Cancelling prepaid gratuities

[Merion_Mom]

The only issue I have with pre paid gratuities is that even when you pre pay your gratuities you are considered cheap if you don't tip extra. I have no problem tipping, but I also don't want to feel pressured to tip additional for just ok service.

 

I really enjoyed making up the envelopes to give to all those that provided good service in the past. I believe there was much more excellent service when tips were given the last night of the cruise.

 

I NEVER feel pressured to "give more".

 

Sometimes I give more, sometimes I don't. But it always comes from ME, not from external source.

 

To paraphrase Eleanor Roosevelt: "No one can make you feel pressured to tip more without your consent."

 

;)

[grandgeezer]

I would think the only reason they don't do it is because they would price themselves out of the market , if you looked at a cruise at 1000PP and then one advertised for 840.00PP most people would automatically be drawn towards the lower price , even though at the end it would be the same assuming you did not remove gratuity

And there you have it we have come full circle

 

That might be true for some of the newer cruisers but I would expect the "seasoned" cruisers book their cruise based on total price paid which would be price, plus taxes and fees, and tip.

It's like saying you bought the new tv for $1,000 when in actuality you paid say $1,080 when you include the sales tax.

[Sitzmark]

Pay the gratuities as the price of your cruise and it's done.

 

When they make it part of the price of the cruise, then it will be part of the price of the cruise. Otherwise it is a gratuity and as such it is appropriate to give it after service is rendered, not before.

[Desert Cruizers]

I prefer the pre pay then I we are not getting the $12.94 daily charge and that reduces our On Board charges. We still tip extra at the end to our Room Steward, Waiter & Assistant Waiters. We feel only once did we receive poor service from our Room Steward. other then keeping our room clean, we had to several times ask for an extra wash cloth or hand towel. I can understand the laundry might have been slow that morning but this was several times and in the evening. We always tip extra at the end. We are low maintenance and don't ask for extra service. We were on a b2b and our room steward on the first cruise went way over in making sure everything was right.

[spookwife]

This has been brought up for years, but that would be too easy. That would also eliminate all the snarky comments, both ways for and against. The cruise lines must like it when their customers get all riled up over an issue they could easily remove from the equation.

I would like to know the real reason they don't do it.

 

 

so they can get out of paying more in taxes

[Merion_Mom]

so they can get out of paying more in taxes

 

If gratuities were "included" in the fare, and employees were then just "paid more", both the cruise line AND the employees would pay more in taxes.

 

Apparently, the employees like things the way that they are.

 

I say, "let things stay as they are."

 

:)

[fred30]

When they make it part of the price of the cruise, then it will be part of the price of the cruise. Otherwise it is a gratuity and as such it is appropriate to give it after service is rendered, not before.

 

The problem is it is not really a gratuity. It is a big part of the salary that the employees that are part of the gratuity system receive.

[spookwife]

The only issue I have with pre paid gratuities is that even when you pre pay your gratuities you are considered cheap if you don't tip extra. I have no problem tipping, but I also don't want to feel pressured to tip additional for just ok service.

 

I really enjoyed making up the envelopes to give to all those that provided good service in the past. I believe there was much more excellent service when tips were given the last night of the cruise.

 

 

while I have never felt it necessary to complain about service, or remove grats, I have actually noticed a decline in the little extras.

 

for instance, our first 2 cruises before MTD was a thing(and thus prepaid mandatory at that time) our cabin steward used to bring our luggage into our suite if it was in the hallway before we got to the cabin.. and our toiletries were replenished daily even if the open tube was not empty as such, in addition to the daily charges, they got cash on the last night

 

in the MDR only the 'better' waitstaff was in MTD and it showed with quick attentive service.

 

now, I have to leave notes or ask in person to have the toiletries replenished, even after the tube becomes empty. and luggage sits out in the hall.

 

MTD service has seriously declined with almost zero personable staff at all

 

not enough of a decline to remove anything but we have not given extra in the past 5 cruises.

 

yet our bar staff in the CL and the chops staff (for our daily breakfast) neither of whom are in the daily pool, continue to earn the same amount of tip because their service has not declined

[Sitzmark]

The problem is it is not really a gratuity. It is a big part of the salary that the employees that are part of the gratuity system receive.

 

You can call it what you want, the cruise line calls it a gratuity so a gratuity it shall be.

 

I do not have any employees traveling with me so I am not responsible for paying salaries.

[cactusflower]

It depends on your dining plan. We are booked on an upcoming Anthem cruise and have some OBC. We have not yet paid our final payment. I called to see about taking off the pre-paid gratuities so that I could use my OBC to pay them. (Just to be clear - I still wanted to pay the gratuities, I just wanted to use the OBC to do so). But, I was told that since I had the anytime dining plan, pre-paid gratuities were required. He offered to switch me to the set-time dining, but I didn't want to do that (we prefer the flexibility of not having a set-time).

 

We are not drinkers, so I guess I'll just have to do some shopping to use up the OBC. :p

[Sitzmark]

It depends on your dining plan. We are booked on an upcoming Anthem cruise and have some OBC. We have not yet paid our final payment. I called to see about taking off the pre-paid gratuities so that I could use my OBC to pay them. (Just to be clear - I still wanted to pay the gratuities, I just wanted to use the OBC to do so). But, I was told that since I had the anytime dining plan, pre-paid gratuities were required. He offered to switch me to the set-time dining, but I didn't want to do that (we prefer the flexibility of not having a set-time).

 

 

We have my time dining also and when we called they immediately removed the prepaid gratuities.

[spookwife]

It depends on your dining plan. We are booked on an upcoming Anthem cruise and have some OBC. We have not yet paid our final payment. I called to see about taking off the pre-paid gratuities so that I could use my OBC to pay them. (Just to be clear - I still wanted to pay the gratuities, I just wanted to use the OBC to do so). But, I was told that since I had the anytime dining plan, pre-paid gratuities were required. He offered to switch me to the set-time dining, but I didn't want to do that (we prefer the flexibility of not having a set-time).

 

We are not drinkers, so I guess I'll just have to do some shopping to use up the OBC. :p

 

 

call back. they ended the required to pre pay for MTD a while ago.

 

we still pre pay only beciase I like to have that fixed amount over and done with. we have $500 in OBC last time, and in a suite so our drinks were in the CL every night. somehow i managed to spend it all.. not in the casino, spa or on pictures either heheheh

 

oh. right. three specialties, a few hot fudge sundaes aaaaand I treated myself to a Wine Flight in Vintages one afternoon.

[BoozeCruise275]

To each their own.

 

Do what YOU want to do, not what others, especially those on this board want you to do.

 

Want to tip? Wonderful.

 

Don't want to tip? Who cares. People need to stop being so concerned with what other people do with their $$$.

 

and yes, I remove pre-paid gratuities and pay as I go.

Edited February 18, 2016 by BoozeCruise275

[CruisingWithTheTide]

If you choose to remove gratuities, do you have to do it on the first night of the cruise or could we do it on day 7? I have no intentions of taking mine off but friends I am traveling with are wondering!

[Clarea]

If you choose to remove gratuities, do you have to do it on the first night of the cruise or could we do it on day 7? I have no intentions of taking mine off but friends I am traveling with are wondering!

Sure.

 

I honestly don't know the answer, but you should tell "your friends" to go to Guest Services and ask that question.

[Funbobby68]

I have no intentions of taking mine off but friends I am traveling with are wondering!

 

 

It's not my weed I'm just holding it for a friend LOL LOL

[grandgeezer]

If gratuities were "included" in the fare, and employees were then just "paid more", both the cruise line AND the employees would pay more in taxes.

 

Apparently, the employees like things the way that they are.

 

I say, "let things stay as they are."

 

:)

 

It's a numbers game. The cruise line would claim it as income but turnaround and claim it as a deduction for wages. An employee should claim it not matter if it's wages or a gratuity. It washes out.

How do you know the employees like it? If the customer was charged the total amount as a service charge, they couldn't cancel it. The employees should make more money then.

[Sitzmark]

If you choose to remove gratuities, do you have to do it on the first night of the cruise or could we do it on day 7? I have no intentions of taking mine off but friends I am traveling with are wondering!

 

Well, this topic has been about Pre-Paid gratuities, that is to say gratuities that were paid along with your cruise price in advance. If you have those removed you have to do it prior to the cruise is how it has been explained in the past.

 

If you have removed the Pre-Paid gratuity or did not have it to begin with, then the cruise line will add the standard gratuity to your account each day. If you choose to have that removed I have been made to understand it can be done at the guest service desk at any point during the cruise.

[GUT2407]

Again?.?

[softsands]

there is exactly ONE reason and ONE reason only to cancel any prepaid( not that it is even a requirement to prey pay at all any more). and that is to use On Board Credit instead.

 

if you have sub par service you TAKE IT UP with the appropriate people ON BOARD and give them the opportunity to fix it. if they do not then only then are you justified in having it removed.

 

why do you ASSUME that you will receive crap service? are you the kind of guest that cannot ever be satisfied no matter how much bending over backwards is done on your behalf? are you overly demanding? do you have unreasonable expectations?

 

while you cannot stop them from begging and using every trick in the book to get more tips, there is rarely a valid reason to remove the little they do get for doing their basic job.

 

Then get another job.

[BekkaW]

Does anyone have info on if we can cancel our prepaid gratuities and pay as we go on board?

 

I know you can request to cancel the gratuities when you board but wondering if you can still do this if you have pre paid them?

 

We have just returned from a cruise and were very disappointed with the service and the expectations from staff to be tipped even though we had already pre paid our gratuities.

 

We are going on another on voyager in a few weeks and we have already pre paid once again but would like to cancel this and pay as we go for great service.

 

Yes you can cancel the pre-pay.

 

This will result in the gratuities being automatically charged daily to your account once onboard. It does not remove the gratuities and let you pay whoever you like.

 

If you want to remove the gratuities altogether, you will need to not only remove the pre-pay, but then also go to Guest Services once onboard and remove the auto-pay daily charge.

 

 

If you received poor service that is one thing, and you should have taken it up with the supervisory staff or with guest services.

 

If you felt obligated to tip additional that is another thing. Staff trying to please you and get additional gratuity is not, in my view, the same as poor service although you seem to have conflated those issues in your post. If you don't want to give additional then don't. It's really that simple.

[maggieq]

Pay the gratuities people. Keep in mind the staff work everyday for 6-9 months sometimes.

[Sitzmark]

Pay the gratuities people. Keep in mind the staff work everyday for 6-9 months sometimes.

 

Ok, sure.

[GUT2407]

Wish that would just add the gratuity to the price of the cruise , no backing out of them , and up the standard of service to reflect the fact that there was extra revenue

 

But according to some here the world will collapse if that happens.

 

In spite of the fact that it does happen in some countries.

[GUT2407]

Pay the gratuities people. Keep in mind the staff work everyday for 6-9 months sometimes.

 

And at ine stage I worked 15+ hours a day 360+ days a year for about 15 years.

 

Should my clients have tipped me?