Gratituies

[negc]

What is the the obsession about Americans trying to OUT TIP each other, and then having the front to critise people who don't tip enough, (in their eyes).

 

People save up and go on a cruise for the whole experience, NOT to get ripped off by the cruise company's and then get brow beaten into paying THEIR staff a decent wage. Most people go to sea, for the lifestyle, money, experience and to have a great time doing a good job. No one forces them into it, its not forced labour.

 

I spent 8 years at sea and got a wage for doing so. I received no tips in my job, because I was getting paid a wage to do it.

 

I found the tone of some of the people in this thread, outrageous. How dare they tell people not to go on a cruise or wait another two months just so they can pay more for the privilage. I will go on whatever holiday I want to and I will not take into consideration the amount of tips I have to pay along the way.

People earn tips, they should not just expect it. Its a gratuity for a service well done and I think you lot from across the pond seem to forget that. Its not a given right.

 

If you deserve it you will earn it.

 

This will be my first cruise coming up and i hope i don't bump into folks like you lot on this thread. Lets hope there are decent thinking people who don't judge everyone by the size of their wallet, but then size does matter to you lot, doesn't it??

 

The comments on here are a discrace, you really do think you are something special but your NOT.

 

No one here has been trying to Out Tip anyone else. The person being criticized is the one who has indicated that he will reduce the tips he is paying, not because the staff doesn't "deserve" them, but because he wants to take his family on expensive vacations and port tours at the expense of those staff persons, and his justification is that "these are hard times". Not hard enough, however, to forego those expensive vacations. It is those priorities that most of us feel are a "disgrace" Perhaps after you have taken your first cruise you will have a different opinion regarding the matter of gratuities.

Tipping protocol is different, not necessarily better or worse, in the US than it is in the UK, so perhaps you should try to understand the difference before being so critical of our ways. I believe that the phrase "When in Rome, do as the Romans do" might be appropriate.

[Puffinater]

The comments on here are a discrace, you really do think you are something special but your NOT.

 

I know I am special:) but it certainly isn't for any reason or opinion you may have.

 

Sorry quoted the wrong person not sure how I did that. The quote should have come from dogmanpaul.

[phoenix1181]

What is the the obsession about Americans trying to OUT TIP each other, and then having the front to critise people who don't tip enough, (in their eyes).

 

People save up and go on a cruise for the whole experience, NOT to get ripped off by the cruise company's and then get brow beaten into paying THEIR staff a decent wage. Most people go to sea, for the lifestyle, money, experience and to have a great time doing a good job. No one forces them into it, its not forced labour.

 

I spent 8 years at sea and got a wage for doing so. I received no tips in my job, because I was getting paid a wage to do it.

 

I found the tone of some of the people in this thread, outrageous. How dare they tell people not to go on a cruise or wait another two months just so they can pay more for the privilage. I will go on whatever holiday I want to and I will not take into consideration the amount of tips I have to pay along the way.

People earn tips, they should not just expect it. Its a gratuity for a service well done and I think you lot from across the pond seem to forget that. Its not a given right.

 

If you deserve it you will earn it.

 

This will be my first cruise coming up and i hope i don't bump into folks like you lot on this thread. Lets hope there are decent thinking people who don't judge everyone by the size of their wallet, but then size does matter to you lot, doesn't it??

 

The comments on here are a discrace, you really do think you are something special but your NOT.

 

You will find on your upcoming cruise that the staff do earn their tips & they will provide excellent service. That said. the OP hasn't indicated he would tip based on service, he's stated he does not intend to tip because he's on a tight budget & wants to use that money for him & his family.

 

IMO, that's a completely different ballgame................

[bigeagle12]

You will find on your upcoming cruise that the staff do earn their tips & they will provide excellent service. That said. the OP hasn't indicated he would tip based on service, he's stated he does not intend to tip because he's on a tight budget & wants to use that money for him & his family.

 

IMO, that's a completely different ballgame................

 

You are confusing the OP with Pichu96. The OP just wanted to know how much to tip on a 3 day cruise.

[helpthejuggler]

An awful lot of anger toward the poster which should really be directed toward the cruise lines who do not make the changes to look after their own staff.

 

How can posters claim to have the interests of the crew at heart, but not enough to want a crappy system to change to ensure the crew are not 'stiffed' by RCI.

 

Why is nobody calling RCI cheap?

[FrancescaH]

Listen, you don't live in my shoes. I work MIRACLES to make these cruises happen. Me and my wife were practically laid off the week before our last cruise and are working very hard to make this next one happen, and I can't spend $300 on just tips. And guess what? I do know what it means to leave your family behind. I moved to the United States 7 years ago and my family moved a year later so yeah, I do know what it's like starting from scratch in a new place without your family. And last year, I left my family once again in Florida and moved to Dallas for 6 months to work there, until I fell from a roof on the job and had to move back with my family, jobless. So before you say things, think about the situation the person on the other side might me in.

 

Perhaps you should put a little more time between your cruises so you can afford the full cost (which includes tipping those who serve you) appropriately. When money was tight here we skipped our annual cruise. We missed it, of course, but if we can't afford every expense involved then we have no business going.

[uksimonusa]

What is the the obsession about Americans trying to OUT TIP each other, and then having the front to critise people who don't tip enough, (in their eyes).

 

People save up and go on a cruise for the whole experience, NOT to get ripped off by the cruise company's and then get brow beaten into paying THEIR staff a decent wage. Most people go to sea, for the lifestyle, money, experience and to have a great time doing a good job. No one forces them into it, its not forced labour.

 

I spent 8 years at sea and got a wage for doing so. I received no tips in my job, because I was getting paid a wage to do it.

 

I found the tone of some of the people in this thread, outrageous. How dare they tell people not to go on a cruise or wait another two months just so they can pay more for the privilage. I will go on whatever holiday I want to and I will not take into consideration the amount of tips I have to pay along the way.

People earn tips, they should not just expect it. Its a gratuity for a service well done and I think you lot from across the pond seem to forget that. Its not a given right.

 

If you deserve it you will earn it.

 

This will be my first cruise coming up and i hope i don't bump into folks like you lot on this thread. Lets hope there are decent thinking people who don't judge everyone by the size of their wallet, but then size does matter to you lot, doesn't it??

 

The comments on here are a discrace, you really do think you are something special but your NOT.

 

No one is trying to out tip anyone here, most are just trying to point out that, as is customary in America, wait and service staff rely on their tip income to earn a decent living wage. The Federal minimum wage for wait and service staff is 50% of the Federal Minimum wage for other workers, those that customarily don't earn tips.

 

Being a British Ex Pat, I can understand, to a degree, why a lot of Brits have the attitude that they do about tipping, it is not something you are used to, HOWEVER, you choose to take you holiday aboard an American Cruise Line, and as such should really adjust to the culture of the enviroment in which you choose to take your holiday. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

 

In an effort to overcome this adverseness to tipping, and it's not just the Brits that feel this way, there are a lot of other nationalities where tipping is not the norm, the cruiseline do publish, in their brochures, online and in onboard literature, the suggested gratuities for each crew member that relies on tips for their income, yes the amount is suggested, but so is the dress code on formal night, and a lot of people get annoyed when others don't follow those suggestions.

 

While you can argue one way or another that the cruiseline should pay their crew a decent wage and not have them rely on tips, there is also the fact that if this was the case, then cruise fares would rise accordingly, and being an American based company they choose to go with the customary American view on tipping.

 

I think that you comment of, if you deserve it you will earn it, shows that not only will you pay the suggested gratuities, you will tip over and above, because, believe me, they earn it.

[dogmanpaul]

No one here has been trying to Out Tip anyone else. The person being criticized is the one who has indicated that he will reduce the tips he is paying, not because the staff doesn't "deserve" them, but because he wants to take his family on expensive vacations and port tours at the expense of those staff persons, and his justification is that "these are hard times". Not hard enough, however, to forego those expensive vacations. It is those priorities that most of us feel are a "disgrace" Perhaps after you have taken your first cruise you will have a different opinion regarding the matter of gratuities.

Tipping protocol is different, not necessarily better or worse, in the US than it is in the UK, so perhaps you should try to understand the difference before being so critical of our ways. I believe that the phrase "When in Rome, do as the Romans do" might be appropriate.

 

As I said, why should he scrimp on HIS holiday to pay for someones wages, its up to the company to provide a wage, not the customers. When you do go to rome, DONT eat the christians. Im sure he will tip what he feels is right and what he can afford, Not what you expect him to

[uksimonusa]

As I said, why should he scrimp on HIS holiday to pay for someones wages, its up to the company to provide a wage, not the customers. When you do go to rome, DONT eat the christians. Im sure he will tip what he feels is right and what he can afford, Not what you expect him to

 

And as I said, if the company went away from American custom, and paid the wait and service staff a " decent wage" then the price of the cruise would go up and he couldn't afford to cruise anyway.

[Doctor Pedantic]

This an interesting debate that's getting awfully personal and judgmental....hate to see that.

 

I have a different spin on this. I tend to be a very good tipper, so if I only tip 15% to a waitperson, that probably means I wasn't happy with the service. So I've got no problem with the suggested waitperson tips. However, the stateroom attendant tips seem exorbitant.

 

When I stay at a hotel, I usually tip the maid $3 to $5 per day. The RCI guidelines would make that $10 per day for my husband and me, and $15 per day for the stateroom in which our three children are staying. And these are much smaller rooms than in a hotel! Obviously, it doesn't take twice the amount of work to clean for two instead of one, or three times to clean for three instead of two (e.g., there is still just one shower, one toilet, and the same amount of floor and counter space).

 

I was thinking about whether a downward adjustment just for this would be appropriate, or if anyone else has done that. But at the same time, the difference between tipping $5 a day for each of two rooms and tipping $5 per day per person is just $105 for the whole week -- and that money probably means a whole lot more to the people getting it than it does to me. Plus, I kind of think it's like insurance, where we all pay more for the people who pay nothing (or very little). So I'm inclined to go with the suggested tips as a minimum. Just curious about others' thoughts.

 

Thanks.

[dogmanpaul]

No one is trying to out tip anyone here, most are just trying to point out that, as is customary in America, wait and service staff rely on their tip income to earn a decent living wage. The Federal minimum wage for wait and service staff is 50% of the Federal Minimum wage for other workers, those that customarily don't earn tips.

 

Being a British Ex Pat, I can understand, to a degree, why a lot of Brits have the attitude that they do about tipping, it is not something you are used to, HOWEVER, you choose to take you holiday aboard an American Cruise Line, and as such should really adjust to the culture of the enviroment in which you choose to take your holiday. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

 

In an effort to overcome this adverseness to tipping, and it's not just the Brits that feel this way, there are a lot of other nationalities where tipping is not the norm, the cruiseline do publish, in their brochures, online and in onboard literature, the suggested gratuities for each crew member that relies on tips for their income, yes the amount is suggested, but so is the dress code on formal night, and a lot of people get annoyed when others don't follow those suggestions.

 

While you can argue one way or another that the cruiseline should pay their crew a decent wage and not have them rely on tips, there is also the fact that if this was the case, then cruise fares would rise accordingly, and being an American based company they choose to go with the customary American view on tipping.

 

I think that you comment of, if you deserve it you will earn it, shows that not only will you pay the suggested gratuities, you will tip over and above, because, believe me, they earn it.

 

I do agree with what you say, however, it would be very interesting to find out the percentage of crewmembers who are American. I would suggest there will be a wide variety of nationalities onboard.

It does seem to me reading these threads that "gratuities" does seem to get a lot of very opinionated people telling others what to do.

Its a holiday, for some, a once in a lifetime holiday, not something to stress about because the waiter has 4 children somewhere to maintain.

I go on holiday to enjoy myself I have enough worries when I get home.

 

As you said, I choose, its my choice and I will choose what to tip and who, I dont't understand why there some here who think its correct to critise others for trying to get the best from their holiday.

 

It is funny how no brits added to this thread.

[boo214]

As I said, why should he scrimp on HIS holiday to pay for someones wages, its up to the company to provide a wage, not the customers. When you do go to rome, DONT eat the christians. Im sure he will tip what he feels is right and what he can afford, Not what you expect him to

ok lets do a little math shall we. lets say the cruise costs $1000, now add MINIMUM SUGGESTED GRATUTIES OF $84 (7 DAYS X $12/DAY, at least i think thats what they are now) and you get 1084. now lets say the crew gets a raise and the cruise now costs $1084 total (including gratuities). seems to me that $1084= $1084. so its the exact same amount the only difference being that one way its vountary, the other is mandatory.

[pcur]

What is the the obsession about Americans trying to OUT TIP each other, and then having the front to critise people who don't tip enough, (in their eyes).

 

People save up and go on a cruise for the whole experience, NOT to get ripped off by the cruise company's and then get brow beaten into paying THEIR staff a decent wage. Most people go to sea, for the lifestyle, money, experience and to have a great time doing a good job. No one forces them into it, its not forced labour.

 

I spent 8 years at sea and got a wage for doing so. I received no tips in my job, because I was getting paid a wage to do it.

 

I found the tone of some of the people in this thread, outrageous. How dare they tell people not to go on a cruise or wait another two months just so they can pay more for the privilage. I will go on whatever holiday I want to and I will not take into consideration the amount of tips I have to pay along the way.

People earn tips, they should not just expect it. Its a gratuity for a service well done and I think you lot from across the pond seem to forget that. Its not a given right.

 

If you deserve it you will earn it.

 

This will be my first cruise coming up and i hope i don't bump into folks like you lot on this thread. Lets hope there are decent thinking people who don't judge everyone by the size of their wallet, but then size does matter to you lot, doesn't it??

 

The comments on here are a discrace, you really do think you are something special but your NOT.

 

Since you are about to go on your first cruise, perhaps you don't know much about the industry. Cruising as we know it started in the 1960's, and the business model has always been from the beginning that the crew members dealing directly with the passengers are paid primarily through service gratuities.

 

It truly has always been a "fee for service" system. So, it's like having a servant in your home, making your beds and cooking your food, and cleaning up after you, but you aren't paying them a wage!!

 

No criticism here from me, but I think you misunderstand the situation. The price you are paying for the cruise is for the food, transportation, and entertainment. Everything else is NOT paid for when you purchase a cruise. Therefore, when you buy a drink in a bar onboard the ship, you have to pay extra for it. It's the same concept for crew members whose jobs are "service oriented".

 

This is why many of us, a vast majority of us, consider the gratuities as part of the price of the cruise. It truly is part of the cost, and if you, tootlebug, and Pichu96 refuse to pay this portion, then you are accepting the labor of the "service oriented" crew members as a free service, when it's not.

 

I do wonder how anyone can justifiy in their own mind keeping another person from making a living, knowing (as you do now) that their living depends on you. Like I said, would you not pay a cook, maid, or cleaner in your home?

[Puffinater]

I do agree with what you say, however, it would be very interesting to find out the percentage of crewmembers who are American. I would suggest there will be a wide variety of nationalities onboard.

 

I would say you will not find any Americans as wait staff or house keeping staff.

[ropomo]

Food for thought.

 

If things are that tight, what would the OP have done if the fuel supplement was sprung on him upon arrival at the pier. Anyway, that's another can of worms.

 

Bottom line, this is a question of character and ethics. The OP has not indicated that the tips were not earned or deserved, he just chooses to keep them for himself.

 

The analogy could be a honor system restaraunt asking that you pay what you think it was worth (recently read about a major chain testing the concept in Portland) where he received the best sandwich he had ever tasted and rather than paying the suggested amount, he chooses to pay less so that he can go down the street to have ice cream to top off his sandwich.

 

BTW, the Portland experiment by a major chain has exceeded expectations with the average revenues exceeding the recommended prices. As also advertised, the restaraunt donates the excess proceeds to a local food bank.

 

 

edited for typo

Richard

[phoenix1181]

You are confusing the OP with Pichu96. The OP just wanted to know how much to tip on a 3 day cruise.

 

Oh dear!

 

OP, please accept my apology. I'm so sorry to have confused you with Mr Cheap.

[tallcva3344]

And that is precisely why the tips should be automatically added to the cruise fare.

 

Everyone can make the EXCUSE that they are on a "tight budget."

 

Well guess what? It's even a tighter budget for the waiters and stewards who have left their families at home to make some money to support their kids.

 

Nope, this kind of thinking stinks and is just a rationalization for those who who are living by the Garfield the Cat Code... namely... "It's all about ME!"

 

C'mon RCCL, at least do what Carnival does and automatically add the tips to the Sea Pass Account.

 

I disagree. If it is added to the cruise fare manditory, then it is not a tip, it is you paying his salary. Then watch the service go down like on NCL. I always tip the recommended, unless the Head Waiter does not show up at my table.

[boo214]

I disagree. If it is added to the cruise fare manditory, then it is not a tip, it is you paying his salary. Then watch the service go down like on NCL. I always tip the recommended, unless the Head Waiter does not show up at my table.

you are paying his salary! the way the system is currently set up most of his salary is the tip!

[tallcva3344]

So do they automatcally take the tip money out on the seapass? i have no problem with tipping, BUT we do not partake in the dining room so why should we have to pay the waiters???

 

You sign up on board to let them take it out of the sea pass. Otherwise you put cash in the envelops as to how much you want to tip

[tallcva3344]

[quote name=dogmanpaul;

This will be my first cruise coming up and i hope i don't bump into folks like you lot on this thread. Lets hope there are decent thinking people who don't judge everyone by the size of their wallet' date=' but then size does matter to you lot, doesn't it??

 

The comments on here are a discrace, you really do think you are something special but your NOT.[/quote]

 

You will love the ship. You will also not be exposed to folks debating this subject.

[yogimax]

 

People save up and go on a cruise for the whole experience, NOT to get ripped off by the cruise company's and then get brow beaten into paying THEIR staff a decent wage.

 

Oh my! So now...

 

1. The cruise company rips off their passengers and...

 

2. Those passengers are "brow beaten" to pay their tips...

 

So why ,sir, are you on a cruise site if you feel that way?

[tallcva3344]

Being a British Ex Pat, I can understand, to a degree, why a lot of Brits have the attitude that they do about tipping, it is not something you are used to, HOWEVER, you choose to take you holiday aboard an American Cruise Line, and as such should really adjust to the culture of the enviroment in which you choose to take your holiday. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.

 

In an effort to overcome this adverseness to tipping, and it's not just the Brits that feel this way, there are a lot of other nationalities where tipping is not the norm, the cruiseline do publish, in their brochures, online and in onboard literature, the suggested gratuities for each crew member that relies on tips for their income, yes the amount is suggested, but so is the dress code on formal night, and a lot of people get annoyed when others don't follow those suggestions., quote]

 

From April to October most of RCI's ships are not cruising from America. Therefore they must promote and post information that fits the cruise audiance they are trying to prmote to. Thus they soft peddle the tips.

[MAJ]

Just a thought

 

On our last 12 day cruise our waiter had a table of 10, a table of 6 and a table of 4

 

==20 persons 2 sittings == 40 people --$3.75 per day is $1.800 which would

 

be in UK 1.125 pounds for 12 days pay

[phoenix1181]

Just a thought

 

On our last 12 day cruise our waiter had a table of 10, a table of 6 and a table of 4

 

==20 persons 2 sittings == 40 people --$3.75 per day is $1.800 which would

 

be in UK 1.125 pounds for 12 days pay

 

And you point is?

[tallcva3344]

you are paying his salary! the way the system is currently set up most of his salary is the tip!

 

It is only a salary if I have to pay, a tip if I chose to pay. That's why it is called a tip.