FROM: Disney Travel Tips from Mouseketrips Published Saturdays
Disney Cruise Gratuities
Among the fundamental questions of our existence, right up there with "What does it all mean?", is "How much to tip?". Keith Anderson comes down from the mountain with some tips for tipping Cast Members on a Disney Cruise.
One of the biggest and most overlooked expenses of a Disney Cruise are gratuities.
Nothing ruins a cruise faster than finding out of the last day that you owe someone a large amount of money. Many of the on-board employees onboard are paid through gratuities from cruise guests. You're not supposed to tip everyone, of course - just those people with whom you interact on a daily basis:
- Dining Room Server
- Dining Room Assistant Server
- Dining Room Head Waiter
- Stateroom Host
The gratuities are based on the length of your cruise. On the final day, your stateroom host will leave a gratuites worksheet and some small envelopes in your stateroom.
Use the worksheet to calculate your gratuities, which you can then pay in cash or you can take the completed worksheet to Guest Services and have the amount charged to your stateroom. My personal recommendation? Pre-pay gratuities when you book your cruise.
The prices below are per person and per night, so if there are 4 in your group, and you're on a 7-night Disney Cruise, multiply the amounts shown by 28:
- Dining Room Server: $4.00
- Dining Room Assistant Server: $3.00
- Dining Room Head Waiter: $1.00
- Stateroom Host: $4.00
It is suggested that all guests, including infants, pay gratuities. Cruise Cast Members work hard, are fantastic at what they do, and will earn every penny's worth of what you give them. I usually tip a bit extra if Cast Members are great, and they usually are, but of course that's a decision for you to make.
Enjoy your Disney Cruise! The staff is wonderful, but just remember the gratuities so you aren't surprised when they come due.
While you're waiting for Keith's next Disney tip, why not ask him to plan your next Disney trip? Mouseketrips does nothing but Disney - and they're really good at it! Hook up with them at their website, through Twitter, or on Facebook.
More: DISNEY TRAVEL TIPS FROM MOUSEKETRIPS