penrosepair

Assuming that your heart is in the right place and you are trying to reward staff with your gratuities, consider that removing the automatic gratuities does just the opposite. Management sees this as the result of your dissatisfaction, so instead of creating a reward, you have placed a demerit on your server's record.

 

Without the automatic gratuity, your steward and waiter must hand over the cash they receive from you so again, your intention to reward them isn't fulfilled.

 

You may not agree with the system but that is how it works.

Not sure I understand this answer fully as someone else has just said it's not possible to remove them anyway.

Yes you can adjust the auto-tips at Guest Relations either up or down to zero, its your decision. There are no questions asked or any forms to complete.

Thank you. That's useful to know.

In the days past, the staff has oftentimes been known to guilt passengers into giving them more money by the end of the cruise. I have even seen some so blatant as to state they don't get any of the tips via the autotips and always the more subtle tactics of all their children that are starving at home, having to pay for their own flights back home, stating this is their last cruise of the contract and they don't know how they will survive for the few months without a job. On Princess, quite some time ago we would hear the cruise director begging for tips above and beyond the standard auto tips for the crew if you liked your cruise. Gone are those days ... I never see that anymore but I suspect that is exactly what just happened if one of the wait staff stated they received no tips unless they got scores of 10 on the post cruise survey.

 

Long ago ... maybe 20 years back, we were on a B2B cruise, but our waiter didn't know it. He stated he had small children and his wife was pregnant again and he was going home right after the first leg of our B2B. Not suspecting he was fibbing to us, I asked his children's names ... I don't think he expected that question and he struggled with the answer. Finding that odd but still didn't really think he was lying to us, I asked if he had any pictures of his children. He said he would bring them the next night. Well, he did so and they were pictures from a magazine and their names mysteriously changed from the previous night. OMG ... what a little con artist but we didn't let him know we were on to him. He kept on about how he still needed to raise money for his flight home in a few days ... just out and out begging for extra tips. Well, you should have seen the look on his face when he saw us show up for dinner on the second sailing of our B2B. And yes, we overheard him trying to scam the next set of passengers, too. Him and his coworkers just sat back and laughed about it. As mentioned, I never ever see that kind of behavior anymore....and certainly not on Celebrity! They do however, seem very concerned about getting that perfect score, which I honestly gave for my most recent sailing on Celebrity! My goodness, there is nothing more I could have asked for ... it was a well deserved 10!!

We've also heard stories like this in the past. One room steward actually told us they don't get wages only tips. That's why we got into the habit of removing the auto tips & handing out separate envelopes at the end.

Hi does anyone know if Celebrity give you the option to remove the tips from your onboard account? We've always done this in the past with both RC & Princess as we prefer to hand the cash over to the individual side who have served us during our cruise. Also that way we are sure it has gone to the right people. We generally give a small amount at the time of room service but as someone said they certainly don't seem to expect it.

Thank you to everyone for your replies. I was leaning towards Ventura but then found (what I consider to be) better value for money. I've booked for us to go on the Celbrity Eclispe instead.

Still like to hear people's opinion so will start a new thread.

Thanks guys!

Thank you both for your quick & helpful replies

ann141 I notice you have also sailed on the Queen Elizabeth? That is another option as it too sails out of Southampton for Xmas & New Year in the Canaries. Although I realise it's slightly more expensive how does it compare to the Ventura. The sales person explained it as like the difference between a 5* hotel & a Premier Inn. Looking at the pictures it seemed more geared up to older guests?

Hi I'm looking to book a cruise from Southampton for myself & my 17 year old son at Christmas. Funds are limited & we only afford an inside cabin. Never had an inside before so slightly worried about this.

Also never sailed out of Southampton at this time of year before so a bit worried about how we will entertain ourselves during sea days as I assume too cold to be on deck. And too depressing to stay in cabin. As long as my son can find other teenagers I'm sure he will be happy. I'm just worried that I won't be able to find a quiet spot anywhere to read. Are there adult only areas on board?

Finally which ship would suit us best? Oceana is smaller I believe. And although the cruise doesn't incorporate New Year there is a significant price difference

Thank you! Once again that is really helpful to know.

Hi thanks for your reply. Thats really helpful and I'm sure we will purchase the package!

On a separate note, and sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but i've noticed i've used the wrong icon against this message but am unable to find a way to edit it??

It says at the bottom, where it tells you what you are allowed to do that I CAN edit my posts. But I cant see an edit button against my post. I've posted on many forums in the past so I consider myself to be ofay with this sort of thing! Any ideas??

Hello Everyone,

We are new to this forum and MSC. We have booked a cruise on the Opera from Southampton for next summer. Although we were pleasantly surprised at the price of the cruise, having booked we were astounded at the cost of the drinks packages! We are now wondering if this is how they justify such low sailing prices?

Can anyone tell us if prices on board are higher than average, and whether it is worthwhile to invest in a package? The premium package has been quoted as being £900 for 3 of us!! And the standard package has been quoted at £500. ( 2 adults & a teenager)

We are NOT heavy drinkers but enjoy a glass of wine or 2 with our meals. I enjoy an occasional cocktail and my husband enjoys the occasional beer. And our teenager only drinks soft drinks. We cannot see how we could spend this amount of money on drinks!!

Any ideas of our best option?

Thanks for reading.