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Leaving extra gratuity...

KeiferDeifer
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KeiferDeifer

KeiferDeifer

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Hey everyone! I'm going on my first cruise next month. I know about the auto gratuity that they will add to our account. I currently work in the hospitality industry so I know what it's like to live on tips. I plan on leaving extra for both my servers and our room steward. My question is what's the best way to get the tip to the people who deserve it? I know I'll see our servers so that's easy...but what about the room stewards? Should I leave it in our state room or will I see them enough to hand it to them?

 

 

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msmayor

msmayor

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We have always been fortunate to see our cabin stewards every day during our cruises and its always been a pleasure to interact with them throughout our trips.

 

We always make sure to seek them out on the last full day so we can personally give them their extra gratuity and thank them for taking such good care of us.

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Doug S

Doug S

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A good steward is very available, but invisible at the same time if that makes any sense. They are always in the area, especially the final morning cuz they have a very busy day turning those cabins for the next sailing.

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happytogetherj&j

happytogetherj&j

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Some people believe in giving a gratuity in the beginning of the cruise to assure good service. I was wondering, can one cancel the auto gratuity and then just tip those people who serve you directly. I know there are a lot of people behind the scenes but personally I like to tip people that I have direct contact with on the ship.

 

 

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Grandma Dazzles

Grandma Dazzles

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Some people believe in giving a gratuity in the beginning of the cruise to assure good service. I was wondering, can one cancel the auto gratuity and then just tip those people who serve you directly. I know there are a lot of people behind the scenes but personally I like to tip people that I have direct contact with on the ship.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

 

If you research this subject you will find it is discussed almost daily on CC.

 

Your auto gratuities cover the people who serve you daily, with a very small portion going to miscellaneous personnel. You will come in contact with your room steward, waiter and assistant waiter ......why remove? Even if you don't eat in MDR all the time those same waiters work in the Windjammer and other food service areas. Not unusual to see your MDR waiter in the Windjammer for breakfast or lunch.

 

Leave the automatic gratuities in place. If you like to tip extra to people who serve you feel free to do so.

 

Personally I don't think it is necessary "tip upfront" in the first place.

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MelissaMcC

MelissaMcC

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They supply you with tip envelopes so you can give these to those you want to tip extra. They will leave them in your room near the end of the cruise and you can get extra from customer service as well, if needed. Usually hand them out your last evening at dinner, to your room steward who you should see a few times a day, and your fav bar staff.

 

 

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Merion_Mom

Merion_Mom

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They supply you with tip envelopes so you can give these to those you want to tip extra. They will leave them in your room near the end of the cruise and you can get extra from customer service as well, if needed. Usually hand them out your last evening at dinner, to your room steward who you should see a few times a day, and your fav bar staff.

 

 

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Only one envelope is left in your cabin these days. As Melissa said, more are available at Guest Services.

 

:)

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Langley Cruisers

Langley Cruisers

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Do they still provide the Wow cards to hand out to those that go above and beyond?

 

I, personally, haven't seen a WOW card in many cruises. Apparently, the best way to acknowledge a crew/staff member is by naming them specifically on the post-cruise survey. The Windjammer supervisor on our Jewel cruise told me this herself. It is far better to get their full name and mention it on the survey; I suppose the reward is "better" in some way by going this route. :)

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waterbabe40

waterbabe40

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Do they still provide the Wow cards to hand out to those that go above and beyond?

 

Sent from my KFTHWA using Tapatalk HD

 

I didn't receive any WOW cards on my last cruise in August. Perhaps if I had asked guest services or the loyalty ambassador I could have gotten one.

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sandancer

sandancer

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Some people believe in giving a gratuity in the beginning of the cruise to assure good service. I was wondering, can one cancel the auto gratuity and then just tip those people who serve you directly. I know there are a lot of people behind the scenes but personally I like to tip people that I have direct contact with on the ship.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

 

 

If you remove the auto gratuity the people you give cash to will have to hand in to the tip pool. They are not allowed to keep it and their supervisors will know the tips have been removed. If you leave the auto tips in place and tip extra then that is theirs to keep.

 

 

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lucymorgan

lucymorgan

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If you remove the auto gratuity the people you give cash to will have to hand in to the tip pool. They are not allowed to keep it and their supervisors will know the tips have been removed. If you leave the auto tips in place and tip extra then that is theirs to keep.

 

 

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+1

Also, I have heard that supervisors know if a passenger has removed autograts and may ask the staff member why. If this is true, it could cause them some grief and worry.

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MommaBear55

MommaBear55

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If you remove the auto gratuity the people you give cash to will have to hand in to the tip pool. They are not allowed to keep it and their supervisors will know the tips have been removed. If you leave the auto tips in place and tip extra then that is theirs to keep.

 

 

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I am lazy and don't feel like carrying ones to tip the bus people or those who brings drinks in the Windjammer or the myriad of other people who make my trip amazing, so I just leave the auto tip and tip extra for those who have gone a extra step, generally cabin attendant, waiter, assistant waiter and maitre d when my daughter with celiac who needs extra care in the dining room

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north29

north29

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Posted (edited)

and it became a RANT. Second try, I use PP gratuities and if YES some one must or has to do something special for me or goes above his "JOB" yes I give a little extra. How ever, being a waiter, room steward, is his job and he is paid to do it. So, why do many of us Cruisers, including me, think we must tip above the Cruise lines recommended amount, and feel somewhat guilty if we do not.

 

Personally I think, TIPPING expectations are out of control.

Edited by north29
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Enforcer

Enforcer

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Hi,

 

We got off the Indy last week and there were two WOW envelopes left in our room on the last night. We didn't use these as, maybe wrongly, we feel that they just get put into the pool so we gave our room steward cash in his hand which made sure he got it. Leaving it in your room on the last day is risky as it may not be your normal attendant who cleans the room, the laundry team etc. may get there first.

In the dining room we gave the assistant waiter an extra bung by giving it t him on the QT as we didn't give the table waiter any extra than the pre-paid gratuities as he was OK but didn't go above and beyond like the assistant did.

 

Pete

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matj2000

matj2000

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I bring a few hundred in 1's and tip servers, bartenders, & Windjammer staff as I go.

 

Any extra tips($20) to the MDR server & assistant I give the final night in person when I leave (However the last few cruises I haven't because they were not very good).

 

A few times I gave the room steward a pre-tip but I think we go worse service so I stopped that.

 

If the Matri d or section mgr in the MDR makes a few visits to the table during the cruise. I give him $5 at the end......

 

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troykahack

troykahack

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I learned from some here. Last trip we took a bunch of $1 bills. I had never seen done, but was told it happens, tipping the bartender. We tipped our bartender regularly and I believed it made our cruise much better. I would tip a $1 cash. The bartenders seemed to like the cash idea.

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nelblu

nelblu

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Posted
Hey everyone! I'm going on my first cruise next month. I know about the auto gratuity that they will add to our account. I currently work in the hospitality industry so I know what it's like to live on tips. I plan on leaving extra for both my servers and our room steward. My question is what's the best way to get the tip to the people who deserve it? I know I'll see our servers so that's easy...but what about the room stewards? Should I leave it in our state room or will I see them enough to hand it to them?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Get WOW envelopes from Guest Services and include the extra grats. and hand to your favorite employee. We always do this on our cruise. On our last cruise on the Anthem, our cabin steward got he jump on us by leaving a WOW envelope with his name in our cabin. LOL

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Desert Cruizers

Desert Cruizers

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On the final day I go yo Guest Relations and grab at least 3 envelopes, one for our room steward and the remaining two for our waiter & assistant waiter. We leave at least $20 per envelope. We also either leave the gratuities in place or pre pay lately have been pre paying so to lesson the bill at the end. The cost is the same regardless.

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Big_G

Big_G

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Posted (edited)
Do they still provide the Wow cards to hand out to those that go above and beyond?

 

Sent from my KFTHWA using Tapatalk HD

Just asked for them at check-in 5 minutes ago at PE and was told they hadn't seen WOW cards in some time. The check-in rep wasn't sure if they were discontinued permanently.

 

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

Edited by Big_G
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