How much do you leave in cagneys for a tip with dining plan

[mamashamiller]

Never know how much to leave waiter above what is included in plan

[ColeThornton]

All depends on how the service was.   If the service was just satisfactory then the 20% that was paid for plan gratuities will suffice.  If it was good service then MAYBE 5-10 bucks extra.

 

I've never felt the need to over tip but of course that is one's personal choice.

[STARGAZERS1001]

4 minutes ago, mamashamiller said:

Never know how much to leave waiter above what is included in plan

Depending on service, we leave between $15-20 on top of the tip that was included.

[AK Dreaming]

Main dining room usually $5 and specialty restaurant at least $10.

[FLcruisergrl]

I usually leave $15 on top of the gratuity that is already paid on the package.

[js]

I bring $20 for each specialty and take the cash with me for each night. 
Last being in 2019, but guessing I will do about the same or $25 for next July on Joy. 

[complawyer]

15-20% of what the actual bill would have been

[FlGoodShips]

$20 in specialty restaurants.

[Old Fart Cruisers]

1 hour ago, complawyer said:

15-20% of what the actual bill would have been

 

Are you saying 15-20% above the 20% that has already been added to the price of the specialty dining and that's already on top of the per day gratuities?

 

[FlGoodShips]

2 minutes ago, Old Fart Cruisers said:

 

Are you saying 15-20% above the 20% that has already been added to the price of the specialty dining and that's already on top of the per day gratuities?

 

We always give extra tip....on top of 20% that you are charged. Its not mandatory, but with excellent service, we usually give $20 (cash).

[complawyer]

yes, this has been covered many times before. the question is how much should you tip. since the gratuities are already included, no tip is actually required, and i dont believe the waiter/waitress even expects one.

 

if you want do leave an extra tip, feel free to do so. if not, you're correct, its already included. that being said, however remember these people make very little money and anything extra helps them out. it doesnt hurt if you leave a tip and they get to know you. 

 

at the very least, i usually leave $10.

[Da-Painter]

Any tip you leave does not go specifically to those that served you.

It goes into the big tip jar of NCL, who will not tell you how it is disbursed. 

You pay your gratuities through the daily service charges. If you think you need to tip, go ahead, but I am already paying those gratuities. 

[GeroWA]

Sorry to sound like a scrooge, BUT coming from a country where non-tipping is the norm (Australia), and seeing that we have already paid gratuities in our booking Plus gratuities in the Specialty Restaurant booking, we don't leave any tips UNLESS the service has been exceptional. 

[complawyer]

you dont sound like a scrooge, to tip or not to tip  is subjective and totally up to the individual.

 

if non tipping is the norm where you are from, what do you do on excursions. do you tip the tour guide, or if you choose to do your own thing and go to a local restaurant do you leave a tip? 

 

do you tip your cabin steward?

[Middleager]

3 minutes ago, complawyer said:

you dont sound like a scrooge, to tip or not to tip  is subjective and totally up to the individual.

 

if non tipping is the norm where you are from, what do you do on excursions. do you tip the tour guide, or if you choose to do your own thing and go to a local restaurant do you leave a tip? 

 

do you tip your cabin steward?

Why be questioning like that?  People do what they feel is right, not what you feel is right.

[TrumpyNor]

2 hours ago, Da-Painter said:

Any tip you leave does not go specifically to those that served you.

It goes into the big tip jar of NCL, who will not tell you how it is disbursed. 

You pay your gratuities through the daily service charges. If you think you need to tip, go ahead, but I am already paying those gratuities. 

I actually asked a waiter on NCL about that, and was told that if the tip was added on the receipt that you sign at the end of the meal, then that tip would go to the waiter who's name was on the receipt. And cash tip would be shared. But this was 3-4 years go, they may have changed it since then....

 

In speciality restaurants, if the sevice was very good, then we add $5 as extra tips at the end of the meal. And on very rare cases $10 is added. After all, there has already been paid 20% tips that is shared among all the waiters on board (that was also confirmed by the same waiter).

Edited July 14, 2022 by TrumpyNor

[SeaShark]

8 hours ago, GeroWA said:

BUT coming from a country where non-tipping is the norm 

 

This is actually bad logic (and a social faux-paus). When traveling, you should respect the customs and norms of where you ARE, not those where you are FROM.

 

Where I am from, driving is done on the right side of the road. However, if I travel to the UK, I drive on the left as they do, not on the right because that is the norm where I'm from. Tipping should be treated the same way. I may tip here at home, but if I travel to Australia, I would not tip as that is the norm there.

[erin21497]

When traveling on a Mediterranean cruise, is it better to tip the waiters in euros or USD?

[CrazyTrain2]

41 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

This is actually bad logic (and a social faux-paus). When traveling, you should respect the customs and norms of where you ARE, not those where you are FROM.

 

Where I am from, driving is done on the right side of the road. However, if I travel to the UK, I drive on the left as they do, not on the right because that is the norm where I'm from. Tipping should be treated the same way. I may tip here at home, but if I travel to Australia, I would not tip as that is the norm there.

However, it is certainly not the custom in the US to slap 20% on all bills for the "staff".  The cruise industry has figured out how to falsely advertise pricing while hiding what is normally a "Cost of Labor" charge from the price and stuffed it in to "Gratuities".  So to say that cruise ship pricing/gratuities is normal for the US is a stretch. 

[SeaShark]

31 minutes ago, CrazyTrain2 said:

However, it is certainly not the custom in the US to slap 20% on all bills for the "staff".  The cruise industry has figured out how to falsely advertise pricing while hiding what is normally a "Cost of Labor" charge from the price and stuffed it in to "Gratuities".  So to say that cruise ship pricing/gratuities is normal for the US is a stretch. 

 

However, a restaurant service charge is NOT a tip/gratuity. It helps to understand the difference.

 

That aside, check out the flag that your ship flies. When onboard you aren't "in the US".

[Old Fart Cruisers]

I often run into a similar situation at home.   When we go to a local restaurant with a party of 8 friends, they automatically add 20% gratuity.  Just wondering what others do in this situation.   Should I still include an additional tip?

[ColeThornton]

34 minutes ago, Old Fart Cruisers said:

I often run into a similar situation at home.   When we go to a local restaurant with a party of 8 friends, they automatically add 20% gratuity.  Just wondering what others do in this situation.   Should I still include an additional tip?

 

Why would you if you are already paying 20%?

[Two Wheels Only]

46 minutes ago, Old Fart Cruisers said:

When we go to a local restaurant with a party of 8 friends, they automatically add 20% gratuity.  Just wondering what others do in this situation.

 

Make the 8 freeloaders pay the tip. 😈

Edited July 14, 2022 by Two Wheels Only

[complawyer]

old fart cruisers. the 20% added to large parties is so the waiter/waitress doesnt get stiffed if the people at the table are cheap tippers. a dinner for 8 can easily  add up to a few hundred dollars.  if your bill came out to $300 20% is $60. or roughly $8.00 per person. that's not outrageous when ytou think about it. 

 

sometimes the 20% comes to to be less than i would actually leave as a tip, so i make up the difference in cash. if it's a restaurant i frequent regularly, and have a favorite server, i always tip a little higher. never less than 20%

[mapleleaves]

1 hour ago, erin21497 said:

When traveling on a Mediterranean cruise, is it better to tip the waiters in euros or USD?

 

Euros.  Otherwise the waiters have to pay fees/exchange rate to change those dollars to euros.