How bad is it to tip in Canadian dollars?

[snowlight]

On board the Zaandam and have had a great time and generally excellent service. We have autogratuities “enabled”. But We had some USD cash set aside for final extra tips, and they are certainly deserved.

however, we unexpectedly had to dip in that cash. I do have plenty of Canadian  dollar (my home currency)… would it be totally uncouth to tip in CAD? Or do you think the HAL staff would be able to exchange it since “money is money” (and maybe they’re changing it into their own currencies anyway)

 

appreciate your thoughts!

[RuthC]

Personally, I would be checking at the Front Desk first, to see if they can convert your Canadian currency to USD, then use those. 

[IAcruising]

I agree with RuthC, but I'm pretty sure the crew will take whatever you are willing to give them.

 

[cbr663]

It's not bad at all.  As you wrote, money is money.  Just use bills and no coins, so no loonies or toonies. 🙂

[Bill B]

They will gratefully accept it (but prefer U.S. dollars).

 

Yesterday, I made a one dollar deposit booking (in USD) charged to my RBC visa. It appears on my account as $1.38 CAD. 😧

[aliaschief]

Personally I think it may be difficult for crew to convert the money. They are not members of local banks. Now if they are cruising in Canada during the summer they could use the CD for shopping etc.

As Ruth said check with Guest Services and see if they could assist. 

[Petronillus]

25 minutes ago, cbr663 said:

It's not bad at all.  As you wrote, money is money.  Just use bills and no coins, so no loonies or toonies. 🙂

I get the prevailing sentiment, but the basic idea is to show appreciation above and beyond the mandatory or baked-in gratuities. It seems to me that tipping your bar server with an occasional toonie is charming.

BTW, I don't understand why we (US) Americans have been so resistant to the dollar coin. And the two-dollar coin is a brilliant innovation I wish we would emulate.

[Heidi13]

56 minutes ago, snowlight said:

On board the Zaandam and have had a great time and generally excellent service. We have autogratuities “enabled”. But We had some USD cash set aside for final extra tips, and they are certainly deserved.

however, we unexpectedly had to dip in that cash. I do have plenty of Canadian  dollar (my home currency)… would it be totally uncouth to tip in CAD? Or do you think the HAL staff would be able to exchange it since “money is money” (and maybe they’re changing it into their own currencies anyway)

 

appreciate your thoughts!

 

Regardless of the currency you provide to the crew as tips, many will have to exchange it for their home currency. Onboard the ship, the crew has an ongoing currency exchange, and failing that, they can change CAN $ just as easily as US $, Sterling, Euros, etc at a bank.

[IAcruising]

12 minutes ago, Petronillus said:

BTW, I don't understand why we (US) Americans have been so resistant to the dollar coin. And the two-dollar coin is a brilliant innovation I wish we would emulate.

 

Absolutely agree. And can we finally get rid of those intolerable pennies? Please?

 

[Petronillus]

Illinois is the only state where you can pay highway tolls in pennies. Land of Lincoln.

[IAcruising]

2 minutes ago, Petronillus said:

Illinois is the only state where you can pay highway tolls in pennies. Land of Lincoln.

 

Put Lincoln on the new $2 coin. At least Illinois will use it!  😄

 

[Mary229]

6 hours ago, IAcruising said:

 

Absolutely agree. And can we finally get rid of those intolerable pennies? Please?

 

We would have to get rid of those intolerable sales taxes😉 and I have not seen any local governments volunteering for that 

[kazu]

47 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

We would have to get rid of those intolerable sales taxes😉 and I have not seen any local governments volunteering for that 

 

LOL - no sadly, you don’t have to get rid of the taxes.  We are taxed - the total bill is rounded up or down by 5 cents.

 

OP - the crew does have a bank on board and some exchange with other crew members (assuming you are cruising in Canada) who are able to get off in port.

 

U.S. Dollars are preferred but the crew will accept any standard, exchangeable currency (Canadian, euros, GBP) with a smile.

[cbr663]

10 hours ago, Petronillus said:

I get the prevailing sentiment, but the basic idea is to show appreciation above and beyond the mandatory or baked-in gratuities. It seems to me that tipping your bar server with an occasional toonie is charming.

BTW, I don't understand why we (US) Americans have been so resistant to the dollar coin. And the two-dollar coin is a brilliant innovation I wish we would emulate.

 

I wouldn't find it charming at all for the simple reason that it is practically impossible to exchange coins. 

[TiogaCruiser]

9 hours ago, Petronillus said:

Illinois is the only state where you can pay highway tolls in pennies. Land of Lincoln.

Around here, that would be about 6000-12000 pennies per trip. How long would that stop traffic for?

[Mike B Landlubber]

It can be a problem for those who service travelers. In Egypt back in the 90s I was implored to help a hotel attendant who had received a tip in the form of a large-value note from Brunei, who said he couldn’t find a way to use it. I still haven’t made it to Brunei, and regretfully declined to help him.

[sunviking90]

I certainly wouldnt be giving any toonies or loonies. Heavy and cumbersome. I avoid coins myself (and cash generally). If you’re talking about larger tips at the end of the cruise that will be in bills and your ship will be at Canadian ports soon, then I think it would be ok. I don’t think Zaandam is expected in Canada until April though.

Remember, even more than tips the crew wants to be mentioned in your post cruise survey. Everyone we tipped recently mentioned how important that was.

[kazu]

3 minutes ago, sunviking90 said:

I certainly wouldnt be giving any toonies or loonies. Heavy and cumbersome. I avoid coins myself (and cash generally). If you’re talking about larger tips at the end of the cruise that will be in bills and your ship will be at Canadian ports soon, then I think it would be ok. I don’t think Zaandam is expected in Canada until April though.

 

Agree - never give foreign coins of any currency as a tip.  They can’t be exchanged.  Use them in the country they are for or save them for your next trip.

 

[CGinMTL]

I think that if it is the base tip, then yes, it needs to be in USD.

If it is extra, and you are worried

Ask the crew member

I am sure they will take the cad

Worst case, they can ask another Canadian pax to help them out

 

[Cruising Is Bliss]

On 1/17/2024 at 7:42 PM, Petronillus said:

I get the prevailing sentiment, but the basic idea is to show appreciation above and beyond the mandatory or baked-in gratuities. It seems to me that tipping your bar server with an occasional toonie is charming.

BTW, I don't understand why we (US) Americans have been so resistant to the dollar coin. And the two-dollar coin is a brilliant innovation I wish we would emulate.

 

The huge resistance to the $2 bill and all dollar coins came from merchants. No space in cash drawers for them.

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, Cruising Is Bliss said:

 

The huge resistance to the $2 bill and all dollar coins came from merchants. No space in cash drawers for them.

😂😂😂😂😂

[Ipeeinthepools]

Can you convert your Canadian currency at the Front Desk for US Currency?  If so, that would be the best approach.

[Real NHDOC]

The crew is resourceful enough to figure out how to turn any legal tender into something more useful and since a tip is essentially a gift I would not worry too much about giving them something other than USD.
 

I am sure if the choice was between a tip in CAD or no tip they would be happy to take the CAD instead of nothing. Eventually they will be back in New England or Alaska and will be able to use that money then or can trade it to a friend who is going there. 

[Blackduck59]

On 1/18/2024 at 2:30 AM, Mary229 said:

We would have to get rid of those intolerable sales taxes😉 and I have not seen any local governments volunteering for that 

We got rid of pennies and we still have intolerable sales taxes. If it is a debit or credit card purchase the exact amount is charged. If cash the amount is rounded up or down to the nearest 5 cents. (sometimes you get lucky and sometimes you don't) I don't think many Canadians miss the penny, it cost more than a penny to make.

[lupaglupa]

I think it's only okay if your ship is in (or soon to be in) Canadian waters. The crew do use their time on shore to shop and tour and having local money is nice then. But if you are on a ship that's not going to be stopping in Canada anytime soon I'd do as others suggest and swap your cash into a currency the crew can use.