Pre-Paid Gratuity Policy

[Scants]

We are going on our first cruise in May. Do you recommend we prepaid our gratuities. Look for advice.

[Gingee]

I think the cruise line automatically puts in on your tab. If you want to adjust either way, you can do it on the ship.

[Guest Time2gocruzn]

Tipping is a very personal choice and there are a lot of strong opinions here about it. We are just off the Miracle. It is very easy to just let them charge you for the tips automaticaly when you board. Not sure what the advantage would be to pre-paying other than just one more expence to get out of the way early and to cut down your SS bill. Either way it all comes from the same place or us. Whatever you do...do not wait till the last night of the cruise to go to the purser about tips or anything else. There were big lines that night, and I would not have wanted to waste my time on the last night waiting in that line :)

[Wennfred]

Yes I do recommend the Pre-pay option.. thats how I do it, its one less thing to worry about when youre on the ship, if you feel you need to add to it, you can by either going to the Pursers officer to adjust it higher or just give them the extra cash in the Envelopes provided in your cabin.

[ColoradoJuli]

djklove - The line is so long at the Purser's desk because they don't allow you to adjust the tip until the day before the cruise ends. Guess they want you to think twice about adjusting the tip because the lines do get really Loooong!

[Sharon Temple]

Guess you can't teach an old dog new tricks; I still like to pay them face to face, and for some reason just don't trust the cruise ship taking it out for me and giving it to them. On my last cruise I went (early) to the purser's desk and signed a form for them not to take it out. No long line. Maybe on my next cruise I will talk to the staff and see what they prefer. Probably having the ship take it out, since that way they get tipped for sure and not stiffed.

 

Why in the world doesn't CCL just make this part of the fare? I believe other lines do that.

[tef43]

Why in the world doesn't CCL just make this part of the fare? I believe other lines do that.

Huh? :confused: *None* of the mainstream (read: mass-market) lines do that.

[James&Rob]

Hello

 

Im like Sharon I like to give tips face to face I just got off the victory march 13 we went to the pursers deck the next to the last day of cruise and had tips removed went early in the morning no line at all we are earlie risers.I have done the same on caribbean princess, Sensation and Fantasy I just want the guys that earn it ti get it Im old fashion even in resturants If I dont get good service you dont get tip I know they say it is proper to tip regardless of the service but not me a tip is a thank you you can leave your tip on your sail and sign card and you can ajust it no problem at all have a great day James

[tankersbabe]

I prepay mine, just makes the S&S smaller and less to worry about. If I want to give extra tips, I tip in cash on the LAST night.

 

I simply let my TA know I wanted to pay my tips as part of my final payment. No problems!

 

Stef

[lucky4you02]

My travel agent told me if I wanted to, I could go to the pursers desk on the first day and get them to take the tips off. That I could just use the envelopes that they give at the end. We will most likely be doing buffet instead of the dinning room. I don't think we should have to tip for services not utalized. We won't be ordering drinks from them. We will be drinking punch/lemonaide or the drinks we bring onboard with us. I'm not sure how the buffet works or if we should tip them or not. We will tip the cabin people as we fell necessary.

[GoinCruisin]

My travel agent told me if I wanted to, I could go to the pursers desk on the first day and get them to take the tips off. That I could just use the envelopes that they give at the end. We will most likely be doing buffet instead of the dinning room. I don't think we should have to tip for services not utalized. We won't be ordering drinks from them. We will be drinking punch/lemonaide or the drinks we bring onboard with us. I'm not sure how the buffet works or if we should tip them or not. We will tip the cabin people as we fell necessary.

 

The same servers work the buffet as do the dining room. If you will note on the guidelines for tipping, it says "regardless of dining venue"... Also, if you do it yourself, you don't know WHO to tip... there are behind the scenes people that get the tips... people that help out in the dining room, buffet, steward assistants, etc. If you take the tips off... anything you give them in cash, has to be turned over to a pool anyway. If you leave them on, and pay them additional cash, that is theirs to keep. Please don't think you are "doing them a service" by taking them off and paying in person. It takes them longer to get it, and they still get the same amount...

[lucky4you02]

She said to tip as if I would when eating out. When calculating the tip by %, I would tip more when ordering a steak then a couple of slices of pizza.

[GoinCruisin]

She said to tip as if I would when eating out. When calculating the tip by %, I would tip more when ordering a steak then a couple of slices of pizza.

 

It's so much easier to just leave them on. Who wants to figure out how much you WOULD have paid for a meal several times a day? What they apply to your S&S account is way less than you would pay eating in a restaurant 3 times a day... not to mention all the other people the tips cover. You can always adjust them down if you get zero service... but we are talking $10 per day... not very much for all the people it covers...

[Flip2cruise]

She said to tip as if I would when eating out. When calculating the tip by %, I would tip more when ordering a steak then a couple of slices of pizza.

 

Not sure where your TA is pulling these ideas from,:confused: but here is the policy from the carnival website.

 

http://www.carnival.com/CMS/FAQs/Gratuities_Tips.aspx

 

What is the tipping policy onboard?

Guests can pay their shipboard gratuities in one of two ways:

 

1. Reverse Gratuity Policy - For our guests' convenience, we automatically add the recommended gratuities to the onboard Sail & Sign account on embarkation day.

 

Guests will have the discretion to adjust these gratuities based upon the level of service received during the cruise. This includes the option to adjust gratuities (up or down) for any individual on the Dining or Housekeeping staff. In order to do so, the guest will need to visit the Information Desk on board.

 

2. Pre-Paid Gratuity Policy - Gratuities are pre-arranged and paid at the time of booking or any time up to two weeks prior to the sail date.

 

All guests on each booking must prepay the gratuities, with the exception of children under two. The pre-paid gratuities can not be removed once the booking has been ticketed. The guest will not have the option to adjust the gratuities (up or down) based on the level of service received during the cruise.

 

The dollar amount of the gratuities will appear in the Miscellaneous Charge field on the booking. The guest copy on the cruise ticket will indicate if gratuities have been paid.

 

The total amount will be $10 per guest, per day, which breaks down as follows:

 

 

• $5.50 pp/pd for Dining Team Service (Headwaiter and Waiter)
  
• $1 pp/pd for Bistro Service (Waiter/Cooks)
  
• $3.50 pp/pd for Cabin Services (Cabin Steward)
  

Tipping the Maitre D' is strictly at guest's discretion, based upon services rendered. For guests who wish to extend this gratuity in cash, an envelope will be available on the last evening of the cruise.

 

Tipping still applies regardless of the dining options selected, such as eating at the casual dining restaurant or utilizing room service.

 

Bar Waiters, Deck Stewards and Bell Boys - Certain personnel, as noted above, may be tipped as service is rendered. A 15% gratuity is automatically added to beverage purchases which the guest may adjust appropriate to the service received.

 

Note: Guests under two years of age are not required to extend gratuiti

[lucky4you02]

I read that already too. She does this everytime she goes on carnival. It looks like others on this thread do it too.

[Flip2cruise]

I read that already too. She does this everytime she goes on carnival. It looks like others on this thread do it too.

 

Hmm, how does she tip in the buffet? Does she just hand the pizza,grill, fish n chips staff the money? Sounds like that would come to more than $6.50 a day if its spread out over 3 meals. plus snacks.

[VentureMan_2000]

I think it is easiest to just have it pre-paid on the sail & sign card. I really don't want to decide, or think it is my business, on how to divide up the tip bucket myself. I think of it as part of the price.

 

Generally, I only tip up and above for the room steward. The Bar tip is already included in the price of the cocktails I purchase. I figure they have the best tipping scheme -- about 75 cents per cocktail.

 

I'm on board to have fun, and it is not worth my time or emotion trying to determine if the way CCL runs their business is fair to the emplyees on board. They say it is, and I take that at face value.

 

Also, heard that if you tip in cash and not on the S&S card, they don't get to keep the 'up and above' tipping they receive from you. That gets split among everyone.

 

Make life easy on you, have it added to your S&S card, and enjoy the cruise.

 

Venture

[Flip2cruise]

I think it is easiest to just have it pre-paid on the sail & sign card. I really don't want to decide, or think it is my business, on how to divide up the tip bucket myself. I think of it as part of the price.

 

Generally, I only tip up and above for the room steward. The Bar tip is already included in the price of the cocktails I purchase. I figure they have the best tipping scheme -- about 75 cents per cocktail.

 

I'm on board to have fun, and it is not worth my time or emotion trying to determine if the way CCL runs their business is fair to the emplyees on board. They say it is, and I take that at face value.

 

Also, heard that if you tip in cash and not on the S&S card, they don't get to keep the 'up and above' tipping they receive from you. That gets split among everyone.

 

Make life easy on you, have it added to your S&S card, and enjoy the cruise.

 

Venture

 

Thats true, if you removed the tips and hand them the money they are "required" to pool it with the other staff. If you leave the tips on they are allowed to keep anything extra you give them.

[kujobie]

Another suggestion. If you are not good with budgeting and/or just want to get everything paid for up front, just let the tips go on your sail and sign (reverse gratuity) and just add money to your sail and sign account at any time. You can always call and transfer $$ from a credit or debit card after you book. You will then have a credit balance on your account to cover your tips. And you still have the option of adjusting your tips if you desire. On our last cruise, we mostly ate in the buffet. We were able to lower the tips for the waiters and increased those for the buffet staff. We still paid the same amount, but it was directed to those who served us the most. You can't do that if you use the pre-paid method.

[LisaDoesEarth]

I'm confused. Does this mean you cannot take the entire gratuity off? I generally just keep it on, but I told my fiancee's parents that they would put it on and they had the option to take it off and then tip as they saw fit. Was that wrong?

[GoinCruisin]

I'm confused. Does this mean you cannot take the entire gratuity off? I generally just keep it on, but I told my fiancee's parents that they would put it on and they had the option to take it off and then tip as they saw fit. Was that wrong?

 

Yes, they can take them off... but as stated above, you really don't know WHO to tip when you do it that way. There are behind the scenes workers that are taken care of with the auto tips... if you take them off, anything you give them in cash has to be turned over to the pool... so it sort of defeats the purpose... but yes, they can take them off if they wish.

[Flip2cruise]

I'm confused. Does this mean you cannot take the entire gratuity off? I generally just keep it on, but I told my fiancee's parents that they would put it on and they had the option to take it off and then tip as they saw fit. Was that wrong?

 

If you do the pre-paid(tips paid before you board the ship) you cant adjust those up or down or remove them

 

Pre-Paid Gratuity Policy - Gratuities are pre-arranged and paid at the time of booking or any time up to two weeks prior to the sail date.

 

All guests on each booking must prepay the gratuities, with the exception of children under two. The pre-paid gratuities can not be removed once the booking has been ticketed. The guest will not have the option to adjust the gratuities (up or down) based on the level of service received during the cruise.

 

 

But, if you do reverse grats(Tips are added to your S&S after boarding) you can adjust them up or down or even remove them

 

Reverse Gratuity Policy - For our guests' convenience, we automatically add the recommended gratuities to the onboard Sail & Sign account on embarkation day.

 

Guests will have the discretion to adjust these gratuities based upon the level of service received during the cruise. This includes the option to adjust gratuities (up or down) for any individual on the Dining or Housekeeping staff. In order to do so, the guest will need to visit the Information Desk on board.

[LisaDoesEarth]

Yes, they can take them off... but as stated above, you really don't know WHO to tip when you do it that way. There are behind the scenes workers that are taken care of with the auto tips... if you take them off, anything you give them in cash has to be turned over to the pool... so it sort of defeats the purpose... but yes, they can take them off if they wish.

 

Thanks! I keep mine on, but I told my fiancee's parents they could take them off if they wanted to and I just wondered if I was wrong.. I'm not sure what they will do.

[Mrs. Connie]

How does a waiter or room steward know who has prepaid & who hasn't, so they would know when to pool?

 

My children are not going to go hungry if I give an extra $5 or $10 or $20 to someone who works hard to make sure my vacation is memorable. There would have to be some VERY compelling reason to make me remove a tip. (Not just "I thought it could be better.") As for giving money in person, I rather like "random acts of kindness" and anonymous good deeds. I'll get my reward in heaven, and I am not looking for gratitude here. (Mother of 5 - lots of experience in that department...:D )

Connie

[lucky4you02]

On our last cruise, we mostly ate in the buffet. We were able to lower the tips for the waiters and increased those for the buffet staff. We still paid the same amount, but it was directed to those who served us the most. You can't do that if you use the pre-paid method.

 

How exactly did you let them know whether it was for the buffet staff or the waiters?