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Booking a Princess cruise can make budgeting feel straightforward because your fare covers your stateroom, meals in included dining venues, entertainment, and many onboard activities. However, the advertised cruise fare is not always the final amount you will spend.
Several optional and additional charges can increase the total cost of a Princess cruise. Some are easy to anticipate, while others may only become noticeable after you have already booked or boarded the ship.
Understanding these expenses before sailing can help you set a realistic budget and avoid surprises on your final account. Common additional costs can include gratuities, specialty restaurants, alcoholic and premium beverages, Wi-Fi, shore excursions, spa treatments, photographs, casino spending, and certain onboard purchases.
This guide explains the major costs to watch for and how to plan for them.
Before discussing hidden or additional expenses, it helps to understand what your cruise fare generally covers.
Depending on your booking and fare type, your cruise fare can include:
Your selected stateroom
Main dining
Buffet dining
Select casual food options
Entertainment and performances
Pools and many onboard recreational areas
Some activities and events
Basic room service options, depending on the current offering
Transportation between scheduled cruise ports while onboard
The exact inclusions can vary based on your fare, package, promotion, itinerary, and the services available on your particular ship.
The important point is that included does not mean everything onboard is free. Princess offers many premium services and experiences that carry separate charges.
The term "hidden costs" can be slightly misleading. Most additional charges are disclosed in the cruise line's terms, booking information, menus, or onboard pricing. They may simply be easy to overlook when comparing the initial cruise fare.
Here are the major expenses you should consider.
Gratuities are one of the most important additional costs to include in your cruise budget.
Princess generally applies a daily crew appreciation or gratuity charge to guests' onboard accounts. The amount can depend on the accommodation category and the applicable Princess policy for your sailing.
For a family or group traveling for a week, these daily charges can add up significantly.
For example, if four people are sailing together for seven nights, even a relatively modest daily per-person charge becomes a noticeable part of the overall trip cost.
One of the most common questions is: can you remove gratuities on Princess Cruises?
In general, Princess treats daily gratuities as an automatic charge rather than a completely optional payment that passengers can simply switch off at any time through their booking.
Policies can vary depending on the booking, sailing, location, and applicable terms. If you have a genuine service concern, speak with Guest Services onboard about the issue rather than assuming that gratuities can simply be deleted.
This is also why travelers should not calculate their cruise budget using only the advertised base fare.
Princess includes dining options in the standard cruise experience, but specialty restaurants can cost extra.
These venues can offer upgraded menus, premium food, or a more specialized dining experience. Depending on the restaurant and booking arrangement, you may pay a fixed cover charge or another applicable fee.
If you plan to eat at specialty restaurants several times, add those costs to your budget before booking.
You can keep this expense under control by:
Choosing included dining for most meals
Reserving specialty restaurants only for special occasions
Checking whether your fare or package includes dining benefits
Comparing individual restaurant charges before making reservations
Your cruise fare does not necessarily mean every drink onboard is included.
Basic beverages may be available without an additional charge in certain dining areas, but premium drinks can cost extra.
Potential additional purchases include:
Alcoholic beverages
Cocktails
Premium wines
Specialty coffee
Bottled water
Some soft drinks
Other premium beverages
Princess also offers beverage packages on eligible cruises. Whether a package makes financial sense depends on how much you expect to drink.
Do not automatically purchase a package just because it appears convenient.
Estimate how many premium beverages you would realistically consume each day. Then compare that expected spending with the package price and any applicable terms, taxes, or service charges.
Someone who drinks very little may spend less by purchasing individual beverages.
Internet access is another expense that travelers sometimes forget when calculating the cruise price.
Cruise ships rely on maritime connectivity, so onboard internet can be priced differently from a normal home or mobile internet plan.
You may encounter different options based on:
Number of devices
Length of the cruise
Internet package selected
Current promotional offers
Whether Wi-Fi is included in your specific fare or package
If you need to work remotely, make video calls, stream content, or stay connected regularly, check the internet allowance included with your booking before sailing.
Shore excursions are not generally included simply because you have paid for the cruise.
At each destination, Princess may offer organized excursions such as:
City tours
Wildlife experiences
Scenic transportation
Cultural visits
Adventure activities
Food and sightseeing tours
Water-based activities
Excursion prices vary considerably depending on the destination and activity.
You should also remember that independent activities can create their own costs for transportation, admission tickets, meals, guides, and other services.
Spa treatments can quickly increase your onboard spending.
Depending on the service, additional charges may apply for:
Massages
Facials
Beauty treatments
Hair services
Salon appointments
Other wellness treatments
These services are generally priced separately from your cruise fare.
If you are trying to keep the cruise affordable, consider deciding in advance whether spa services are part of your budget rather than making an impulse purchase onboard.
Professional photographs are another optional expense.
Photographers may take pictures during boarding, formal evenings, special events, and other moments during the cruise. You can usually choose whether to purchase the resulting photographs or packages.
The important thing is that having your picture taken does not necessarily mean you are obligated to buy it.
If you want to save money, simply select the photographs you genuinely want rather than purchasing an entire package without comparing the available options.
Casino expenses can be easy to overlook because they are not part of the traditional cruise fare.
If you choose to gamble, your spending depends entirely on your activity and limits.
Casino losses can become a much larger expense than many smaller onboard purchases, so establish a personal spending limit before you start playing.
Treat casino money as entertainment spending rather than part of your essential cruise budget.
Medical care onboard can result in additional charges.
If you need to visit the ship's medical facility or receive treatment, those services may not be included in your cruise fare.
This is particularly important for international itineraries because medical expenses can vary depending on the situation and treatment required.
Travel insurance can be worth considering for broader protection against eligible medical and travel-related expenses.
Food delivery policies can change over time, and some room-service or delivery options may carry additional fees while others may be included.
Before ordering, check the current menu and applicable charge displayed through the onboard system or provided information.
This is a small expense compared with some other cruise costs, but frequent orders can add up during a week-long sailing.
Cruise ships commonly have retail stores selling items such as:
Clothing
Jewelry
Watches
Cosmetics
Souvenirs
Duty-free products
Cruise merchandise
These purchases are entirely optional, but shopping is one of the easiest ways to increase your final onboard bill without realizing it.
Set a shopping allowance before sailing if you want to keep your total spending predictable.
Laundry services can be an additional expense, particularly on longer cruises.
If you are sailing for several days or weeks, you may be tempted to use professional laundry or pressing services rather than packing enough clothing.
Check the current pricing for your ship and sailing before sending items to be cleaned.
Packing strategically can reduce the need for paid laundry services.
The total price displayed during booking can include various government taxes, fees, and port expenses depending on the fare and itinerary.
These amounts are separate from many optional onboard purchases.
When comparing cruise prices, look at the total booking price, not just the starting fare advertised in a promotion.
A cruise advertised at a low base price may have a different final cost once taxes, fees, gratuities, transportation, and optional extras are considered.
Your cruise fare generally does not mean your entire journey to the port is included.
You may need to budget for:
Flights
Airport transfers
Taxis
Rideshare services
Hotels before or after the cruise
Parking
Rental cars
Meals during travel
This can be especially important when flying to a cruise departure city.
For example, a cheap cruise fare can become considerably more expensive when you add a hotel night, airport transportation, airfare, and parking.
Travel insurance is another expense that some passengers choose to add.
It may provide coverage for eligible situations involving trip cancellation, interruption, medical emergencies, baggage problems, or travel delays, depending on the policy.
Insurance is not an unavoidable onboard charge, but it should be considered when calculating the true cost of your vacation.
Always read the policy's coverage, exclusions, limits, and claim requirements before purchasing it.
A useful way to plan is to divide expenses into three categories.
ExpenseUsually included?Budget needed?
StateroomYesNo additional budget normally needed
Main diningYesNo additional budget normally needed
Standard onboard entertainmentGenerallyUsually no
Daily gratuitiesAdditional chargeYes
Specialty diningUsually extraYes, if selected
Premium beveragesExtraYes, if purchased
Wi-FiDepends on booking/packageCheck your fare
Shore excursionsExtraYes
Spa treatmentsExtraYes, if selected
CasinoExtraOptional
PhotosExtraOptional
ShoppingExtraOptional
Transportation to portUsually separateYes
Hotel before sailingUsually separateYes, if needed
Travel insuranceOptionalConsider it
You do not have to avoid every additional service. The goal is to know what you are paying for before you commit to it.
Check your booking confirmation and current Princess terms for:
Cruise fare
Taxes and fees
Gratuities
Included packages
Dining benefits
Wi-Fi benefits
Beverage benefits
Promotional inclusions
This gives you a better starting point for your actual budget.
Decide how much you are comfortable spending on optional purchases.
You can divide your allowance between:
Drinks
Excursions
Dining
Shopping
Entertainment
Spa services
This prevents small purchases from turning into a large final bill.
Do not wait until the final morning to look at your account.
Review your charges during the cruise and question anything you do not recognize while there is still time to resolve it.
Packages can be convenient, but they are not automatically cheaper.
Consider your actual usage before purchasing a beverage, dining, or internet package.
There is no single hidden cost that applies equally to every passenger.
For many travelers, daily gratuities are one of the most significant predictable additional expenses because they are charged per person and per day.
For other travelers, excursions, premium drinks, specialty dining, Wi-Fi, or transportation can become much larger expenses.
The biggest cost ultimately depends on how you travel and what you choose to purchase.
There is no universal amount because spending habits vary.
A passenger who mainly uses included dining and entertainment may spend relatively little beyond the required cruise charges.
Another traveler may spend substantially more on excursions, drinks, specialty restaurants, shopping, and spa treatments.
A practical approach is to create three budgets:
Essential: gratuities and any unavoidable travel expenses.
Planned: excursions, dining, Wi-Fi, drinks, or other services you already intend to purchase.
Optional: shopping, casino spending, spa treatments, and spontaneous purchases.
This gives you a much clearer picture than simply adding a random amount to the cruise fare.
The biggest mistake when budgeting for a Princess cruise is looking only at the advertised cruise fare. Your actual vacation cost can also include daily gratuities, premium drinks, specialty dining, Wi-Fi, excursions, spa treatments, transportation, and other optional purchases.
The good news is that many of these expenses can be planned in advance. Review your booking, understand what is included, check current charges before purchasing extras, and set an onboard spending limit.
And if you are specifically asking can you remove gratuities on Princess Cruises, do not assume they are simply an optional charge that can always be switched off. If you have concerns about service or charges, speak with Guest Services and ask how the current policy applies to your sailing.
A realistic budget gives you a much better idea of what your Princess cruise will actually cost—and helps you enjoy the trip without an unpleasant surprise when the final onboard account arrives.
Are gratuities included in Princess Cruises?
Princess generally applies daily gratuity or crew appreciation charges separately from the advertised cruise fare. The applicable amount can depend on the accommodation and sailing.
Can you remove gratuities on Princess Cruises?
Passengers should not assume that daily gratuities can simply be removed. If you have a service concern, contact Guest Services and discuss the specific situation and applicable policy.
Are drinks free on Princess Cruises?
Some standard beverages may be included, while alcoholic drinks and various premium beverages generally cost extra unless covered by an applicable package or promotion.
Is Wi-Fi free on Princess Cruises?
Wi-Fi inclusion depends on your booking, fare, package, promotion, and current terms. Check your reservation before purchasing an internet package.
Are shore excursions included in the cruise fare?
Shore excursions are generally separate purchases. Their prices depend on the destination and the specific activity.
Do Princess Cruises charge for specialty restaurants?
Specialty dining can carry an additional charge. The amount and dining options depend on the ship, restaurant, and current pricing.
Can I avoid most extra cruise costs?
Yes. Many additional expenses are optional. You can use included dining and entertainment, limit premium purchases, choose excursions carefully, and monitor your onboard account.
Should I buy a beverage package?
It depends on your expected consumption. Compare the package price with what you realistically expect to spend on individual beverages before purchasing one.
Do I need to budget for transportation to the cruise port?
Yes. Unless transportation is specifically included in your booking, you should budget separately for flights, hotels, parking, transfers, taxis, or other travel costs.
What is the easiest way to keep a Princess cruise within budget?
Start with the total cruise price, then add gratuities and transportation. After that, create a separate allowance for optional expenses such as excursions, drinks, specialty dining, Wi-Fi, and shopping.
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Your ultimate guide to cruise adventures. Discover amazing destinations, find the perfect cruise, and create unforgettable memories on the high seas.
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