Questions About Tipping on Cunard Ships!

[Norfolk Brit]

Ok it's either Gas or involves some sort of thrusting.

 

And I was going to invite you to share my propellor.

 

Sir Martin:eek:

[lord of the seas]

And I was going to invite you to share my propellor.

 

Sir Martin:eek:

 

I think it depends on how big your blades are

[ovccruiser]

 

I agree with these sentiments. HOWEVER, I think it is inevitable that even on these 'tips included' cruises there would still be people who tip, and who make it known that they tip. This has the result that those who do not tip, or at least some of them, will feel perhaps some peer pressure to conform. Plus, the staff will equally inevitably come to expect something extra and the whole thing goes around again. I fear it is an intractable problem. Lords knows there have been enough words written about it on here and other forums for everybody in the cruising industry to be aware of what a source of severe rectal discomfort it is for so many of their customers. The fact that nothing is, or can be, done to alleviate worries about this simply demonstrates that the industry is perfectly happy with the present arrangements and to hell with the customers.

 

A Resigned Gari

 

Nail on the head there Gari. Just for posters who think the lot of crew is not good, on my last cruise and Indian gent was retiring after 40 years of service with P & O, on my last QM2 cruise, our head waiter for our section was celebrating 25 years with Cunard. There are many many other examples of this where the staff are more than happy with their job.

[keithm]

I usually refer to the Berlitz cruise guide when it comes to tipping. Remember your $11/$13 daily tip goes to many people, not just the ones you "see". I'll give an example for a 10 day voyage. Tip your steward $3/day(per passenger)Butler $5/day, head waiter $5/day, asst.waiter $2/day. Wine Steward $20(for the trip)Mai tre d' only tip if a request was handled by him. These are just guidelines.

[Whitemarsh]

So if you have breakfast delivered to your room you're supposed to tip? How much is appropriate?

 

We plan to eat breakfast in our room each day so if someone could advise on the above query I'd really appreciate it.

 

Regarding quality service and treating staff members as you would like to be treated yourself, I always treat people (in a service position) as I liked to treated when I was in service job (many years ago).

 

Unfortunately no matter how nice you are to some people they are really unhappy with their life and resent serving you and so will be as unpleasant as they can be.

 

I imagine this happens on the QM2, QV et al and there really is nothing to do but hope and pray you don't run into them on your cruise.

 

I would like to point out that I'm not a billionaire and must save to travel overseas and on cruise ships. I therefore will not accept poor/rude service. If I was a billionaire I would probably just write off rude service as an amusing tale to tell my fellow billionaires and simply book another cruise.

 

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't mind tipping but the service better be good or I will want to know the reason why.

[southwestie]

So if you have breakfast delivered to your room you're supposed to tip? How much is appropriate?

 

We plan to eat breakfast in our room each day so if someone could advise on the above query I'd really appreciate it.

 

Regarding quality service and treating staff members as you would like to be treated yourself, I always treat people (in a service position) as I liked to treated when I was in service job (many years ago).

 

Unfortunately no matter how nice you are to some people they are really unhappy with their life and resent serving you and so will be as unpleasant as they can be.

 

I imagine this happens on the QM2, QV et al and there really is nothing to do but hope and pray you don't run into them on your cruise.

 

I would like to point out that I'm not a billionaire and must save to travel overseas and on cruise ships. I therefore will not accept poor/rude service. If I was a billionaire I would probably just write off rude service as an amusing tale to tell my fellow billionaires and simply book another cruise.

 

I guess what I'm trying to say is that I don't mind tipping but the service better be good or I will want to know the reason why.

 

 

We always give 1 or 2 $$ as a tip for breakfast in the room, sometimes they will deliver and they have gone before you think of it, so have it ready-you dont have to tip and they dont seem to expect it either

[omakim]

If I was a billionaire I would probably......

 

Hey Margatebne, you sound pretty much like me....

 

I always remember what Jackie Gleason said: "Be nice to people on your way up, because you're going to meet those same people on your way down."

 

Jon.

[RJChatsworth]

I note with interest all the comments about tipping. I have always wondered why so many people seem to be giving additional tips at the end of a Cunard voyage. But how do you know they are extras? I had also always wondered what so many people were doing standing in line at reception as soon as they boarded the ship. What could they be talking about.

 

On two recent Cunard trips I have questioned many about whether they give extra tips and in almost every case they have admitted they have the automatic tips taken off the ships as soon as they board. They say it is because they prefer to tip those they come in contact with directly and as a result give them more. I also understand all the arguments then that there are others who lose out. The last time we boarded I looked on the reception desk and there was a great heap of forms already prepared for you to put your cabin number and sign to opt out. Perhaps everything one sees about tipping is not as it seems!

[Warmfront]

You will always observe a regular line of clients who opt out of the automatic tips, choosing to make their own tipping decisions, as you would in just about every other service environment. It just that no one likes to admit it. However Cunard certainly make provision for you to opt out and this is in the brochure documentation if you look hard enough.

[balf]

Cunard, if you are reading this - stick it on the upfront price and get rid of this antequated and unfair tipping policy.

 

David.

[digitl]

Cunard, if you are reading this - stick it on the upfront price and get rid of this antequated and unfair tipping policy.

Absolutely, it's the only honest way to do business: charge your clients the real price up front.

[buckirj1]

I'm a big fan of automatic tipping. I used to find it awkward giving servers and stewards their tips personally. Anonymity suits me better, and I still get to feel like I'm doing the right thing for the folks who've taken such good care of me.

[Jimsgirl]

I let Cunard take the auto tip, although I do not use the Kings Court after the ambarkation lunch sandwich. I wait to see how my cabin attendent treats me , if it is attentive to my needs (replenishing toiletries without need to ask etc) then I slip her/him extra in the privacy of the cabin and thank him/her for their service. If however I receive bare minimum service then I do not give any extra.

I have been told by the dining staff, that they are not supposed to accept extra tips,and some of them do not deserve any extra consideration. The waiter on my Nov trip (table of 5, ) was surly,inattentive and at times downright rude. Instance,never admitted their were alternatives to the items on the menue, even when asked ,he simply ignored the request, and he refused point blank to put a plate of assorted petit fours on the table, instead he came around with a plate of 5 ALL THE SAME kind and placed one petit four each in front of us each night.

Of course we did not starve because of this , but it did show a BA towards his job.

[keithm]

Last March we went on a thirteen day cruise to the Caribbean aboard the QM2. It never crossed my mind to tip additionally, seeing that tips were automatically deducted. Now I have begun to hear that many passengers tip in addition to those automatic tips. I feel a bit regretful that I didn't include an extra amount, but feel the automatic tip was really quite adequate and wonder why some want to tip an extra amount, making the rest of us look stingy? If everyone stuck to the automatic tipping, then no one would even need to worry about tipping at all.

I always go by the "Berlitz" cruise guide.. For 10 day trips.(As we're staying in Grill class this Nov.27th cruise), here's a pretty good rule...$5/pp/day for Butler/head waiter. $4/pp/day cabin steward. $25/wine steward(last night) $3/pp/day asst. waiter. Only tip Maitre' d if they perform a service(such as getting you into a booked alternative rest.)The stated fees get divided up among all those you see, as well as those behind the scenes. Now, obviously, if service is less than adaquate, then you may tip less(or nothing additional)if service was pretty poor.

for us in 4 trips, we've never had anything less than great service. We did have a Russian stewardess(3rd cruise) who was rather "cool" in her demeanor, but she did her job well & we tipped her accordingly. We actually had to leave the tip in the room on the bed, as she was so hard to find. I don't think she was avoiding us, but just attended quietly to her job.

[capnpugwash]

I always go by the "Berlitz" cruise guide.. For 10 day trips.(As we're staying in Grill class this Nov.27th cruise), here's a pretty good rule...$5/pp/day for Butler/head waiter. $4/pp/day cabin steward. $25/wine steward(last night) $3/pp/day asst. waiter. her job.

 

Is this in addition to the $13 pppd autotip, if it is it seems quite excessive to me.

[Whitemarsh]

We always give 1 or 2 $$ as a tip for breakfast in the room, sometimes they will deliver and they have gone before you think of it, so have it ready-you dont have to tip and they dont seem to expect it either

 

Thanks for the info. I'll follow your lead and go with $2 per delivery for breakfast.

[Shads]

As most ships have a 2:1 passenger to crew ratio, it would mean that with an average tip of 12$ per day per person, each crew member from the captain down would get over $700 per month. As the officers and some other staff do not receive tips the average per crew member would be in the region of $900 per month. This does not include tips from the sale of drinks. There was a TV program that indicated that the crew got this money as their wages and the company would only pay them if there was a shortfall between the money that they received in tips and their contracted salary. If this is true it is the passengers that are paying most or all of the crew salary, leaving the companies to make more profit. I believe that tips should be an extra to the crew salary and not be used as the crew salary.

 

 

 

Unless a passenger is an experienced cruiser, how would one know that many others tip in addition to the "charged to your account tips" and the 15% tip added to drinks purchases? Cunard tells you that a per day per passenger amount is added to your account and that is to cover tips.

 

Having said that, being experienced with Cunard and as a result of what I have read on this forum, we did tip a modest extra amount to our cabin and dining room staff on our last crossing which was our first voyage since the new tipping policy commenced. But I suggest most passengers wouldn't expect to do that.

[BigMac1953]

...but the officers in the Hotel side, do get a share of the tips. The crew get a set wage every month, most of which is sent home by most staff.

[Host Hattie]

Welcome to Cruise Critic Shads. Just to let you know this thread was started in 2009 so information may be out of date.

[Shads]

I think that you miss my point. My point being is where does the money for the salaries come from tips or from the company. I do not know but would like to.

 

IQUOTE =BigMac1953;51909098]...but the officers in the Hotel side, do get a share of the tips. The crew get a set wage every month, most of which is sent home by most staff.

[MarkBearSF]

I've always considered the auto-tipping to be sufficient in most cases. Perhaps I should consider adding to the tips for our cabin steward or waiters, but to be honest, we're easy passengers. For the room stewards, we don't use room service, pick up after ourselves, and perhaps aside from a request for an extra pillow at the start of the voyage, don't make special requests. Likewise, in the Britannia DR, we arrive on time, generally don't make special requests, and engage the staff in a positive and grateful manner. I would NEVER begrudge a tip for decent service, but haven't felt the need to go above and beyond.

 

However, when dealing with bar staff, I appreciate that they keep an eye on our needs and know our drink preferences, so I will occasionally add an extra few bucks tip on the bill.

 

Perhaps we should consider doing the same with housekeeping and restaurant staff, but to be frank, it's never occurred to us. (Although, back in the day, we'd usually give more than recommended cash in the envelopes on the last night)

[Salacia]

At lunch in the Britannia Restaurant on our recent QM2 Caribbean cruise, the thought occurred to me that those passengers who remove the H&D charge (a/k/a auto tip) because they would rather give their dinner servers a gratuity at the end of the voyage...do they tip the waiters at breakfast and lunch in cash after each meal, since the servers are not the same we have serving dinner? Or are those who serve breakfast and lunch not worthy of either the H&D Charge or an individual cash gratuity?

 

Ok, I think I have hit the limit for run-on sentences, but you get the idea :-)

Edited January 6, 2017 by Salacia

[digitl]

We remove the 'auto-tip'.

 

Tips are for service above and beyond, not for performing duties for which someone is being paid. If basic pay is insufficient then the brochure price should be increased and the employee paid a proper salary.

 

So-called 'tipping' has got out of hand and allows employers to pay below a reasonable rate on the premise that 'tips' will make up the difference.

[balf]

Welcome to Cruise Critic Shads. Just to let you know this thread was started in 2009 so information may be out of date.

 

Yes, didn't someone coin the phrase "zombie alert"

 

DAVID.

[Teddy123]

The various arguments for going to the trouble of removing the current default charge do not hold water and increasing the brochure price would indeed be best for staff and passengers alike.