Tip Question

[susanks1]

I have never been on a cruise and am going on the Infinity to Alaska in September. I have a question about tips. My original invoice from my ta has $84 for gratuities. The Celebrity website says gratuities will be added to your seapass account on a daily basis. I have reserved dinner seating at 8:30. So should I ask my ta to take the gratuities off the original invoice? I don't want to pay twice. Thanks for your help.

[A Sixth?]

I have never been on a cruise and am going on the Infinity to Alaska in September. I have a question about tips. My original invoice from my ta has $84 for gratuities. The Celebrity website says gratuities will be added to your seapass account on a daily basis. I have reserved dinner seating at 8:30. So should I ask my ta to take the gratuities off the original invoice? I don't want to pay twice. Thanks for your help.

 

 

I'm curious... $ 84.00 :confused:

 

How long is the cruise and for how many people does the 'tip" cover? Are you in select dining where the "tips" are charged at final payment or when you say "reserved dinner seating at 8:30" mean traditional seat dining?

[cruisestitch]

Hi and welcome to cruising. It seems to me from your post that you are picturing having to pay tips directly to servers at each meal, as if you were eating in a restaurant. That's not how it works. Celebrity has a suggested tip rate, which is added to your account each day if you have chosen Main Dining Room seating at a fixed time, which it appears you have. (If you choose Select dining, the tips are automatically pre-paid on your invoice, but it doesn't look like that's what you chose, since you said you have an 8:30 seating)

 

It is possible that your TA has chosen to put the tips on the invoice for the cruise, even if you have the fixed seating, and it looks like that may have happened here, but you should check with him/her to make sure.

 

I'm thinking you are in a concierge class cabin, for which the tip rate is $12 a day, for a 7 day cruise, making $84 per person. If you haven't pre-paid the tips, they will show up on your shipboard account on a daily basis, along with anything else you charge on board, like soft drinks, or alcohol, or spa services, or excursions. The only time cash is used for tips on board is if you order room service, when most of us give a dollar or two to the person who delivers it.

 

With drinks, the tip (at a rate of 15%) will show on the receipt you sign, already built in. If you want to give the server something extra, you can write it in on the receipt before you sign it. There are no receipts to sign for dinner in the main dining room, or the buffet.

 

If you eat in a specialty restaurant, there is an extra service charge for that location, which will also go on your seapass card account.

 

Hope that helps explain it.

[susanks1]

Thanks for the reply. I am going on a 7 day cruise. I have traditional dinner seating at 8:30. I didn't know you had a choice to pay the tips up front or after the cruise on my seapass account. I did send my ta an email asking her for clarification. She is charging me for the tips ahead of the cruise. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't going to be charged the tips twice. Thanks.

[cruisestitch]

Another thing regular cruisers know -- it is always a good idea to check your on-board account every day or so to make sure nothing unexpected has slipped in. You can do it easily from your stateroom using the TV remote control. That way if by chance you see that you have been double charged for something, it's easy to adjust your account accordingly before the last day of the cruise.

[gsarnow]

Are the tips that are charged for select dining the same as those for regular dining?

Are the tips suggested different for concierge class rooms vs regular rooms?

[TelecasterPlayer]

Are the tips that are charged for select dining the same as those for regular dining?

Are the tips suggested different for concierge class rooms vs regular rooms?

 

The tips for select dining are the same as traditional dining, except for select you need to pre-pay them. Traditional is charged to your room account each day.

 

Yes, concierge class/aqua class room daily tips are .50/per day more than other cabins. Suites are even more because of the butler.

 

11.50/per day per person for regular rooms

12.00/per day per person for CC/AQ

Add 3.50/per day per person for Suites for the butler service

[smeyer418]

some overseas TA's automatically add the auto-tip so its not an issue. With the auto-tip in place and the 15% added for drinks the base tips are taken care of and no additional tipping is required/suggested except for kids crew, the concierge if you use their services, the spa and similar add ons...

 

You can if you feel someone deserves it for going over and above leave some more but its not required/suggested....

 

the traditionally tipped crew gets 80-90% of their income from the tips/auto tip...