Who gets the tips if I don't drink $109 in booze per day?

[zzdoug]

The Free-at-Sea liquor package charges me gratuities on estimated $109 value per day, or about $21. Suppose I only drink $30 worth of drinks per day.  Does the full $21 go to the bar staff anyway? Or does the bar staff collect 20% x $30 = $6 and the rest goes to management?

[KeithJenner]

Nobody here knows.

[DaCruiseBug]

58 minutes ago, zzdoug said:

The Free-at-Sea liquor package charges me gratuities on estimated $109 value per day, or about $21. Suppose I only drink $30 worth of drinks per day.  Does the full $21 go to the bar staff anyway? Or does the bar staff collect 20% x $30 = $6 and the rest goes to management?

Please stop calling them “tips”. The service charges you pay don’t go directly to staff. They’re used in part to fund “incentive programs” that NCL has for employees.

 

So to answer your question…the same people that get your money if you were to have 50 drinks per day get it if you have 1 drink per day.

[zzdoug]

6 minutes ago, DaCruiseBug said:

Please stop calling them “tips”. The service charges you pay don’t go directly to staff. They’re used in part to fund “incentive programs” that NCL has for employees.

 

So to answer your question…the same people that get your money if you were to have 50 drinks per day get it if you have 1 drink per day.

I think that was my travel agent's terminology.

 

In any case, point taken. 

[PATRLR]

20 minutes ago, DaCruiseBug said:

Please stop calling them “tips”. The service charges you pay don’t go directly to staff. They’re used in part to fund “incentive programs” that NCL has for employees.

 

So to answer your question…the same people that get your money if you were to have 50 drinks per day get it if you have 1 drink per day.

You must be so obsessed with the DSC and making sure that no one thinks the DSC is the "tips" the crew expects that it's affecting your ability to comprehend what you read.  The OP never used the word "tips".  The OP asked about the drink package gratuities and per NCL's own words here, https://www.ncl.com/onboard-packages/beverage-packages, they are at least in part gratuities:  " A 20% gratuity and beverage service charge will be added at checkout. ".   

And @DaCruiseBug, so long as you hijacked this thread, the DSC IS gratuities/"tips" so long as NCL and their major travel partners (e.g World Travel Holdings) markets the DSC as gratuities.  DSC IS the weekly "tips" the staff used to get in envelopes at the end of the week.

To @zzdoug the 20%  goes to NCL regardless of how many drinks you have.  No one knows for certain how the bar staff is compensated.  

Edited December 7, 2022 by PATRLR

[PATRLR]

16 minutes ago, zzdoug said:

I think that was my travel agent's terminology.

It's everyone's terminology, except those with apparent agendas.

[DaCruiseBug]

44 minutes ago, PATRLR said:

You must be so obsessed with the DSC and making sure that no one thinks the DSC is the "tips" the crew expects that it's affecting your ability to comprehend what you read.  The OP never used the word "tips".  The OP asked about the drink package gratuities and per NCL's own words here, https://www.ncl.com/onboard-packages/beverage-packages, they are at least in part gratuities:  " A 20% gratuity and beverage service charge will be added at checkout. ".   

And @DaCruiseBug, so long as you hijacked this thread, the DSC IS gratuities/"tips" so long as NCL and their major travel partners (e.g World Travel Holdings) markets the DSC as gratuities.  DSC IS the weekly "tips" the staff used to get in envelopes at the end of the week.

To @zzdoug the 20%  goes to NCL regardless of how many drinks you have.  No one knows for certain how the bar staff is compensated.  

I think you’re either dreaming or in denial. I never said none of the DSC or beverage package service charges go to workers. I said they don’t go directly to them and most certainly only a certain percentage goes to them. Not as straight “tips” but as “incentive” programs NCL runs.

 

I honestly don’t care how they market them. Any intelligent human being can figure out they’re not getting $1,500 per month in tips. Don’t believe me? Ask the crew on your next sailing. See what they all say.

 

NCL markets “taxes and port fees” as some kind of required expense to operate that makes people think it’s governments taking the money but NCL CHOOSES to charge each passenger well over $100 just to stop at GSC and possibly inflated the port fees at other ports to line their coffers. Just compare identical itineraries between NCL and other cruise lines.

 

Stop being an NCL apologist.

Edited December 7, 2022 by DaCruiseBug

[phillygwm]

Nobody knows how DSC is allocated, though based on wording on the website, I surmise it isn't just carved up among "my" crew.  Instead, it's part of the crew's comp package and a piece goes toward the general welfare, like crew parties and the like.  

 

The dining and drink package gratuities distribution is even murkier but, whatever it is, it's probably safe to assume that the amount that goes into the pot is based on the "cost" of the package and has no correlation to the number of drinks or food you consume.

 

Since I don't know the answer (nor am I fixated on it) I consider those extra charges part of my overall fare.  Yes, you can adjust the DSC but I don't.  Instead, I budget something for my room steward, waitstaff, and bartenders.  That is considered optional, appreciated, but not expected.  That's been the topic of countless threads on here.  TLDR of those: You do you.

 

[New2cruise2022]

31 minutes ago, phillygwm said:

Nobody knows how DSC is allocated, though based on wording on the website, I surmise it isn't just carved up among "my" crew.  Instead, it's part of the crew's comp package and a piece goes toward the general welfare, like crew parties and the like.  

 

The dining and drink package gratuities distribution is even murkier but, whatever it is, it's probably safe to assume that the amount that goes into the pot is based on the "cost" of the package and has no correlation to the number of drinks or food you consume.

 

Since I don't know the answer (nor am I fixated on it) I consider those extra charges part of my overall fare.  Yes, you can adjust the DSC but I don't.  Instead, I budget something for my room steward, waitstaff, and bartenders.  That is considered optional, appreciated, but not expected.  That's been the topic of countless threads on here.  TLDR of those: You do you.

 

Well said @phillygwm — just the same as you have weighed in on the many other threads. 

[PATRLR]

58 minutes ago, DaCruiseBug said:

I think you’re either dreaming or in denial. I never said none of the DSC or beverage package service charges go to workers.

Where or when did I say you said that?  Hint:  I didn't.

Bottom line is you were wrong to bring the DSC into a post about drink package gratuities.  My Dad always taught me that when you were wrong to admit it and stop talking less you make it worse. 

[DaCruiseBug]

9 minutes ago, PATRLR said:

Where or when did I say you said that?  Hint:  I didn't.

Bottom line is you were wrong to bring the DSC into a post about drink package gratuities.  My Dad always taught me that when you were wrong to admit it and stop talking less you make it worse. 

The DSC and beverage package service charges go to the same exact place…a NCL bank account. They don’t end up in the workers pockets as gratuities or tips.

Edited December 7, 2022 by DaCruiseBug

[zzdoug]

Thanks everyone for answering my question.

 

For those who would like to discuss further the various semantics and nomenclatures of service fees, may I gently encourage you to do so in another dedicated thread or a private conversation. 😉 

[CILCIANRQTS]

2 hours ago, PATRLR said:

You must be so obsessed with the DSC and making sure that no one thinks the DSC is the "tips" the crew expects that it's affecting your ability to comprehend what you read.  The OP never used the word "tips".  The OP asked about the drink package gratuities and per NCL's own words here, https://www.ncl.com/onboard-packages/beverage-packages, they are at least in part gratuities:  " A 20% gratuity and beverage service charge will be added at checkout. ".   

And @DaCruiseBug, so long as you hijacked this thread, the DSC IS gratuities/"tips" so long as NCL and their major travel partners (e.g World Travel Holdings) markets the DSC as gratuities.  DSC IS the weekly "tips" the staff used to get in envelopes at the end of the week.

To @zzdoug the 20%  goes to NCL regardless of how many drinks you have.  No one knows for certain how the bar staff is compensated.  

We’ll, this thread went to snarky pretty quickly!! 🙄

[New2cruise2022]

16 minutes ago, CILCIANRQTS said:

We’ll, this thread went to snarky pretty quickly!! 🙄

Recipe for a snarky thread:

1 - Talk about any or all of the following: tips, gratuities, drink packages, DSC

2 - Challenge someone on the terminology 

3 - Say that someone said something about something you said so they think you are saying something about something they said about the thing you were saying. 
4 - Repeat. 

Edited December 7, 2022 by New2cruise2022

[zqvol]

6 hours ago, zzdoug said:

The Free-at-Sea liquor package charges me gratuities on estimated $109 value per day, or about $21. Suppose I only drink $30 worth of drinks per day.  Does the full $21 go to the bar staff anyway? Or does the bar staff collect 20% x $30 = $6 and the rest goes to management?

It is a service charge. It all goes to management, who pays the crew salaries. It is not a gratuity.

[RocketMan275]

3 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

The DSC and beverage package service charges go to the same exact place…a NCL bank account. They don’t end up in the workers pockets as gratuities or tips.

What is important is whether the crew and the cruise line are satisfied with this system.  Nothing else matters.

[zqvol]

5 hours ago, PATRLR said:

You must be so obsessed with the DSC and making sure that no one thinks the DSC is the "tips" the crew expects that it's affecting your ability to comprehend what you read.  The OP never used the word "tips".  The OP asked about the drink package gratuities and per NCL's own words here, https://www.ncl.com/onboard-packages/beverage-packages, they are at least in part gratuities:  " A 20% gratuity and beverage service charge will be added at checkout. ".   

And @DaCruiseBug, so long as you hijacked this thread, the DSC IS gratuities/"tips" so long as NCL and their major travel partners (e.g World Travel Holdings) markets the DSC as gratuities.  DSC IS the weekly "tips" the staff used to get in envelopes at the end of the week.

To @zzdoug the 20%  goes to NCL regardless of how many drinks you have.  No one knows for certain how the bar staff is compensated.  

Note the language is: "gratuity and beverage service charge"

[PATRLR]

10 minutes ago, zqvol said:

Note the language is: "gratuity and beverage service charge"

And note my language: "they are at least in part gratuities"

[graphicguy]

6 hours ago, zzdoug said:

The Free-at-Sea liquor package charges me gratuities on estimated $109 value per day, or about $21. Suppose I only drink $30 worth of drinks per day.  Does the full $21 go to the bar staff anyway? Or does the bar staff collect 20% x $30 = $6 and the rest goes to management?

Most of us have followed this "topic" (being kind with the nomenclature) for a long while.  Every cruise line has their own tip and/or service policy.  Not sure it matters one way or the other.  But, to be direct about this, and as best we can ascertain, the $21 in tips/DSC goes directly to compensation.  Now, whether that in cash, for crew enrichment, some other form of benefit to those who participate in this pool, we don't know.  And frankly, I don't think the vast majority of us care.

 

We don't know and I'm not thinking it matters...not to the vast majority of us, anyway.

 

None of the cruise lines get that granular to apply tips to each individual drink on the drink package.

 

But, all is not lost.  If you want to do that, don't buy the drink package and "pay as you go", and add your tips to each individual drink.  That way, you'll have an exact amount of tips you paid based on the exact number of drinks you had based on the exact cost of the drink you ordered.

 

If I were your TA, that would be my recommendation. Do only the Sail Away Rates without the Free at Sea promo.  You'll be able to directly control all your drink tips/DSCs as a result.

 

Edited December 7, 2022 by graphicguy

[PTC DAWG]

26 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

What is important is whether the crew and the cruise line are satisfied with this system.  Nothing else matters.

Exactly this...not sure why everyone is so obsessed with various charges.  You either like the final price and accept it or not.  

[bortman23]

5 hours ago, DaCruiseBug said:

Not as straight “tips” but as “incentive” programs

"tips" are an technically an incentive program. Both in the general population and on cruise ships.

[KeithJenner]

56 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

What is important is whether the crew and the cruise line are satisfied with this system.  Nothing else matters.

Absolutely. It has always baffled me why this is such an issue. Just take it into account as part of the final cost and ignore how the staffs pay is made up. That is between the staff and their employers to worry about.

[ChiefMateJRK]

3 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

Absolutely. It has always baffled me why this is such an issue. Just take it into account as part of the final cost and ignore how the staffs pay is made up. That is between the staff and their employers to worry about.

Yep.  And I think a lot of us just focus on final cost and ignore all of the various line items that go into it.

[Two Wheels Only]

46 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

That is between the staff and their employers to worry about.

 

For some unknown reason, when it comes to service charges/tips/gratuities, cruisers be like.....

 

(Bonus points for the first person to name where this is from....one of my favorites. 😛)

Edited December 7, 2022 by Two Wheels Only

[RocketMan275]

1 hour ago, KeithJenner said:

Absolutely. It has always baffled me why this is such an issue. Just take it into account as part of the final cost and ignore how the staffs pay is made up. That is between the staff and their employers to worry about.

We  have a few posters who simply do not like the idea of gratuities. Many believe that if an employer raises pay, they can avoid the cost of gratuities and their costs will be reduced. 

 

Edited December 7, 2022 by RocketMan275