Everything You Need to Know About Tipping on a Cruise Ship | The Points Guy

Some cruise lines call them service charges. Others call them gratuity charges.
Either way, the daily service fees that some cruise lines tack onto passenger bills can be a shock to first-time cruisers.
At some lines, these charges run as high as $23 per day. And, unlike the typical service fee or resort fee found at a land resort, they are not per room. They are per person.
At many big lines such as Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line, it’s not uncommon for a family of four staying in a single cabin to see around $60 a day in service fees added to their bills. On a typical seven-night cruise, that’s more than $400 in fees!
Still, not all lines have service fees that high. Some don’t charge a service fee at all. And, in many cases, the service charges are adjustable.