Rare moposh Posted November 1, 2023 #426 Share Posted November 1, 2023 I called to prepay gratuities. I asked why the gratuities are going up. He told me it's to give everyone the service they deserve. It sounded like he was reading a script. I asked him if it made sense to increase gratuities when service is being decreased. He thanked me for my feedback. I arranged to prepay gratuities. He added it onto my reservations. You do not pay now. You have to pay by your final payment date. He sent me new invoices with the gratuities added. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gqboy1 Posted November 1, 2023 #427 Share Posted November 1, 2023 Just build it into the fare already. Those who can/wants to tip gets to go on a cruise. Those who can't/don't want to tip gets to go do something else with their money. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tottenhamfc Posted November 1, 2023 #428 Share Posted November 1, 2023 Just now, gqboy1 said: Just build it into the fare already. Those who can/wants to tip gets to go on a cruise. Those who can't/don't want to tip gets to go do something else with their money. They wont do that because of price competition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Illbcruzn4life Posted November 1, 2023 #429 Share Posted November 1, 2023 23 hours ago, Another_Critic said: Coming soon to enhance your cruising experience ... Every other day stateroom service. Pick up your MDR food at the pick up counter. ??? ??? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare orville99 Posted November 1, 2023 #430 Share Posted November 1, 2023 9 minutes ago, Illbcruzn4life said: They already have these on Wonder😇 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 1, 2023 #431 Share Posted November 1, 2023 1 minute ago, orville99 said: They already have these on Wonder😇 And the pricing is unbelievable (high) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare orville99 Posted November 1, 2023 #432 Share Posted November 1, 2023 Just now, not-enough-cruising said: And the pricing is unbelievable (high) Only when they actually work….😇 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 1, 2023 #433 Share Posted November 1, 2023 1 minute ago, orville99 said: Only when they actually work….😇 HAH True 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmich068 Posted November 1, 2023 #434 Share Posted November 1, 2023 Called my agent and prepaid for my upcoming cruise in January. Not sure it's worth giving Royal Caribbean a two month loan for $28 in savings, but more about the principle at this point anyways. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare orville99 Posted November 1, 2023 #435 Share Posted November 1, 2023 (edited) 4 minutes ago, cmich068 said: Called my agent and prepaid for my upcoming cruise in January. Not sure it's worth giving Royal Caribbean a two month loan for $28 in savings, but more about the principle at this point anyways. For us, the increase comes out to ~$31/cruise, or about 3 beers😱, which is about $3 more than we pay for a case at our local Walmart. Perspective…. Edited November 1, 2023 by orville99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sofa.king Posted November 1, 2023 #436 Share Posted November 1, 2023 This change start 11/11/23. So if we are sailing after that date, what is the last date we can prepay gratuities by under the existing $16 pp/day? Is it still 48 hours before cruise? Before 11/11? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirtihk Posted November 1, 2023 #437 Share Posted November 1, 2023 35 minutes ago, moposh said: I called to prepay gratuities. I asked why the gratuities are going up. He told me it's to give everyone the service they deserve. It sounded like he was reading a script. I asked him if it made sense to increase gratuities when service is being decreased. He thanked me for my feedback. You are lucky he is not in a group who would simply dismiss you (a typical tactic for last 3 years). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare orville99 Posted November 1, 2023 #438 Share Posted November 1, 2023 (edited) 6 minutes ago, sofa.king said: This change start 11/11/23. So if we are sailing after that date, what is the last date we can prepay gratuities by under the existing $16 pp/day? Is it still 48 hours before cruise? Before 11/11? They were unclear when we called this morning, but were working with the assumption of Final Payment dates as the cutoff. One thing that was a bit confusing was when I asked about our 11/7 cruise. The response seemed to suggest that our gratuities would go up mid cruise to the new rate. Edited November 1, 2023 by orville99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirtihk Posted November 1, 2023 #439 Share Posted November 1, 2023 35 minutes ago, tottenhamfc said: They wont do that because of price competition. If all cruise line do that, it wouldn't make any difference (just math) AKA competition. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sofa.king Posted November 1, 2023 #440 Share Posted November 1, 2023 (edited) 25 minutes ago, orville99 said: They were unclear when we called this morning, but were working with the assumption of Final Payment dates as the cutoff. One thing that was a bit confusing was when I asked about our 11/7 cruise. The response seemed to suggest that our gratuities would go up mid cruise to the new rate. Thanks @orville99 I've made final payment on my cruise for December. I booked through an agency but figured since the money was going to RCI directly, that I'd call them. They couldn't help me and told me to call my agent. He did say that this would need to be done by 11/10/23 to get the existing rate. Any prepayment on 11/11/23 or afterwards would result in being charged the new rate. Edited November 1, 2023 by sofa.king Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nelblu Posted November 1, 2023 #441 Share Posted November 1, 2023 55 minutes ago, moposh said: I called to prepay gratuities. I asked why the gratuities are going up. He told me it's to give everyone the service they deserve. It sounded like he was reading a script. I asked him if it made sense to increase gratuities when service is being decreased. He thanked me for my feedback. I arranged to prepay gratuities. He added it onto my reservations. You do not pay now. You have to pay by your final payment date. He sent me new invoices with the gratuities added. Did the same. Prepaid on 5 already booked. Only 2 are in the final payment stage. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njkruzer Posted November 1, 2023 #442 Share Posted November 1, 2023 I prepaid 2 cruises affer the last increase after final. But before boarding. The increase was effective for cruises leaving before I paid. The only thing was I had to prepay prior to sailing. On another note some restaurants have added a service fee to the bill that was separate from the gratuity. It went to the restaurants. People have asked why the restaurants didn’t just raise their prices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph2018Baltic Posted November 1, 2023 #443 Share Posted November 1, 2023 I see several things here. First, people complain the auto tips up, buy then brag how much more they give Second, People complain, but than remove the tips, and think that handing tips to employees themselves solve the issue Third, the people who believe the staff and their sad stories Fourth, people that think the cruise line steals from their employees. My thought is this, I tip the recommended and customary amount, and I don't give extra, or take any of it away. It is a customary amount, dictated by years of cruising, and I'm happy with it. Oh, and my service is the same as the braggers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare skittl1321 Posted November 1, 2023 #444 Share Posted November 1, 2023 42 minutes ago, kirtihk said: You are lucky he is not in a group who would simply dismiss you (a typical tactic for last 3 years). I mean thanking for the feedback and caring about the feedback are two different things. Customer service reads from a script then the complaint goes nowhere. I hate that I have to call to prepay. Why can't I prepay them online like every other cruiseline? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcur Posted November 1, 2023 #445 Share Posted November 1, 2023 4 hours ago, cruiselvr04 said: No one knows the exact model Royal uses but it’s assumed they get a small base salary and that tips are the basis for their pay. They all work hard. Because of that, we too have decided to continue to tip as it’s part of the price of cruising. It’s not fair to hurt the staff who work to make your cruise more enjoyable. It doesn’t feel quite right though when cabin service has decreased and yet in 13 months the gratuity has increased by $7 a day for a couple. If Royal is having trouble with people removing them, they should made it a part of the fare. It might be easier to swallow. As I see it, passengers who remove their tips are ENCOURAGING RCCL to include the tips in the cruise fare. It was explained to me that tipped crew members are guaranteed a certain amount, and RCCL makes up the difference for the "tip-stiffers". But, if that amount gets prohibitive, they can very likely move to including tips in the fare. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcur Posted November 1, 2023 #446 Share Posted November 1, 2023 4 hours ago, iscruisingdunzo said: Lol, yet I would bet and guess over 75% of their paying customers have NO IDEA gratuities are optional since RCI is shady and doesn't communicate this information clearly. Nothing shady about this page in their FAQ's. Very clear in the second paragraph: https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marci22 Posted November 1, 2023 #447 Share Posted November 1, 2023 Lots of people complaining about the increase but also lots of people running to call RC and prepay their tips! All those execs high-fiving each other in the break room around now. 1 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
time4u2go Posted November 1, 2023 #448 Share Posted November 1, 2023 4 minutes ago, pcur said: As I see it, passengers who remove their tips are ENCOURAGING RCCL to include the tips in the cruise fare. It was explained to me that tipped crew members are guaranteed a certain amount, and RCCL makes up the difference for the "tip-stiffers". But, if that amount gets prohibitive, they can very likely move to including tips in the fare. It seems like most on here would be in favor of including the tips in the fare. If your supposition is true, then it seems like more people should remove the tips in order to force the cruise line in that direction. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcur Posted November 1, 2023 #449 Share Posted November 1, 2023 Just now, time4u2go said: It seems like most on here would be in favor of including the tips in the fare. If your supposition is true, then it seems like more people should remove the tips in order to force the cruise line in that direction. My thoughts exactly, but I won't take the chance that the crew have any "dry spells" while this gets worked out. So, I'll continue to pay them. Actually, I just got all the invoice updates for all my cruises with prepaid tips. I saved $196, but will pay that out in cash tips over the next 14 months. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare skittl1321 Posted November 1, 2023 #450 Share Posted November 1, 2023 3 minutes ago, pcur said: My thoughts exactly, but I won't take the chance that the crew have any "dry spells" while this gets worked out. Does the crew actually get them? I was really surprised when the NCL cabin steward told me that his pay doesn't change at all if guests pay their service charge; and the only thing that matters to him is cash. (Granted- NCL's is a service charge, not a gratuity; but I'm distrusting that the staff get them at all...) I've always paid them, but it is just a generally shady thing on how they are handled. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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