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Gratuities to be added to sea pass account daily.


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Hi just received this email from Royal, looks they are implementing a COMPULSORY Gratuity Policy Ship Wide

Dear Guest,



We are writing to you in order to update you on a change to our onboard Gratuities Program,

commencing with sailings that depart on or after 1st March 2013. Please see the details below which will

hopefully answer any questions you may have.

What is changing?

For sailings departing effective from March 1st, 2013 and onwards, the daily gratuity rate will increase



by $0.35c per guest, per day. (In GBP at today’s rate of exchange this is an increase of 22 pence per

person per day.)

Old gratuity rate



(up until February

28th)

STATEROOMS

Old gratuity rate (up

until February 28th)

SUITES*

New gratuity rate



(March 1st

onwards)



STATEROOMS

New gratuity rate (March

1st onwards)

SUITES*

$11.65 per person,



per day

$13.90 per person, per

day

$12.00 per person,



per day

$14.25 per person, per day

The daily gratuity will be shared among Dining Services Staff, Stateroom Attendants and Other



Housekeeping Services Personnel. A 15% gratuity will continue to be added to all beverages, mini bar,

spa & salon purchases onboard.

*Grand Suites and above

How will this be applied?

The increase shown above will come into effect on 1st March 2013. After this date, the pre-paid Service



Charge (Gratuities) amount will be updated to the higher rate, so any guest choosing to add the Service

Charge to a booking after this date will be charged at the higher rate.

What if I do not add my gratuities pre-cruise?

Effective on all ships and itineraries SAILING on or after March 1, 2013, Royal Caribbean will now add



the recommended daily automatic gratuity to every guest’s onboard SeaPass® account. The automatic

daily gratuity will be applied onboard for all individual and group bookings that have not prepaid

gratuities prior to boarding their cruise.

What about guests who have opted to prepay their gratuities before 1st March 2013?

Guests who have added the Service Charge to their booking prior to this date will not be impacted by



the new onboard automatic process and will not see any additional charges to their onboard account.

They will pay the existing rate shown above ($11.65 or $13.90)

Can guests who have chosen not to pre-pay their gratuities call us and add these on prior to



March 1st?

Yes, as the effective date is not until March 1st, so guests are able to amend their booking to pre-pay



their gratuities between February 14th and March 1st. This means they will pay the existing lower amount.

.

If guests want to add the Gratuities/Service Charge to their booking at the old rate, what should



they do?

Any guest who has booked with us directly, can call us to have it added. We have set up a special line



to process these requests. The number is 01932 834345.

After 1st March, if a booking is significantly updated (new ship/sail date) and a guest has pre-paid



their gratuities - will this pull through the new gratuity rate?

When a guest calls us to a make significant change after 1st March, such as a change in ship, sail date,



stateroom category or to move to a Travel Agent, then the system will treat this as a new booking.

Therefore the system WILL pull through the updated pre-paid gratuities amount on to the booking and

the higher rate will be charged.

Why are you introducing an Automatic Gratuity Program?

A daily automatic gratuity is becoming the industry standard for gratuity payment.

Most cruise lines already have this program in place.

The program offers a more convenient process for guests.

The program reduces paper waste from gratuity envelopes and vouchers which is consistent



with our Save the Waves initiatives.

The program helps ensure adequate crew recognition levels in global regions where gratuities



are not customary.

Can guests modify the gratuity amounts onboard?

In the unlikely event that a guest onboard does not receive satisfactory service, the guest may request



to modify the daily amount by visiting Guest Services during their cruise to discuss the matter.

If you have any further questions, with regard this matter, please feel free to call the number above, or

send an email to guestsupport.uk@rccl.com

Many thanks for your attention to this letter and we look forward to welcoming you onboard a Royal

Caribbean ship in the future.

Regards

Head of Customer Experience

Guest & Trade Services, UK and Ireland

We do not do Automatic Tipping and we do not agree with this, we have never underpaid any Crew Member, in fact we normally pay more, but this to us is a step in the wrong direction and is more like making us make up the wages of Crew members, instead of Cruise Companies Paying a Decent Wage.

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I have not gotten an email like that yet, and I have a cruise on the books. I notice both of you are from Europe, I wonder if it is regional?

So far, everyone who has reported this has been from the UK.

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Yep I've just had the same email !

 

Not Impressed at all...

 

We don't pre-pay, we used to, but we were told by a RCI crew member that the crewmember only gets 50% of our pre-paid tips and the other 50% goes into a big pot !!!

 

Hmmmm - who's pot I wonder ?

 

We prefer to give $ cash to whom ever we want to tip...

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Found this on the UK site :

 

How can I pay tips?

 

For the convenience of guests, pre-paid tips may be arranged online or added to your booking by your travel agent or Personal Cruise Specialist, before your sailing date. If you have opted not to pre-pay your Service Charge before your cruise, then for all sailings that commence after 1st March 2013, for your convenience we will automatically add a $12.00 per guest per day* service charge to each guest's SeaPass account on a daily basis. * For suite guests the daily charge will be $14.25c. Alternatively, you may pay in cash at the end of your cruise directly to the crew members you wish to recognise for their service (If you require an envelope for the crew member concerned, please see the Guest Relations Desk).

Please note, we no longer provide the pre-paid gratuity vouchers at the end of the cruise.

 

Not yet on the US site from what I can tell. I've asked on the UK FB page.

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We do not do Automatic Tipping and we do not agree with this, we have never underpaid any Crew Member, in fact we normally pay more, but this to us is a step in the wrong direction and is more like making us make up the wages of Crew members, instead of Cruise Companies Paying a Decent Wage.

 

it is what it is.. that is the way the mainstream cruise line industry does business and it WILL NOT EVER CHANGE. so either accept and move on, or start sailing lines that charge the premium up front and do not levy service fees/surcharges/gratuities after the fact at any point.

 

for every person who swears on their version of a Holy Book that they reward handsomely, there are probably 3 who stiff the employees altogether. and not just those from cultures where tipping is not the norm.

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Yep I've just had the same email !

 

Not Impressed at all...

 

We don't pre-pay, we used to, but we were told by a RCI crew member that the crewmember only gets 50% of our pre-paid tips and the other 50% goes into a big pot !!!

 

Hmmmm - who's pot I wonder ?

 

We prefer to give $ cash to whom ever we want to tip...

I believe "the pot" if for Windjammer and other staff that often get overlooked on tips.
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I have only sailed with cruise lines that do automatically add it, so it is what I am used to, but I do find it to be more convenient than stuffing an envelope (and carrying the cash with which to stuff said envelope). I always assume that any tips that I leave are being pooled. (And if employees are receiving tips, regardless of whether it is ashore or at sea, then those tips probably make up a large part of the employees total income.)

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I have not gotten an email like that yet, and I have a cruise on the books. I notice both of you are from Europe, I wonder if it is regional?

 

Yes, I wonder too. I have received this mail, RCI know I am based in the Netherlands but have booked direct with RCI UK. Hope Linda (NN) gets a response?

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Doesn't look like they have started it in the US yet....I wonder why the difference :/

 

I think because many Europeans are not used to the tipping culture and the staff is getting stiffed big time. I think it's a great idea and would have no issue with it. You can still give extra to whomever you wish but at least the minimum will be paid.

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It is what it is.

 

RCL has the ability to make whatever rules for their business they want.

 

We as customers have the ability to give our custom to whichever business we choose.

 

If we don't like RCL's policies (or any one else's for that matter) why not simply take your business elsewhere?

 

There are lots of options available, why do business with someone if you don't like their policies?

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Sigh..... why can't they synch US and UK?

 

We've 2 other threads already on this.... really stirring things up RCCL..... good job..... :rolleyes:

 

 

Hi linda, I have just snet you a facebook message, justletting you know as it might go into your "other" folder

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I believe "the pot" if for Windjammer and other staff that often get overlooked on tips.

 

I suppose it is difficult to Really know what happens to the cash tips or prepaid tips unless you are the auditor :rolleyes:

 

Personally we are sailing next month for the first time in 20 years and have opted to prepay. I plan on having cash for the first or second time at the various bars and a few times for room service. <-- Now that we can take a few bottles of wine during boarding, you better believe we'll have some cheese and crackers watching the sunset. ie: mini soiree.

 

~Bob~

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I agree it's about time... but this makes it sound more like a service charge than a tip !

 

don't know why they can't just pay thier employees a decent wage to start with.... I wonder how much of this will actually go to the staff

 

wendy

 

If they increased staff wages, you would only be paying in the end anyway in the form of higher cruise fares. Same thing.

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