UNCFanatik

And I say let them increase the fare. I remove the auto-gratuities and will continue to do so. Shame on Royal for reducing service and increasing auto-gratuities. Raise the fare, pay crew members more, drop auto gratuity, let the market sort it all out. We all know Royal wont do this because they benefit from this wage structure.

Well said. Of course we live in an upside down world when a company DECREASES service and INCREASES auto-gratuities at the same time.

You really dont understand a reward that was EARNED through customer loyalty vs winning a random contest? False equivalency here. Also, as I have said, you have no way of knowing what the person with the voucher is doing. They may have drink package for all you know and were charged the mandatory gratuity already. Why should they tip twice?

I understand the vouchers completely. And the vouchers were earned as a reward. And you have no idea if these passengers also have drink packages on top of vouchers. Mandatory tip has already been paid. My bartenders back home dont charge me a mandatory 18% tip.

and how did they get those vouchers? Diamond level? you dont think their loyalty deserves that reward? And why should the bars have mandatory gratuity? Someone handing me a beer should cost me 18% of that beer?

Yup and thats a choice one can make. They can equally choose to remove daily auto-gratuities

And what would happen if all the people that remove gratuities just stop cruising on Royal? Hiring freeze. Lay offs. Crew members life would be considerably worse by losing their job vs people removing gratuities. I remove my gratuities and will continue to do so. If I could remove the mandatory gratuity on drinks, even before service is delivered if purchased on cruise planner, I would remove those as well. And the crew members signed contracts agreeing to their wage. I am not responsible beyond what I pay for my cruise to supplement crew wages. Again, ask why doesnt royal just change their fee structure and raise fares and remove any mention of gratuities? They should let the market sort it all out So why wont they? Because they are afraid of losing business. And lost business have a negative effect on the crew

Better to say that people just paying the advertised fare regardless of removing gratuities or not are helping give these people a better life.

No one is stiffing anyone. Daily Gratuities are optional. AND there are items that have MANDATORY gratuity tacked on that promote better service. Again, get upset at the cruise lines for their pay structure and not at the guests that paid the advertised fare. Let Royal add to fare price and let the market sort it all out. But we know that Royal will never do this

yup, but they also assume the risk of people not tipping. Thats on them

I fully agree. And its a fallacy that increased tipping increases level of service

If you agree with the model then you should also be fine with people removing gratuities because the onus should be on Royal and not on the consumer. You should not be using terms like "paying a fair share" Imagine if all the cruisers who remove their gratuities just stopped sailing with Royal. Wouldnt that affect their market share. Wouldnt that affect crew employment levels and result in crew members losing their jobs and stifle job creation and opportunities for employment? Tip or not, every passenger contributes

and the employees agreed with their compensation model. I am under no obligation to supplement their income. That should be up to the employer.

Paying my share? Are you serious? I pay the advertised price of the cruise. I pay my share. Gratuity is optional. As I said before, cruise lines should raise their rates and stop playing games with asking consumers to subsidize employee wages with gratuities. I am all for higher prices. Royal is free at any time to change their model and raise fares and let the market decide.

Yes, raise cruise fares. Drop gratuities totally. I am all for cruise lines to pay fair wages to the crew members. But stop asking consumers to supplement employee wages in the form of gratuities. Raise the fares and let the market sort it out.

Service is a job duty when a crew member takes a job. Providing good customer service is part of their inherent job duties. Nope, I pay the advertised cruise fare. Everything else, including gratuities is extra. Gratuities should NEVER be mandatory. Especially before even receiving service. Mandatory gratuity should be dropped from all food & beverage packages on the cruise planner because it is BEFORE service is even delivered. The bartenders job is to serve drinks. Why should I have to pay 18% to have a bartender hand me a beer I am all for a higher cruise fare and dropping any mention of gratuities.

No, gratuities are clearly optional. I 100% pay for my fare. No one is subsidizing my fare

Cruise lines do not lose money when grat removal occurs.

oh the irony escapes you....

Employee is the key word. They willingly sign a contract and accept that part of their compensation comes from gratuities. Get mad at the cruise industry for their pay and hiring practices. Get upset with Cruise lines that allow people to remove gratuities. Dont get mad at the consumer who opts to an action allowed by cruise lines. I remove the auto-grats. I support employees by choosing to cruise when paying the advertised fare.

Family of 4, gratuities equal $504 for 7 night cruise in addition to the inflated cruise fares now due to higher demand. We will see when demand cools...

Yup, I will continue to opt out. Decrease in service shouldnt equate to raise of gratuities. And a mandatory 18% gratuity on drinks is still ridiculous. Pay employees more, charge higher fares. You would think with all the fare increases as of late due to increased demands that they could give raises to the crew members.

Thats ok, I will continue to remove them

I was just in Jamaica last Tuesday and felt a lot safer there than I would have going to NYC or Chicago

Did a cruise last week and stopped in Falmouth on Tuesday, May 23. Group of 8 of us with my grandkids ages 5 & 2. Booked day passes at Hilton Rose Hall through resort for a day with transportation included. It was a 20 minute ride in a private bus and experienced ZERO issues and never felt unsafe