Tipping

[Bonnie J.]

Once and only once did we want to lower our tip but just to our room steward. We could not lower her tip, we had to cancel all tips. We were so unhappy with her so we canceled all tips. (this was years ago when tips ONLY went to dining room & room stewards, no one else.) This was NCL and they had JUST started only Freestyle. But we had a fantastic waitress and the hostess knew us and would just say "Just go sit down"- she knew where we were going. We went to our table and EACH night we gave our fantastic waitress $3-5 and a bit less to her great assistant. At the end of the cruise a bunch of us, who got to know her, gave her a bonus of $20+ including her assistant.

We also left a smaller tip for our room steward so we did leave her something.

WE have never canceled tips but give more when they have done than they had to.

[Texas Tillie]

Once and only once did we want to lower our tip but just to our room steward. We could not lower her tip, we had to cancel all tips. We were so unhappy with her so we canceled all tips. (this was years ago when tips ONLY went to dining room & room stewards, no one else.) This was NCL and they had JUST started only Freestyle. But we had a fantastic waitress and the hostess knew us and would just say "Just go sit down"- she knew where we were going. We went to our table and EACH night we gave our fantastic waitress $3-5 and a bit less to her great assistant. At the end of the cruise a bunch of us, who got to know her, gave her a bonus of $20+ including her assistant.

We also left a smaller tip for our room steward so we did leave her something.

WE have never canceled tips but give more when they have done than they had to.

 

It is my understanding that when you cancel tips and give individuals cash, those individuals have to turn the tip in and the total amount will be distributed to all in the tip pool by the same formula used as if you'd left the tip in place. So, your action didn't allow the people you wanted to get the tips to get the amount you gave them.

[Bonnie J.]

This was a while ago before they started that.

And I have always wondered how do they know crew member got a cash tip and how much it was? Can you answer that?

[donaldsc]

First time cruiser here. I have prepaid the gratuities for our upcoming cruise on Anthem of the Seas. I've been told by family members who have cruised that we should consider giving the bartenders a generous tip at the beginning of the cruise, so they give us extra good service. I think that's a good idea, but what amount is considered a "good" tip? Thank you!

 

A generous tip is zero. They get a extremely generous tip for every drink that you buy. No more is needed.

 

Here we go again. Haven't had one of these thread in at least a week.

 

DON

[GUT2407]

A generous tip is zero. They get a extremely generous tip for every drink that you buy. No more is needed.

 

Here we go again. Haven't had one of these thread in at least a week.

 

DON

 

Nope.

 

It hasn't been that long, maybe a day, at a bit of a stretch.

[Texas Tillie]

This was a while ago before they started that.

And I have always wondered how do they know crew member got a cash tip and how much it was? Can you answer that?

 

It's more or less the honor system, but the other crew members tend to keep everyone honest. If caught, they are terminated and sent home, on their own dime.

[widallas]

Deleted -- old thread

Edited March 18, 2017 by widallas
Deleted -- old thread

[SantaFeFan]

I disagree, giving a tip is common, I am not buying them as you say, or degrading them, I tip on the land everybody I come in contact with. If you can't afford to tip, and yes I know gratuities are included in the fair, DONT CRUISE and save your money for dinner out at mcdonalds!

 

Sent from my KFTHWI using Forums mobile app

 

Giving a tip AT THE END may be common, but not in advance. I have never done that and have never suffered inferior service. Same in restaurants. Would you tip the water in advance when they greet you at your table? How about your taxi driver? Or tour operator?

 

I can never understand why some people think tipping in advance is a necessary idea. It reeks of "now you owe me" attitudes.

[widallas]

We are cruise newbies as well...have only been on 2 cruises, with a third coming this November. Last cruise we always tipped the bartenders an extra dollar because we went to the same bartenders on a regular basis. They were always friendly and attentive --the extra $30-40 we spent was no big deal, and we appreciated the great service. We didn't leave a tip up front, since we aren't huge drinkers on a cruise...it was probably the 3rd or 4th day before the bartenders remembered us. Lots of people on a cruise ship, and I don't think the upfront money would have done us any good.

 

On a side note....there were two bars were we didn't tip extra, and didn't return to for service. Bartender at the On Air Club in particular was beyond rude, and almost aggressive when I didn't tip.Not going to feel guilty for tipping only when it's earned...and don't expect me to come back.

[SuiteTraveler]

This was not brought up, but since the OP is new to cruising...if you are in the casino, and you play enough to get free drinks, it is kind to tip the server a dollar or two. I'm not sure if it is like this on all lines, but on Carnival, when you get free drinks in the casino, there is NO TIP included in what you sign. The drink is just free. It is obvious that the servers appreciate my thoughtfulness as they always thank me profusely and come back many, manny times to check if I want more. In terms of bar service, I do tip the waiter or waitress $1 per drink cash on top of the 18% if they are doing a good job. I also give my cabin steward extra money - up to $50 cash for an outstanding job. Butlers and concierges (if you are in a suite) should be tipped in cash as well. If your waiter or waitress does an outstanding job, an extra tip is thoughtful.

 

What you should know is that you can really do something very, very kind for an employee who shows outstanding initiative and work ethic. I once had a cabin steward who was new to suites as of my cruise and my suite had all sorts of problems that the previous cabin steward had not fixed from light bulbs that were out to the spa tub leaking, pull out furniture that was stuck and even a hair dryer that caught fire. Instead of being upset about these problems, I made it fun for the cabin steward and I inspected the cabin in thorough detail, noted all the problems and then gave a list to the cabin steward (who was very embarrassed about all that was wrong) but I told her, "I know NONE of this is your fault, but between you and me, we will get this cabin in the best shape it has been in - probably for months!" And because I was kind and partnered with her instead of being critical and nasty, she felt reassured and got all the issues fixed and we both laughed about all we went through to get things corrected. At the end of the cruise I gave her an extra $50 and she burst into tears and threw her arms around me and thanked me profusely and told me this would make all the difference in the world as it would insure her daughter could go to school that year. I told her simply that she earned the extra money and thanked her for all she had done. Had I known the $50 would make such a difference for her child, I would have given it to her outright, but she had never mentioned that she was in such a financial bind. At any rate, do keep in mind that you do have the opportunity to help very deserving people when you are cruising, both on the ship and on land and do be generous with tips when you feed it is appropriate.

[Bonnie J.]

I don't remember if I posted this here but will say it again.

We sail the Sunshine a lot and don't drink during the day.

All of our days are spent on one of the Serenity decks. There is a bar on deck 14 and I get just ice there,3 or maybe 4 times a day. I've been called the 'ice lady' for his reason. Some bartenders just decide I need more ice and will bring it down to deck 12 for me. I ALWAYS give THE bartender who always serves me, at least a $10 dollar tip for my free ice at the end of the cruise. But I have been known to give a $20 tip too. That's at least 15% of the cost of my ice! And they more than

deserve it!!!!!

[donaldsc]

First time cruiser here. I have prepaid the gratuities for our upcoming cruise on Anthem of the Seas. I've been told by family members who have cruised that we should consider giving the bartenders a generous tip at the beginning of the cruise, so they give us extra good service. I think that's a good idea, but what amount is considered a "good" tip? Thank you!

 

Zero. They are paid to give you good service. This is their job. If I had a bartender or anyone else on board that gave me consistently bad service (this has never happened to us), I would report them to management.

 

DON

[Bonnie J.]

There is no point in giving extra tips at the beginning of your cruise. This also goes for room stewards. There is really no way they can give you better service than what they will give you. If they do something extra or a bar waiter can look at you and you just nod your head and he/she brings your drinks because they served you before, then they deserve a thank you tip at the end of the cruise- not before. You will be amazed at the service you get for the automatic tips you have all ready given by prepaying them!

[DirtyDawg]

First time cruiser here. I have prepaid the gratuities for our upcoming cruise on Anthem of the Seas. I've been told by family members who have cruised that we should consider giving the bartenders a generous tip at the beginning of the cruise, so they give us extra good service. I think that's a good idea, but what amount is considered a "good" tip? Thank you!

 

The only problem I see in pre-tipping the bartenders (or bribing for those who feel that way) is that you will not know, in advance, which bars and which bartenders you will utilizing for the cruise right out of the cute. You might go into bar # 1 and pre-tip bartender #1, $5, $10, $20 etc. and you may never step into that bar or see that bartender again for the rest of the cruise. My advice would be to take the first day or two to figure out which bars and bartenders you are using. By then you will have a pretty good idea of the level of service you are getting and if the standard 18% auto-tip is sufficient, and if not, whether you want to tip extra or pre-tip extra.

 

As you can see I am not against pre-tipping. I was once pre-tipped to change employment. We called it a signing bonus which bought me a very nice car. I was not offended in the least, or feel degraded about getting that bonus money up front.:D

[Bankshot]

We're Diamond members on RCCL and get free drinks from 5 to 8 pm. The bartenders and servers don't get an 18% tip but are paid very little for working this daily event. We always supplement their meager salary with at least a dollar per drink. They all really appreciate it and they don't have to share it with management like with the 18%. I'm told they only get a small percentage of the standard on board tip when working in open bars.

[notentirelynormal]

We're Diamond members on RCCL and get free drinks from 5 to 8 pm. The bartenders and servers don't get an 18% tip but are paid very little for working this daily event. We always supplement their meager salary with at least a dollar per drink. They all really appreciate it and they don't have to share it with management like with the 18%. I'm told they only get a small percentage of the standard on board tip when working in open bars.

 

Heard the same and also tip $1 per drink. Not necessarily every drink, but lots. If I get to know them and chat with them they will probably also get a $20 at the end of the cruise.