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SINGLE HSC/TIPPING THREAD (Previously "Why are gratuities not included in Fares?")

wannagonow123

By wannagonow123,
in Holland America Line

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rkacruiser

rkacruiser

Posted
Posted

I was not aware of this. But, I have no problem with this increase. HAL's staff is deserving of very bit of the service charge that we pay in my opinion.

 

Inflation in the U. S? Yes. Why would we not expect inflation in the Philippines and Indonesia as well? These good HAL crew members are working to support their families and to better themselves for the future.

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jtl513

jtl513

Posted
Posted

The discussion was moved to the "tipping" thread (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=52241042) yesterday, starting at post #610

 

Probably old news to CC folks here but I just got the 'official' note today.

 

"Holland America Line is adjusting its daily Hotel Service Charge for all sailings beginning on or after May 1, 2017. The Hotel Service Charge will increase as follows:

 

US $13.50 per person per day for staterooms (interior, ocean-view and verandah) which is a total increase of $1.

 

US $15.00 per person per day for suites which is a total increase of $1.50.

 

To ensure that the efforts of all crewmembers are recognized and rewarded, a Hotel Service Charge is automatically added to each guest's shipboard account on a daily basis. If Holland America's service exceeds or fails to meet expectations, guests are free to adjust this amount at the end of the cruise.

 

The 15% service charge that is automatically added to beverage purchases (wine, beer, liquor, soft drinks, etc.) remains unchanged."

 

Safe Travels,

Bob

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kazu "Live from...." Rare

kazu

Posted
Posted

It was posted on the HSC thread (the tipping thread)

 

Effective May 1st I believe.

 

thanks for the heads up though as not everyone goes there and I suspect some may not have received emails yet.

 

the price you quoted was for the suites. If I recall correctly the other categories are up $1 pp.

 

I don't have an issue with it personally. HAL's crew has always done well by us.

 

oops, look likes JTL and I posted at the same time. His explanation is better. apologies.

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cruiseing marly

cruiseing marly

Posted
Posted
I was not aware of this. But, I have no problem with this increase. HAL's staff is deserving of very bit of the service charge that we pay in my opinion.

 

Inflation in the U. S? Yes. Why would we not expect inflation in the Philippines and Indonesia as well? These good HAL crew members are working to support their families and to better themselves for the future.

 

 

I think it's well deserved as well we always tip extra . Some don't so we heartily approve as well !

 

 

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cbr663 Great Review Rare

cbr663

Posted
Posted

Unfortunately, there is no way to pre-pay your gratuities on HAL. You can purchase onboard credit for an equivalent amount, but this is not the same as pre-paying them. Your onboard account will be charged the higher amount.

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RMLincoln

RMLincoln

Posted
Posted
If I pre pay my gratuities( not given as a perk) will I be required to pay the increase.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

I do not know of a way to prepay the Hotel Service Charge; one can purchase On Board Credit before embarkation, and buy enough to cover the HSC, but OBC can be used for any on board expenses, so it is not specified for HSC.

 

So I believe you will be charged the HSC at the rate in effect on your cruise, when it is incurred. m--

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bUU

bUU

Posted
Posted

Why would they place 2 quotes in my reply back to KrazyKruser

When I was responding to her last quote!!!!

the multi quote feature is actually quite useful. It especially good in fast-moving threads. Properly folks who choose to read the thread before adding replies to earlier messages can just mark messages they want to reply to as their reading and then when they reach the end of the thread they can reply to them all in one post.

 

Of course right now I'm using Tapatalk and don't have the multi quote capability.

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bUU

bUU

Posted
Posted

I always though that it was a little catty to not put that charge up front.

the way it was explain to me is that if it was included together in the more substantial way with the cruise fare then it would count as a different kind of income in some of these foreign countries and be taxed more heavily in those countries.
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Chocolate Rose

Chocolate Rose

Posted
Posted

We received the following email today:

"Holland America Line is adjusting its daily Hotel Service Charge for all sailings beginning on or after May 1, 2017. The Hotel Service Charge will increase as follows:

US $13.50 per person per day for staterooms (interior, ocean-view and verandah) which is a total increase of $1.

US $15.00 per person per day for suites which is a total increase of $1.50.

To ensure that the efforts of all crewmembers are recognized and rewarded, a Hotel Service Charge is automatically added to each guest's shipboard account on a daily basis. If Holland America's service exceeds or fails to meet expectations, guests are free to adjust this amount at the end of the cruise."

We purchased the Explore 4 package which covered the Hotel Service Charge. Does anyone know if or how this increase effects the Explore 4?

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JVilleGal

JVilleGal

Posted
Posted

I got the letter from my TA (big box starting with C) and the difference is so small that while I believe it doesn't affect my Explor4 it's not a big enough difference to worry about. For a 10 day cruise it's less than $20 difference. Life is too short to get upset about something I can afford and likely won't apply to me.

The time and effort to call (and get bad info) is just not worth it!

 

Safe journey :)

 

 

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Chocolate Rose

Chocolate Rose

Posted
Posted

Thanks, everyone! This isn't something I'm stressing about, just needed to know so I could plan. This is probably the only cruise we'll ever go on, and our budget is pretty tight. I know for some of you the additional cost is no big deal. That's not true for everyone. And, yes, I do think the crew probably do deserve the increase and am not begrudging them that at all. We do plan to do additional tipping, but am happy to know that the majority will still be covered by the Explore 4.

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Kamloops50

Kamloops50

Posted
Posted
I do not know of a way to prepay the Hotel Service Charge; one can purchase On Board Credit before embarkation, and buy enough to cover the HSC, but OBC can be used for any on board expenses, so it is not specified for HSC.

 

So I believe you will be charged the HSC at the rate in effect on your cruise, when it is incurred. m--

 

 

You can prepay the HSC. There is 800 number that you can call.

 

HAL ship services

1-800-541-1576

 

 

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