Michaels Club Concierge

[CHEZMARYLOU]

Just curious and don't want to start a tipping controversy but I'm curious. Have you tipped the concierge in Michaels Club since it became a lounge for upper level suites?

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

Yes. And the bar servers.

 

[Julie Jean]

Yes as well!

[vtcruising]

We've only had access once, but the MC Concierge and bar tenders were amazing! It was like the show Cheers for us in Michael's (where everyone knows your name). They helped make it the best cruise ever. We tipped accordingly.

[Jane2357]

I assumed that you did - but as for as the concierge - what would be your daily tipping amount assuming that you weren't high maintenance?

[C-Dragons]

Yes, we tipped all the MC staff, including the Concierge.

Edited September 5, 2015 by C-Dragons

[Phxazzcruisers]

Yes we did. They really deserved it.

[CHEZMARYLOU]

Thanks all, we would tip the bar servers and were leaning towards tipping the Concierge, just wondering about the protocol since this will be our 1st cruise where Michaels Club is dedicated to some suite members.

[ClaudiaB]

Looking forward to the answer as well. I don't want to undertip but also don't want to over tip. We asked once about tipping the Captain's Club Hostess because she went over and beyond and we were told she was staff and no tipping Is that the same with the MC concierge? This will be our first time using Michael's on our upcoming cruise.

So many questions! I hear that they will get you anything within reason (wine wise) -- does that mean even something above the cost of a premium package? I just don't know what to ask for if and when they call and when we get on board.

[caladezi]

I would recommend $20.00 to $50.00 for a seven night cruise depending on the number of days that you use the club. The same amount would hold true for your server. After all, this is an exclusive area and demands an above normal tipping atmosphere.

[Chicogirl]

Do you tip everyday, or at the end of the cruise?

[Chazteach1]

Yes, MC concierge and favorite MC bartender received tips.

[Project_gal]

Yes, both concierge and bar staff. As far as how much, it really has to depend on how much you use the services. Some people can be seen spending hours with the concierge making special arrangements. Clearly you would expect them to tip more than those who simply use the lounge and make no special requests.

[need2bespoiled]

We've tipped some, and not others, depending on how much we used them (bar tenders / servers). We've tipped the concierge a few times, but note, they are officers, even if they're not in uniforms, so we tend to give them unique thank you gifts, but that's just us.

 

Happy sailing,

Jenna

[sunshine nana]

We tipped the bar staff, but the Concierge was so busy with a 50 person wedding party on our cruise that he really was not that helpful. We were not escorted to our suite and for disembarkation, we would have been better off walking ourselves off as he did not get back to escort us until the line was very long. The wedding reception was in Tuscan, so our reservation was canceled and he could not get us in any other specialty for the last two nights. We ended up in Blu where it was so crowded,we could not get good service. After that, we decided that having Michael's was not worth paying almost twice the price. So I would say, wait and see.

[Jane2357]

We tipped the bar staff, but the Concierge was so busy with a 50 person wedding party on our cruise that he really was not that helpful. We were not escorted to our suite and for disembarkation, we would have been better off walking ourselves off as he did not get back to escort us until the line was very long. The wedding reception was in Tuscan, so our reservation was canceled and he could not get us in any other specialty for the last two nights. We ended up in Blu where it was so crowded,we could not get good service. After that, we decided that having Michael's was not worth paying almost twice the price. So I would say, wait and see.

 

:( What cruise was this on? Was the entire party of 50 in suites? Do you feel that your service suffered while the concierge was helping to co-ordinate for non suites guests? Having a suite at the Michael's club level is considerably more expensive and I'd not be happy to not receive the service that I paid for. Did you write a cruise review? Did you complain about the lack of service while on the ship?

[Gordoncruickshank]

We tipped both but only did concierge as we were back on same ship (eclipse) as we really didn't use him at all. The bar staff looked after us. Well

[Gordoncruickshank]

We tipped both but only did concierge as we were back on same ship (eclipse) as we really didn't use him at all. The bar staff looked after us over the course of the cruise. We did think twice about God concierge though but it is only a relatively small amount.

[sunshine nana]

Our cruise was Constellation. The 50 wedding guests were not all in suites, but many were. Also, the concierge was taking care of a Most Traveled couple who were very nice, but did receive a lot of attention. One of the problems was that we were in a CS not on deck 6 where the RS and PS are. The butler spent most of her time on that deck. The problem with Tuscan reservations did not come up until the next to the last night and we did not want to get ourselves upset at that point. We are very low key. I made all of the excursion reservations myself. I did call the butler when we had no toilet paper after the cabin was cleaned and she told me to "look in the cupboard". Of course I already had looked!

We did not have any meals except coffee delivered and were not demanding, but I did think the Michael's club concierge should not have left us without a specialty for the last two nights. Because Luminae was being constructed on the cruise, we had been told pre-cruise that our traditional MDR reservation for 6 had been changed to all specialty dining for the entire cruise. Then after we had made the specialty reservations, we were told they were canceled and it was too late to get in anywhere except Blu.

All this did not spoil our cruise by any means, but we did not tip Michael's concierge. And we did not book a high suite again to get Michael's.

[Gracie115]

Our cruise was Constellation. The 50 wedding guests were not all in suites, but many were. Also, the concierge was taking care of a Most Traveled couple who were very nice, but did receive a lot of attention. One of the problems was that we were in a CS not on deck 6 where the RS and PS are. The butler spent most of her time on that deck. The problem with Tuscan reservations did not come up until the next to the last night and we did not want to get ourselves upset at that point. We are very low key. I made all of the excursion reservations myself. I did call the butler when we had no toilet paper after the cabin was cleaned and she told me to "look in the cupboard". Of course I already had looked!

We did not have any meals except coffee delivered and were not demanding, but I did think the Michael's club concierge should not have left us without a specialty for the last two nights. Because Luminae was being constructed on the cruise, we had been told pre-cruise that our traditional MDR reservation for 6 had been changed to all specialty dining for the entire cruise. Then after we had made the specialty reservations, we were told they were canceled and it was too late to get in anywhere except Blu.

All this did not spoil our cruise by any means, but we did not tip Michael's concierge. And we did not book a high suite again to get Michael's.

 

I would have been disappointed too!! The concierge didn't do their job for sure. I hope you get the opportunity to cruise in a suite on X so that you can experience Luminae....it really is wonderful. We were lucky to be in a CS on Eclipse this past April and really enjoyed Luminae and Michael's too.....we did tip the Concierge a bit but he did little for us....we never heard from him pre cruise...and the bartender in Michael's did MUCH more for us than he did.. we asked the concierge to help arrange a group dinner in Qsine and his only help was to tell us to go see the Maitre'D there......so I think the Concierge is hit or miss and if you are low key you tend to get overlooked....we didn't care but we certainly never got the kind of service I see mentioned here by others.....perhaps its true that "the squeaky wheel" gets more attention....:D

[CHEZMARYLOU]

Our cruise was Constellation. The 50 wedding guests were not all in suites, but many were. Also, the concierge was taking care of a Most Traveled couple who were very nice, but did receive a lot of attention. One of the problems was that we were in a CS not on deck 6 where the RS and PS are. The butler spent most of her time on that deck. The problem with Tuscan reservations did not come up until the next to the last night and we did not want to get ourselves upset at that point. We are very low key. I made all of the excursion reservations myself. I did call the butler when we had no toilet paper after the cabin was cleaned and she told me to "look in the cupboard". Of course I already had looked!

We did not have any meals except coffee delivered and were not demanding, but I did think the Michael's club concierge should not have left us without a specialty for the last two nights. Because Luminae was being constructed on the cruise, we had been told pre-cruise that our traditional MDR reservation for 6 had been changed to all specialty dining for the entire cruise. Then after we had made the specialty reservations, we were told they were canceled and it was too late to get in anywhere except Blu.

All this did not spoil our cruise by any means, but we did not tip Michael's concierge. And we did not book a high suite again to get Michael's.

 

Given the treatment you received I would not have been passing out any additional tips, either to the butler or concierge.

[Schmoe38]

Given the treatment you received I would not have been passing out any additional tips, either to the butler or concierge.

 

Remember the general concept of tipping. What would you tip in a restaurant if the service was not what you expected? Many of us tip regardless of level of service which has its own issues, and others tip based on the experience. If you, like the rest of us, fit into one of these categories, then tip what you feel is appropriate. Don't let the rest of us determine what you should do. Go with your gut feeling. That's the right decision.

 

When we were on Silhouette in April we tipped the MC bar server along the way and also tipped him a token amount at the end. Our MC Concierge (Anca) was exceptional and we tipped her because she was so attentive.

 

I only mention this as a guide and not as a requirement. Remember, listen to you "gut." It tends to give us the best answers most of the time.

 

Randy

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I don't give extra tips for bad and/or indifferent service either. I have had, on occasion, waiters and cabin attendants who did not get an extra tip. Not often.

 

My experience with the Michael's concierge (Bogdan) was that anything I asked for was taken care of. With a smile.

 

[tangerinebunny]

We're not 'squeaky wheels' but have gotten great service from the Michael's Club staff. And we tip accordingly. $50 each for a seven day, and $100 to the butler who has so far always been excellent.

 

I agree that only good service deserves recognition. And we do mention them by name in our end of cruise evaluation.

 

btw, Anca is the amazing!

[scifimonkey]

We're not 'squeaky wheels' but have gotten great service from the Michael's Club staff. And we tip accordingly. $50 each for a seven day, and $100 to the butler who has so far always been excellent.

 

I agree that only good service deserves recognition. And we do mention them by name in our end of cruise evaluation.

 

btw, Anca is the amazing!

 

I would happily second the the endorsement of Anca!!