Tipping Cabin Stewards

[atdahop]

Does anyone tip them when you arrive onboard?

 

If so, can they keep those tips or do they have to turn them in?

[suzyed]

Does anyone tip them when you arrive onboard?

 

If so, can they keep those tips or do they have to turn them in?

 

We do tip them sometimes when we ask for something beyond what is usually done. For example, we like to have a bottle of chilled champagne for sail away, so we ask for a champagne bucket with ice, so that is chilled by the time we leave port. If they do little extras for us, we like to show that we appreciate what they are doing and give them a tip. I hope they get to keep them.

[Astro Flyer]

Any cash tips given to staff including cabin stewards they get to keep as long as the passenger keeps the auto tip.

 

I do not tip upon boarding & always have great service and will give our steward & waiters cash tips at the end of the cruise which they get to keep. Any other tips we feel are appropriate we give in cash because when a tip is added to a bill it goes into the tip pool & not to the person who provided us with excellent service.

Edited August 4, 2014 by Astro Flyer

[donaldsc]

Money offered before the service is performed is called a bribe. It is demeaning because it implies that without the bribe, the service will be bad or non-existent.

 

Money offered after the service is performed is called a tip. It is not demeaning because it is a reward for the good service that was performed.

 

Big difference.

 

The steward may not care because to them, money is money. Nevertheless it is still demeaning.

 

DON

[Pam in CA]

Does anyone tip them when you arrive onboard?

 

If so, can they keep those tips or do they have to turn them in?

No. I never pre-tip any more than I'd go to a restaurant and tip the waiter before ordering.

 

If you choose to pre-tip, they have to turn in the tip. At the end of the cruise, they'll receive it back as long as the auto-tip is left on. If you turn off the pre-tip, it goes into the tipping pool.

Edited August 4, 2014 by Pam in CA

[majortom10]

Money offered before the service is performed is called a bribe. It is demeaning because it implies that without the bribe, the service will be bad or non-existent.

 

Money offered after the service is performed is called a tip. It is not demeaning because it is a reward for the good service that was performed.

 

Big difference.

 

The steward may not care because to them, money is money. Nevertheless it is still demeaning.

 

DON

 

Agree completely and if you are leaving your $11-50 pppd on why would you want to tip more anyway it is already enough.

[skynight]

Agree completely and if you are leaving your $11-50 pppd on why would you want to tip more anyway it is already enough.

Some believe it is enough, some don't. The $11.50 is split up to many of which the steward is just one. The steward gets between $3 and $4 from the pool. Stewards normally provide some of their tips to those that assist them on turn around days.

[flamomo]

I have never, and would never, tip a steward before a cruise even starts. I don't believe in bribery.

I do, however, tip immediately when I have made a special request of the steward for something beyond the norms of her/his duties.

I always give an extra tip at the end of every cruise, the amount dependent on how great the service was. I've only had one cruise where the extra tip I gave was a small amount because the service was just minimally OK.

[loveJake]

I have, but not for our room. When we take our 3 grandkids we have adjoining cabins. Being teenagers the room is a wreck and they are sleeping in. I usually give him $20 and tell him to look the other way at the mess and maybe he will not get in to clean at all. They just laugh and say they understand. I tell them the money is for the extra trouble the kids will cause, not a bribe just don't want them to take it out on us. When it is just DH and me I give extra at the end.

[Cruize]

We will give the steward $10 or $20 (or equivalent in local currency) if we know he or she are going ashore, which is very seldom. It may buy them a meal or whatever. They always seem grateful. It's a thank you not a bribe. AND we tip at the end of the cruise.

 

Paul

[RJ2002]

Like others, we do not tip at the beginning of a cruise. We did it once, giving our cabin steward $20 at the start when we welcomed us to our cabin. It just didn't feel right.

 

Now, we will always consider tipping extra at the end of the cruise. The level of the tips is commensurate with the level of service that we have received. We usually have a general idea at the start of a cruise as to what we've "budgeted" for the end-of-cruise tips, and we will make adjustments (up, down, or leave the same) at the end when the time comes.

[Happy2cruise]

Have never tipped when boarding but will tip at the end of the cruise unless the service has been poor. Out of all our cruises, have only twice not tipped extra to the room stewards.

[Colo Cruiser]

I agree we never bribe Stewart.

[Cruize]

We will give the steward $10 or $20 (or equivalent in local currency) if we know he or she are going ashore, which is very seldom. It may buy them a meal or whatever. They always seem grateful. It's a thank you not a bribe. AND we tip at the end of the cruise.

 

Paul

 

I should reiterate that this is during the cruise NOT at the start.;)

 

Paul

[OCruisers]

Like "loveJake" (same reason) we would tip the cabin steward $20 cash in advance when our girls had a cabin across the hall. :D

Naturally, we would tip him extra in cash at the end of the cruise.

LuLu

[Off Shore]

A bribe is defined as "money or any other valuable consideration given or promised with a view to corrupting the behavior of a person, especially in that person's performance as an athlete, public official, etc.:"

I give a gratuity defined as "a gift of money, over and above payment due for service"

 

At the start of the cruise we give some very specific instructions to the steward or butler, and a gratuity. The crew is very poorly paid, and the extra $5 per day to the cabin steward or crew means nothing to me.

If I get better service than the rest of you, so be it!

[Pia1913]

A bribe is defined as "money or any other valuable consideration given or promised with a view to corrupting the behavior of a person, especially in that person's performance as an athlete, public official, etc.:"

I give a gratuity defined as "a gift of money, over and above payment due for service"

 

At the start of the cruise we give some very specific instructions to the steward or butler, and a gratuity. The crew is very poorly paid, and the extra $5 per day to the cabin steward or crew means nothing to me.

If I get better service than the rest of you, so be it!

 

When's the last time you tipped the butler? :confused:

[jazzhands]

**EDit - sorry just seen this answered on a thread not so long ago so please ignore**

 

I always leave auto-tipping on, as there are 3 of us, this amounts to $34.50 per day. Our main reason for doing this is because we choose anytime dining and therefore don't tend to have the same waiting staff in the MDR more than once so want to make sure they get a share of the tip at the end of the voyage.

 

Do any of you also then tip the steward on top of the auto-tip?

 

It felt a bit awkward this year on the Regal because even though we auto-tipped the steward made it very obvious that he was hanging around for a top-up on the last day/evening.

Edited August 4, 2014 by jazzhands

[DebJ14]

We always tip the steward in cash the first day because we make requests right off the bat. We ask that the mini bar contents be changed out and ask that they make sure the ice bucket is filled twice daily. Also, we ask them to provide additional towel and washcloths. We tip again when we send laundry out and always top off the auto tip with extra cash at the end.

[Colo Cruiser]

We always tip the steward in cash the first day because we make requests right off the bat. We ask that the mini bar contents be changed out and ask that they make sure the ice bucket is filled twice daily. Also, we ask them to provide additional towel and washcloths. We tip again when we send laundry out and always top off the auto tip with extra cash at the end.

 

 

Stewart has nothing to do with the mini bar. Thats room service.

 

Why not tip the actual guys thats do the laundry, they do all the work.

[caribill]

The crew is very poorly paid

 

By USA standards, yes.

 

By the standards of their home country the pay they receive (including tips from the pool and any extra from passengers directly) make them well paid. If not, they would not be signing and renewing contracts to work on the cruise ships.

[Potstech]

Does anyone tip them when you arrive onboard?

 

If so, can they keep those tips or do they have to turn them in?

 

Do you tip a wait staff before getting your meal? Do you tip a cab driver before before you get to your destination? Do you tip anyone else before they provide a service?

 

I do not and even with the auto tip ON we still tip the steward at the end of a cruise.

[Thrak]

The crew is very poorly paid,

 

By USA standards, yes.

 

By the standards of their home country the pay they receive (including tips from the pool and any extra from passengers directly) make them well paid. If not, they would not be signing and renewing contracts to work on the cruise ships.

 

No kidding. Check online for the pay scale in the Phillipines. You will find that they don't make much at all. Cruise ship personnel are paid quite well in relation to what they would earn at home. People should stop comparing U.S. wages to wages people earn in other countries.

 

NOTE: Just looked up some salary info. Teachers average 33,374 PHP per month. That equates to $763.36 USD. The category "Cleaning and Housekeeping" makes an average of 6,000 PHP per month which equates to $137.24 USD. The category "Executive Management" earns an average of 83,199 PHP per month which equates to $1,857.25 USD.

 

Wages in the Philippines are low. Crew members are well paid compared to what they would be making at home. Yes, they work hard but they are by no means slave labor.

Edited August 4, 2014 by Thrak

[caribill]

Crew members are well paid compared to what they would be making at home. Yes, they work hard but they are by no means slave labor.

 

In addition, their meals are free as is shipboard medical care.

 

However, they do sacrifice time with their family.

[janecambridge]

If the auto tips don't add up to a minimum wage on the ship,the company top it up.so why don't they just pay them all a decent wage in the first place?