Prepaid Gratuities

[akruz]

We decided prepaid gratuities and am wondering how do the staff that take care of you know that you have prepaid the tips. It would feel awkward utilizing their services without them knowing you have prepaid. I know I can extra tip with cash if feel I want to. But would not want them to think we do not tip.

[paul929207]

They will get a list showing who prepaid, who has autotip and who has neither.

[Krazy Kruizers]

When we sailed on Cunard and prepaid our gratuities -- there was a letter on the bed when we entered the cabin on embarkation indiccating that the crew were informed that we had prepaid the gratuities.

Our cabin steward and wait staff in the dining room also thanked us.

[cb at sea]

They will take care of you just fine....after all...they aren't tipped until the last night of the cruise.

[alicam]

Royal Caribbean has provided little slips of paper that say you have prepaid your grats. and you place them in the appropriate envelope for each staff and hand it to them...

[cj_one2000]

Royal Caribbean has provided little slips of paper that say you have prepaid your grats. and you place them in the appropriate envelope for each staff and hand it to them...

 

Another question to accompany the OP's question... does the $ amount of your pre-paid tip show on that slip of paper? Was wondering if you added extra to the pre-paid to thank someone, would they see that on that slip of paper?

[akruz]

Thanks for the replies

[Dayenu]

They tell the crew on embarkation who prepaid gratuities who did not? This would be like saying: take care of this one, but not of that one.

[DonnaK]

Another question to accompany the OP's question... does the $ amount of your pre-paid tip show on that slip of paper? Was wondering if you added extra to the pre-paid to thank someone, would they see that on that slip of paper?

 

 

On RCI, the prepaid amount is standard. If you choose to add extra, you place the extra cash inside the envelope with the vouchers. (you dont pre-pay the extra amount).

 

Incidentally, you do not have to hand out the vouchers for the appropriate people to receive their share of the tips. The vouchers are provided because some people like to have something to hand out.

[wadden]

Another question to accompany the OP's question... does the $ amount of your pre-paid tip show on that slip of paper? Was wondering if you added extra to the pre-paid to thank someone, would they see that on that slip of paper?

 

No, don't add on extra gratuities. If you would like to acknowledge exceptional service, then additional tip should be given directly to the staff member.

[cj_one2000]

On RCI, the prepaid amount is standard. If you choose to add extra, you place the extra cash inside the envelope with the vouchers. (you dont pre-pay the extra amount).

 

Incidentally, you do not have to hand out the vouchers for the appropriate people to receive their share of the tips. The vouchers are provided because some people like to have something to hand out.

 

Oh, okay, have never done pre-paid tips before but the hubby and I were considering doing MTD that requires your tips to be pre-paid. I didn't know if toward the end of the cruise that although you've pre-paid you can just go to guest relations and ask to add more to your tips so you don't have to give out cash that last night...am I making any sense? I might be confusing myself at times, lol. Usually the last night I'm so busy with cramming in the last bit of fun, getting packed, etc that I don't want to have to track down cash and distribute the envelopes. Seems to be nicer and easier to surprise the staff with something extra if their above and beyond service calls for it.

[Cruise Girl Forever]

Yes, you can go to guest relations and have your pre-paid adjusted.

[DonnaK]

Yes, you can go to guest relations and have your pre-paid adjusted.

 

Maybe on some cruiselines, but I'm pretty sure you can't on RCI

[Cruise Girl Forever]

Maybe on some cruiselines, but I'm pretty sure you can't on RCI

 

OK I stand corrected (sorry) rcl did change that policy 7/1/11.

 

I was surprised by this ...but thank you as in the future I will check with my cruiseline.

[Shmoo here]

We decided prepaid gratuities and am wondering how do the staff that take care of you know that you have prepaid the tips. It would feel awkward utilizing their services without them knowing you have prepaid. I know I can extra tip with cash if feel I want to. But would not want them to think we do not tip.

 

The staff takes care of you quite well, whether you prepaid or not.

 

"Prepaid" means you have already set aside that money into your onboard account. The staff doesn't actually get the tip until the cruise ends, so there's always the option to remove them.

 

Some cruiselines have a "service charge" which is automatically added to your account. This is where the tips come from. Other cruiselines, you will need to tell them how much you want to put in your onboard account for tips. In both cases, the tips can be adjusted up until the end of your cruise.

 

While the staff will know if you have prepaid, or not, they do not know for sure that they will be getting tipped until the end of the cruise.

 

:)

[notalandlover]

They will get a list showing who prepaid, who has autotip and who has neither.

 

 

What is the reasoning for this??

 

 

I always prepay but it don't make sense why the cruiseline gives a list like this to the staff.

[sazzinfredericton]

I got my answer. Thank you.

[CuplACruzrs]

We have selected Your Time Dining on the Carnival Miracle leaving Monday. We prepaid our gratuities as usual, but does anyone know how it works for the wait staff in the dining room when you get someone different every meal???

[1025cruise]

The amount of money put in the pool for people at YTD is distributed equally to the YTD wait staff.

 

They may also ask your cabin when you sit down.

[SunniDaze]

When I booked with Carnival a couple days ago, I was told that the staff would not know if we had prepaid or not.:confused:

[booboo2000]

As for pp gratuities I believe you can adjust them on all cruiselines. Personally I have always felt the staff earned these gratuities

For first time cruisers there will be a couple of memorable people and you will probably want to tip them extra

For me it has always been restaurant and room staff

They usually go so out of the way to make your cruise fantastic

They share this with their staff specifically

Remember Their staff makes it possible for them to have the time to do all those little extras for you

[Geoff Charles]

When I booked with Carnival a couple days ago, I was told that the staff would not know if we had prepaid or not.:confused:

When I prepaid on the Carnival Pride my head stateroom attendant acknowedged and thanked us for the prepaid tips the first day we met her. At the end of the day, it is up to each passenger to determine the quality of service. Some passengers prefer little or no interaction with the staff and crew and others are just the opposite.

[beachbum53]

They tell the crew on embarkation who prepaid gratuities who did not? This would be like saying: take care of this one, but not of that one.

 

Some people, like us, prefer to pre-pay as much as possible, including gratuities. It's so much easier than the old way of waiting until the last evening of the cruise, when you'd have to get the envelopes for each person you're tipping, go to the Purser's Desk, get change, then figure out how much above the recommended amount you want to give to each person. If you feel pretty certain that you're going to give an extra tip to certain staff members, such as your cabin steward or waiter, get some "Thank-you" cards with envelopes (prior to your cruise), then you can write a personalized message on the card. In addition to the extra cash, it shows that you really appreciate how much they've done for you.:)

[bonsai3s]

Some people, like us, prefer to pre-pay as much as possible, including gratuities. It's so much easier than the old way of waiting until the last evening of the cruise, when you'd have to get the envelopes for each person you're tipping, go to the Purser's Desk, get change, then figure out how much above the recommended amount you want to give to each person. If you feel pretty certain that you're going to give an extra tip to certain staff members, such as your cabin steward or waiter, get some "Thank-you" cards with envelopes (prior to your cruise), then you can write a personalized message on the card. In addition to the extra cash, it shows that you really appreciate how much they've done for you.:)

 

beachbum53...we prefer to pre-pay as well...it's so much easier. We've always had great service and add extra at the end.

 

For those who are uncomfortable with pre-paying gratuities, perhaps another option is to simply not do it. And at the end of the cruise...tip appropriately.

[gdisney]

When I booked with Carnival a couple days ago, I was told that the staff would not know if we had prepaid or not.:confused:

 

Carnival and Princess automatically charge their tips to your onboard account, so in essence everyone has pre-paid them (you will see the charge on your onboard account statement for each day individually)