If you get cheers, do you tip most bartenders?

[momdaughterondestiny]

I tip a dollar per drink if my waiter takes care of me

which haven't had one yet that did not take care of me

very well. Last cruise our waiter never let us go without

a drink while we sat on Lido. There were at times 14 of

us sitting there he knew our names day one and usually

what we wanted to drink before we told him by day 2. He

always had a good morning, evening and a smile . When he

was off we had an equally good waiter who took care

of us also.

[meatloafsfan]

Now if we are going to talk about tips that I disagree with, it is the Maitre 'd. They get the lions share of the gratuities and I have never seen one do anything a high school door greater couldn't do.

 

-F-

 

I'm guessing you've maybe not sailed with Ken? He is an amazing Maitre'd. He insisted on taking my mother (in her wheelchair) to the table every night so that I could get a break from pushing. When he realised that our tablemates were sat at a different table for the second half of the B2B cruise, he moved us to the Captain's table for 10 so they could continue to sit with us and our new tablemates. He stopped by our table every night, knew our names and on top of that, he put on a show every night with his singing (and one night even got up on the podium and danced). His service was well worth a tip and a small gift.

 

 

 

On the poll I marked that I don't get cheers but do tip. I usually get the drinks on us card. When I order alcohol, I give a dollar. When I order soda, I usually tip a dollar every other time.

[edinboro cruiser]

I still tip an extra dollar over the tip they put on the bill. Stick with the same bartender and you get some GREAT drinks

[drosphot]

Usually get Cheers! and I will tip $1 to the good ones that are the regular bartenders at the bars I frequent on each cruise.

Edited March 3, 2016 by drosphot

[skidawg79]

I'm a little more scattered on it. I generally tip $1 when I get a drink even though tips are already included. If I am going to be sitting in the same area for the day on a sea day, I will give the waiter a little extra (maybe $5) on a drink and then I've had exceptional service the rest of the day.

 

I've had bartenders run to a different deck to get lowfat cream for my White Russian (I want to point out, I did not ask her to do it, she insisted. I actually tried to make her stop and I would drink the regular cream, but she did anyway!). I ended up getting her out from behind the bar later that night and we were dancing...have some great pictures from that night...haha. Needless to say, she got more than $1 tip. I can see both sides of this, but for me, I try to tip more.

[E&B]

Almost everyone saying they don't tip extra is says no they already paid 18%. It's 15% that's added with cheers, not 18%. I know that's not significant, but in the real world I tip 20%. Only lower if service wasn't great. So I do plan on leaving extra, since I've only been pre-charged less than I would normally tip.

[ryanpatricksmom]

I'm going to tip the bartender that finds me that $50 drink.

[TaDaaa!]

Do you know how the bartenders are tipped with the Cheers program. If you pay approximately $50 for it and they are tipped 15%, that amounts to $7.50. But who gets what portion of that $7.50. If I order 15 drinks throughout the day, does the $7.50 get divided by the 15 drinks and go to each bartender that served them?

 

Does it matter? You paid your tips, let carnival decides who gets what.

[chefchick]

For those of you who tip "extra" at the end of the cruise for expectional service..do you know if the bartenders have to pool their individual tips? If I get great service from one bartender and recognize that, will they still have to share that reward with all of the others? What about servers, do they pool tips?

 

Just curious.

[gtalum]

I do not tip with each drink on Cheers, but typically on a cruise I make friends with a couple of bartenders, and I'll flip them a buck or two extra every so often to reward great service.

[path145]

For those of you who tip "extra" at the end of the cruise for expectional service..do you know if the bartenders have to pool their individual tips? If I get great service from one bartender and recognize that, will they still have to share that reward with all of the others? What about servers, do they pool tips?

 

Just curious.

 

Talked to a bartender on the Miracle in January. She said that the tips added by Carnival get pooled and shared among the bartenders/bar waiters depending on how many drinks they serve. The tips that are added on or handed to them in cash the individual bartender or waiter gets to keep.

[It's a Ship!!!]

Whether I have Cheers or not, I don't tip extra for every drink. It depends on what I'm drinking, but if I'm staying in the same place for a while I will tip $1 after every 2 or 3 drinks. At home I usually tip over 20%, so it works out to close to that when I tip extra after every couple drinks or so.

[splash_in_the_water]

our last cruise we picked and stuck to a particular bartender of we could....so he usually got an extra $1 , in the mornings we'd usually throw a 5 at him to grease the palms a bit. worked I guess....(like once, not every drink) but if I stopped by a random bar or deck server usually no...

[coevan]

We don't tip the bartenders, but we do tip the cocktail servers on the outside decks. Great example, we were on deck 11, very quiet and asked our neighbor about cocktail servers, she said they are rarely up here. We found one, ordered some beers and gave him a cash tip. We saw this guy many times everyday.

[OCruisers]

The tip is already added on so no need to tip extra unless you wish to do so.

[RoscoeJames]

I will tip. Usually a $1 if delivered. Sometimes .50 to a $1 if I go to the bartender.

[cruzelover55]

Talked to a bartender on the Miracle in January. She said that the tips added by Carnival get pooled and shared among the bartenders/bar waiters depending on how many drinks they serve. The tips that are added on or handed to them in cash the individual bartender or waiter gets to keep.

 

And I was told on the Magic on 2 different cruises that they are "supposed" to pool all tips, cash ones also. And room steward said the same about cash tips. We usually tip in such a way that no one else sees it. Then it is up to them if they want to share. We do Cheers! and it has reduced their tips significantly. A dollar a round is not going to bankrupt me, but, it might make their lives a little easier.

[Je Souhaite]

And I was told on the Magic on 2 different cruises that they are "supposed" to pool all tips, cash ones also. And room steward said the same about cash tips. We usually tip in such a way that no one else sees it. Then it is up to them if they want to share. We do Cheers! and it has reduced their tips significantly. A dollar a round is not going to bankrupt me, but, it might make their lives a little easier.

 

We've been informed for years that the bar service on Carnival pools all their tips.

 

And tip extra or not, I've never NOT gotten my drink. In fact, if I found that the service they gave me was NOT UP TO MY STANDARDS, that would be a reason to reduce tips. They've kind of hidden that process over the years, but it still works.

[Je Souhaite]

Almost everyone saying they don't tip extra is says no they already paid 18%. It's 15% that's added with cheers, not 18%. I know that's not significant, but in the real world I tip 20%. Only lower if service wasn't great. So I do plan on leaving extra, since I've only been pre-charged less than I would normally tip.

 

Not sure what difference this makes. They TAKE the tips from you. Let THEM figure out where it all goes. Not sure why some think they know better.

[txtravelerfamily]

Prior to our first cruise, I read a ton of reviews on line complaining that Carnival drinks were too watered down. On our cruise last September, my husband found a bar tender at each bar area we went to that he liked, and tipped a couple of dollars a round,. (We had CHEERS). Needless to say, the drinks were anything but watered down.

Something I noticed about the bartenders, and most of the other staff as well. They go out of there way to make you happy, remember your name and your preferences. I almost felt sad for them, knowing the hours they work and that they are away from their families to serve us. They seem truly grateful when you tip extra and it shows. I haven't experienced one crew member who acted like they were entitled to anything.

Edited March 4, 2016 by txtravelerfamily

[sc4125]

I tip an extra dollar for each drink when I have CHEERS - and I have to agree that the drinks were very strong - not saying that they wouldn't have been if I didn't tip. I don't feel pressured in anyway, it's just something that I do.

 

I also tip the omelette guy a dollar each morning. I still have to wait in line, so I'm not getting anything out of it - again, it's just something I like to do.

 

Being an old ex-crewmember, I know how hard they work - and how many hours they put in, so, a dollar here or there isn't a problem for me.

 

My daughter now works onboard the Glory in the entertainment staff (hosting trivia, karoake, bingo, etc) and I know that they even work more hours than we use to.

[mmckm]

We've been informed for years that the bar service on Carnival pools all their tips.

 

The cash tip you leave a bartender does not go into the regular pool for tips. The bartenders pool those cash tips between the staff working the bar at that time. if you write a tip on the bill those tips go into the tip pool for all staff. The room stewards get to keep any cash tips themselves.

[MCFTJCH2V]

We've been informed for years that the bar service on Carnival pools all their tips.

 

The cash tip you leave a bartender does not go into the regular pool for tips. The bartenders pool those cash tips between the staff working the bar at that time. if you write a tip on the bill those tips go into the tip pool for all staff. The room stewards get to keep any cash tips themselves.

 

Room stewards get 100% of their tips regardless if you tip them in cash, or let the auto tip ride. This is different than how bar service works.

[sjn911]

I try to tip everyone...dollar a bag on air/hotel/shuttles or dollar a time on a recent center of town shuttle I took from a hotel. A dollar or 2 extra on room service. A dollar extra on my drinks...

 

So many people do not hand the shuttle guy/gal anything..that is embarrassing/sad to me....when they lug those bags on and off and give you a stool or help out of van.

 

20% at meals..unless horrible service then I reduce it..it has to be really bad that seems to be the server...not if it is just busy.

 

I don't do or have too much of above so it is ok I feel and does not add terribly to my budget and thanks people....

 

I try to do it a few times a week to in room or cabin..just a little on bed...in addition to gratuity taken.

 

Sometimes I forget maid on budget overnight road trips..I don't feel good when I do...personal service is nice to honor.

 

I do not know how I would handle a butler situation with that huge expense on a cabin...need to learn that. LOL...I hope once or twice...but will be ok if it does not happen.

Edited March 4, 2016 by sjn911

[TaDaaa!]

Almost everyone saying they don't tip extra is says no they already paid 18%. It's 15% that's added with cheers, not 18%. I know that's not significant, but in the real world I tip 20%. Only lower if service wasn't great. So I do plan on leaving extra, since I've only been pre-charged less than I would normally tip.

 

In the real world I don't buy a $6 beer. ;)