How Much of a Royal Caribbean Fare Is Taxes and Port Fees?
Taxes and port fees do not shrink when the fare does. On a cheap cruise they can be a third of the price, and on a dear one a tenth.
Taxes and port fees are a middle $149 per person on a Royal Caribbean cruise, which is 20% of the lowest interior fare. The cheaper the cruise, the bigger the share: 39% on cruises under $400, 11% on cruises of $1,100 or more. Out of San Diego it is 47%, because the fare is low and the fees are not.
Every number comes from our own price data, as captured on 20 October 2026. For each of 1,869 cruises we took the taxes and port fees per person and divided them by the lowest interior fare per person, taxes and port fees included, which is the number we show on the site. The box at the bottom says exactly how.
The fee barely moves; the fare does
The taxes and port fees on a cruise come from the ports it visits, not from how well the cruise is selling. In our fares, the middle taxes and fees go from $135 on the cheapest group of cruises to $167 on the dearest, while the all-in fare goes from $345 to $1,463. The fare is more than four times higher from the cheapest group to the dearest, and the fees are about a quarter higher, so on a cheap cruise the fees are a big part of the price.
| All-in fare per person | Cruises priced | Middle fare | Middle taxes and port fees | Share of the fare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $400 | 157 | $345 | $135 | 39% |
| $400 to $599 | 432 | $505 | $135 | 27% |
| $600 to $799 | 433 | $689 | $147 | 21% |
| $800 to $1,099 | 390 | $922 | $162 | 17% |
| $1,100 or more | 457 | $1,463 | $167 | 11% |
Lowest interior fare per person, taxes and port fees included, for cruises leaving 1 November 2026 to 31 October 2027, priced on 20 October 2026. Includes one-way sailings.
By region
The share runs from 11% in Australia & New Zealand to 32% in Mexico. Mexico and Alaska are at the top for different reasons. Mexico has low fares, so the fees weigh more. Alaska has the highest fees, a middle $288 per person. Europe and Asia have the lowest share because the fare is large.
Taxes and port fees as a share of the fare, by region
Taxes and port fees per person divided by the lowest interior fare per person, taxes and port fees included, for cruises leaving 1 November 2026 to 31 October 2027, as priced on 20 October 2026. Each bar runs from the 10th to the 90th percentile of that region. The note beside it gives the middle share, the middle dollars and the number of cruises.
By home port
The same pattern, port by port. The top of the list is where cheap fares meet ordinary fees. San Diego is first at 47%: a middle all-in fare of $329, of which $176 is taxes and fees. The bottom of the list is Barcelona, at 10%, where the fare is $1,631. The fees in dollars sit closer together than the shares, from $78 to $289 per person.
| Home port | Cruises priced | Middle fare | Middle taxes and port fees | Share of the fare |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego | 37 | $329 | $176 | 47% |
| Vancouver | 33 | $815 | $289 | 34% |
| Ravenna (Venice) | 34 | $829 | $281 | 33% |
| Los Angeles | 122 | $502 | $146 | 30% |
| Seattle | 44 | $964 | $288 | 28% |
| Athens (Piraeus) | 29 | $817 | $225 | 28% |
| New Orleans | 24 | $610 | $161 | 26% |
| Tampa | 148 | $621 | $144 | 24% |
| Fort Lauderdale | 236 | $602 | $151 | 24% |
| Baltimore | 23 | $843 | $187 | 23% |
| Miami | 238 | $687 | $165 | 21% |
| San Juan | 65 | $690 | $143 | 21% |
| Galveston | 122 | $683 | $133 | 20% |
| Cape Liberty (New York) | 77 | $1,049 | $197 | 19% |
| Southampton | 24 | $1,003 | $158 | 17% |
| Singapore | 61 | $521 | $78 | 15% |
| Orlando (Port Canaveral) | 269 | $866 | $111 | 14% |
| Shanghai (Baoshan) | 52 | $782 | $104 | 14% |
| Sydney | 23 | $1,489 | $196 | 13% |
| Brisbane | 28 | $1,085 | $151 | 12% |
| Rome (Civitavecchia) | 60 | $1,497 | $155 | 12% |
| Barcelona | 48 | $1,631 | $167 | 10% |
Lowest interior fare per person, taxes and port fees included, for cruises leaving 1 November 2026 to 31 October 2027, priced on 20 October 2026. Home ports with 20 or more priced cruises. Includes one-way sailings, counted at the port they leave from.
By length of cruise
A short cruise carries nearly the fees of a long one. The middle taxes and port fees on a 3 or 4 night cruise are $129, which is $35 a night. On a cruise of 12 nights or more they are $194, which is $12 a night. That is why the share of the fare is biggest on the short ones.
| Length | Cruises priced | Middle fare | Middle taxes and port fees | Per night | Share of the fare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 or 4 nights | 637 | $551 | $129 | $35 | 22% |
| 5 or 6 nights | 307 | $658 | $135 | $26 | 22% |
| 7 or 8 nights | 819 | $998 | $169 | $24 | 17% |
| 9 to 11 nights | 83 | $1,129 | $193 | $21 | 16% |
| 12 nights or more | 23 | $1,612 | $194 | $12 | 12% |
Lowest interior fare per person, taxes and port fees included, for cruises leaving 1 November 2026 to 31 October 2027, priced on 20 October 2026.
What to do with this
Compare cruises on the all-in fare, not a fare with the fees left off. Across the fleet the taxes and port fees run from $105 (10th percentile) to $222 (90th), so two cruises with the same cruise fare can differ by that much at the till. The site shows the all-in fare, with taxes and port fees included, on every page, so the number you compare is the number you pay at booking. Tips and extras come on top: tips and gratuities, explained.
On a back-to-back trip, each leg has its own taxes and port fees, and they add up. What you pay twice for on a back-to-back has the full list, and what a back-to-back costs has the three levers that move the total.
What this does not tell you
- It is the lowest interior cabin. On a balcony or suite the same fees are a smaller share.
- It is per person, for two guests sharing a cabin. A third or fourth guest, or a guest who travels alone, can have a different fee and a different fare.
- Taxes and port fees are the amount Royal Caribbean lists with the fare. They can change before you book.
- The share is the fees over the all-in fare. When the fare is on sale the share rises. That is the arithmetic, not a change in the fees.
- This is one day of fares, 20 October 2026. Fares move daily, and nothing here is a quote.
Sailings with no fare
38 cruises in the window had no fare when we looked. They are shown as unpriced on the site, left out of every figure here and never estimated. We also left out 179 cruise-and-land-tour packages, because a tour fare covers days on land.
How we measured this
Stop planning back-to-backs by hand
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