Paying/Tipping with Cash?? + other account questions...

[MarsMc888]

I am not a big fan of using my credit card for a lot of things. Somehow, I just never end up paying the bill off and wish I could just use cash!! :rolleyes:

 

So, if I'm at the bar onboard and want to order a drink, can I pay & tip with cash? How about if I want to put my drink on my shipboard account but tip with cash - is that an option or will the bartender just ring up the drink + 15% tip to my account then take the cash as extra?

 

Sorry if these questions seem silly to those of you experienced cruisers but here's another one...

 

I am also sharing my cabin with a friend, and I keep hearing people say that they had their husband's or wife's charges on their bill at the end of the cruise, and that things are easily mixed up. So if my friend and I both order breakfast from room service, can we ask them to split the bill between our 2 accounts? Will they know to split our auto-tips and apply them equally to our seperate accounts?

 

Thanks for all your help - I know you guys will have the answers! :D

 

-M

[spongerob]

Sorry, you cannot use cash for on board purchases. You can always tip in cash, but drinks have a 15% gratuity already included in the price. If you prefer, you can pay off your entire account in cash, or any portion you wish. You can even put down a cash deposit in lieu of charging to a credit card.

 

There is no charge for room service, unless something has changed drastically. I have sometimes been asked to sign and verify the delivery time, but have never been charged for anything off the room service menu.

[chasetf]

I am not a big fan of using my credit card for a lot of things. Somehow, I just never end up paying the bill off and wish I could just use cash!! :rolleyes:

 

So, if I'm at the bar onboard and want to order a drink, can I pay & tip with cash? How about if I want to put my drink on my shipboard account but tip with cash - is that an option or will the bartender just ring up the drink + 15% tip to my account then take the cash as extra?

 

The drink plus tip are always charged to the account of the shipboard account of the card given to the waiter / waitress. There is no provision for use of cash for drink or tip.

 

Sorry if these questions seem silly to those of you experienced cruisers but here's another one...

 

I am also sharing my cabin with a friend, and I keep hearing people say that they had their husband's or wife's charges on their bill at the end of the cruise, and that things are easily mixed up.

 

Never have had them mixed up. Again, they go on the "account" of the card given. So if I use mine for a drink order, and my wife uses it in the botique, they go on the according accounts.

 

So if my friend and I both order breakfast from room service, can we ask them to split the bill between our 2 accounts?

 

This I donot know. It probably would be hard for them to do. Maybe someone else who has tried it can respond.

 

Will they know to split our auto-tips and apply them equally to our seperate accounts?

 

Autotips are always split, even for husbands and wives. We get two separate printouts and you and your friend will too. For us, they end up on the same credit card because I use the same card for both of us.

 

Thanks for all your help - I know you guys will have the answers! :D

 

-M

 

Have a great trip :)

[land lover]

What I found interesting on our last cruise was that...we had quite a bit of ship board credit left on my husband tab and they just transfered it to me........since on my card we had paid for all the optional tours etc.and we used the same CC for both of us.

[obie77]

'So if my friend and I both order breakfast from room service, can we ask them to split the bill between our 2 accounts?"

 

As far as I know room service is free. You can tip the room service steward using cash.

[AkSusan]

Room service is free, unless you'd order off of the special area which was for things like canapes, chip & dip and bottle of alcohol or alcohol packages. I think there was a line for gratuity on the slip I signed but I just gave them a couple of dollars instead.

 

Susan :)

[MarsMc888]

I have to say I really don't like being forced to pay a 15% tip no matter what - how is that even a tip? What if the bartender is rude or screws up my order, or if he makes me wait at the bar for 10 minutes while he tries to chat-up another passenger? Most of the time I gladly tip 15-20% for drinks, but it just seems like the staff has no incentive for giving good service if they already know exactly how they will be tipped. Anyway, there's my little rant... But it's good to know I can tip the steward in cash. What about at the Spa??

 

Thanks for the other info! I guess about the room service thing, a better example would be if I wanted to call and order up a bottle of rum and my friend wanted a bottle of vodka. I'm guessing I would just tell them on the phone we wanted one bottle charged to one person and the other to another... Hey - can we order mixed drinks delivered to our room, or must we mix them ourselves by buying the bottles??

 

I'm just worried I'm gonna get stuck with some huge bill from my alch-y friend I guess! :rolleyes: Thanks for your help!

[AkSusan]

No mixed drinks to the room but they had packages too, like gin & tonic, etc., 6 beers, 6 sodas!

 

You could always ask them to just put it on 2 charge slips and then both of you be there to sign the applicable ones.

 

Susan :)