[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by biker1

That is not typical. What you may see is recommended gratuities preemptively added to your folio. You can either accept these or have them removed and make other arrangements to provide gratuities, as you see appropriate. Many cruise lines have stopped explicitly collecting gratuities and they are included in the cost of the cruise (yes, it is built in). The one area you may see a gratuity that is paid in advance is on an included drink package. The dollar value of the included drink package may be subjected to a mandatory gratuity that is charged, and paid for, upfront with the price of the cruise. As always, you are free to consider the entire cost of the trip and decide whether it is a good value.

I won't do business with any company that tells me how much to tip their employees. Period.