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Princess Cruises

Princess Cruises joins lines hiking daily service charges

Gene Sloan
USA TODAY

Planning a Princess cruise for 2016? Prepare yourself for higher daily fees.

Effective Jan. 1, the company is hiking the gratuity charge it tacks onto final bills by nearly 13% to $12.95 per person, per day for passengers staying in most cabins. Passengers in suites will pay $13.50 per person, per day -- a 16% rise.

With the increase, a family of four will pay more than $360 in gratuity fees on a typical seven-night cruise.

The hike comes in the wake of recent increases in gratuity charges (also called service charges) at several other major lines including Norwegian, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean and Holland America. Norwegian now adds a $13.50 per person, per day charge for most cabins, while Celebrity and Royal Caribbean levy $12.95. Holland America charges $12.50.

Cruise smackdown: Anthem of the Seas vs. Regal Princess

Some but not all lines allow passengers to lower or remove the gratuity charge while on board vessels if they are unhappy with service.

The practice of adding gratuity charges to passenger bills is at a crossroads in the industry. While Princess and other mass-market lines have been hiking such fees, a growing number of upscale ocean lines including Azamara, Crystal, Seabourn, Regent and SeaDream have eliminated them entirely, and the practice also is disappearing at some river cruise lines. River lines Uniworld, Tauck and Scenic Cruises are among those that now include gratuities for crew members in the base fare.

For a deck-by-deck look at Princess' newest ship, the Regal Princess, scroll through the carousel at the top of the story.

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