Gratuities for toddlers?

[shiner6]

Since I was charged full price for bringing my 1 year-old on board for a cruise, am I automatically required to pay a full gratuity as well since there are no services geared for her age level and now I understand that she will not be permitted to use the pool either):. I don't mind tipping extra for services rendered, however, I find it a little difficult to swallow paying full price and gratuities, just so I could bring her along on a family vacation. Now, I am wondering what we will be able to do on sea days!? what have others done? I certainly do not want to take money away from those who work so hard to care for us directly.

 

 

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[Working 2 Cruise]

Yes, you'll have to pay gratuities for her. Babies and toddlers are often a lot more work for the crew than you'd think, such as removing dirty diapers, bringing baby food, etc. Besides, the crew will go the extra mile for your child.

 

I'm reasonably certain that if you remove the auto-tip for your child, you'd be removing the auto-tips for all of you. Which means you'd be cheating the crew of all your family's tips.

 

One of you can go to the children's area (one adult has to remain) and the other can enjoy the ship... You would have the same problem anywhere you go since your child is too young for most activities.

Edited November 16, 2014 by Working 2 Cruise

[shredie]

The crew does a lot for her you may not be aware of. Yes, you will be charged, but of course, you can always remove the tip.

[Rosethorn40]

The gratuities are not just for the front line personnel that wait on you (Room steward, waiters), but are pooled and shared with those that work in the support functions such as the laundry, housekeeping in the public areas of the ship, etc.

 

Keep in mind that the crew works very long hours for months on end, giving up watching their own children grow so they can send money home in hopes their children will have a better life.

[cherylandtk]

The tips you are automatically charged do not go to the ancillary services like pool attendants or kids clubs staff. Rather, the biggest chunk goes to your dining staff (including the buffet) and your room steward. Since your daughter will presumably be sleeping and bathing and eating, it is appropriate that her tips are left in place. And as others have said, you will be amazed by the special level of service she receives; many staff have had to leave their own young children for months and will shower her with attention.

[Pam in CA]

The "hotel service charge" isn't based on who directly serves you or whether you use the pool. It's comprehensive and includes your cabin steward, the staff in the buffet who clean the tables and floor, bring you drinks or anything else you ask for, the waitstaff in the dining room, and many others who will do their best to make sure you and your toddler's cruise is great. By not tipping, it shows that you don't value all the help you'll receive.

[shiner6]

My fault, I was not clear. I always give additional individual tips on top of the usual required gratuities! I would never dream of cheating the lovely hard working people who serve us. I guess I am disappointed that I had not realized how limited I will be on Princess with a toddler! My previous experience on Disney, allowed use of the pool. I can't think of what we are going to do on sea days, except for sit in our room.

 

 

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[Coral]

My fault, I was not clear. I always give additional individual tips on top of the usual required gratuities! I would never dream of cheating the lovely hard working people who serve us. I guess I am disappointed that I had not realized how limited I will be on Princess with a toddler! My previous experience on Disney, allowed use of the pool. I can't think of what we are going to do on sea days, except for sit in our room.

 

 

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Many people with toddlers bring a blow-up pool. I am not sure how they fill it but it is mentioned quite a bit on the boards.

[shredie]

There are some ideas on the Family cruising boards here on CC.

[Cruisin' Chick]

I imagine the Disney pool must be a splash pool for toddlers and not a main pool. I would check out the small inflatable pool idea too.

 

Our girl's first cruise was at 23 months of age, so she was one month short of being able to participate in Camp Carnival. But we didn't let it stop us from having fun with her. We enjoyed following her about as she explored the ship. She was old enough to enjoy the shows (we sat near the back just in case we had to make a quick exit -- but we also took her to some kiddie shows before the cruise; on her last cruise at age 15, she was still enjoying going to the shows). I talked with our steward as soon as he came by and asked him what to do with the used diapers.

 

We didn't take off her tips on any cruise -- and that first cruise was no exception. I think we were able to get a third passenger discount for her on every cruise we went on from Carnival and Princess.

[CI66774]

Yes - you will pay full gratuities for your 1-year-old. You can bring the child to the kid's club and play with them there. I know the Royal has an area for toddlers, etc. to play with their parents. Unfortunately, the kid clubs are only for three and up. The child will not be allowed in the pool of course but you could bring a little plastic blow up thing and let her splash in it, I suppose. I'm sure you'll have a good time.

[4cats4me]

Since I was charged full price for bringing my 1 year-old on board for a cruise, am I automatically required to pay a full gratuity as well since there are no services geared for her age level and now I understand that she will not be permitted to use the pool either):. I don't mind tipping extra for services rendered, however, I find it a little difficult to swallow paying full price and gratuities, just so I could bring her along on a family vacation. Now, I am wondering what we will be able to do on sea days!? what have others done? I certainly do not want to take money away from those who work so hard to care for us directly.

 

 

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Yes, you must pay full gratuities for your child. Even if she can't use the pool, why take it out on the cabin attendant's gratuities or the dining staff? We always pay full gratuities

Even though we don't ask for much of our room attendants, nor do we go to the dining room for breakfast or lunch, but we would never think to reduce the amount of gratuities :rolleyes:

Edited November 16, 2014 by 4cats4me

[MarkSeattle]

Many people with toddlers bring a blow-up pool. I am not sure how they fill it but it is mentioned quite a bit on the boards.

 

I'm pretty sure that isn't allowed either, not saying people don't try to do it, but there is nowhere to dump out the diaper water pool except on the floor everyone has to walk through, or it will run into the pool anyway...

[Loonbeam]

The reason given for the full charge BTW is that sections of the ships are blocked in terms of number of 'souls'. An infant or toddler has a count of 1 and thus that's a slot that cannot be sold to someone else.

 

I do agree Princess does not offer near as many amenities for infants and toddlers as other lines. It's just not one of their key markets. The staff will certainly do their best given the facilities.

[ucsbgirl]

Am I the only one who got that the op wasn't talking about

out removing tips? Yes. Frustrating. But. Reality.

Please don't feel thAt your cabin is the only toddler friendly place. Vacations with kids are different but fun. What ship will you be on?

Happy cruising.

[O2Bcrusin]

My daughter was not charged gratuities for her son until he was two but I think that may have been on a Carnival ship.

[Lerin]

Gratuities are always optional for everyone regardless of age.

 

Aside from personal family memories your 1 year old is going to get nothing out of the cruise.

We recently sailed with a 4 year old and though he went to the kid club for about an hour, he got virtually nothing that is allotted to others. Certainly not worth the $11.50 a day extra.

Typical picky preschooler: bowl of cereal in the am, fruit for lunch, and a slice of pizza for dinner. That's it, nothing in the MDR and some of what he ate was food we brought or bought in ports. The pools were freezing so he could not go in. The activities and shows were not appropriate for him in any way...

 

It is a silly cruise critic myth that they are working just as hard or harder to cater to a very young child. Our room steward didn't have to do anything extra at all, actually he did less considering my child shares our bath towels and doesn't leave any trash whatsoever. And the staff most certainly did not fawn over him or give him any extra attention-in fact they pretty much ignored him and looked at him like he was a disease in the MDR.

 

I am not ashamed to admit that on the last sea day I removed his auto tips.

We've been on a dozen cruises and this was the first time we've ever done this. This was also the only time we ever felt that the extra money was in no way justified.

Princess does not want children and families on their ships. This is obvious. We will not be back.

[Working 2 Cruise]

Please do not listen to Lerin. It's always more difficult to cruise with a child, especially a one-year old. I don't know what happened to make this poster feel that way, but be assured that Princess and its crew do care, very much so.

 

Unfortunately, there will always be negative people.

 

Have a great cruise!

[Sillyjilly]

Gratuities are always optional for everyone regardless of age.

 

Aside from personal family memories your 1 year old is going to get nothing out of the cruise.

We recently sailed with a 4 year old and though he went to the kid club for about an hour, he got virtually nothing that is allotted to others. Certainly not worth the $11.50 a day extra.

Typical picky preschooler: bowl of cereal in the am, fruit for lunch, and a slice of pizza for dinner. That's it, nothing in the MDR and some of what he ate was food we brought or bought in ports. The pools were freezing so he could not go in. The activities and shows were not appropriate for him in any way...

 

It is a silly cruise critic myth that they are working just as hard or harder to cater to a very young child. Our room steward didn't have to do anything extra at all, actually he did less considering my child shares our bath towels and doesn't leave any trash whatsoever. And the staff most certainly did not fawn over him or give him any extra attention-in fact they pretty much ignored him and looked at him like he was a disease in the MDR.

 

I am not ashamed to admit that on the last sea day I removed his auto tips.

We've been on a dozen cruises and this was the first time we've ever done this. This was also the only time we ever felt that the extra money was in no way justified.

Princess does not want children and families on their ships. This is obvious. We will not be back.

 

Did your child not require a bed?

 

Did he not dine with you in the dining room?

 

Really people. If you don't want to adhere to the contract, then perhaps cruising isn't your best option.

 

I truly just don't get it.

 

Gratuities are per person, not per age group.

Edited November 16, 2014 by Sillyjilly

[dmwnc1959]

I'm pretty sure that isn't allowed either, not saying people don't try to do it, but there is nowhere to dump out the diaper water pool except on the floor everyone has to walk through, or it will run into the pool anyway...

 

 

I've read that on other threads, describing it as basically a 'poop filled tea bag'. A bit disgusting, but none the less it sounds like an adequate description if an infant diaper is allowed to steep in the shallow waters of an inflatable kiddie pool, having gone unnoticed before the water is disposed of in a publicly used environment like the Lido Deck.

 

:cool:

[Coral]

I'm pretty sure that isn't allowed either, not saying people don't try to do it, but there is nowhere to dump out the diaper water pool except on the floor everyone has to walk through, or it will run into the pool anyway...

 

The last person I mentioned said that they dumped the water into a drain near by.

[Ethel5]

Gratuities are always optional for everyone regardless of age.

 

Aside from personal family memories your 1 year old is going to get nothing out of the cruise.

We recently sailed with a 4 year old and though he went to the kid club for about an hour, he got virtually nothing that is allotted to others. Certainly not worth the $11.50 a day extra.

Typical picky preschooler: bowl of cereal in the am, fruit for lunch, and a slice of pizza for dinner. That's it, nothing in the MDR and some of what he ate was food we brought or bought in ports. The pools were freezing so he could not go in. The activities and shows were not appropriate for him in any way...

 

It is a silly cruise critic myth that they are working just as hard or harder to cater to a very young child. Our room steward didn't have to do anything extra at all, actually he did less considering my child shares our bath towels and doesn't leave any trash whatsoever. And the staff most certainly did not fawn over him or give him any extra attention-in fact they pretty much ignored him and looked at him like he was a disease in the MDR.

 

I am not ashamed to admit that on the last sea day I removed his auto tips.

We've been on a dozen cruises and this was the first time we've ever done this. This was also the only time we ever felt that the extra money was in no way justified.

Princess does not want children and families on their ships. This is obvious. We will not be back.

 

A totally negative view on how things really are. I have sailed with young children and they were treated especially well by the crew. We arranged their dinner to be ready as soon as we sat down in the MDR and that entertained them while the adults were having their meal. We took them to the kids club and allowed them to join the activities while we watched. It is difficult to travel with young kids and the adults don't get the restful vacatin they planned. The alternative is to leave the kid at home with Grandma or sail Disney at a much higher rate.

[Iamcruzin]

Gratuities are always optional for everyone regardless of age.

 

Aside from personal family memories your 1 year old is going to get nothing out of the cruise.

We recently sailed with a 4 year old and though he went to the kid club for about an hour, he got virtually nothing that is allotted to others. Certainly not worth the $11.50 a day extra.

Typical picky preschooler: bowl of cereal in the am, fruit for lunch, and a slice of pizza for dinner. That's it, nothing in the MDR and some of what he ate was food we brought or bought in ports. The pools were freezing so he could not go in. The activities and shows were not appropriate for him in any way...

 

It is a silly cruise critic myth that they are working just as hard or harder to cater to a very young child. Our room steward didn't have to do anything extra at all, actually he did less considering my child shares our bath towels and doesn't leave any trash whatsoever. And the staff most certainly did not fawn over him or give him any extra attention-in fact they pretty much ignored him and looked at him like he was a disease in the MDR.

 

I am not ashamed to admit that on the last sea day I removed his auto tips.

We've been on a dozen cruises and this was the first time we've ever done this. This was also the only time we ever felt that the extra money was in no way justified.

Princess does not want children and families on their ships. This is obvious. We will not be back.

 

I'm surprised you couldn't figure this out just by the brochures with the middle aged silver haired couples relaxing and doing absolutely nothing on a balcony. Princess would not be my first choice for children under 4 or young adults over 17 who won't participate in the clubs. Personally my children loved the Princess experience and always participated in the kids activities.

 

 

What I don't understand is many times I read posts that children which would be 3rd and 4th passenger pay full fare. We have always received a reduced rate for 3rd and 4th passengers in the room.

[Ethel5]

....................................snip...................

What I don't understand is many times I read posts that children which would be 3rd and 4th passenger pay full fare. We have always received a reduced rate for 3rd and 4th passengers in the room.

 

This is so true! The posters are probably trying to evoke sympathy by stating they pay full price for a child, when in reality, they pay the reduced rate of 3rd and 4th passenger. They are not paying the full adult fare.

[bhopal21]

 

I am not ashamed to admit that on the last sea day I removed his auto tips.

We've been on a dozen cruises and this was the first time we've ever done this. This was also the only time we ever felt that the extra money was in no way justified.

Princess does not want children and families on their ships. This is obvious. We will not be back.

 

You should be real proud of your actions.

 

If you were not ashamed why didn't you remove the tips on the first day rather than the last?

 

I don't think Princess will miss your business.

 

Mike:)