Choosing not to prepay gratuities.

This happens if each person has a separate account, no matter what the last names are. And, gratuities are charged per person, not per cabin. If everyone is on the same account then it will all be charged to that account. If each person has a seperate account , it will be charged to the individual accounts.

I prepay as much as I possibly can so that my on board cash budget is basically for drinks and pictures. I just prefer to budget that way. But I also take cash with me to tip as I go. First day, tip the room stewards. Then a smaller amount daily and a larger one at the end again. They work super hard and get to know you. It deserves extra recognition. Also anyone who goes out of their way to improve my experience, waiters, bar tenders, the guys that take your luggage up, etc.

If we choose not to prepay gratuities when booking our cabin, do we get charged later into the cruise or would we just be able to tip in cash as we go without having to remove the gratuity charges later?

I have always prepaid the tips as there are so many people involved who help make the cruise a pleasant experience. I usually tip my cabin steward extra as there is more interaction with him/her than with anyone else. There was only one cruise that I took that the cabin steward did not get extra from me because he was never around when I needed him, nor did anything extra when I asked. Barely even spoke when I did see him. Therefore he only got the portion of the tip that I had prepaid and not any extra from me, and I am a very good tipper, especially when the service is exceptional.

First of all what business is it if yours? But if you must know, we leave the appropriate amount in the table when we leave the restaurant and leave an envelope for the steward in the cabin. What they do with it as far as splitting it is their business.

 

We feel it’s much better to give it to the people who serve us rather than give it to their employer in the hopes it trickles down.

 

Have a great trip!

It becomes my business when you hose crew. It has been stated over and over that the grats collected always go to the intended crew. Again, how do you determine the appropriate amount? Typical dinner with a starter, entree, sides, coffee, dessert landside would cost about $40 each...so you are claiming you leave in cash at least $8 each person every MDR meal? Leaving at Lido at least $3 for breakfast and $4 for lunch? And of course, sitting there until each server gets to your table to get their share? Finding both your room steward and assistant room steward twice a day and handing them each $2 per person per service...

Riiighhttt....and they let me drive the ship.

It becomes my business when you hose crew. It has been stated over and over that the grats collected always go to the intended crew. Again, how do you determine the appropriate amount? Typical dinner with a starter, entree, sides, coffee, dessert landside would cost about $40 each...so you are claiming you leave in cash at least $8 each person every MDR meal? Leaving at Lido at least $3 for breakfast and $4 for lunch? And of course, sitting there until each server gets to your table to get their share? Finding both your room steward and assistant room steward twice a day and handing them each $2 per person per service...

Riiighhttt....and they let me drive the ship.

Well said Elaine. (y)

Well said Elaine. (y)

Ditto!!!!

It becomes my business when you hose crew. It has been stated over and over that the grats collected always go to the intended crew. Again, how do you determine the appropriate amount? Typical dinner with a starter, entree, sides, coffee, dessert landside would cost about $40 each...so you are claiming you leave in cash at least $8 each person every MDR meal? Leaving at Lido at least $3 for breakfast and $4 for lunch? And of course, sitting there until each server gets to your table to get their share? Finding both your room steward and assistant room steward twice a day and handing them each $2 per person per service...

Riiighhttt....and they let me drive the ship.

You "nailed" it, Elaine. Additionally he doesn't give any consideration to the "behind the scenes" people who help to make that cruise a pleasant experience.

It becomes my business when you hose crew. It has been stated over and over that the grats collected always go to the intended crew. Again, how do you determine the appropriate amount? Typical dinner with a starter, entree, sides, coffee, dessert landside would cost about $40 each...so you are claiming you leave in cash at least $8 each person every MDR meal? Leaving at Lido at least $3 for breakfast and $4 for lunch? And of course, sitting there until each server gets to your table to get their share? Finding both your room steward and assistant room steward twice a day and handing them each $2 per person per service...

Riiighhttt....and they let me drive the ship.

Nevermind

I don't mind it put in the fare. I would rather then I know I don't have to worry about paying it on the last day. I don't take tips away. At least I know how much fun money I have with out thinking about the tip. And for people who choose not to tip can have it removed.

On my next cruise I skipped the prepay gratuity simply because I could pay off the cruise a little faster. I know I will be charged on the ship and can pay that later.

My only concern is that many folks have said they (Carnival) don't actually give all the money to the employees. I'm guessing there is no way to confirm this for sure. I have seen posts or articles supposedly written by past employees that say they never saw any of the tips. If you ask the folks working while you are on the cruise the majority will tell you they don't get them either. Could they just be hoping you'll give them more to make up for it, sure. It's a hard call. I don't mind tipping and I would love it if the folks behind the scenes are getting something out of this but I sure don't want the cruise line taking any of it.

My only concern is that many folks have said they (Carnival) don't actually give all the money to the employees. I'm guessing there is no way to confirm this for sure. I have seen posts or articles supposedly written by past employees that say they never saw any of the tips. If you ask the folks working while you are on the cruise the majority will tell you they don't get them either. Could they just be hoping you'll give them more to make up for it, sure. It's a hard call. I don't mind tipping and I would love it if the folks behind the scenes are getting something out of this but I sure don't want the cruise line taking any of it.

If you're falling for this one .... I've got some lovely waterfront land in Florida I'd like to sell you.:evilsmile::D:evilsmile:

SLC is correct.

 

If you don’t prepay, then your account will get charged the anticipated full amount on the first night or maybe 2nd day.

The gratuities are charged to your account at the end; on the last full day of the cruise is what we have always experienced.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Sure you can. We tip as we go. It is really very easy and we get great service! The only difference is we tip the steward at the end not everyday.

We are also considering to tip as we go. Just curious..do you remove the auto tip on the first day or wait until the end when it’s billed?

I wish they would add the tip to the cruise fare......done!

There are reasons that it is called gratuities. If it is part of the cruise fare, then it cannot be classified as a tip for financial reporting purposes. The cruise line would be taxed on it as income rather than the crew members that receive it. And there would be no legal requirement that it be distributed to the crew because it is not classified as gratuities. It would be classified as income.

It becomes my business when you hose crew. It has been stated over and over that the grats collected always go to the intended crew. Again, how do you determine the appropriate amount? Typical dinner with a starter, entree, sides, coffee, dessert landside would cost about $40 each...so you are claiming you leave in cash at least $8 each person every MDR meal? Leaving at Lido at least $3 for breakfast and $4 for lunch? And of course, sitting there until each server gets to your table to get their share? Finding both your room steward and assistant room steward twice a day and handing them each $2 per person per service...

Riiighhttt....and they let me drive the ship.

You talk about the dining staff but the reason we leave auto-tips on is to ensure the "behind the scenes" folks get their share. I've never seen a passenger tip the person who vacuums the carpet at 2:00AM and I've never seen anyone tip the guys who wash down the decks early every morning, the folks who do the laundry. There are a whole bunch of people who work toward making your cruise memorable but never see or interact with. Auto-tips take care of them.

When people claim they pay cash as they go they are essentially screwing a whole bunch of folks who deserve to be paid over and above what the cruise lines pay them.

I haven’t seen this mentioned yet, but on most lines I’ve been on if you cancel the auto gratuities and give the crew cash they are required to give it to their supervisor and it goes into the pool for the crew anyway. So going that route actually does nothing for the individual crew you tip. Which is why we always leave the auto gratuities on and tip a little extra for great service so we know they get to keep the money.

I would be surprised if carnival’s policy was different since their sister brands do it that way as well.

It becomes my business when you hose crew. It has been stated over and over that the grats collected always go to the intended crew. Again, how do you determine the appropriate amount? Typical dinner with a starter, entree, sides, coffee, dessert landside would cost about $40 each...so you are claiming you leave in cash at least $8 each person every MDR meal? Leaving at Lido at least $3 for breakfast and $4 for lunch? And of course, sitting there until each server gets to your table to get their share? Finding both your room steward and assistant room steward twice a day and handing them each $2 per person per service...

Riiighhttt....and they let me drive the ship.

Nope, still not your business. You have no right to tell anyone else how they need to distribute their own money. Until the cruise lines say this is not allowed, then they perfectly have the right to tip cash as they go if they want to. No need to get your panties in a bunch.

Nope, still not your business. You have no right to tell anyone else how they need to distribute their own money. Until the cruise lines say this is not allowed, then they perfectly have the right to tip cash as they go if they want to. No need to get your panties in a bunch.

Where is that like button? 😂

We always pre pay the tips when we cruise. Some ships have had better service than others, but all were worthy of the tips and we usually tip a little extra in cash to staff members that deserve it.

Nope, still not your business. You have no right to tell anyone else how they need to distribute their own money. Until the cruise lines say this is not allowed, then they perfectly have the right to tip cash as they go if they want to. No need to get your panties in a bunch.

I agree with you 100%. I am sick and tired of people implying that if we don’t tip the way they do, that were cheap or doing something wrong. I’ll tip the way I choose to tip and you choose the way you want to tip.

I can't stand our tipping culture. All in all, if Carnival forced it on everyone, the actual amount in gratuities they currently add, would be lower. I hate paying for stuff when other people choose to be rude and not pay. Subsidizing gets old.

With that said, I pay the standard amount that is charged to me. The employees work their butt off, and I don't want to be rude to them. I see no reason in prepaying it. My last cruise, I had a good chunk of OBC left over. It would have went to waste. There is no such thing as "peace of mind" to me for prepaying something vs paying it later. To me, that's a silly concept. It comes out of my bank account the same. To throw away any OBC is a far worse feeling to me.

The auto tips come to around 15% of the price I paid for the cruise so seems close enough to me. I have never removed the tips and rarely tip extra because 15% seems about right. I have tipped for room service and when the stewards move my stuff from one cabin to another. Once I tipped our dining room crew more.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

I agree with you 100%. I am sick and tired of people implying that if we don’t tip the way they do, that were cheap or doing something wrong. I’ll tip the way I choose to tip and you choose the way you want to tip.

Not "implying".

Not "implying".

I do pre-pay my tips and I also tip extra to my room steward and the dining room staff. However I’m not gonna let you get away with saying that I have to do it because you do. Quit sticking your nose in everyone else’s business.