About being cheap

[I cruise 4 cheap]

just gave it some thought and I realized that the cruise lines can not afford to pay their employee's much more then peanuts. A few billion in profits a year does little to cover the anual bonus of the people calling the shots. It is no wonder they need the fare paying passangers to help cover the cost of staffing the ship by tipping above and beyond your cruise fare for good, bad or indifferent service.

 

If we want these boats to keep sailing we need to keep doing our part and ensure the exec's are well paid and looked after!

 

ya-right!

[luv cruising 007]

I imagine in order to publish the lowest cruise rate possible in order to entice potential cruisers, the cruise industry has been notorious of publishing one low-ball price on their advertisement and have failed to properly inform the novice cruiser of fees such as auto-tipping, fees for both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, fees for exclusive restaurants, fees for excursions, fees for babysitting services, fees for bingo, fees for parking, fees for changing / cancelling of cruises, fees for many onboard activities, fees for specialized coffee, fees for certain deserts, fees for pictures, fees for internet usage, fuel charge, ports charges, port taxes, etc.

Tipping is just another fee required by the cruise lines that is not part of the original base fee in order to advertise an initial lower fare !

 

That is so true! but ecpecially for novists a lil research will go a long way on the fees involved with cruising or any vacation! Back when I took my 1st cruise & any vacation I take research is key in my books!

[room010]

I come from a non-tipping culture and in my world a tip is a discretionary reward for good service. However, I understand that in the US, and on most cruise ships, a tip is a mandatory subsidy that's mainly intended to top up the low wages of staff and crew. Why should the company pay a decent wage when they can get the customers to pay it direct? Do the people at head office from CEOs to cleaning crew receive the same low wages? Why no they don't because they aren't on the front line dealing with passengers face to face and therefore can't extract their 'tips' direct from the punters.

 

So to answer the question, yes I DO tip because it's expected. Whether it SHOULD be expected is another discussion. As for being cheap, some people just are and what sad, limited lives they must lead. Getting pleasure over 'stiffing' the company over a smuggled $30 bottle of liquor is just pathetic when you've probably spent hundreds of dollars on your cruise in the first place.

[mom2dea]

I had no clue you could even take off auto tips .... I do thin we should be able to tip how we want but I would never take it off but honestly never knew you could even as for it to be taken off !!!

[scotnree]

To eliminate the "cheap" people why can't Carnival just charge a gratuity onto the price of your cruise thus eliminating the ability to remove it from your sign and sail. They auto charge gratuities at the bar, why not do a general auto charge gratuity and be done with it once and for all!

could not agree with you more!

[Mike&Shell]

THNK GOD I havent run into a person who takes off the auto-tip & would say that, I might not be able to holdback a salty tongue lashing if I saw them! That auto-tip is automatic in my book & if I really like a couple areas of service better I will hand tip them cash on to of the auto-tip! I cant say I spend lots of money on drinks or everything under the sun but I would never be cheap like that!

 

 

I agree with you...

[LHP]

Lets get a few fact straight here.

 

YES, cruise staff are often low paying jobs (not all).

 

No, they do not make a base wage of 70 - 75 a month. They make more then that. The amount depends on the position.

 

 

NOONE held a gun to their heads and said you must work on a cruise ship.

Even if they are making a small income compared to what many in North Ameriac or Europe make, they are still making MUCH more then they would staying in their home county (why do you think they come on the ship in the first place and then stay contact after contract)

 

As for the whole issue of the auto tipping on your account.

 

Tipping is a REWARD for good service. PERIOD!!!!!

 

I decide if the service I received was good or not.

 

Noone can tell me I must tip.

 

As for the comment from one poster that tips should just be added into the cruise fare.

 

Nice thought i guess, but it would not work. If it is barried in the main fare there is no way the cruise line would tell you the real amount they are taking from your fare and equally giving to all staff (or which staff are getting waht) And if they billed it on a seperate line like the taxes and port charges there still is no garantee it make it to the staff. Easy for the cruise line to tell staff it is now built in to their pay just like you want it built in to your fare.

 

 

Bottom line!

 

Cheap or not, people should tip what they want based on how they feel! PERIOD!!!!!!!!!!

 

p.s. I know staff get paid more then 75 bucks a month for two reasons. 1) there is a web sight that post what they make (can't remember the address as it was a few years back I viewed it) And 2) I have a friend who has worked on ships for over 15 years. He started at the bottom and has worked his way up. Hetalks to his co workers and has never once been told of pay anywhere close to that!

 

 

 

 

Please keep the discussion about the individuals that the automatics gratuities apply to.

 

To discuss the salary of someone like the Captain and a Cabin Steward as the same thing is ridiculous.

 

I am solely refering to crew that are listed in the automatic gratuities.

 

Of course other employess on the ship make a salary...that is not the discussion here.

 

We are discussing the FACT that these individuals listed in the automatic gratuities only make a base of $70-75 a MONTH. That is fact.

 

I don't like the FACT that cruise lines (Carnival specifically) has the pay method for these cabin stewards and wait staff set up like this.

 

HOWEVER< as long as that is the case, then people should be educated to the FACT that IF they remove the "tips"....they are saying that these individuals should work for free.

 

Do you want to work for free? (or for $70-75 a month) I think not.

[scotnree]

What people do not realize is that we probably have more in our cabin room safes than these people have to their name. Face it people, we are all blessed to be able to take a cruise. Many of these folks have families that they send most of their earnings to each week. To take away someones hard earned tip is crazy. I am leaving for a cruise 3 week from tomorrow and now I want to tip more than ever to make up for these senseless individuals who refuse to tip!:)

[LHP]

Btw, the reason that the service fee is not automatically in the price of a cruise (as it should be) is so that cruise lines can continue to advertise cruises starting at low prices like $299...etc.

 

My suggestion was that cruise line treat the service fee as a service surcharge like the fuel surcharge.

 

That way the cruise lines could still advertise the low rates but the service surcharge would be added on at the time of sale.

 

If a waiter or cabin steward gets stiffed every now and then by the "tourist" who think they should work for free, they understand that comes with the territory. And the other cabins and tables of travelers help compensate for the occasional bum.

 

However, when there are large groups on board (like the Destiny in December) where everyone in that group took off their gratuity...then you can literally have crew making no money for that entire week.

 

For example....these groups are all at the same group of tables...or their cabins are all in one section serviced by the same waiters and stewards....

 

what happens when they ALL take their tips off ...these hardworking individuals get nothing.

 

At the very least, groups of 25 or more should be required to prepay their gratuities.

 

One group on the Triumph had a website that literally told their members how to take their tips OFF...before they even got on the ship.

 

This was NOT about bad service....this was about BAD PEOPLE!

[LHP]

Iagree that tipping is something that you earn.

 

That is true...

 

that is why this financial transaction's name is incorrect.

 

A tip is "in addition to" a salary...for good service.

 

In the case of cruising...there is NO "in addition to" ....

 

that's what people need to understand.

 

Again, even when you were not productive at all at work one week...you still got PAID. When people do not "tip" on a cruise ship for whatever reason they have in their head....they are saying that these individuals did not deserve to EARN A SALARY that week.

[bodog402]

What people do not realize is that we probably have more in our cabin room safes than these people have to their name. Face it people, we are all blessed to be able to take a cruise. Many of these folks have families that they send most of their earnings to each week. To take away someones hard earned tip is crazy. I am leaving for a cruise 3 week from tomorrow and now I want to tip more than ever to make up for these senseless individuals who refuse to tip!:)

 

EXCELLENT point and I thank you for fully understanding my original point!

Have fun on your next cruise and do me a favor while you are enjoying yourself on your next cruise - :)TIP:) !

[I cruise 4 cheap]

please keep the discussion about the individuals that the automatics gratuities apply to.

 

To discuss the salary of someone like the captain and a cabin steward as the same thing is ridiculous.

 

I am solely refering to crew that are listed in the automatic gratuities.

 

Of course other employess on the ship make a salary...that is not the discussion here.

 

We are discussing the fact that these individuals listed in the automatic gratuities only make a base of $70-75 a month. That is fact.

 

I don't like the fact that cruise lines (carnival specifically) has the pay method for these cabin stewards and wait staff set up like this.

 

However< as long as that is the case, then people should be educated to the fact that if they remove the "tips"....they are saying that these individuals should work for free.

 

Do you want to work for free? (or for $70-75 a month) i think not.

 

 

no one on the ship only makes 75 a month!!!!

 

No matter what you think is true your wrong

[mcwebber]

We are from the uk and i find it amazing the amount of people on this site that are all for auto tipping if the service is good by all means tip but if you recieve bad service you have to remove the tips surely, i realise that staff are on low wages but also i certainly cannot afford to just give money away just because it is a given.

You would not tip a airline staff even if you have a free upgrade so why should this be any different, i realise this will upset a lot of people but this is a fact of life in the uk we pay if we recieve good service only, not because we are lemmings and just follow the crowd.

 

You are not in the UK when on a cruise ship. Please stop telling people what you do in the UK. Please stop dining in restaurants in the US and telling people what you do in the UK. Nobody cares how you do things in the UK if they're not in the UK.

[mcwebber]

Btw, the reason that the service fee is not automatically in the price of a cruise (as it should be) is so that cruise lines can continue to advertise cruises starting at low prices like $299...etc.

 

My suggestion was that cruise line treat the service fee as a service surcharge like the fuel surcharge.

 

There is no fuel surcharge and if you do a little research you would learn Carnival had to refund $40 million the last time.

http://myfloridalegal.com/__852562220065EE67.nsf/0/B17DF81AE0F53A048525741D00791884?Open&Highlight=0,carnival

[truchattycathy]

There is no fuel surcharge and if you do a little research you would learn Carnival had to refund $40 million the last time.

http://myfloridalegal.com/__852562220065EE67.nsf/0/B17DF81AE0F53A048525741D00791884?Open&Highlight=0,carnival

 

I didn't get a refund!

[mcwebber]

I didn't get a refund!

 

Was the surcharge added after you booked?

[miketingle]

You are not in the UK when on a cruise ship. Please stop telling people what you do in the UK. Please stop dining in restaurants in the US and telling people what you do in the UK. Nobody cares how you do things in the UK if they're not in the UK.

 

So if you get poor service in your restaurants you would still tip i think that is total insanity, it looks like common sense has failed somwhere perhaps this is why the tipping culture is rife in the states.:confused:

[mdvlprof]

Do you get free parking at the port if you are handicapped?

Some places you do, others you don't.

Small compensation for normal kid who's now in wheelchair.

[bodog402]

So if you get poor service in your restaurants you would still tip i think that is total insanity, it looks like common sense has failed somwhere perhaps this is why the tipping culture is rife in the states.:confused:

 

I GUESS YOU WISHED SLAVERY WERE BACK -

I concur with your analysis but your analogy does not realistically apply to the cruising industry. First point; the tips added to your onboard account at the beginning of your cruise are the employee's salary and I am certain that you believe that employees should be paid. Secondly; it appears that you have never been on a cruise before as a majority of the employees on the cruise line work very hard and work many long hours in order to make your cruising vacation enjoyable !

[norcal2]

I don't know or worry about what other cruisers do. There are families who may not be able to afford anything that is optional and I won't judge them as I say good for them for managing to put a cruise into their lifetime memory bank.

 

The tip aspect is a personal thing that I am sure everyone will work out according to their wallet. Some give more, some just give the auto-tip, some very few (if any) may stop the auto tip but I doubt that is any high number.

 

It is hard to guess another cruisers real life affordability or reasoning and most won't say "I am removing the auto tip because I am poor" so I don't really listen to the reasoning. In fact it may happen for percieved poor service. Is it really an issue?

[bodog402]

Hi-

Thanks for your reply and I thank you for your perspective but unfortunately

many of the experienced "cheap" cruisers here know very well that tips are

a majority of a crew members salary ! Cruisers should not remove the auto-tips and simply state that their ‘pseudo-intellectual’ reasoning behind not tipping is based on this or that, but they should just state; I AM CHEAP !

[I cruise 4 cheap]

I GUESS YOU WISHED SLAVERY WERE BACK -

I concur with your analysis but your analogy does not realistically apply to the cruising industry. First point; the tips added to your onboard account at the beginning of your cruise are the employee's salary and I am certain that you believe that employees should be paid. Secondly; it appears that you have never been on a cruise before as a majority of the employees on the cruise line work very hard and work many long hours in order to make your cruising vacation enjoyable !

 

 

Where are you people getting your info from that the tips added to your account is the salary?

 

So if the ship is sailing during a slow period and sails almost empty these poor staffer would make nothing?

 

Stop buying into the hype from whomever is feeding it to you. They get paid at least 400 to 500 per month for the lowest positions on the ship. Yes that is CRAP, but far from the 75 that is being claimed. The tips dependent on the position are on TOP of that base wage.

 

Also, the peanuts they are paid is often far more then they would/could make back home. No that does not make it right, but no one is holding a gun to their heads to take/keep the job!

[cruiser4four]

Some people are totally ridiculous. For our last cruise we saved and planned for more than a year before we boarded the ship. We both worked hard and needed a vacation, a time to unwind, relax, and create some memories. Both of us are currently in school so we had school fees as well as bills at home to take care of, both before and after we cruised. We flew in to the port the day before and stayed at a hotel, not because we wanted to show off or anything of the sort, but simply because we could not afford to miss our cruise with all the planning, saving, and sacrificing we put into actually being able to treat ourselves to a vacation. What's funny is that this forum is a place where people praise the affordability of cruising; how much bang you get for your buck, but at the same time you belittle people who actually try to enjoy that very same inexpensive vacation which you promote. When we chose cruising we thought the employees were being paid from the money we paid for our place on the boat, but it appears we were wrong.

 

We took off the automatic tips because we simply cannot afford to have that plus tip all the people who clean our room, serve us dinner, and those who provide food on the Lido deck. On our last cruise our S&S card balance was $0.00 since we did not spend any money.

 

For those folks who claim that we are cheap, why don't you contact Carnival's main office and demand they pay their employees more? Instead of arguing with people here, why not type a letter to the people at Carnival who actually have the power to increase the employees' salary? I agree, the services provided are excellent and second to none, but don't shake a finger at people who cannot afford to give more than they have. I have a life to come back to and bills to pay when I disembark the ship, so don't sit on your thrones and lecture me about tipping. There's a reason many folks stay in interior cabins...because they cannot afford the suites like the royalty in here.

[h_blond2]

I consider myself to be a cheap cruiser, meaning my S&S bill is usually less than $100 for a 5 day cruise. However, I do not remove the tips and always tip my room stewards extra. It's kind of like tipping at a restaurant, if you can't afford to tip, you can't afford to go.

[Swampbabe]

Some people are totally ridiculous. For our last cruise we saved and planned for more than a year before we boarded the ship. We both worked hard and needed a vacation, a time to unwind, relax, and create some memories. Both of us are currently in school so we had school fees as well as bills at home to take care of, both before and after we cruised. We flew in to the port the day before and stayed at a hotel, not because we wanted to show off or anything of the sort, but simply because we could not afford to miss our cruise with all the planning, saving, and sacrificing we put into actually being able to treat ourselves to a vacation. What's funny is that this forum is a place where people praise the affordability of cruising; how much bang you get for your buck, but at the same time you belittle people who actually try to enjoy that very same inexpensive vacation which you promote. When we chose cruising we thought the employees were being paid from the money we paid for our place on the boat, but it appears we were wrong.

 

We took off the automatic tips because we simply cannot afford to have that plus tip all the people who clean our room, serve us dinner, and those who provide food on the Lido deck. On our last cruise our S&S card balance was $0.00 since we did not spend any money.

 

For those folks who claim that we are cheap, why don't you contact Carnival's main office and demand they pay their employees more? Instead of arguing with people here, why not type a letter to the people at Carnival who actually have the power to increase the employees' salary? I agree, the services provided are excellent and second to none, but don't shake a finger at people who cannot afford to give more than they have. I have a life to come back to and bills to pay when I disembark the ship, so don't sit on your thrones and lecture me about tipping. There's a reason many folks stay in interior cabins...because they cannot afford the suites like the royalty in here.

 

Bottomline, you ARE cheap. What difference does it make if they up the cruise price or you tip. Same end result. You work hard for the money that you use to cruise. We all do. You also have no problem screwing someone else out THEIR hard earned money. You are obviously okay with being cheap, so why bother to post about it. :rolleyes: