Almost everything on your cruise will cost higher this year than it did last.
Cruise prices are rising along with additional onboard costs like daily service fees, refreshments, and Wi-Fi as travel is once again in full swing.
It is understandable that cruise lines are raising their pricing given the rising costs of everything, especially food and fuel.
Following the pandemic closure, they are also facing billions of dollars in debt.
Even still, it's regrettable when one of the most budget-friendly holiday styles in the world starts to decline.
You may see below the regions where we have observed the biggest charge increases and price escalations.
Pay attention so you may modify your travel budget as necessary and avoid being shocked by a higher-than-expected charge at the conclusion of your cruise.
Service charges
You can refer to the automatic service fees that are paid to the cruise line as "gratuities," "staff appreciation," or any other new phrase that has been created by the cruise industry.
Whatever the language, the truth is that several lines recently raised these daily prices.
The daily auto-gratuities for Royal Caribbean travelers increased by more than 10% across the board in September of last year.
The cost is now $16.50 per person, per day for passengers in ordinary cabins, and $18.50 for passengers staying in suites.
Passengers on Carnival Cruise Line will start paying $16 per person, each day (or $18 in suites), as of April 1. Passengers on Princess Cruises may anticipate seeing the same daily increases on their onboard accounts.
On February 1st, Holland America also intends to raise its daily fees, depending on the type of cabin, to between $16 and $17.50 per person, per day.
The worst offender, Norwegian Cruise Line, has increased its daily gratuities by 25% to $20 per person, each day ($25 for guests booking suites).
On a weeklong trip, each passenger in a regular cabin may anticipate paying an additional $140, or $560 for a family of four.
Norwegian will reduce cabin cleaning to once per day, eliminate a higher pay category for some of its room stewards, and increase daily gratuity rates notwithstanding these changes.
Drink packages
For many cruisers, drinking is the single thing that is more vital than food.
Fans of drink packages offered by cruise lines should be aware of a few staggering price increases that took effect at the beginning of the year.
Norwegian increased the cost of two of its booze packages on January 1 to startling sums of $165 per person, per day, for the highest tier, and roughly $120 per person, per day, for the second-highest.
The 20% tip the line puts on top of the base package price is taken into account in these costs.
On a weeklong trip, the new rate comes to more than $1,159 or $840 per person, respectively, which is enough to reserve a second vacation.
In a similar vein, Carnival increased the cost of its drink packages by more than 15% in May 2022.
With an 18% gratuity thrown on, the total price rose by $8 per person, per day, to around $71 if paid in advance or $77 if added to your account after boarding.
For a seven-night sailing, that entails an additional expense of around $500 per person, which is again sufficient for another cruise fee.
Wi-Fi
Two big lines recently raised the cost of their Wi-Fi, so anyone who can't or doesn't want to be disconnected during their cruise should be aware of this.
On January 16, Carnival started raising the price for Wi-Fi even though some of its ships now have a higher-quality connection.
It raised the cost of a single device by 25%, from $10.20 per day to $12.75 for the Social plan of the line.
The Value plan, which is now $17 per day, and the Premium plan, which is now $22 per day, are two more plans that provide connectivity for more devices and better speeds.
Accordingly, travelers should budget an extra $89 to $154 for an internet connection for a seven-night trip.
Wait until you hear how much Princess Cruises will charge for its Wi-Fi starting on Feb. 20 if you thought Carnival's raise was exorbitant.
The one-device plan fee for the line will increase by 50% to $15 per day.
And to make matters worst, the line's four-device package would cost you $40 per day, a startling 167% price rise.
A seven-night cruise will cost you anywhere from $105 to $280 for Wi-Fi.
The good news is that Princess' connectivity has significantly improved recently.
This is partly because the line's Ocean Medallion wearable device, which doubles as a passenger room key, charge card, and interactive tracker, requires a connection that can support it.
The room service
Cruise lines have long charged for room service, but starting in mid-January, all Celebrity Cruises ships—some of the least popular ships to provide complimentary room service—are now charging for room service orders.
Before, late-night orders placed between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. were subject to a $4.95 per order fee from Celebrity.
All orders will now be subject to a $9.95 cost at any time of day, regardless of the number of items per order.
Each room service order will cost $11.74 when a necessary 18% gratuity is added on.
The Captain's Club loyalty program's Zenith-level members, orders from passengers who are staying in suites, and continental breakfast between 6 and 11 in the morning are the only exceptions.
Not just the Celebrity line has stopped offering free in-cabin meals.
On its cruise ships as of October 1 of last year, Carnival no longer provides complimentary room service.
In fact, even a peanut butter and jelly sandwich now cost $5.
The sole exception is continental breakfast, which is provided free of charge on all lines with the exception of Norwegian, which started charging for it on some ships last year.
Alternative restaurants
Carnival increased the extra fees for passengers intending to eat in the steakhouses on board its ships twice over the course of a six-month period in 2017.
For the first time, the price increased by 11% from $38 to $42 in May.
When it happened again, in November, it increased by 14%, from $42 to $48 per person.
That is an increase of more than 26% all told.
The line now charges greater costs for more specialty restaurants than just that one.
It has started charging higher prices to eat at its Italian Cucina del Capitano and Bonsai Teppanyaki eateries.
In May, the former climbed by more than 9%, while the latter increased at the same time by 20%.
In conclusion
Cruising is still one of the most inclusive, cost-effective, and logistically simple holiday options available to tourists.
But recently, numerous carriers have raised their onboard purchasing prices.
Wherever possible, cruise lines are trying to raise prices, from gourmet meals to alcohol packages.
They want to finally earn a profit despite mounting expenditures, in addition to making up for nearly two years of lost revenue and paying off debts.
Norwegian Cruise Line, Carnival Cruise Line, and Princess Cruises are the worst offenders.
You can definitely anticipate paying more when you set sail in the upcoming year, especially with those three lines.
We also predict that throughout the upcoming year, additional price increases and new fees will be disclosed.
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