Why is tipping discussion taboo on CC?

[Kmkub]

I've noticed a trend that discussion of actual tip amounts is seen as sort of taboo around here.

 

Why is that? How is a person supposed to determine if their way too low, about right or way too high, wrt to tipping, if nobody will talk about it?

 

I've been on two cruises and have literally, NO CLUE, if we are being stingy or generous with our tips. We completely shoot in the dark.

 

I've yet to find a helpful article on this... though I might be looking in the wrong place.

[newport dave]

I've noticed a trend that discussion of actual tip amounts is seen as sort of taboo around here.

 

Why is that? How is a person supposed to determine if their way too low, about right or way too high, wrt to tipping, if nobody will talk about it?

 

I've been on two cruises and have literally, NO CLUE, if we are being stingy or generous with our tips. We completely shoot in the dark.

 

I've yet to find a helpful article on this... though I might be looking in the wrong place.

 

 

Tip what the cruiseline recommends, you won't be to high or low then......

[Kmkub]

If you go by the Princess tipping guidelines, they say it's already included, except for Casino and Lotus staff.

 

Taken at face value, we shouldn't be tipping our steward any extra.

 

So, I guess anything I give my room steward is above and beyond, and considered extra? (I seriously doubt the tip recipients feel that way about it.. though, I may be wrong.)

[betterthanworking]

It is a subjective and "hot" topic on CC and often gets out of hand!!!

[Kmkub]

It is a subjective and "hot" topic on CC and often gets out of hand!!!

 

That's fine, I'll accept that. Is there a website to turn to that suggests what is considered fair and what would be considered "sad?"

 

I've googled and hunted, but I'm only coming up with the daily tip added by Princess.

[Woodmnky]

I think that it is controversial because it is a custom that varies by location, culture, and individual experiences. Some feel that you shouldn't have to tip at as as the cruise line should pay wages high enough to compensate the staff, others may feel that the suggested gratuities are too high/low and adjust accordingly.

 

No one can really tell you what to tip, but as others have pointed out if you use the Princess recommended gratuity schedule as a guideline you should be well within the norm. For times such as room service, spa, & casino where the auto tips are not split you can look at the norms and customs that you would use at home to determine how you would like to pay. For example, if you would normally tip 15% on top of a bill at a salon you may want to consider the same for the spa staff.

 

I have no idea if I am in the norm, but here is how we tip:

 

Auto gratuity - Left on bill

Room service - $2-$3 per order

Spa & Casino - Sorry, we don't use either

Room steward - If they are good we usually leave some extra. This has ranged between $10 - $25 depending upon the service level given, however, one steward was horrible and should be happy that we didn't adjust the auto gratuity.

Dining room attendants - If we have been attended to by the same wait staff the majority of the cruise and we have been happy with the service we will leave extra on the last night. This has ranged between $5 - $10 per person.

Bartenders - Rarely use, but if I was waited on by the same on frequently and received great service I would consider an extra couple bucks here and there above the automatic gratuity.

 

In addition to leaving any extra tips if appropriate we also fill out the You Made a Difference cards and let the staff know this. These cards are part of their personel file and can assist them in promotion, moves, ect.

 

I will not tell you that these are the correct amounts or that other options are less correct, but rather this is what we honestly do. I hope this helps.

[Sanibel*Gal]

I think what the cruise lines recommends is a good guide line for tipping.

However, we usually add some extra at the end of our cruise for those who have given us exceptional service. I do think they appreciate it and especially our room steward, we aren't really messy cabin keepers but most always our room stewards are more than accommodating!:)

There are those who disagree - as with anything else, extra tipping is not necessary. So, just go with what you feel, you can usually trust your instincts.;)

[Kmkub]

Woodmnky - Yes, that helped. Based on that, our tips to date are hardly off the chart - either direction.

 

There are those who disagree - as with anything else, extra tipping is not necessary.

Ah, we've always gotten the impression that it was sort-of necessary. (Not that you'd get a nasty letter or anything, but not giving extra was viewed as stingy.)

[1 HappyCruiser]

The monitors on CC don't want anyone to be offended for posting their comments and therefore ANY subject that gets to controversial will be either locked down or removed. Tipping, dress codes, kids problems, chair hogs, elevator etiquette, perfume and the biggie- smoking problems.

We go with the guidelines & sometimes a little extra for the cabin steward if he goes out of his way. With anytime seating there's usually a different waiter each night but in TD dining we user to tip extra. Other than those things we don't utilize much else on the ship worth tipping for except an occasional laundry delivery.

[newmexicoNita]

Woodmnky - Yes, that helped. Based on that, our tips to date are hardly off the chart - either direction.

 

 

Ah, we've always gotten the impression that it was sort-of necessary. (Not that you'd get a nasty letter or anything, but not giving extra was viewed as stingy.)

 

We do not feel that way at all. We always give the suggested amount (or in most cases now the actually charges that are on your cabin account) We only give extra when we feel it someone has gone above and beyond: normally our cabins stewards have done an excellent job and we give them an envalope with a little extra at the end of the cruise. WE do tip extra in the specialty dining rooms, same reason, the service normally is above and beyond. We rarely use the spa, but if we do, again, we will give extra. Other than that we don't see reasons to and we don't feel cheap. We have given a little extra to a cocktail waitress on occassion and I have tipped in the casino (again on occassion). We rarely use room service, but when we do, it is coffee in the morning, we tip a $ or $$ unless we order something extra.

 

NIta

[Mara4166]

It is a fair question to ask, but unfortunately some people will give you rude answers like “It is not all about you”.

Some people on this board do not understand that others just need some guidance and questions answered so arguments get started.

[Sapphire723]

I have no idea if I am in the norm, but here is how we tip:

 

Auto gratuity - Left on bill

Room service - $2-$3 per order

Spa & Casino - Sorry, we don't use either

Room steward - If they are good we usually leave some extra. This has ranged between $10 - $25 depending upon the service level given, however, one steward was horrible and should be happy that we didn't adjust the auto gratuity.

Dining room attendants - If we have been attended to by the same wait staff the majority of the cruise and we have been happy with the service we will leave extra on the last night. This has ranged between $5 - $10 per person.

Bartenders - Rarely use, but if I was waited on by the same on frequently and received great service I would consider an extra couple bucks here and there above the automatic gratuity.

 

In addition to leaving any extra tips if appropriate we also fill out the You Made a Difference cards and let the staff know this. These cards are part of their personel file and can assist them in promotion, moves, ect.

Auto gratuity - Left on bill same here

Room service - $2-$3 per order same here

Spa & Casino - Spa - usually 20% of the service; usually use slot machiens, so no tipping at the casino

Room steward - We'll leave an extra $10-$20 if they were really good.

Dining room attendants - unfortunately, with anytime dining, we usually don't have anyone who sticks out enough for us to want to come back and tip extra. If there was someone who was super excellent or waited on us frequently, then I might tip extra but it would be dependent on how often they waited on us.

Bartenders - They auto-grat for 15%. We usually round up to the nearest dollar above what 20% would be.

 

We also make sure to name people who were excellent in our comments to Princess. I've been told that if you e-mail customer service directly this is seen as a slightly higher praise than if you do so with the Make a Difference card, but both are greatly appreciated.

 

I think tipping becomes so taboo, because a lot of different cultures handle it very differently. Plus, people get very defensive if they feel that someone has implied that they're a cheapskate (even if they're being one). I usually go by the rule of "whatever the norm for good service is in the place where I am visiting plus a little extra if they were great." For cruising, that means leaving the auto-grat on for standard good service and giving out extra when someone goes above and beyond. At the very least, if you leave on your auto-grat, you should be considered okay. Any more than that is certainly welcomed, but not expected.

[Kmkub]

I truly appreciate the comments. I'm not wishing to start a fight, but as a new-to-cruising person, this is truly a perplexing issue. It's a struggle between not wanting to be cheap and not wanting to have the cruise cost more than it really should. Without guidance.... it's just mysterious! (And I hope that's not perceived as an "it's all about meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!" kind of comment.)

 

For waiters in anytime dining... how do you go about finding them on the last day, to give the extra $$?

 

On our last cruise, we had one envelope left to hand out, had his first name, but couldn't find him. (We were able to locate everyone else we wanted to give a bit extra to.)

[Times Prince]

woodmnky offered some good advice. The Auto-tip a.k.a. Hotel Charge is Princess' way of standardizing on gratuities and sharing these with both the people you see and those behind the scenes making this end user service possible.

 

The major contention is whether this is fair coompensation to the employees. From those we have talked with onboard ship, it is fair. So it would be good to leave the automatic charge in place.

 

Princess Crew is chosen from those whose attitude is to please the customer, and some go above and beyond. We usually tip those individuals extra cash, including the "You Made a Difference" cards for really good service.

 

When tipping extra we usually consider what would be normal for us in the USA - a dollar each person for breakfast (room service), etc., then for others like stewards and waiters, we provide a nominal amount per day for really good service. We've had a cruise with no standout service and others where a steward or waiter really did an outstanding job of catering to our needs/wants.

 

Before autotipping there were guidelines for tips ranging from $1/day/pp to $5/day/pp. These were combined into the autotip amount, but give a range as a basis if you think someone deserves more.

[retiredldo]

We do what the ship recommends or as they take out on a daily basis and I agree with what newmexicoNita posted. This is my 3 cents, I have found over the years that the service is good but has slipped and this is on multiple lines. I will also add that we very seldom make a request for our steward, we can handle and do handle things for ourself. So they do what they are suppose to do. Same with the dining room staff, they now seemed rushed and it is not quite the same. I will add, that if we do get that person that is over and above we will not hesitate to leave extra

 

Having said all that, and as was alluded to by others, it is a self determination on the tip, was the service great etc, then add some money. But what you want to avoid, is removing the auto tips and not tipping at all, that is not quite fair.

[David&Heather]

If you leave the auto tip on you are doing the minimum that is expected, anything above that is at your discretion and the ammount is up to you to decide dependant on your concience, financial position, etc.

 

The staff comments cards are also a good way to reward members of the crew.

[1 HappyCruiser]

For waiters in anytime dining... how do you go about finding them on the last day, to give the extra $$?

 

 

Unless we've had the same waiter consistently in the anytime dining room we never bother with tipping extra. If you feel a certain waiter deserves extra, remember his table number.

[cb at sea]

Where on CC is talking about tipping "taboo"????

[toberman]

Whether this is true or not, I don't know, but it has been stated on these boards that if you add a gratuity to your bill - lets say at a bar/specialty dining room/room service - this tip actually goes into the "tipping pool" to be distributed between all staff. If you want to leave a tip, do it in cash and that way the person you are tipping gets to keep it all (assuming you leave the auto-tip on). This does make sense in that Princess would not have to find the exact individual whom you intended it for.

[Kmkub]

Where on CC is talking about tipping "taboo"????

 

Well, I said "sort of taboo." Which means that I have been reading a ton of threads, and once in awhile someone posts, "I won't discuss my personal tipping policy, for obvious reasons."

 

I've been meaning to ask about it... then there was a thread titled "dear lord I'm asking a tipping question..."

 

Which indicated to me that there was some merit to my thought that the subject was kind of taboo.

 

I've gotten some great advice, though, so I'm super glad I asked! (And, for those that wrote, we've NO intention whatsoever of stopping the auto-tip... I was asking about above & beyond, only.)

[arkydude]

I had the same kind of questions some months ago and found this article by Greg Straub to be very helpful. I found it by searching "Tipping" on the main Cruise Critic search engine. If you are interested try this connection

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=132. Hope this gives you some insight.

[toberman]

Which indicated to me that there was some merit to my thought that the subject was kind of taboo.

 

 

 

Not taboo... it's just one of those topics that can become personal with lots of 'flaming'. As mentioned above, that's when the mods either lock it or delete the thread (which they should). Don't ever be afraid to ask a question - many, many seasoned cruisers here to give helpfull information.

[Kmkub]

I had the same kind of questions some months ago and found this article by Greg Straub to be very helpful. I found it by searching "Tipping" on the main Cruise Critic search engine. If you are interested try this connection

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=132. Hope this gives you some insight.

 

This was extremely helpful as well! Thank you... it's exactly what I've been looking for.

[Scotoco]

Well, I said "sort of taboo." Which means that I have been reading a ton of threads, and once in awhile someone posts, "I won't discuss my personal tipping policy, for obvious reasons."

 

I've been meaning to ask about it... then there was a thread titled "dear lord I'm asking a tipping question..."

 

Which indicated to me that there was some merit to my thought that the subject was kind of taboo.

 

I've gotten some great advice, though, so I'm super glad I asked! (And, for those that wrote, we've NO intention whatsoever of stopping the auto-tip... I was asking about above & beyond, only.)

 

Well I have been flamed several times for speaking my mind about the "auto tipping." I believe the reason why the service has slipped over the years is because of the auto tipping. The workers know they are getting the money since most cruisers do not bothers removing them so they let their service slip up from time to time. This is the reason why I only tip in cash and only tip those who I believe deserve the tips (room steward, busboy and waiter). I don't believe in tipping the matre d or the head waiter.

 

By the way, where is South Florida are you located Kmkub?

[Kmkub]

This is the reason why I only tip in cash and only tip those who I believe deserve the tips (room steward, busboy and waiter).

As I understand from reading here, the cash tips you give will end up in the pool anyway, since you turn your tips off.

 

By the way, where is South Florida are you located Kmkub?

Just north of Ft. Lauderdale.