommended and bookable in advance via the app). Same menu either way. Show schedules are timed around the traditional seatings — worth knowing when planning your evenings. Switching formats once onboard is allowed once per cruise if space permits.
Kids' club
Adventure Ocean, Royal Caribbean's youth program for ages 3–17, is included in the fare and runs daily. For families with children in that age range it's one of the most significant included amenities on the ship — and easy to overlook when you're comparing fares.
Specialty restaurants
Cover charges of $45–$70 per person for dinner at standard venues — Chops Grille, Wonderland, Giovanni's Italian Kitchen, Hooked Seafood, and Izumi Sushi (premium experiences run $110–$200). An 18% gratuity is automatically added on top. Specialty lunch at the same venues runs $25–$35 per person and is notably better value — it's also a useful way to sidestep the Windjammer buffet crowds on embarkation day.
Book pre-cruise through the app or My Royal Cruise website. Desirable time slots go early and onboard prices are higher. One piece of fine print: a no-show fee (up to $50 per person) applies at the specialty restaurants if you don't cancel at least 24 hours ahead — so cancel rather than skip.
What costs extra — on the ship
- Room service: Continental breakfast is complimentary via the door-hanger card. A hot cooked breakfast carries a $7.95 service fee plus 18% gratuity — roughly $9.40 in fees before any food pricing. All other room service orders carry the same charges.
- Licensed Starbucks outlets: standard retail prices apply — excluded from all beverage packages, including the Deluxe.
- Spa and salon: A 20% gratuity is added automatically at point of sale. Not optional.
- Photos: Photographers are active throughout — embarkation, dinner, pool deck, ports. Pre-purchasing a photo package is cheaper than buying individual prints at the end of the week. Decline at each session if you don't want any.
Packages, gratuities, and Wi-Fi
The three add-ons that move your total the most are the Deluxe Beverage Package, daily gratuities, and Wi-Fi. Together they add about $820–$890 per person on a 7-night sailing, before any specialty dining.
Gratuities are $18.50 per person, per night in standard staterooms, applied to every guest including children. The Deluxe Beverage Package runs $49–$90 per person, per day plus 18% (fleet median about $75), and pays off for steady daily drinkers — rarely below that. Wi-Fi is about $20 per device, per day pre-cruise. Each add-on has its own terms, break-even math, and ways to pay less; the companion guide below covers all three in full.
Private island: how CocoCay compares to Carnival's islands
Perfect Day at CocoCay is Royal Caribbean's private island in the Bahamas, included as a stop on most Caribbean sailings from the East Coast. If you've purchased the Deluxe or Refreshment Beverage Package, it works fully on the island — every bar, including the swim-up bar at Oasis Lagoon. Your Wi-Fi package extends there too.
The island visit is included in the fare. Free: all beaches, Splashaway Bay kids' water park, Oasis Lagoon freshwater pool, beach chairs, umbrellas, towels, tram service, and the Chill Grill buffet. Charged separately: Thrill Waterpark ($37–$159 per person full-day pass, averaging around $75), zip line, Up Up & Away helium balloon, Coco Beach Club, Hideaway Beach (adults-only), and cabanas. Book the Thrill Waterpark pre-cruise — peak-season pricing approaches $159 per person and it sells out.
For comparison: Carnival's CHEERS! package does not cover beverages at any of Carnival's private destinations — Half Moon Cay, Celebration Key, or Princess Cays. Every drink is a separate purchase. For a couple with two or three drinks each on a warm afternoon, that's $50–$75 in extra costs that Royal Caribbean guests with a package won't face.
Royal Beach Club Nassau: the new paid island
Opened December 2025. You board a dedicated water taxi from the Nassau cruise port — the ride is included in the pass price — and arrive at a 17-acre beach club on Paradise Island. Unlike CocoCay, access is not included in the fare. It's a purchased day pass, capacity is capped at 4,000 guests, and it sells out. Book in advance.
Day pass pricing as of May 2026: open bar, dining, and Wi-Fi (21+) from $169.99 per person; non-alcoholic drinks, dining, and Wi-Fi (13+) from $129.99; children 4–12 from $109.99; under 3 complimentary. If you hold a Deluxe Beverage Package, a bundle rate starts at $140 per person instead of $169.99 — check this before booking the standard day pass at full price.
Newer ships versus older ships
Icon and Star of the Seas are the right choice for families with children, anyone wanting the widest activity range, or guests who want the most current stateroom product including Infinite Balcony staterooms. The neighborhood design, the included waterpark on Icon class, Crown's Edge, the AquaDome, and the newest Broadway productions are real additions that older ships don't have.
Freedom class and Voyager class ships, built 1999–2008, carry most of Royal Caribbean's signature included activities at substantially lower fares. The trade-off is an older stateroom aesthetic and fewer restaurant options. For guests whose priority is the itinerary or the budget rather than the newest hardware, these ships are the best value in the fleet.
Radiance class ships are the right choice for scenic sailings — Alaska, Europe, repositioning — where the destination is the point and the ship is the means of getting there. Smaller, quieter, and able to dock at ports the mega-ships can't enter.
What a 7-night sailing actually costs: the full picture
A realistic 7-night Caribbean sailing, two guests, standard balcony stateroom — package-heavy scenario with main add-ons bought pre-cruise:
| Item | How it's calculated | Approximate cost |
|---|---|---|
| Cruise fare | Varies by sailing | Use the calculator |
| Port fees & taxes | $175–$195 per person — added at checkout | $350–$390 |
| Gratuities (US/UK) | $18.50 × 7 nights × 2 guests | $259 |
| Deluxe Beverage Package | $75/day × 7 × 2, plus 18% service charge | ~$1,239 |
| Wi-Fi (VOOM Surf + Stream) | ~$20/day per device, pre-cruise | ~$280 |
| Two specialty dinners | $45–$70 per person plus 18% gratuity | $106–$165 per couple |
| CocoCay Thrill Waterpark | Pre-booked, if applicable | $37–$159 per person (average ~$75; peak prices at the top) |
| Everything except the fare | Adds up the rows above, minus the optional waterpark | ≈ $2,230–$2,330 for two |
Skip the drinks package, drink selectively, and eat in the main dining room most nights — the total drops significantly. The fare gets you on the ship. The total above is what you'll spend if you use everything available to you.
Before you book, run the full numbers on your specific sailing — fare, gratuities, drinks, and Wi-Fi together — rather than budgeting for each item separately after the fact.