madelinerose Posted May 25, 2012 #101 Share Posted May 25, 2012 .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algebralovr Posted May 25, 2012 #102 Share Posted May 25, 2012 I was also wanting to ask the dollar v euro question. I'm a Brit going on a med cruise with pre-paid gratuities. So the only reason I'd need dollars is if I had to have them for tips. Obviously far more convenient NOT to have to do that...will staff accept euro tips or feel a bit put out? We're on Celebrity if that makes a difference. Hope somebody can reply soon as I'm getting holiday cash sorted tomorrow! Since it is a Med Cruise, and you have pre-paid gratuities, feel free to tip in whatever you prefer - be it USD, Sterling or Euros. The Euros will be easy for the crew to spend or send home from any port along the Med and may actually save them a little bit of cash along the Med. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AltarEgo Posted May 25, 2012 #103 Share Posted May 25, 2012 That the cheap cruise booking is only an appetizer on the plate of industry profits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted May 25, 2012 #104 Share Posted May 25, 2012 I was also wanting to ask the dollar v euro question. I'm a Brit going on a med cruise with pre-paid gratuities. So the only reason I'd need dollars is if I had to have them for tips. Obviously far more convenient NOT to have to do that...will staff accept euro tips or feel a bit put out? We're on Celebrity if that makes a difference. Hope somebody can reply soon as I'm getting holiday cash sorted tomorrow! You may be best to tip extra in euros ..they can spend it ashore if they have the chance ... they will accept any currency graciously ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted May 25, 2012 #105 Share Posted May 25, 2012 .So, should I tip the extra in US$ or Euro, or won't it matter. I also think our Cruise is basically in 2 sections, Barcelona-Venice & Venice- Venice, so should I tip after each section, or only if I become aware that staff are moving on? Cheers Hodgy11 It does not matter We usually tip after each cruise ...the night before the 1st cruise ends It is a personal choice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happy cruzer Posted May 25, 2012 #106 Share Posted May 25, 2012 I go with the cruise line recommended amounts whether they are pre paid or put in envelopes. Cruise lines do the tips differently, some pool and others may not. The service staff sign a contract and understand the cruise line's policies on tips ahead of time. I assume that they are ok with the recommended guidelines or they would not sign a contract. So I go with the recommended daily amount and don't worry about the details. Just as no one has ever worried about my personal compensation or lack there of :). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taxguy77 Posted May 25, 2012 #107 Share Posted May 25, 2012 Lets try to carry the logic of the OP a bit further. Supposed I want to buy a Mercedes that is advertised for $80,000. Now lets suppose that a local dealer advertises that Mercedes for $50,000....and of course I go running to that dealer. He says, yes, the car will only cost you $50,000 but we will also add an "automatic gratuity" to pay for the labor of building, shipping and selling the car and that "automatic gratuity" will only be $35,000. We can also see this approach for education. Perhaps a school will charge $5000 a year in "automatic" gratuities to pay for the teachers, janitors, etc. And of course we might then be able to give you a $1000 reduction in your taxes. My point is that the cruise lines have traditionally used the "tipping" scam as a way to market lower prices (which do not include gratuities). And then they try to turn the argument around by saying its the customers (cruiser) responsibility to pay the staff. What an idea! Perhaps I will run for President on the campaign promise that I will eliminate all income taxes......(and replace it with an automatic gratuity). Hank P.S. We will leave it to the reader to judge the seriousness of this post :) Polititions will just add the auto tip to the taxes!:rolleyes: Otherwise the "Opt out" feature would be used by too many of us who don't like the way taxes are misused and lost. :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taxguy77 Posted May 25, 2012 #108 Share Posted May 25, 2012 Thank you for the kind words from all of you. Realizing that this was a topic that needed some basic clarifications and I thought I was doing the right thing about providing as much information as possible. I guess you can never please those who thinks that auto grats are a scam and I guess those people belong to the I am greater than having to tip people kind of attitude. Majority of cruisers I met while working on board the ship have been pleasant to the point where you will just do about anything you can to please them. And from comments I get from you, you belong to this group. Hope I will be able to sail with you someday....:o Perhaps your definition of 'scam' is different than theirs. To me it is obviously a way to lower the advertised price of the cruise by $10-12/day. They also don't include port charges and other items that make the final cost higher, that's marketing (There's also a tax factor involved in the service charge.). You can call this a scam or not, as you wish. BUT, notice that some sailings from Great Britain (Not noted for tipping) are priced differently,without the "tips:confused:). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taxguy77 Posted May 25, 2012 #109 Share Posted May 25, 2012 Aw, come on, can't we comment on it? Please? Imagine the fun we could have, combining a tipping thread with a smuggling thread! :D Think it will pass the 1,000 mark?:confused::rolleyes::D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helpthejuggler Posted May 25, 2012 #110 Share Posted May 25, 2012 BUT, notice that some sailings from Great Britain (Not noted for tipping) are priced differently,without the "tips:confused:). I think there is some misunderstanding. All cruise prices advertised in UK include port taxes and fees. Pre-pay is quite common, although Cunard use auto-tips and I don't think pre-pay is an option. X included the 15% within drinks prices from Southampton rather than as a separate itemised cost. RCI intended something similar, but seem to cancel the charge on Independence. Removing the auto tips is quite common though among Brits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taxguy77 Posted May 26, 2012 #111 Share Posted May 26, 2012 I may be getting old, but I like the envelopes better than the auto. Our first two week cruise, we adjusted the recommendation of the cruiseline; nothing to the maitre'd as he did nothing for us so we gave his portion to the waiter; matched the waiter's for his assistant, increased the room steward and ended up paying more than the recommended amount. The waiter asked me to give his assistant a good notice on his evaluation with whitch I agreed, the assistant gave us the biggest smile I've ever seen when I told him we had recommended him for waiter and that was before he opened his tip envelope. We mentioned 4 or 5 crew members by name for their outstanding work in hopes our remarks would help them get promotions. Too bad they are so overworked in some venues now, just ruins the cruise experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KievCruiser Posted May 26, 2012 #112 Share Posted May 26, 2012 I don't think people should tip at the beginning of a cruise. That's more like a bribe than a tip! The derivation of the word 'tips' is "to insure proper service." i like tipping up front for just that reason .... And it works! Bribery, maybe, but absolutely effective! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
calliopecruiser Posted May 26, 2012 #113 Share Posted May 26, 2012 The derivation of the word 'tips' is "to insure proper service." i like tipping up front for just that reason .... And it works! Bribery, maybe, but absolutely effective! That's an old wives' tale, or maybe an urban legend: “Tip is an old word, and it has nothing to do with either acronyms or the act of attempting to influence quality of service. Although the word has many meanings, both as a verb and as a noun, the use of the term as it applies to monetary rewards to servants dates to the 1700s….. the use of tip to describe the act of giving something to another (where that list of possible 'somethings' could include small sums of money, intelligence on horse races, or the latest silly joke) goes back to 1610. Tip slipped into the language as underworld slang, with the verb 'to tip' (meaning 'to give to or share with') being used by shady characters as part of the then-current argot of petty criminals.” http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/tip.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted May 26, 2012 #114 Share Posted May 26, 2012 i like tipping up front for just that reason .... And it works! Bribery, maybe, but absolutely effective! Do you tip cash upfront to the wait staff ? If not the crew do not know you have tipped upfront & you will get the same service as those that just use the auto-tip or tip the last night Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lage1 Posted May 31, 2012 #115 Share Posted May 31, 2012 so the cruise line doesnot pay the staff the only means of pay is what passengers leave for tips so when we pay for a cruise where does that money go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sail7seas Posted May 31, 2012 #116 Share Posted May 31, 2012 That the cheap cruise booking is only an appetizer on the plate of industry profits. Cruise lines are for profit businesses. They are like any other business that has stockholders and seeks to make profits. We should not think of them as non-profit charities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Gail & Marty sailing away Posted May 31, 2012 #117 Share Posted May 31, 2012 Thanks for the info .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul929207 Posted May 31, 2012 #118 Share Posted May 31, 2012 so the cruise line doesnot pay the staff the only means of pay is what passengers leave for tips so when we pay for a cruise where does that money go Fuel Pay for not service personnel Food maintainance .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luddite Posted May 31, 2012 #119 Share Posted May 31, 2012 The derivation of the word 'tips' is "to insure proper service." i like tipping up front for just that reason .... And it works! Bribery, maybe, but absolutely effective! Simply not true. If it was derived from that line, it'd be teps, not tips. Your insurance agent ain't involved with tipping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luddite Posted May 31, 2012 #120 Share Posted May 31, 2012 so the cruise line doesnot pay the staff the only means of pay is what passengers leave for tips so when we pay for a cruise where does that money go thedscor'tips' is howthecrew getspaid thatisthewaythat thesystemisanditisntlikely tochangeinour lifetime Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted May 31, 2012 #121 Share Posted May 31, 2012 so the cruise line doesnot pay the staff the only means of pay is what passengers leave for tips so when we pay for a cruise where does that money go Think about it:rolleyes: maybe food, fuel etc.... They do pay the staff but just a small wage Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Gail & Marty sailing away Posted June 1, 2012 #122 Share Posted June 1, 2012 Perhaps your definition of 'scam' is different than theirs.To me it is obviously a way to lower the advertised price of the cruise by $10-12/day. They also don't include port charges and other items that make the final cost higher, that's marketing (There's also a tax factor involved in the service charge.). You can call this a scam or not, as you wish. BUT, notice that some sailings from Great Britain (Not noted for tipping) are priced differently,without the "tips:confused:). Good thought .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nhohue2011 Posted September 9, 2012 #123 Share Posted September 9, 2012 Lets try to carry the logic of the OP a bit further. Supposed I want to buy a Mercedes that is advertised for $80,000. Now lets suppose that a local dealer advertises that Mercedes for $50,000....and of course I go running to that dealer. He says, yes, the car will only cost you $50,000 but we will also add an "automatic gratuity" to pay for the labor of building, shipping and selling the car and that "automatic gratuity" will only be $35,000. We can also see this approach for education. Perhaps a school will charge $5000 a year in "automatic" gratuities to pay for the teachers, janitors, etc. And of course we might then be able to give you a $1000 reduction in your taxes. My point is that the cruise lines have traditionally used the "tipping" scam as a way to market lower prices (which do not include gratuities). And then they try to turn the argument around by saying its the customers (cruiser) responsibility to pay the staff. What an idea! Perhaps I will run for President on the campaign promise that I will eliminate all income taxes......(and replace it with an automatic gratuity). Hank P.S. We will leave it to the reader to judge the seriousness of this post :) I second this. Maybe it's the cultural different, but where I come from, people earn their tip. On cruise lines, it's not really tip, it's salary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nhohue2011 Posted September 9, 2012 #124 Share Posted September 9, 2012 :)Just a quick reply to all...cruises are not for the weak at heart or cheap with the pocket book! If you cannot go on a cruise and have the time of your life, then get off the ship! As far as the crew is concerned, whatever they are paid I can only hope that every passenger gives as much "tip" as he can afford. They all (meaning the crew) work their butts off and make you feel like royalty. It is the only place in the world that I personally receive service like that! Attention all crew, pay no attention to thoes unappreciative passengers and remember, most of us think you do a Great Job! Many heartful thanks.Jacoussi George :) Lol. Not sure where you get that from. Cruise is the cheapest (even after you include the auto tip & sales) and most relax way to travel. If you have a strong heart, try backpacking in a foreign country. If you have a deep pocket book, try private tours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triplett Posted September 13, 2012 #125 Share Posted September 13, 2012 Hi Cruise Staff, Thanks for all of your helpful info. I was wondering, what percentage of passesngers (roughly) per cruise removes the DSC? Is there a particular cabin category this is more commonly seen in? Just curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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