jchiefs13 Posted March 19, 2015 #1 Share Posted March 19, 2015 I'm curious... for those who have a favorite Concierge or other employee onboard, or for someone who helped get you something special onboard: What small thank you type gift have you taken with to give to this person? I am sure that small tokens of normal life are appreciated - I'm just looking for ideas so I can say thank you to a staff member. Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PennStateFan123 Posted March 19, 2015 #2 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Dead presidents on green paper work best Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGaDawgFan Posted March 19, 2015 #3 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Cash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langley Cruisers Posted March 19, 2015 #4 Share Posted March 19, 2015 I am sure that small tokens of normal life are appreciated - I'm just looking for ideas so I can say thank you to a staff member. No offense, but they're actually not. Crew/staff quarters are small and they simply don't have room for anything from passengers. Oh, they will smile and thank you sweetly for whatever you give them, but they absolutely may discard it after you're gone. Cash is king, as most people here will tell you. At our jobs, we all work for money, not trinkets or tokens. They will love the cash. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluegirlum Posted March 19, 2015 #5 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Agree with the others. Cash. They don't have rooms for all the small "gifts" they get. Many are sending their money back home to their families. Giving them money is the best thank you you can give. They will not like anything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cb at sea Posted March 20, 2015 #6 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Money!!! Why do you work? For gifts? I don't! I work for money...so do they! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dplusd Posted March 20, 2015 #7 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I'm curious... for those who have a favorite Concierge or other employee onboard, or for someone who helped get you something special onboard: What small thank you type gift have you taken with to give to this person? I am sure that small tokens of normal life are appreciated - I'm just looking for ideas so I can say thank you to a staff member. Judy Just the fact that you care enough to ask about thanking a staff member in a special way says a lot about you (positively). I do agree with others that cash is the appropriate way to thank a crew member for making your vacation special. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccryder Posted March 20, 2015 #8 Share Posted March 20, 2015 If not cash, then prepaid phone cards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iheartbda Posted March 20, 2015 #9 Share Posted March 20, 2015 If not cash, then prepaid phone cards. Phone cards are becoming a thing of the past. Crew has other ways of communicating.....Skye, internet, etc. Also, phone cards are not all created equally and not usable for all countries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Langley Cruisers Posted March 20, 2015 #10 Share Posted March 20, 2015 If not cash, then prepaid phone cards. Please no - as mentioned, these are quickly becoming obsolete and if a crew member wants a phone card, they can buy the appropriate one they need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bighairtexan Posted March 20, 2015 #11 Share Posted March 20, 2015 But you CAN make it more personal than palming some cash at the end of the cruise. A really heartfelt nice note as to WHY is a nice touch. So bring some personal notepaper and envelopes to stick that cash in. I'm not even slightly suggesting that they're going to keep the note stuck on their mirror, but they'll read it and appreciate it esp. when accompanied by cash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix1181 Posted March 20, 2015 #12 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I always bring a few note cards with me. A nice note & a few dollars is definitely the way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merion_Mom Posted March 20, 2015 #13 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Cash is ALWAYS king. IF IF IF IF you wish to add something small to your cash gift, most of them have personal cravings - the most common one is M & M's. Reyno V. LOVES Nestle's Crunch, if you encounter him. Darryl Dyball adores Peanut M & M's, and the egg mcmuffin type sandwiches from the Park Café. Katie Turner will kill for anything salted caramel. ;) Other than that, most of them DO like candy. If it is convenient, travel-wise, Guest Services staff often love fresh-baked, homemade cookies and brownies. But NEVER EVER instead of cash. And WOW cards. Some have reported here being told that WOW cards are no longer important, so I specifically asked some senior staff on board the Serenade last week. STILL important. And mention them BY NAME on your post-cruise survey. But first and foremost, as PennStateFan wrote, and I always write, "Pieces of green paper with pictures of dead presidents on them." :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Royalpair Posted March 20, 2015 #14 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Last July on Navigator we gave the Diamond host a WOW card, and he said for 5 of them he got an extra day off :-). We gave the other to our asst waitress (along with cash) and she seemed very appreciative. I always picture gifts for the crew like mugs for a teacher, way too many to keep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julesbeara Posted March 20, 2015 #15 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I actually bought a few crew members Starbucks frappacino's on our last cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hrrsamrovk Posted March 20, 2015 #16 Share Posted March 20, 2015 I always picture gifts for the crew like mugs for a teacher, way too many to keep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yolanda1 Posted March 20, 2015 #17 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Cash. No question. A little written note of appreciation would make it even nicer. But definitely not any of the other bits of tat that some people give to them. They don't have room for "stuff", even if it's stuff that you might think is nice. Some people say things like "The waiter was thrilled with the fridge magnet with the name of my home town on it" I once spoke with a Concierge who said that over the years he had been given tons of useless tokens and trinkets and candies, but he did appreciate that they were given with the best of intentions. Just because they smile politely, look thrilled and say thank you doesn't mean they want it!:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chengkp75 Posted March 20, 2015 #18 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Cash is ALWAYS king. IF IF IF IF you wish to add something small to your cash gift, most of them have personal cravings - the most common one is M & M's. Reyno V. LOVES Nestle's Crunch, if you encounter him. Darryl Dyball adores Peanut M & M's, and the egg mcmuffin type sandwiches from the Park Café. Katie Turner will kill for anything salted caramel. ;) Other than that, most of them DO like candy. If it is convenient, travel-wise, Guest Services staff often love fresh-baked, homemade cookies and brownies. But NEVER EVER instead of cash. And WOW cards. Some have reported here being told that WOW cards are no longer important, so I specifically asked some senior staff on board the Serenade last week. STILL important. And mention them BY NAME on your post-cruise survey. But first and foremost, as PennStateFan wrote, and I always write, "Pieces of green paper with pictures of dead presidents on them." :D From my experience (a few years ago, different line), the guest surveys were always collated and discussed at the weekly revenue meeting of all department heads. The equivalent of WOW cards, and crew mentioned by name in surveys were always tallied. Every month at the crew meeting, the Captain would recognize one or two crew who had done exceptionally well in guest services (or sometimes were named by fellow crew as being a behind the scenes person who helped them give great service) with something like a pass to a specialty restaurant, a day off, and things like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trev71 Posted March 20, 2015 #19 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Its all about the Cash. then they can buy whatever they want with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCT61 Posted March 20, 2015 #20 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Give them whatever you give the concierges and maids at the hotels where you stay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan-P Posted March 20, 2015 #21 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Dead presidents on green paper work best First post NAILS it! :D Dan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul65 Posted March 20, 2015 #22 Share Posted March 20, 2015 The thought is nice, but I am with the others in that a cash tip is the most appropriate, along with a hand-written note, if you want to make it more personal. Also already mentioned, but calling out staff by name on guest surveys and "WOW Cards" if you feel they did an exceptional job can mean a lot to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
griffy116 Posted March 20, 2015 #23 Share Posted March 20, 2015 While it makes US feel good to give something personal...We give cash inside a very heartfelt thank you card. Imagine 5 small thank you gifts per cruise for the length of their contract. Now imagine five monetary gifts. We always tell them in the thank you card how much we appreciate how they took care of us and we mention the special things they did. We submit the WOW cards and I always send an e-mail to Royal Caribbean telling them about their special crew members and staff we encountered on our cruise, including some that weren't our waiters such as someone in the WJ or someone at Guest Services. $$$$ is the special thank you gift. It doesn't take up space in our luggage or the cabin of the crew member an everyone appreciates cash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jchiefs13 Posted March 20, 2015 Author #24 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Cash is a given. I meant the small personal card or the candy bar w/ the note saying "that was so sweet" - perfect. Thanks. I was waivering on the candy thing because who knows what type of candy someone likes, but I'm sure they can share w/ friends... and candy doesn't clutter up a small room like trinkets (which isn't what I meant). Thanks everyone! Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chermilo Posted March 20, 2015 #25 Share Posted March 20, 2015 Cash, WOW Cards and mentioning names (complete name -- I take a picture of their badge) and where they worked on the survey at the end of the cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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