UK Blog Post: Tipping on board: Are Brits mean, or are we just different?

[LauraS]

The BBC’s consumer champion, Watchdog, has been having another pop at cruise lines, criticising the system of auto-gratuities, when tips are automatically charged to your on-board account. Most mainstream lines operating out of the UK now use this system. Regular cruisers know and accept auto-gratuities, although whether they like them or not is another matter. [...]

 

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[summerman]

we always opt out of pre paid tips

how would you feel paying upfront for tips if the waiter in the dining room wasn't very good or your cleaner didn't clean very well

 

we have just returned from V of the seas and would have been expected to pay approx £140 per couple for tips for 7 nights

and remember when your waiter gets you a drink you already pay a 20% service charge, i cannot see where this is justified (when was the last time you left a £140 tip when you stayed at a hotel for a week

[blackpool belle]

You either pay tips or the alternative would be an increase in the cost of your cruise at source, so you end up are paying one way or another. The last time I was on the IOTS I was told that it was necessary to introduce pre-paid tips for anytime dining passengers because the Brits were scamming it and just not paying up at the end of the cruise just because they had a different waiter every night they thought they could get away with no tips at all.

 

Personally I don't agree with having to tip in advance but as usual a small minority have spoiled it for everyone else.

[nellydean]

I would prefer to pay more for the cruise and the staff have an increase on their basic wage, rather than depend on tips - that's the real scam, not mean Brits.

 

We always give very generously when onboard, however, we pay our gratuities at the end of the cruise, that way we have a say on the offchance we get poor service. hasn't happened very often, but we did have two rude and absent cabin stewards, which out us off paying upfront in future

[NorbertsNiece]

I've been charged by my TA for a 1 year old to prepay gratuities as the family has requested My Time Dining with RCCL where gratuities have to be prepaid normally. They would remove this charge but then we would have had to have taken Traditional Seating. I will not be tipping extra this trip whereas I would normally have given extra.

[sandancer]

For some time now we have pre-paid the tips and now just think of it as part of the cost of the cruise. We always have open seating dining but preferred to pre-pay even before this became popular. This is mainly for our own convenience as I used to hate giving out those little envelopes. Had a stand up row with a lady from across the pond on an NCL cruise when she announced that all Brits are cheap and never pay tips. She almost called me a liar when I pointed out that these days many Brits pre-pay. She said she had never heard of such a thing and why would anyone pay in advance, it simply was not true!!! Have to say in 48 cruises we have never had such poor service that we would withold the tips. However, I am a great believer in each to their own and what suits us does not suit everyone. Do what is best for you, it's your money at the end of the day.

[jocap]

For some time now we have pre-paid the tips and now just think of it as part of the cost of the cruise. We always have open seating dining but preferred to pre-pay even before this became popular. This is mainly for our own convenience as I used to hate giving out those little envelopes. Had a stand up row with a lady from across the pond on an NCL cruise when she announced that all Brits are cheap and never pay tips. She almost called me a liar when I pointed out that these days many Brits pre-pay. She said she had never heard of such a thing and why would anyone pay in advance, it simply was not true!!! Have to say in 48 cruises we have never had such poor service that we would withold the tips. However, I am a great believer in each to their own and what suits us does not suit everyone. Do what is best for you, it's your money at the end of the day.

On our 1st NCL cruise, we pre-paid our tips, but this wasn't an option for North Americans, and was hotly debated on the NCL page on here. Eventually this option was opened to them- around 2009, I think, but still was hotly debated.

Tipping is an emotive subject....it's not a custom I was raised with, but my Londoner husband has always been both used to it and relaxed about it. These days, I just go with the flow, and avoid arguments....:);)

Jo.

[Smee]

We also always opt out of auto tips, don't get me wrong I am not mean but I tip the way it used to be done. Service over and above the norm. Cabin steward and restaurant waiters I tip at the beginning and end of the cruise, also if I find a prefered watering hole, the bar staff there get tipped ensuring I do not have to wait too long to be served.

I do most strongly object to auto tipping and the 15% on top of all purchases gets on my nerves too..............:cool:

[CruiseLuvver]

I don't think people in the UK are mean - as Smee says, they consider tipping a reward for service beyond the norm. Restaurants etc in the UK (and most of Europe) are not allowed to make up staff pay with tips - they are allowed to do that in most of the USA. That, IMO, makes the US service industry the real meanies. We always try to opt for freedom dining (or whatever the equivalent is called on a particular ship), so we prepay, and to me, that's no different from having it included in the price.

[Smee]

My experience of crews on P&O. Princess and even Thomson are all excellent we go on Cunard QV in February and I have no doubt that they will be excellent too.

But we only have the cruise operators word that this money is shared equally among the crew which bugs me.

I always tip the old fashioned way, job done................:cool:

[Mrs Safe]

I prefer to pay tips on the ship rather than in advance. I notice that Royal Caribbean only allow people to book their 'my time dining' if they pre pay their tips. I don't care if I'm regarded as mean. We went on our first cruise on 17/09/11 with Princess. It was fantastic! But $23.00! I popped down to the information desk an immediately had that reduced to $11.50 by zeroing my partner's contribution. We can't visit staff in the engine room and they're as worthy of reward as anyone we'd meet. That's why we pay some of it. But there are limits you know. I'd rather drop cash into the hands of people we feel went the extra mile for us. Now I'm a Northern lass, our Southern folk may be more generous but its dangerous to generalize. :)

[Beopthtuh]

we brits are not mean as our american cousins are quick to point out.

its just a different way we were brought up good service good tip crap service you get nowt.

i like to pay for what i get ,no one tips me at work for doing a good job but im expected to pay a cruise staff wages, because the american cruise lines paying around $50 a week wages.

my average cruise bill is $1200 for 2 weeks can our u.s friends say the same.

brits pay £600 for a week cruise only from port everglades , they pay $300 so dont get me wrong who,s TIGHT

[Ray66]

my average cruise bill is $1200 for 2 weeks can our u.s friends say the same.

brits pay £600 for a week cruise only from port everglades , they pay $300 so dont get me wrong who,s TIGHT

 

You might find that the US fares you've seen don't include taxes whereas UK fares do.

 

$1200 (£769) is very cheap for 2 weeks. Only £55 a day. I've never seen anything as cheap as that.

[insidecabin]

You might find that the US fares you've seen don't include taxes whereas UK fares do.

 

$1200 (£769) is very cheap for 2 weeks. Only £55 a day. I've never seen anything as cheap as that.

 

 

 

I think they are saying their on board bill is $1200 (on top of hte cruise fare).

 

 

Last year the late booking price for 2 weeks Caribbean inc flights was £800.

 

this year not so many deals P&O ex Southampton caribbean 36nights £1600 (£45pppn)

[Greghouseo]

we always opt out of pre paid tips

how would you feel paying upfront for tips if the waiter in the dining room wasn't very good or your cleaner didn't clean very well

 

we have just returned from V of the seas and would have been expected to pay approx £140 per couple for tips for 7 nights

and remember when your waiter gets you a drink you already pay a 20% service charge, i cannot see where this is justified (when was the last time you left a £140 tip when you stayed at a hotel for a week

 

When was the last time you saw someone working for a basic salary of $50 per month

[Greghouseo]

I've been charged by my TA for a 1 year old to prepay gratuities as the family has requested My Time Dining with RCCL where gratuities have to be prepaid normally. They would remove this charge but then we would have had to have taken Traditional Seating. I will not be tipping extra this trip whereas I would normally have given extra.

 

Not your TA's fault.

Royal Caribbean policy.

Every paying guest who is on my time pays

[Beopthtuh]

You might find that the US fares you've seen don't include taxes whereas UK fares do.

 

$1200 (£769) is very cheap for 2 weeks. Only £55 a day. I've never seen anything as cheap as that.

next cruise on £1500 for 2 weeks each ,on board account will be over $1000 dollars not including tours . tips $160 ea so not cheap

[DEEDIA]

We Brits do pay more than our US friends, I have just got off the Explorer of the Seas. If you are Amercian you can you can have the Credit Card, this means when you sign up you get 1000 points or £100 OBC, every transaction equals points. Ever wondered why so many Amercians are so high in the Crown and Anchor program, this is not available outside the US. On board I visited the English Pub Crown and Kettle, have you ever been in a Pub with no Beer Pumps, Amercians like to drink from a bottle, yet all the Bars where full with people sat watching entertainment round empty tables. So they are not even paying their 15% bar tip. 1 Bar had two Pumps Amstel + Hieniken. Not the English Pub.

[Elizanessie]

We Brits do pay more than our US friends, I have just got off the Explorer of the Seas. If you are Amercian you can you can have the Credit Card, this means when you sign up you get 1000 points or £100 OBC, every transaction equals points. Ever wondered why so many Amercians are so high in the Crown and Anchor program, this is not available outside the US

 

The RCCL credit card has nothing to do with Crown and Anchor Program.:confused:

[DEEDIA]

Sorry LIZ, your right it does not have anything to do with the Crown and Anchor Program. I also missed a ZERO out, its 10,000 points equals $100 obc.