SEATTLE, June 14 (Our Washington Times) — For Washington travelers comparing cruise prices, Holland America Line’s posted fare is not the full onboard bill. The company’s current booking and onboard FAQs show an automatic daily “Crew Appreciation” charge of $18 per guest for non-suite staterooms and $20 per guest for suites.
Holland America’s onboard FAQ defines Crew Appreciation as “a daily gratuity automatically added to your onboard account to recognize the many Holland America Line team members who make your cruise feel effortless.” A separate Holland America FAQ on paying gratuities lists the same daily rates and says they are subject to change. The onboard FAQ page reviewed for this story showed a June 9 update date, and the booking FAQ showed June 14.
That means the charge can add up fast. On a seven-night sailing, the posted fee totals $126 for one non-suite guest and $140 for one suite guest. For two people sharing a suite, the published Crew Appreciation charge would total $280 over seven nights before any other onboard purchases.
Holland America says the money is pooled across the ship. In its onboard FAQ, the line says Crew Appreciation “appears as a daily charge on your onboard account, and it is pooled to support team members across the ship who contribute to your experience, including roles you see every day, and those working quietly in the background.”
The company records reviewed by Times Media Service confirm the current $18 and $20 daily rates, but they do not, in the text available on those FAQ pages, spell out when the latest pricing took effect or what the previous daily charges were. Fox News, citing company materials, reported that the higher rates took effect June 1 and reflected a $1-per-day increase from earlier pricing of $17 for most cabins and $19 for suites. Fox News also reported that guests may adjust the daily gratuity amount while onboard.
In a statement quoted by Fox News, a Holland America spokesperson said “100% goes directly to our shipboard team” and described the charge as “in line with the cruise industry competitive standards.”
A broader cruise-tipping comparison reviewed for this story reported that some cruise lines’ automatic gratuity charges can run as high as $25 per person per day. But that comparison did not provide a full underlying industry dataset for independent line-by-line verification, so it offers only a general benchmark rather than a comprehensive ranking of cruise lines.
Several travel-industry reports reviewed for this story also said Holland America increased automatic service charges on some onboard purchases, including bar, spa and specialty dining transactions, from 18% to 20%. That change was not confirmed in the Holland America FAQ text reviewed for this story.
What Holland America’s own published records do confirm is narrower: the line’s current Crew Appreciation charge is $18 per day for non-suite guests and $20 per day for suite guests, the fee is added automatically to onboard accounts, and the company says the rates are subject to change.
