Tipping on CCL?

[tedjazz]

From Emily Post 1922.

 

----

Each ordinary first class passenger, now as always, gives ten shillings ($2.50) to the room steward or stewardess, ten shillings to the dining-room steward, ten shillings to the deck steward, ten shillings to the lounge steward. Your tip to the head steward and to one of the chefs depends on whether they have done anything especial for you. If not, you do not tip them. If you are a bad sailor and have been taking your meals in your room, you give twenty shillings ($5.00) at least to the stewardess (or steward, if you are a man). Or if you have eaten your meals on deck, you give twenty shillings to the deck steward, and ten to his assistant, and you give five to the bath steward. To any steward who takes pains to please you, you show by your manner in thanking him that you appreciate his efforts, as well as by giving him a somewhat more generous tip when you leave the ship. 31 If you like your bath at a certain hour, you would do well to ask your bath steward for it as soon as you go on board (unless you have a private bath of your own), since the last persons to speak get the inconvenient hours—naturally. To many the daily salt bath is the most delightful feature of the trip. The water is always wonderfully clear and the towels are heated. 32 If you have been ill on the voyage, some ship’s doctors send in a bill; others do not. In the latter case you are not actually obliged to give them anything, but the generously inclined put the amount of an average fee in an envelope and leave it for the doctor at the purser’s office.----

So 5 bucks in 1922 dollars to the steward.

 

Considering the cost of a movie was 25 cents in 1922..and milk was 33 cent a half gallon (1920) and bread was 1 lb. 10¢ 1925 New York. Well, do the math. Okay..for todays bread 1.59. times 50. 79.50Dollars to the steward alone.

 

Apples and Oranges...1922 Cruise not even comparable to 2009 Cruise.

[sam1148]

Apples and Oranges...1922 Cruise not even comparable to 2009 Cruise.

 

WHAT? Did they do away with the daily salt bath and hot towels?

I shall write a strongly worded letter to the steamship company, post haste!

[Specter]

I don't believe anyone is suggesting NOT paying the tips AT ALL (except maybe my BIL/SIL!) I believe all of us are just talking about the METHOD they prefer to pay the tip- cash, up front or the end of the cruise, or auto-tip. To me, it doesn't matter, as long as the workers get what they deserve...

[tedjazz]

WHAT? Did they do away with the daily salt bath and hot towels?

I shall write a strongly worded letter to the steamship company, post haste!

 

I must say, I DO miss my daily Salt Bath and Hot Towels... ;)

[tedjazz]

I don't believe anyone is suggesting NOT paying the tips AT ALL (except maybe my BIL/SIL!) I believe all of us are just talking about the METHOD they prefer to pay the tip- cash, up front or the end of the cruise, or auto-tip. To me, it doesn't matter, as long as the workers get what they deserve...

 

Exactly, that's all that matters. :)

[tulman]

Here's my tip:D

 

We've been on two CCL ships and have found ALL room staff and ALL wait staff to be exceptional. Our room steward and wait staff learned our names within a day or two. On the Legend in 06, our waitress learned I liked martinis and, beginng with my name, would ask it I wanted one tonight.:p

 

Our room steward kept us supplied with toothpaste when we mention we had forgot ours.:)

 

We would never turn off auto-tips and always give our room steward and wait staff something extra when they have gone the extra mile.

[themarm]

I don't believe anyone is suggesting NOT paying the tips AT ALL (except maybe my BIL/SIL!)

 

then perhaps it would be best not to inform them of how to turn off autotips.

 

i would encourage them to pay the tip beforehand, and set an expectation that it shall be paid on the S&S account, at minimum. knowing that they would stiff the staff if they could figure out how, feeding the information of how to do it seems to be encouraging that behavior, imo.

[tedjazz]

then perhaps it would be best not to inform them of how to turn off autotips.

 

i would encourage them to pay the tip beforehand, and set an expectation that it shall be paid on the S&S account, at minimum. knowing that they would stiff the staff if they could figure out how, feeding the information of how to do it seems to be encouraging that behavior, imo.

 

Not allowing people to have Information is not the answer. People still should be allowed to make their own choices with a full disclosure of the information. If they choose to not Tip or they Tip very generously, why is it anyone else's business?

[nbsjcruiser]

I have also heard that tipping in advance is considered an insult. They think you are trying to buy better service. Good room stewards say they provide the same excellent service to all their guests.

 

I find that one a little hard to believe. I do it all the time and yes I am buying better service and from what I've seen it always works.

[olive1998]

Coming from Europe this tipping business seems very complicated to me (and just as awkward as haggling for the right price in developing countries to be honest).

 

So just a question - if I leave the autotips in place but wish to have extra service from the head waiter for example - how do I PERFORM the actual tipping? I get my service,what then? Do I hand him/her the money right there and then? How much should such a tip be? Do I hand it to the person there in the open or somehow "hide" the money by giving it hand to hand in a more discreet way?

[themarm]

Not allowing people to have Information is not the answer.

 

i disagree. if you have a reasonably strong notion that the information is going to be used negatively, it is a perfect time to withhold information. depending on the severity of the situation, our law structure is set up to hold the giver of information as an accessory to a crime.

 

no one is going to be arrested for teaching a couple how to stiff staff of a tip. but that does not make it appropriate to encourage them to do it. this is not a "no harm, no foul" situation - staff work their fingers to the bone (and are far away from their families) to ensure our comfort. they do not have to be fodder for anyone's sense of entitlement.

 

the OP was clear that this is not a situation of reducing a tip. he clearly asked and was philosophizing the point on behalf of his BIL/SIL - they want to leave nothing (he called them "tightwads"). i agree that i am unconcerned of the actual tip amount so long as anything reasonable is left. a reasonable amount is not zero dollars. i choose to not be an enabler, so therefore i will not pretend that this is not a problem.

 

in my opinion, the best way to handle the situation is the same as has been suggested: explain that this is an expected part of the trip, nor is it overly expensive.

[momofzeke]

Coming from Europe this tipping business seems very complicated to me (and just as awkward as haggling for the right price in developing countries to be honest).

 

So just a question - if I leave the autotips in place but wish to have extra service from the head waiter for example - how do I PERFORM the actual tipping? I get my service,what then? Do I hand him/her the money right there and then? How much should such a tip be? Do I hand it to the person there in the open or somehow "hide" the money by giving it hand to hand in a more discreet way?

 

 

What we do is just give it to the person on the last day of the cruise. Gave the extra to our waiter and assistant waiter at dinner the last night. Gave it to our steward when we saw him on the last day.

 

We leave auto-tips in place. 2 of 3 cruises, we have also given extra cash to our steward, waiter and assistant waiter. We simply handed the cash to each person and thanked them for making our cruise extra special. We gave an additional $30 - $40 to each.

[tedjazz]

i disagree. if you have a reasonably strong notion that the information is going to be used negatively, it is a perfect time to withhold information. depending on the severity of the situation, our law structure is set up to hold the giver of information as an accessory to a crime.

 

no one is going to be arrested for teaching a couple how to stiff staff of a tip. but that does not make it appropriate to encourage them to do it. this is not a "no harm, no foul" situation - staff work their fingers to the bone (and are far away from their families) to ensure our comfort. they do not have to be fodder for anyone's sense of entitlement.

 

the OP was clear that this is not a situation of reducing a tip. he clearly asked and was philosophizing the point on behalf of his BIL/SIL - they want to leave nothing (he called them "tightwads"). i agree that i am unconcerned of the actual tip amount so long as anything reasonable is left. a reasonable amount is not zero dollars. i choose to not be an enabler, so therefore i will not pretend that this is not a problem.

 

in my opinion, the best way to handle the situation is the same as has been suggested: explain that this is an expected part of the trip, nor is it overly expensive.

 

Seems like quite an Extreme answer to such an insignifican question/issue. Withholding information in order to avoid being an Accessory to a Crime, I guess I never really looked at a person's Tipping habits as a Criminal Offense, but maybe it is somewhere. I would still contend that whatever one person Tips to someone else is nobody elses business and it would be an exaggeration to label someone an "Enabler" for not making it their business. I would call it being nosey.

Finally, your last comment lends me to believe that you would encourage someone to Lie about the subject of Tipping rather than allowing the uninformed person to make an informed decision. I must say I do disagree with that philosophy.

[Gorgegon]

To me the fix tipping is just part of the cruise cost. And the amount they are charging is fair for a couple.

The only idea behind for the automated tipping is to provide more income to the employees regardless of the service, by doing it in these manner Carnival converts their fixed costs to variable costs, and in low demand cruises make them less vulnerable to a loose money. The employees loose though in low demand.

I personally don’t tip the room steward in any hotel, they should add it to the bill like Carnival.

I believe the standard of cleanness is established by the company and not by the employee. Imagine if Carnival did not allow any tips. Do you think Carnival will allow the steward to make the bed as they please or vacuum the carpet if they want. (Think of how many options there are to make a bed. Not many.) Your room will still be clean and spotless.

And not all the tips at restaurants are fair. Imagine if two couples arrive to a restaurant. Couple 1 orders ice tea at 5 dollars, couple 2 orders a wine bottle $ 150 . The waiter refills the glasses 3 times for C1. Couple 2 refills their own glasses. For these example they eat the same. $ 90 dollars. Let’s add the taxes 8 %. The tabs are as follows C1 = $ 108 Couple 2= $ 259.20. Now the tips, at 20 % C1 pays 19.44 and C2 pays $51.84 a difference of $ 32.40. Same service and same food, and more work for the waiter of C1. Also because the TIP is calculated adding the tax first, the waiter for C2 receives $ 2.40 additional just because of the tax. I think restaurants are not selling more because of their tipping policies. A 10 % tip in a tab of $ 259.20 I consider it ok and 20% tip in a $ 108.00 is also OK in the same restaurant. Unfortunately we are usually in the situation of C2 and I reduce my spending due to the way they calculate the tipping. I never order expensive drinks.

[mzche1999]

Coming from Europe this tipping business seems very complicated to me (and just as awkward as haggling for the right price in developing countries to be honest).

 

 

Is tipping not done in Europe? Just wondering how gratuities are handled.

 

Hugs,

Chelle

[surfgirl67]

Rookie mistake I made many years ago... didn't realize there was the auto-tip in place. I tipped MORE than the suggested amount, including the maitre'd at the end, in cash. So we paid more than DOUBLE the amount, and I assure you, we didn't receive that great of service. Oh well- my mistake, it all comes around.

 

Yes, I am on a budget- but am asking questions for my entire party who is asking me, the 'Veteran Cruiser' a bunch of questions- which, I'm bringing here. My FIL is old school, he tips in cash, sometimes in advance to people like a 'room steward' or 'concierge' or whatever. He believes he gets better service for that. My SIL/BIL are complete tight wads and are upset about the auto tipping. They WILL tip, but have a hard time with a pre-set tip amount in place before they receive the service. I'm just asking questions for everyone in my party, as I don't know the answers.

You are asking a simple question - I think people should go by the old saying "if can't say something nice, then don't say nothing at all"........sure wish people on this message board would remember that. Guess you can act anyway hiding behind the computer. I'm trying to decide what to do about tipping. :confused:

[beckyk329]

I say to each their own and we should leave it at that. MY personnal belief, auto-tipping sucks!:D

 

Years ago, when I was cruising under Moms money....the service was outstanding!! Now, ten years later it has changed so much!! We LOVED the service before. It was so great! Like anywhere else in the US, the people working were working for their tips! We were happier, and they were as well because they got more! You go to a restaurant and get a superb waiter you will tip more than the average one.

 

With the auto tipping, they assume they are going to get it so they don't provide that personnal touch you get from people "working for tips".

And how can anyone get in trouble when you turn it off the first day? Obviously it's not for bad service, you haven't had any yet! Our last cruise the auto tip was going to charge us 100.00. Not a big deal right. Well, we turned it OFF!!!!!:eek:

Before we left (for our cruise) I got 300.00 in 1's, 5's and 10's. We used about 200.00 of that in tips. Now, I personnally don't think that's cheap of me.

 

People aren't a**holes because they like things old school and tip for services recieved......

 

Do you tip your waiter when you walk in the restaurant!?!?!:cool:

[cathyoo]

I too wish that Carnival would just include the auto tip in the price of the cruise and make it so the tip cannot be removed. Although the OP states he's been on cruises where they were treated like dirt, I've never heard that before. Generally, one staff member or a dining staff may not be up to par but you interact with many of the crew.

 

I also think you find what you are looking for.. if you go on a cruise looking for reasons to reduce your tip you will find them. If you go on a cruise looking for reasons to increase your tip you will find them also.

 

Put me in the latter group. No one will ever convince me that people planning to remove or reduce their tips BEFORE they set foot on the ship are not cheap.

[Littlegoo75]

I would never think of removing the auto-tips....never experienced any bad kind of service ever, and even if I did, I probably wouldn't remove them. Those auto tips are so low if you think about it and we have always tipped our room stewards and dining room waiters a decent amount extra at the end of the cruise.

If you take the time to talk to some of the crew members, you realize the sacrifices they make by working on a cruise ship and working hard to ensure that you have a great time. One of the waiters in the dining room was playing with our baby and told us that he has a 3 month old that he hasn't even met yet, and will not get to meet for another few months when he is able to take his break after being on the ship for 7 months. How sad to have a new baby that you don't even get to hold until they are 6 months old! Our head waiter was telling us that he was engaged to another crew member, she decided to quit, but he was still working, she ended up getting pregnant, didn't tell him until later (he was still working on the ship) and ended up losing the baby and blaming him because he wasn't around because he was working on the cruise ship. These are just a couple of the stories of these hard working people. By the way most crew members acted around our 11 month old, you can tell how much they missed their own kids/babies/neices/nephews, etc.

Honestly, if people can afford to go on a cruise, they can afford to tip more than the suggested minimum (which is really paltry in my opinion).

Just my two cents, take it or leave it.

[Littlegoo75]

I should have added that if people can afford to cruise, they can afford to tip extra (if the service was good). If somebody was actually "treated like dirt" which I find hard to beleive based on my past cruising experience, and having been treated very very well by every single crew member I have been in contact with, then maybe tipping extra is not necessary, but I just think that removing or lowering the minimum amount is just plain mean and stingy.

[Wennfred]

Spector, can you post the name of the ships that you was treated poorly?

 

 

 

Fred

[Kurbanfan]

I should have added that if people can afford to cruise, they can afford to tip extra (if the service was good). If somebody was actually "treated like dirt" which I find hard to beleive based on my past cruising experience, and having been treated very very well by every single crew member I have been in contact with, then maybe tipping extra is not necessary, but I just think that removing or lowering the minimum amount is just plain mean and stingy.

 

Auto tips should be for great service......Affording to tip extra has nothing to do with affording to cruise......These tipping threads are getting sillier and sillier as the years go by:p

People are getting the wrong message.......

[MAZANDSTEVE]

Is tipping not done in Europe? Just wondering how gratuities are handled.

 

Hugs,

Chelle

 

 

Yes it is in England but not expected, the staff get paid a reasonable wage, so tips are just a bonus. In restaurants most people tip if the service and food is very good, but if you dont then its not a problem, no-one chases you down the street like they did to us in the US once.

[michelle1836]

let me just start out by saying i havent gone on my cruise yet so i am reading all the information i possibly can. in addition to that, i will not remove the auto tip and will tip extra for good service. but i do agree with becky above. we dont tip a waiter before we get our meal. as a first time cruiser it is just confusing to me why we would tip in advance (which is what auto tip does). especially since someone said that tipping in advance is offensive.

 

perhaps i should tip a bit extra to the cabin steward in the middle of the cruise not the first day?

[Specter]

Yes, I was on Holland America. Most direct experience with employees was kind of rude and snotty. Like they had better things to do than to help us, or give us the time of day. Maybe we didn't have an expensive enough of a room for them to give us the attention we've received on RCL and CCL, who knows. It wasn't HORRIBLE by any means- but I would NEVER sail with them again, that's for sure.

 

I think it's funny the judgments people bring with this topic. How do you know what I can and can't afford, based on me going on a cruise? How do you know I wasn't given a cruise as a gift and that I'm broke beyond that? I come from the frame of mind that I tip for good service, and that a tip is not expected or they should just do an 'all inclusive'.

 

I went to Sandals for our Honeymoon years ago. It was all inclusive. In fact, employees were not allowed to accept tips. They were paid more, I'm sure, and that price was reflected in the cost of the package. With any service (taxis, waiters, whatever) I tip based on the service I receive. It's rare for me to NOT tip at all- service would have to be HORRIBLE for me to do that. However, for me to be expected to tip no matter what the service is plain ridiculous.

 

The other thing that bothers me is feeling sorry for people, and giving them money in return. I don't hold anyone as a victim in this life. They CHOOSE to work on the cruise ships as they earn excellent wages compared to working at home. No one FORCES them to work ANYWHERE. They could easily find work elsewhere close to home if that's more important to them (even if it means sacrificing income). If they're hurting for money, then they should be even more motivated to work hard and provide excellent service to earn better tips. For me to tip because I feel sorry for their situation, and regardless of the service they provide, is just keeping them small and feeling sorry for them. If they do their job, provide excellent service, they get 20% from me, plain and simple.

 

Again, I don't tip the waiter before I am seated in a restaurant. However, autotip DOES make it convenient to do... Man, this topic is never going to die, is it???