The cruise fare is the number on the ad.
It’s not the number on your final bill.
The gap between the two is mostly the same handful of charges, and the cruise lines list and price every one of them on their own help pages.
Nobody reads those pages before they book.
I read them in October 2026, so here’s what costs extra, what doesn’t, and the math for two people on a seven-day sailing.
What the Fare Actually Covers
Start with the good news.
There’s more of it than people think.
Royal Caribbean’s page on what’s included lists your stateroom, the Main Dining Room and the Windjammer buffet, plus water, tea, select juices and classic coffees.
The shows are in the fare too, and so is access to its private destinations.
Carnival’s free drinks are a shorter list (non-bottled water, lemonade, iced tea, hot chocolate, plain coffee and tea).
Then Royal Caribbean names the add-ons in a single sentence.
Beverage packages.
Specialty dining.
Shore excursions, Wi-Fi, spa treatments, the arcade, bingo, the casino.
That one sentence is your extras budget, basically.
The balcony you booked is paid for.
What you do on it might not be.
Gratuities Show Up Every Day
A deck this clean takes a lot of crew, and that’s who the daily gratuity is for.
Royal Caribbean says the money is pooled toward the pay of onboard crew, stateroom attendants and dining staff among them.
If you don’t prepay, it’s added to your onboard account every day, per guest.
At the time of writing, Royal Caribbean charges $18.50 a day for non-suite cabins and $21.00 for suites.
Carnival charges $17.00 for standard staterooms and $19.00 for suites.
Norwegian lists $20.00 for Club Balcony Suites and below.
So two people in a regular Royal Caribbean cabin for seven days pay $259 in gratuities.
On Carnival it’s $238.
Royal Caribbean says gratuities are optional and can be changed at Guest Relations.
I’d budget them as a fixed cost anyway.
The crew earns it, and honestly, nobody wants to spend a sea day in the line at Guest Relations.
Drinks: Read the Package Rules First
Look at those empty loungers.
That’s a port day.
Everybody’s ashore.
Carnival’s CHEERS! drink package costs $83.94 per person, per day if you buy it before the cruise, and $89.94 on board, with the 20% service charge included in both.
Carnival says it has to be bought for the entire cruise, not by the day.
So you pay for days like this one too, when you’re off the ship eating somewhere else.
The other rules matter more than the price.
Every adult in the same stateroom has to buy it, and you have to be 21.
For two adults, seven days of CHEERS! comes to $1,175.16 bought before you sail, or $1,259.16 if you wait until you’re on board.
That $84 difference is a nice dinner ashore.
Skipping the package?
Drinks bought one at a time still carry a charge.
Royal Caribbean adds a 20% gratuity to beverage purchases, and Princess adds a 20% service charge to drinks.
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Port Days: Excursions Are Extra
A pier, a lagoon, a beach.
This is the part of the trip most people picture, and it’s the part the fare covers least.
Shore excursions sit right there on Royal Caribbean’s add-on list.
Its own private destinations are the exception, since access is included on sailings that stop at one.
Everywhere else, the free option is to walk off the ship and explore on your own.
The paid option is whatever you booked.
I’d pick one or two big paid days before you sail and keep the rest free.
Sea Days: Wi-Fi and Specialty Dining
Sea days are when the extras find you.
You’re on the ship all day, you’re bored by mid-afternoon, and the specialty restaurant has a table.
Wi-Fi is an add-on on Royal Caribbean.
Carnival sells internet plans, and if you buy one before you sail, Carnival says it has to cover the whole cruise (daily plans are sold on board).
Turns out “I’ll just check my email once” can be a whole-cruise purchase.
Specialty dining is extra as well.
Royal Caribbean adds a 20% gratuity to specialty dining purchases, and Princess adds a 20% service charge to specialty dining.
That 20% sits on top of the restaurant’s own price, while the Main Dining Room costs nothing extra.
Use What You Already Paid For
This is the part I’d push hardest.
A deck like this one is already in your fare, hot tub and all.
So are the shows and the gym.
Plan your days around the included stuff first, then add the one or two paid things you actually care about.
A budget built that way holds up a lot better than one built from the ad.
One more Carnival rule before you pack.
It says your passport and ID have to stay with you as carry-on, along with valuables and medications, not in your checked bags.
Want the exact number for your sailing?
Put your line, cabin and nights into our Cruise Cost Calculator, which also checks whether a drink package beats paying by the drink.
First cruise?
Start with these first-time cruise tips.
Heading north?
Here’s the Alaska cruise packing list.
Related read: The Caribbean Travel Guide — Instant PDF + Kindle download. Secure checkout by Stripe
