Cruise daily tips

[nukesubsailor]

In my opinion, if the cruise line did away with the auto-gratuity, they would just increase the fares to make up the money. Therefore I just consider the auto gratuity as part of the price of the ticket. I give cash tips to those on the staff that I feel provide great service.

If it comes to the point that I can't afford to do this, then I will quit cruising.

[capriccio]

In my opinion, if the cruise line did away with the auto-gratuity, they would just increase the fares to make up the money. Therefore I just consider the auto gratuity as part of the price of the ticket. I give cash tips to those on the staff that I feel provide great service.

If it comes to the point that I can't afford to do this, then I will quit cruising.

 

My sentiments exactly!

[weedpindle]

To those who remove the auto-tip. Face it, the cruise lines pay their staff very low wages to our standards ( we who can afford to cruise), but the staff still depends on the tips to make a decent wage. So you are a miser who removes the tip, and gives to perhaps the waiter and room steward (maybe, I bet not). So what about the buffet people, the cleaners, the laundry people, the kitchen staff, all those 'little people' who YOU never see, but make the cruise better for you. I bet you don't tip a waiter or hotel maid either. Please don't cruise and complain, knowing the policy, stay home and count those pieces of silver you hoard.

[Mommypig]

Sometimes I think the problem is that people have no idea how many unseen workers it takes to make a cruise ship run. I took a Norwegian cruise once where every port day when we returned to the ship there was a dance line of crew members dancing to greet us back. They were dressed in the attire of every imaginable group of staff. Cook, waiter, steward, deck attendant, ships officer, guys in blue who deal with the tenders etc, medical staff, entertainment, etc etc etc. Made me think about the efforts of people who make for a good cruise experience that you never will meet face to face.

 

I autotip and give extra to my steward and waiter, and anyone else who has gone over the top to ensure that I have a great experience.

[Ethel5]

Er, judging by the imbroglio that's followed, can you blame her? ;)

 

Actually, it's been pretty calm so far.

[Cruisin' Chick]

In my opinion, if the cruise line did away with the auto-gratuity, they would just increase the fares to make up the money. Therefore I just consider the auto gratuity as part of the price of the ticket. I give cash tips to those on the staff that I feel provide great service.

If it comes to the point that I can't afford to do this, then I will quit cruising.

 

Well said. Whether you keep on the tips on top of whatever fare you paid, or the tip amount is folded into the fare (like on the premium lines), you're still paying about the same amount (even though as someone said above, maybe even more because of taxes). But with the first way, there are those who will take advantage and remove the hotel charge or whatever it's called by each cruise line. And many of those don't believe that "I will tip all along" claims.

 

The system is based on the US model. If you don't care for it, seek out the cruise lines that have this money included in the fare so it doesn't bother you.

[Colo Cruiser]

Actually, it's been pretty calm so far.

 

 

I know right!

[majortom10]

In my opinion, if the cruise line did away with the auto-gratuity, they would just increase the fares to make up the money. Therefore I just consider the auto gratuity as part of the price of the ticket. I give cash tips to those on the staff that I feel provide great service.

If it comes to the point that I can't afford to do this, then I will quit cruising.

 

Yes they probably would but do you think they would have to increase it by $11-50pppd I very much doubt it I am sure Princess set that price knowing that a certain percentage of every cruise are removed so an increase in those that do pay covers those that dont.

[PescadoAmarillo]

If it comes to the point that I can't afford to do this, then I will quit cruising.

Exactly so. I do a spreadsheet for every cruise (or series of cruises) we take. Auto tips are simply a line on the spreadsheet, as are the soda stickers and insurance, and are calculated based on the cruise length/cost. Then I always throw in an extra $5 a day for additional tips over and above. Sometimes it's less than that; often it's over that, but in total it gives us a realistic view of what our cruise is costing us. If the total is too expensive, the cruise is not an option.

[caribill]

What logistics would prevent it, they do it in many locations outside the USA.

 

EG Princess in Australia,.

 

As I understand it, most of the contracts the cabin stewards and wait staff have require them to give a % of their salary to the agency that recruited them. Since the tips are not part of the salary, none of it has to be shared with the agency.

 

Also, Princess main competition (RCI, CCL, NCL, HA) also do not include the suggested tip amounts in their fares. If Princess started charging $161 more for an inside cabin for a one week cruise it is likely they would lose business to the competition.

 

A couple of years ago Princess had for a short while pricing that initially showed the cruise fare including all taxes/fees. "What you see is what you pay" was the slogan. Of course, this made at first glance Princess cruises appear to cost hundreds more than the competition. After a couple of months, Princess went back to the old (and current) way of advertising the base price and adding the taxes/fees separately.

[GUT2407]

As I understand it, most of the contracts the cabin stewards and wait staff have require them to give a % of their salary to the agency that recruited them. Since the tips are not part of the salary, none of it has to be shared with the agency.

 

Also, Princess main competition (RCI, CCL, NCL, HA) also do not include the suggested tip amounts in their fares. If Princess started charging $161 more for an inside cabin for a one week cruise it is likely they would lose business to the competition.

 

A couple of years ago Princess had for a short while pricing that initially showed the cruise fare including all taxes/fees. "What you see is what you pay" was the slogan. Of course, this made at first glance Princess cruises appear to cost hundreds more than the competition. After a couple of months, Princess went back to the old (and current) way of advertising the base price and adding the taxes/fees separately.

 

As I said they do it fine in Australia.

[rpcv77]

Whether we agree or disagree with the current system of gratuities, removing auto tip only hurts the ship's employes who neither make nor have the power to change the current system. Why punish them? Write to Princess, start a campaign with your friends who cruise, take out a large ad in the newspaper or whatever you like, but don't punish the hard working folks who make your cruise the enjoyable experience it is.

[billco]

Don't want to give anybody any ideas. We recently completed a 20 day TA on the Emerald that I booked last year when Princess was having a bucket sale that included paid gratuities. Looking at my Folio, all of the credits have NR after them except Military and Comp Gratuities.

[geoherb]

My preference would be for the cruise lines to make the daily charge mandatory.

[PescadoAmarillo]

My preference would be for the cruise lines to make the daily charge mandatory.

 

I would too. I think the employment agency contract requiring the crew member to return part of any wages to them is simply an excuse. I cannot believe that, with the hiring power the cruise lines have in countries like the Phillipines, the employment agency couldn't be forced to change their terms. I think it comes down to what the cruise line wants or doesn't and they apparently want things to remain the way they are.

[mellon1]

How do you and what happens when you drop your daily cruise tips from your account on Princess?

Thanks

 

You haven't even cruised with the staff or even know about the staff or service will be and you are already questioning how to get out of tips.....WOW. Like my mom always told me...treat people how you would like to be treated.

 

This is just down right WRONG. Can't even believe you posted this.

[Meanee]

It seems to me that, with all the faults you find with cruising, you would achieve a better peace of mind if you would find some other type of vacation.

 

Show me any vacation that does not have it's faults.

 

And as long as you are not paying for my vacations, I think decision how and where I spend my money will be left with me.

 

Keep in mind, nowhere did I state that all faults of cruising are putting me off. Cruising is still awesome in a lot of ways. Add reasonably-priced internet, and I will be in heaven. It is a very tricky industry, that relies on self-regulation of labor. And I stand by what I said that the system is broken. Problem is, there's no fix. I am sure people way smarter than me found the balance where they can stuff their pockets, keep selling reservations, and keep staff from running from their ships. Is it fixed? Nope. Can it be better? Not without losing out on one of those 3 things in previous statement.

Edited June 4, 2015 by Meanee

[Cruisin' Chick]

Again, bringing up negative (even if hypothetical) examples is ridiculous and irrelevant to the discussion.

 

If you don't trust cabin stewards, hotel room maids, etc., then maybe you should just stay home. I have not had a problem with missing items. But I wouldn't use the possibility of that happening as an excuse to remove the tips.

[Meanee]

Again' date=' bringing up negative (even if hypothetical) examples is ridiculous and irrelevant to the discussion.

 

If you don't trust cabin stewards, hotel room maids, etc., then maybe you should just stay home. I have not had a problem with missing items. But I wouldn't use the possibility of that happening as an excuse to remove the tips.[/quote']

 

So you are telling me that there's never anything negative happening ever on cruises, right? Or is bringing up negative stuff a taboo? Maybe covering up ears and eyes, shouting "LALALALA CAN'T HEAR YOU" will stop any negativity happening ever again? Real world works somewhat differently.

 

I never had missing items, and save for waiting 25 minutes for my beer (this was only time I removed a tip from my short, 6-cruise experience, and it was removed for that order only).

 

 

Until you start paying for my vacations, or my time, you have pretty much zero say in how I should spend my time.

 

I am arguing here that concept of auto-tipping is ridiculous.

[Cruisin' Chick]

So you are telling me that there's never anything negative happening ever on cruises, right? Or is bringing up negative stuff a taboo? Maybe covering up ears and eyes, shouting "LALALALA CAN'T HEAR YOU" will stop any negativity happening ever again? Real world works somewhat differently.

 

I never had missing items, and save for waiting 25 minutes for my beer (this was only time I removed a tip from my short, 6-cruise experience, and it was removed for that order only).

 

 

Until you start paying for my vacations, or my time, you have pretty much zero say in how I should spend my time.

 

I am arguing here that concept of auto-tipping is ridiculous.

 

If you haven't really had a problem, then why are you obsessing on the negatives that you haven't experienced? That's what I don't understand.

 

And if you think the auto-tips are ridiculous, blame the cruisers who in the past have stiffed the crew members, even those who provided the service (and were just unlucky as to whose cabins or tables to whom they were assigned). And blame the implementation of flexible dining.

 

There are cruise lines you can go on that include the tips in the fare. Why not seek those out -- vote with your pocketbook.

[caribill]

 

I am arguing here that concept of auto-tipping is ridiculous.

 

You need to look at the history of the auto-tip.

 

Before auto-tip on Princess, there was a suggested amount of gratuity for cabin steward, wait staff, etc. It was suggested, not mandatory.

 

Passengers who wanted to tip would like up at the purser's desk to get proper amounts of currency and put the tips into envelopes and then seek out the staff to hand the envelopes too. (Those who did not want to give any gratuity often avoided the dining room the last evening of a cruise.)

 

This was before anytime dining, so those who ate in a dining room had the same wait staff every evening and it was easy to reward them at the end of a cruise.

 

When anytime dining started on Princess, it was possible to have different waitstaff every evening of the cruise and, unless tips were handed out every evening, difficult to locate all of the waitstaff on the last evening to had out those 14 envelopes on the last evening. (7 envelopes for 7 different waiters + 7 envelopes for 7 different junior waiters).

 

The introduction of the auto-tip made it much easier to get the tips distributed. The initial amount of the auto-tip was the total of the then suggested daily amounts for the staff.

 

This meant no more trying to prepare a number of envelopes with appropriate amounts of cash and locating each one of the staff who had served you. It also meant that others who had served you that were rarely tipped (staff in the buffet, servers at the grill by the pool, etc.) could also be financially rewarded.

 

And like the pre-autotip days, the tipping was voluntary and the amounts could be decreased or increased. And like the pre-autotip days, those that did not tip were not providing income that made up a good part of the staff's renumeration.

 

RCI handles part of this a different way. If you have their equivalent of Anytime Dining, you must pay 100% of the auto-tip before the cruise. You cannot opt out. The pre-cruise payment also includes the share going to your cabin steward. (Those in traditional dining still have it added to their onboard account.)

[Meanee]

You need to look at the history of the auto-tip.

 

Before auto-tip on Princess, there was a suggested amount of gratuity for cabin steward, wait staff, etc. It was suggested, not mandatory.

 

Passengers who wanted to tip would like up at the purser's desk to get proper amounts of currency and put the tips into envelopes and then seek out the staff to hand the envelopes too. (Those who did not want to give any gratuity often avoided the dining room the last evening of a cruise.)

 

This was before anytime dining, so those who ate in a dining room had the same wait staff every evening and it was easy to reward them at the end of a cruise.

 

When anytime dining started on Princess, it was possible to have different waitstaff every evening of the cruise and, unless tips were handed out every evening, difficult to locate all of the waitstaff on the last evening to had out those 14 envelopes on the last evening. (7 envelopes for 7 different waiters + 7 envelopes for 7 different junior waiters).

 

The introduction of the auto-tip made it much easier to get the tips distributed. The initial amount of the auto-tip was the total of the then suggested daily amounts for the staff.

 

This meant no more trying to prepare a number of envelopes with appropriate amounts of cash and locating each one of the staff who had served you. It also meant that others who had served you that were rarely tipped (staff in the buffet, servers at the grill by the pool, etc.) could also be financially rewarded.

 

And like the pre-autotip days, the tipping was voluntary and the amounts could be decreased or increased. And like the pre-autotip days, those that did not tip were not providing income that made up a good part of the staff's renumeration.

 

RCI handles part of this a different way. If you have their equivalent of Anytime Dining, you must pay 100% of the auto-tip before the cruise. You cannot opt out. The pre-cruise payment also includes the share going to your cabin steward. (Those in traditional dining still have it added to their onboard account.)

 

Makes sense. But one-fits-all is not really good way of doing things as well. On a 7 night cruise, me and my better half usually go to MDR maybe 2-3 times. And we always try to book Chef's Table. So why do I need to pay tips for 3-4 days that we didn't use MDR? Do they use card system to track that, and pay my waiter/head waiter tip share to buffet? I tip separately for Chef's Table.

 

There's definitely a point there for auto-gratuity to make sure that you have harder time to stiff ship crew on tips. But it's too broad as well. Not every cruiser is identical.

[notentirelynormal]

Interesting that the OP hasn't been back.

[Illyria]

Makes sense. But one-fits-all is not really good way of doing things as well. On a 7 night cruise, me and my better half usually go to MDR maybe 2-3 times. And we always try to book Chef's Table. So why do I need to pay tips for 3-4 days that we didn't use MDR? Do they use card system to track that, and pay my waiter/head waiter tip share to buffet? I tip separately for Chef's Table.

The same waiters that work the MDR at night DO rotate shifts at the buffet, poolside grill, etc. Are you telling us that on the days you eat at the Chef's Table you only eat once a day and don't have food anywhere else on the ship? Didn't think so.

 

I'd much prefer that the gratuity be called "mandatory service charge". The only reason mainstream cruise lines include it in the cruise price in Australia is because they have to, by law - until every single one of them agrees to start doing it in the U.S., it just won't happen here. I consider it a part of the fare and would never dream of removing it. I admit that I very rarely tip someone extra but I haven't really experienced extraordinary service that warranted it.

[Meanee]

The same waiters that work the MDR at night DO rotate shifts at the buffet, poolside grill, etc. Are you telling us that on the days you eat at the Chef's Table you only eat once a day and don't have food anywhere else on the ship? Didn't think so.

 

I'd much prefer that the gratuity be called "mandatory service charge". The only reason mainstream cruise lines include it in the cruise price in Australia is because they have to, by law - until every single one of them agrees to start doing it in the U.S., it just won't happen here. I consider it a part of the fare and would never dream of removing it. I admit that I very rarely tip someone extra but I haven't really experienced extraordinary service that warranted it.

 

Mandatory service charge would be good. It's not tips or gratuities if they are forced. And I know waitstaff rotates. But then again, you are not tipping your buffet staff, who is also bunch of hard working men and women. But you are tipping your waiter? Seems unfair and unbalanced.

 

I am sure they are overcoming this with pooling.