WOW ! Up To 400 People Remove Gratuities

[Tkaklita]

Have you TA link all of your reservations that way you will be seated together. Also here is the e mail address for RCI dining. I would suggest sending them an e mail 14 days prior to sailing to confirm.

 

rcldining@rccl.com

 

Will it matter that one of the reservations was made by another TA agency? Two of us are using the same agency, but not the third.

 

 

 

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[Ken at the beach]

Will it matter that one of the reservations was made by another TA agency? Two of us are using the same agency, but not the third.

 

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

Not sure. I would call the TA's and have them figure it out.

[Tkaklita]

Not sure. I would call the TA's and have them figure it out.

 

Ok, thanks for the help and the email link. I will report back in case others have this scenario too.

 

 

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[Merion_Mom]

Will it matter that one of the reservations was made by another TA agency? Two of us are using the same agency, but not the third.

 

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

That doesn't matter. One of you needs to send your booking number to the other and then the reservations can be linked.

[Tkaklita]

That doesn't matter. One of you needs to send your booking number to the other and then the reservations can be linked.

 

Great to know. Now I take it that we all need to pre-pay our gratuities ASAP, so that we set up our preferred MTD times? Our cruise is next June, if that makes a difference anywhere.

 

 

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[Merion_Mom]

Great to know. Now I take it that we all need to pre-pay our gratuities ASAP, so that we set up our preferred MTD times? Our cruise is next June, if that makes a difference anywhere.

 

 

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You have plenty of time, so you can relax and do everything at your leisure. :)

[Tkaklita]

You have plenty of time, so you can relax and do everything at your leisure. :)

 

Whew...again, great to know. Love the learning here, thank you everyone.

 

 

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[Clarea]

Great to know. Now I take it that we all need to pre-pay our gratuities ASAP, so that we set up our preferred MTD times? Our cruise is next June, if that makes a difference anywhere.

You need to arrange for prepaid gratuties, but you don't actually pay them until cruise final payment date, 75 days before the cruise. Yout travel agent may ask for the final payment a bit in advance of the 75 days.

[Tkaklita]

You need to arrange for prepaid gratuties, but you don't actually pay them until cruise final payment date, 75 days before the cruise. Yout travel agent may ask for the final payment a bit in advance of the 75 days.

 

Thanks again for the info. I will touch base with her on this.

 

 

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[Midwestgal]

I think some people are just cheap and will look for any reason to justify removing the tip.

[styxfire]

Almost every single post made by an American on any tipping thread in this forum:rolleyes:. In fact, I've read someone use a phrase something like "a bird flew overhead and called you "cheep"", all because someone asked for advice on what to do if they planned on not eating in the MDR...

I actually saw that message too.

[styxfire]

How do you know which posters are Americans!?!?!?!? I'm an American and never ever heard the phrase "a bird flew overhead and called you cheep." I can't even picture anyone I know (and I know lots) phrasing anything that way. Before you stereotype an entire people and state what you believe most "Americans" would say, it might be best to know what you're talking about.

Why are you arguing with that person? I too saw the post they mentioned, right here on Cruise Critic. And, the location of many posters is listed in their profile.

[styxfire]

We like to remove the automatic tips and pay in cash so that there is no question that the employee sees 100% of that tip. Why do you think so many self-employed people in the service industry in the U.S. prefer to be paid in cash?

 

Apart from that, don't forget that a tip is called a tip for a reason! If you think it should be automatic even if your server/housekeeper is completely rude or doesn't do their basic job, then why not have RCCL just call it a service charge or just raise the overall cabin price? Do you all, on these boards, in your jobs, expect compensation beyond your basic pay for when you do sub-par work, or even when you do nothing beyond your basic job description?

I agree. I would remove auto-gratuities and pay them in cash, except:

I always have on-board credit in my SeaPass account and I would like to utilize that to pay the tips.

 

If I ever go on a cruise and don't have OBC, I would definitely pay in cash rather than the automated system. It just feels better to give the great waiter an immediate reward... visible tangible appreciation of a job done well.

 

I believe a cash tip incentivizes them to continue providing excellent service, much more than bundling tips into their direct-deposited paychecks.

[CRUISEFAN0001]

It's hard to believe this thread is even still open, let alone active.

 

Tipping is an optional act.

 

While the current policy is to make it the default on one's account when cruising RCI, the option exists to dispute it before closing out one's bill.

 

It would not be unusual nor unreasonable for someone to consider disputing it if they legitimately felt poor service came into play for some aspect of their cruise, and then, proportionately reduce the gratuity accordingly. We have never found the need to do so, in fact, added a separate gratuity for individuals providing exceptional service.

 

Since one of our family members has been in the food service industry for many years, we are also aware that there are some cultural realities when it comes to gratuities.

 

In some parts of the world, gratuities are not allowed. We have experienced this in both areas of Europe as well as Asia. Furthermore, we have seen posted signs in eating establishments indicating "gratuities will not be accepted".

 

All that said...some of the back and forth in this thread is embarrassing to those of us who cruise and believe in basic social etiquette. Still other posts are insultive, while others demonstrate there are unfortunately "cheap people in the world".

 

In the end, paying a gratuity is a person expression of gratitude for a job well done. Those who make more or less of it than that might want to rethink cruising altogether.

[Ocean Boy]

I think some people are just cheap and will look for any reason to justify removing the tip.

 

And some people are just thick headed.

[novicetraveller]

And some people are just thick headed.

 

How kind of you to point that out. :rolleyes:

[styxfire]

So just to clarify if for example you recieve poor service from your cabin attendant for example (no compass delivered, bins not emptied, towels not replaced, dirty things from last guest, hardly saw them to mention these things) you would still reward that lack of service with a tip?

If this happened, I would call the head house keeper and get it fixed! I would never tolorate lousey service.

Actually, when things like this happen to ME, I do "tolerate" it (if by tolerate you mean don't follow up on them to fix it). I don't want the hassle of being a policeman or enforcer. I don't want to spend a single second of my day doing someone else's job. In my mind, they only get ONE chance to do things properly. Stewards that are thorough the first time get a full tip. It shouldn't take any effort on my part to get them to do their job. If I DO have to expend effort to get them to do their job properly, then I tip myself :) To me, "excellent service" means it's done right every time WITHOUT supervision, without nagging, without a re-do.

 

On a different note: On my upcoming cruise, I'm considering paying the room steward at the beginning to STAY OUT of my room. It's only a couple days, and sometimes privacy & peace of mind is worth more than having a sheet turned down at night.

[styxfire]

I suspect that whether a cabin steward gets his money (tip) from RCI distributing it to him or handed directly to him from the passenger probably matters little to him.

On this subject, my opinion differs. A direct reward is surely more satisfying than an indirect one. I've been a waitress. I know the good feeling from receiving a tip. A direct reward reinforces great behavior more than a monthly paycheck does.

[CRUISEFAN0001]

On this subject, my opinion differs. A direct reward is surely more satisfying than an indirect one. I've been a waitress. I know the good feeling from receiving a tip. A direct reward reinforces great behavior more than a monthly paycheck does.

I agree wholeheartedly.

[styxfire]

I've asked some stateroom attendants about it since the change on March 1....

 

Gina

Uh-oh.

I didn't realize something had changed recently. I apologize in advance, but can you describe what changed on Mar.1?

On my previous cruises (which were all prior to March 1), I did NOT pre-pay the tips. I paid them mid-cruise by going to the Guest Relations counter and signing an approval paper to have them deducted from my SeaPass account. (That allows me to pay tips from my OBC balance.) Essentially, tipping that way is "opt-in".

 

Is it different post-March 1 ?

[Clarea]

Uh-oh.

I didn't realize something had changed recently. I apologize in advance, but can you describe what changed on Mar.1?

On my previous cruises (which were all prior to March 1), I did NOT pre-pay the tips. I paid them mid-cruise by going to the Guest Relations counter and signing an approval paper to have them deducted from my SeaPass account. (That allows me to pay tips from my OBC balance.) Essentially, tipping that way is "opt-in".

 

Is it different post-March 1 ?

Yes, after March 1 all guests who have not pre-paid gratuities are automatically charged $12.00 ($14.25 in a full suite) a day on their SeaPass account. The guest can go to Guest Services and have this removed on request.

Edited August 31, 2013 by clarea

[Langley Cruisers]

It's hard to believe this thread is even still open, let alone active....

 

So agreed, but someone bumped it.

[awhcruiser]

Like!

I think some people are just cheap and will look for any reason to justify removing the tip.

[awhcruiser]

Only the ones who refuse to tip.

And some people are just thick headed.

[styxfire]

...after March 1 (2013), all guests who have not pre-paid gratuities are automatically charged $12.00 ($14.25 in a full suite) a day on their SeaPass account. The guest can go to Guest Services and have this removed on request.

That info is very helpful. It's now an "opt-out" scenario, vs formerly "opt-in". Thank you Bob.