Back in February, we told you that sailing Carnival was reportedly set to get a little more expensive.
At that time, we shared reports from passengers that received letters from Carnival telling them that the cruise line’s onboard service gratuities were increasing.
The letters posted said that the rates would rise starting April 2, 2026. However, we had yet to see anything official on Carnival’s website.
Today, however, the increase is definitely in place.
We noticed a change to Carnival’s help page that shows the service gratuity has increased from $16 per person, per day to $17 per person, per day for most cabins on the ship.
Suite staterooms see a new higher charge of $19 per person, per day, up from the previous $18.
All told, a couple traveling in a balcony cabin will now see total charges of $238 over the course of a 7-day cruise. That’s up 6.25% over the previous rate.
Passengers staying in suite cabins will now see a 7-day charge of $266 for two people. That’s up 5.6% over the previous rate.
According to Carnival, “it is customary for our guests to extend gratuities to the shipboard staff in appreciation for their hard work and exceptional service.”
The cruise line’s website also says that “100% of your gratuities are distributed to the crew who you interact with, such as your stateroom attendants, dining and culinary services staff, as well as other members of the onboard team who work behind the scenes to enhance your overall cruise experience.”
Gratuity Increase Puts Carnival in Line With Others, But Is Another Price Pushed Higher in Recent Months
It’s common that gratuity rates on most lines steadily increase. In fact, it has been a couple of years since Carnival’s last bump in the service charge.
The last increase for Carnival was in 2023, when the rate for standard staterooms moved from $14.50 per person, per day to $16 for most cabins.
The current rate of $17 for most rooms puts Carnival on par — or still lower — than other lines. For instance, Royal Caribbean charges $18.50 per person, per day for most rooms on its ships. Norwegian Cruise Line charges $20. MSC charges $16 for most cabins.
We have noticed that Carnival has steadily increased the price on a number of items around the ship, however.
For instance, in December 2025, passengers saw a bump in the service charge on beverage purchases from 18% to 20%. At that time we also noted that the daily wi-fi charge also rose by 7-9% depending on the package and when it was purchased.
The cruise line also significantly bumped up the price of the drink package for cruises of more than five days a little more than a year ago.
Of course, adding a dollar or two here or there isn’t likely to break the bank for any passenger. Still, when people are seeing price rises seemingly everywhere, the dollars can certainly add up.
