chloemonkey

Tipping your "host" would be like tipping the owner of a company....it's not really done...or at least, it's not supposed to be done!

 

It would be like giving your friend who invited you to dinner (your host or hostess) a "tip" when you're leaving...you wouldn't do that, would you?

I'm sorry but are you familiar with the casino rules of the game? I have a land host at a five star hotel that at one point told me that she was "not" able to accept the checks that I conveniently sent her after each visit.....but TOTALLY now accepts the "cash" that I mail in a thank you card!

Casino hosts DO accept AND expect to an extent - a tip! I always give a couple hundred to my favorite one or two hosts onboard.

Interestingly enough though....I also tip $100 to attendant when I win a jackpot of $1600 or hoer and was shocked to learn that they do NOT share these gratuities with the Cage/cashier employees OR the hosts! So then I felt obligated to throw another couple hundred in THAT direction .....

Always an adventure right? Figuring out who to tip, how much, etc! But also always a great time! I LOVE my time in the casino!

Got a great upsell deal for a Haven Courtyard Balcony and I was wondering what the average/good gratuity was for the Butler & Concierge. I am probably what is considered an "overtipper" so will most likely go above the average answer if I am getting great service.

 

and...

 

OMG I am so excited! Cruise is 18 days away!

I know this gets varied responses....but also understand that you probably want REAL answers....and can then do your "own" thing....

We were two passengers in two bedroom Haven Suite for 16 day cruise a month ago.....here is what we chose to give......

Concierge. $600

Butler $400

Cabin Attendant additional $250

Haven Attendant. $100

Also paid the service charges of $12 per day.....tipped $1 to $2 per drink/soda....as well as $10 to $20 per meal in specialty restaurants......

Just our experience and decisions......you will have to decide what works for you. We never went to shows, used priority tendering, etc.....but it was "there" if we needed it......DID call concierge for dinner reservations in spec restaurants 12 out of 16 days.....requested favorite Veuve champagne and diet Pepsi to be stocked in fridge at all times.....other than that.....no special requests were made.

Hope you have as great a time as we did!

When docked at Nassau, the little kids would shinny up the bow ropes from ashore, and dive back into the water, from the bow of the ships, to retrieve coins thrown into the water by the cruise passengers! Yep, that's how much smaller the ships were then. (We thought they were HUGE at the time!) :eek:

 

"SKY"

In Acapulco also young boys would swim out alongside the ship as we departed in order to retrieve money that the passengers would throw overboard. I had forgotten that!

Also "secret" owner'ssuites that were not listed on ship's brochures....you had to "know" to ask about booking them.....wonderful table side prep of a different pasta course each night in ADDITiON to your regular menu choices.....tons of flaming desserts also served tableside each night.....

Actual sommeliers to help choose fine wines each evening.....being invited to dine with the captain....lobster available many nights....

Hosting sail away parties where you could invite friends and family onboard! And then throwing confetti and streamers to those same people once they had to go ashore and your ship set sail! Having to plan for numerous formal nights and actually enjoying getting dressed up!

NO cell phone service.....MORE lectures, classes and demonstrations....lots of things to do all the while TRULY feeling as though you were "away" from it all!

Loved the "good old days" but also still LOVE the cruising life!

Just off of the Jewel 16 day Panama Canal cruise. Couple of weeks ago and although I only qualified for reasonable discount for Haven 2 bedroom suite - the crew onboard the Jewel's casino were great.

By the 3 rd day both DH and I were upgraded to VIP andwithin a few more days I had over 37000 points....all earned on video poker machines. I received spa treatment, three or more free specialty dinners and about half of our onboard account was also comped.

But most importantly to me-as I would play regardless of discounts or perks....was the friendly amazing casino staff!

Now trying to decide which cruise to book next to see how this higher level of points will help with discounting our next cruise. We already have one booked for March but that one is already bought and paid for.

Again....for now I am once again happy with CAS! Especially the crew that we spent very night with in the Jewel casino. Miss them:(

First cruise was to the Carribean....1983 and yes I was hooked! So much so that I have not even been able to remember all of our past cruises in order to add them to my signature!

Number one was Royal Carribean "Song of America" and we got word a week or so before departure that we were being offered an "upgrade" to a suite....DH kept telling me that he didn't want it because it was on the Promenade Deck and that everyone could just look into our room! MANY years later....we have NEVER sailed if not in the top suite onboard each of the many vessels that we have been fortunate enough to have experienced....

I even remember "Owner's Suites" that were cabins that were NOT advertised in the brochures! You had to ASK for them......sort of like the "non publicized" menu at In and Out!

We continue to enjoy cruising....now with a family of 11 members and growing! Royal Suites, and for the past 45 years GArden Villas for our group! My how things change....still miss the dress code of the past, the tableside preparation of ceasar salad, daily special pasta courses.....cherries jubilee etc.....but also STILL enjoy cruising and no thoughts of stopping now!

Thanks for this trip down "Memory Lane!:

There are numerous butlers onboard, each assigned to a small group of suites and they do have rotations so there is no way of knowing your butler before boarding the ship. If there is no luck here, the concierge's name you can ask from the pre-cruise concierge desk.

We are in the Haven.......any ideas as to butlers and concierge there? Sorry as I forgot there might be more than one......as we are usually in GV's.....but this time just DH and me......

And I assure that any will be great....just was really more curious as to whether we would be meeting up with"old" friends as we have enjoyed many butlers and concierges......

Does anyone know who the current cruise director on the NCL Jewel is? Also wondering if this person will also be on my Oct 20th 2013 cruise.

Curious also as to butler and concierge.....sailing in September and October.....

Thanks again! :) You can see I was on a mission with this question. Last time we were in 14500 - this time we are choosing 14506.

I "get" it! We always have to PAY whichever daughter ends up with the "middle" room $1000 for the casino as they state that it is not fair! I tend to agree.......if dividing the rooms amongst couples, that middle room certainly should be discounted as it is nothing compared to the other two.

Thanks. I see you were on the Carnival Glory in Feb. How was it? I am going on her in July. I am a little hesitant because my only other cruise on Carnival (in 1988) was awful. I have only cruised NCL since, and love them, so I am a little worried about trying Carnival again. How did this ship compare with others you have been on? I am going to Canada and I'm sure you were in the Carribean so I know ports of call will be totally different, but how was your time on the ship? Were you able to get a seat near a pool? How were the shows, food, etc?

We have done TWO Carnival cruises since our last GV in December and loved them both! Of course their "suites" should probably not even be called "suites" but the funny thing was that we enjoyed the food more on Carnival than the Star! And we only do specialty dining on the Star....

Both Carnival trips were due to the ease of logistics in just being able to drive to the port in under 45 minutes. We had not been on a Carnival ship for 8-9 years.....so were not sure how we were going to do....BUT again, we had a GREAT time, loved the food (main dining room for 5 days too!) and would def do them again...

So I think that you are going to have a great time!

"Real Estate", indeed! I was looking at the Breakaway's deck plan, and see that even if you booked a Haven Deluxe Owne's Suite with Large Balcony, along with the connecting Haven Courtyard Penthouse with Balcony...the combined square footage would still be less than a quarter of that of the Dawn's Garden Villa's.

The GV's are by far the largest suites at sea. Twice that even of the Duplex Suites on the QM2. And as was pointed out, the two GV's do have a slight variation--one a wet bar, the other a galley, so they would complement each other if someone booked both of them together.

Now that's what I would call 'real estate'.;):D

We have done JUST THAT! Five times now on the Star.....truly a remarkable amount of space and they do open both the living room walls as well as the outdoor/courtyard area. We are only a group of 11 so plenty of room for us! Had to cancel for this December as one of our daughters is expecting....but have both GVs booked again for march!

I too am sad that the newer ships do not offer these large accomodations. We have even booked the GV for four people as we enjoy it that much....

TRULY enjoyed these photos and nice to compare both Gvs......I do miss having an individual balcony attached to each bedroom on the Star and it seems as though this GV maybe had those? Will have to check.....also have to check if BOTH GV's can be opened up to create one as on the Star as we are getting tired of the Star's itineraries a bit! Those photos of Roatan, Belize, etc....looked a bit "too" familiar to me!

Super excited about the PH!! We've just booked it for our first Celebrity cruise. Can't wait!! :D:D:D

I hope it wasn't for the Panamal Canal in September as I hesitated ONE day and now it's gone! THAT will teach me!

Anyone recently had one of these suites? Have not been able to find much current info, photos etc. on the boards.....

Amtrak's ontime record has gotten better but plan on getting there the night before, JIC.

Did this once to Texas and it still involved a LONG limo ride from Houston to the ship in Galveston....my fault as I was NOT into flying then!

But on the return trip, the tracks had been rained out.....NO trains running for 3 days minimum....so I was forced to book three flights LAST MINUTE PRICES! from Houston to Los Angeles! VERY expensive and not what I had planned as we already had a one night layover in Houston!

That being said, IF you can afford a sleeper compartment, travelling be train is something that everyone should try - even if just once! BUT be sure to leave enough time as Amtrak is KNOWN for being late! So plan accordingly.....

ANYTHING from the Tex Mex on Norwegian Star! Well maybe except for the free margarita which is passable if only it were nit THIMBLE sized! This restaurant is now a long standing family joke among my group!

Usually $5 for two bags (short cruises), because I would be miserable on a cruise without my luggage. Like kymbakitty's husband, I consider it insurance.

Our family is LARGE! (8 to 11 per cruise) and usually have around 10-12 bags to check with the porter in addition to our carry-ons. We have gotten into the habit of tipping the porter a $100 bill. The look on their face and the response "Sir - your bags will be in your room before YOU are!" ave proven to be true thus far.

I too would be MISERABLE without my luggage! And consider it "insurance" as well! And you can't convince me that the porters and other baggage handlers do NOT have some means to take "extra" care with some bags over others!

I saw a guy on the NCL Majesty (June 2009) who, while waiting for a Texas Hold-Em tournament to begin, put $20 into a slot machine and with one pull, won $1,000. It was one of the most amazing gambling stunts I've ever witnessed.

Wow....I guess that it is all "relative" as I usually put $1000 in over the course of an hour or two......in hopes of winning a Royal Flush or 4 Aces in Video Poker!

But I would still play at the same levels and seeing as how CAS gave us a decent discount for our next/upcoming cruise for our "efforts/play" and that I also just received a discount voucher for $4000 from RCI for any cruise that we take in the next year, it is all good!

As many have posted before - it is NOT worth chasing the discounts BUt for those of us who will play at these levels regardless, the future cruise discounts are a nice "perk!!"

And my family recently won over $15,000 on RCI (one of us over $10,000!) and NONE of us was issued a 1099! Makes the wins even SWEETER not to have to report the income? As some lines issue just like Vegas....anything over $1200.....so although I was NOT that happy with the RCI casino staff, I DID like the fact of NO 1099's!

We will definetely put it back on our next cruise.....but again, for those of us that frequent the casino EVERY night, the perks DO make you feel just a wee bit better about the spending!

Just back from Mariner.....two of us hit Royal Flushes for $4000 - I also hit 4 aces with kicker on Triple Bonus machine for another $4000 - all within 15 minutes or so. Two daugters hit 3 aces for $2000.......So we did quite well! One daughter ran $100 up to $1200 at blackjack.....

Not to say this was not a "fluke" but it is possible! And I LOVE Video Poker so win or lose I am going to play! It was just nice to have so many large winnings in order to hand out hundred dollar bills to all my family members to keep playing throughout the cruise!

And I am NOT going to tell you how much I actually brought back! haha But I didn't care....it was "winnings" and everyone had a great time!

Great photos! RCI should hire you as I think YOUR photos are better than theirs....We will be in the Royal Suite on MOS in three days. I too wish that there was a hot tub on the balcony as we got spoiled in the Garden Villa on NCL with our own HUGE hot tub, sauna, patio, etc. You should give that room a try sometime! We also loved the Royal Suite on the Navigator in 2008 and are looking forward to yet another great trip. I am much more about the "cabin" than the itinerary for the most part as I do spend a lot of time in the room. That and the casino that is! Thanks again for the great photos - they got me in the "mood" for this coming weekend!

Hi! I do enjoy playing the slot machines on cruises occasionally, but have never really won anything to speak of, and the machines seem rather "tight". I've never seen anyone hit a jackpot or come even close, and am curious if anyone has ever hit...I usually play the Quarter machines, max bet (.75) and it's a fun no stress type of entertainment until I decide I've lost enough money. (no more than $100. total) So...any big winners out there? I'd love to hear your stories!

I have won a few Royal Flushes on Video Poker machines. $1 machines with max bet ($5) was $4000. I think that I have hit 4-5 of these. I also hit one on a $.25 progressive Video Poker machine for over $5000 - so it is possible. Oh! one trip on Carnival I did keep hitting 4 of a kind which pays anywhere from $1200 to $2000 and I won so many times one night that when the casino personnel came to pay me, even they were amazed. And I always remember that crew as they didn't seem bothered in the least that I was winning a lot! Sometimes the casino staff act as though it is their money that they are paying out.... Last cruise on RCI the lady behind me hit the jackpot for a free car - BMW if I recall - and another lucky player hit $5000. Again, all $1.00 machines which can really eat up the gambling fast!

Other family members have hit regular jackpots - none over $1000 though and that was playing $1 denom.

I know that it is probally against the law but has anybody ever put a msg in a bottle and thrown it over board? If so have you ever found out where it went?

My husband did this YEARS ago on the old Pride of America off the coast of Cuba. It was a Dom Perignon champagne bottle and he put his phone number on the message....Anyway, some lady called him about three weeks later off as she had found it washed ashore off the coast of Florida.

Again, we were younger then and would think more about being responsible and not littering the ocean...but then we would think about a LOT of things that we did when we were younger!

But it was sort of cool that the bottle and message were found and that the person that found it bothered to call and let my husband know where it turned up....