When a cruise is advertised at a headline fare of, say, $599, the number most passengers need is not $599. It is that figure plus taxes, fees and port expenses, plus a daily service charge for every person in the cabin, children included on many lines. Those charges are not optional extras like a drinks package or a spa visit. They are part of the cost of taking the cruise at all. Our view is simple: cruise lines should lead with one all-in price per person that includes every charge a passenger cannot avoid, and comparison and booking sites, including this one, should show that number wherever a fare appears.
The charges that come after the headline
Two kinds of charge sit outside most mainstream cruise fares. The first is taxes, fees and port expenses. Royal Caribbean, for example, says these "vary by sailing and are based on several different factors" and shows them alongside the fare rather than inside it.
The second is the automatic gratuity, a daily charge added to the onboard account. A Travel Market Report roundup of each line's policy, published in July, lists Royal Caribbean at $18.50 per person per day for standard cabins and $21 for suites; Norwegian Cruise Line at $20 per person per day for guests aged three and above outside its suites, and $25 in The Haven and suites; Princess at $18 to $20 depending on the cabin; and Carnival at $17 in standard rooms and $19 in suites since April. On a seven-night cruise, a family of four on a line charging $20 a day would see $560 added for gratuities alone.
The same roundup shows that some lines take the opposite approach. Virgin Voyages, Azamara and Regent Seven Seas include gratuities in the fare. So it can be done, and it is being done.
What regulators have said about drip pricing
Regulators have a name for advertising a low price and adding mandatory charges later: drip pricing. The Federal Trade Commission's rule on unfair or deceptive fees, which took effect on May 12, 2025, requires businesses that advertise prices for live-event tickets and short-term lodging to show the total price, including mandatory fees, up front. Announcing it, the FTC said the rule "does not prohibit any type or amount of fee, nor does it prohibit any specific pricing strategies"; it requires that businesses "tell consumers the whole truth up-front about prices and fees." The agency estimated that the rule would save consumers up to 53 million hours a year that would otherwise be spent working out total prices.
The federal rule is limited to those two industries, and we are not suggesting it applies to cruises; that is a question for regulators and courts. California has gone further. Its Honest Pricing Law, in force since July 1, 2024, makes it illegal for most businesses to "advertise or list a price for a good or service that does not include all required fees or charges" other than government taxes and reasonable shipping costs. The state's Attorney General puts it plainly: "the price a Californian sees should be the price they pay." The law does not cover voluntary tips left by customers. How it applies to a particular cruise charge is a legal question we do not try to answer here.
The principle behind both measures is the one that matters for cruise passengers. Neither caps what a business may charge. Both say the advertised number should be the number you pay.
Why the all-in number matters more for cruises
Cruise pricing is unusually exposed to this problem. Fares are quoted per person, but gratuities are charged per person per day, so the gap between the headline and the total grows with every extra night and every extra person in the cabin. A couple comparing a three-night sailing with a seven-night one, or a family comparing a line that includes gratuities with one that does not, cannot see the real difference from the headline fares. They have to find each line's policy, do the arithmetic and add the port charges for each sailing. Most people will not, and the line with the lowest headline benefits from the ones who do not.
There is also a timing problem. The automatic gratuity usually appears on the onboard account during the cruise, long after the decision to book was made and often after the final payment date, when cancelling would cost a large share of the fare. A charge that cannot sensibly be avoided at that point is, in practice, part of the price.
The strongest case for the current system
The cruise lines have a reasonable argument, and it deserves a fair hearing. Gratuities are framed as a way to reward crew. Royal Caribbean describes them as "a way to reward our crew members for their outstanding service," shared among dining, bar, culinary and stateroom teams, and Carnival says all of the gratuities it collects go to its shipboard staff. Folding them into the fare could blur that link and, some argue, weaken the incentive for good service.
Port taxes and fees are a second argument. They are set in part by governments and ports and differ from one sailing to the next, which is why Royal Caribbean says they vary. Some new charges, such as port taxes introduced by individual countries, have been added after bookings were made. Keeping them separate makes it clear which part of the price the line controls.
Finally, the market already offers a choice. Passengers who dislike service charges can sail with a line that includes them.
Why we are not persuaded
None of these arguments requires hiding the total. A line can include a daily service charge in an all-in price and still say, in the breakdown, exactly how much goes to crew. Port taxes can be included in the advertised total for each sailing, as California's law already expects for most mandatory charges other than government taxes, and itemised underneath for anyone who wants the detail. Showing the total does not stop a line from explaining it.
The "choose another line" argument also assumes that passengers can compare like with like. They can only do that if every line shows the same kind of number. Today, the lines that include gratuities look more expensive on a fare listing than lines that add them later, which penalises the more transparent approach.
What should change
Cruise lines should advertise a per-person price that includes automatic gratuities, port expenses and every other charge a passenger must pay, with a breakdown one click away. Booking sites and comparison sites should do the same, or at least show a total for a stated cabin occupancy and length of cruise next to every headline fare. Until that happens, the practical step for passengers is to ignore the headline and compare totals: fare, taxes, fees and port expenses, plus the daily service charge multiplied by the number of nights and the number of people in the cabin.
A price is only useful if it tells you what you will pay. For most cruises, the advertised one does not.