HAS ANYONE ELSE PRE-PAID TIPS?

We chose the option of pre-paying the tips before our first cruise with RCL in July. Does this mean we can expect to be completely ignored by the waiters, the cabin stewards, etc ? Has anyone else done this and did it work ? Are we going to have to have signs round our neck saying "We have already paid !".........Isabel

Most cruiselines now automatically charge you a daily rate for tips (although you can chose to increase or decrease them at the Purser's desk, or add additional cash if you want), so although you don't pay in advance, the amount of the tip is basically known by your waiter and cabin steward when you board.

But, since you can still add more $$ for good service (and I imagine, reduce the tip if the service stinks), I expect you'll still get good service.

I know they suggest the prepaid tips for European sailers since tipping conventions are different over there than here, and a very high percentage of European travelers didn't tip at all.

The staff "know" what their tips are to the extent that they expect everyone to pay the minimum recommended amount. However, the way it works on many lines is that when you prepay, you are actually given a coupon to put in the envelope at the end of the cruise. If you hadn't prepaid, you would just put in the cash. You then hand this to the individuals on the last night. So, even though you have prepaid, they don't even know until they open the envelope and get their coupon. (To them it is good as cash because they cash the coupon with the purser).

Thay being said, you can prepay and avoid the scramble for "exact change" at the end of the cruise and then add more if warranted. I prefer the "old fashioned" way of just putting the cash in but I have seen many people going the prepaid route - primarily I think for the convenience.

Sovereign of the Seas 9/96
Song of America 7/97
Legend of the Seas 4/98
Viking Serenade 12/98
Majesty of the Seas 4/99
Voyager of the Seas 4/00
Explorer of the Seas 6/02

We always prepay our tips when given the option and we have never had anything but excellent outstanding service on every one of our cruises. It's one less thing to plan for. It can be adjusted at the end of the cruise if you choose.

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'Til my next cruise

We do not prepay. We like to hand the "envelope" the last night of the trip to our respective servers. It keeps it on a personal preference level for us. [img]http://messages.cruisecritic.com/infopop/emoticons/icon_cool.gif[/img]

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OUR NEXT ONWARD JOURNEY!

Thank you all for your comments - I'm not going to worry about it now. The whole idea of pre-paying was to avoid the hassle of even having to think about it when we're supposed to be enjoying our holiday. We've had a lot of holidays in the States and always thought the whole dining experience was wasted just that wee bit by having to work out how much tip to leave......we don't really worry about that here - you leave a tip if you feel like it and you're not made to feel as if your waitress' kids are going to starve for a week if you decide not to ! Thanks again everybody.........Isabel

Isabel: its nice to have most of the stuff for a cruise pre-paid. Tipping is just a part that we wont have to worry about once onboard. Make sure you get vouchers with your documents.

Going NOWHERE
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Miracle, February 13, 2005
Legend, October 22,2004
Voyager August 31,2003
Victory September 22,2002
Regal Empress,June 2001
Sensation,August 2000

I'm going to get shot for this but I can't help it. Have those of you that prepay your tips so that you don't have any hassles later given any though to "what if the waiters and staff took the same attitudes toward serving you"? Just put your food out in a way that it is the least hassle to them?

Tips are gratuities for service and to prepay them is to say you aren't making any judgements for their excellence. I personally enjoy giving them envelopes with cash and also a letter thanking them for all the fun we had. If they are really good, I drop a letter to the Captain off at the purser's desk.

Sorry if I stepped on some toes, but it just sounds so cold to prepay so that THEY won't be a bother to you later.

Bibb

From the North banks of the Piscataqua.

[B][I]<font color="red>Test</font>[/I][/B]

Bibb- I would agree with you IF that was the reason I prepay. I prepay because of limited funds and I want to guarantee that the most important part of my cruise is taken care of ahead of time. We always carry additional gratuity dollars for the additional tips that we like to provide. We also try to prepay excursions that we really want ahead of time. I don't find any aspect of my cruise a hassle. I think most people find the prepayment an easy way of guaranteeing that those that have earned it have already received it. Thanks for your input.

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'Til my next cruise

I always keep a wack of 1$ bills in my pocket for little tips here and there. I have been pre-paying the recommended tips for about 5 cruises now. I never noticed anything but great service.

Alaska (my BIG 50)Serenade of the Seas
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Hi Iz, We prepaid On RCCL Rhapsody and had wonderful service! I, being from NYC was very skeptical and was pleasantly surprised. The staff gets a notice on the last evening . They came and thanked us specially. Of course my husband couldn't resist saying nah-nah. lol Bon Voyage, Marie

Thanks Marie and Folgy and bibb for your comments. I think it all boils down to personal preference and we should all do what suits us best.For me, the hassle I spoke about amounts to finding the handing over of envelopes a very embarassing experience - it all smacks of "them and us". I think the whole tip system is demeaning to the ship's crew, who should be given a reasonable salary for their hard work, instead of waiting to be handed a little something. Both my husband and I work hard and luckily don't have to depend on tips to make a living wage. I would hope that the ship's crew would have enough pride in their jobs to do a good job regardless of whether they get tipped at the end of the week. Anyway, let's agree to differ, everybody.............Isabel

Just off the Majesty and we used prepaid tipping. We had terrific service in the dining room and cabin.

We were given vouchers which we presented the last night of the cruise as is customary. We tipped extra where exceptional service was received.

I saw no decline in service and it was quite convenient, especially in relation to the huge line at the Pursers Desk to get change on the last evening!

CG

RCI(38),NCL(12),Princess(1),HAL(2),Celebrity(3), Carnival(2), Eastern (13),Radisson(2), Star Clippers(1),Home Lines(2), Costa(5),Big Red Boat (6), Dolphin (1), Commodore (2), Others (11)

Iz ,

I don't think this is a right or wrong issue either. What ever your comfortable with.I just like to see those hard working staff get their recommended tips and then I don't worry after that. I like to give a couple of bucks for room service /bar tips over and above the 15% just to say thanks .That kind of thing.

Alaska (my BIG 50)Serenade of the Seas
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I was so glad this thread was linked in another thread. I to prepaid not so much to avoid the "hassle" of tipping so much as to prepay as much as possible. I plan to bring a ziplock bag with 1's and 5's in it so i can acknowledge excellent service and add to my prepaid tip.I am hoping to use that money up because I think I will get great service! thanks for all the input here. I must say this baord is awsome . as a first time cruiser I feel I have gained invaluable input from experienced cruiser and that has made me feel so much more comfortable about what to expect on board. THANKS RACHAEL

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=ff0000&cdt=2004;07;04;12;0;00&timezone=GMT-0500[/img]First time cruise for our twentieth anniversary
Grandeur of the seas 7/4/04
"now thats what I call independence day!"

I do both. I usually pre-pay, and then add as I go along. I also bring a lot of ones and fives, and add to the pre-paid tips.

We have only prepaid once, On Sea Princess and if I have a choice in the matter I will not choose that option again. Although the service was good, it was not the "over-the-top" outstanding service that we received on our other cruises. We go prepared with allotments presorted into envelopes. We will usually add a little more by the end of the cruise. It's just my opinion, but prepaying seems impersonal and we like to personally thank everyone.


Zenith 09/97
Rhapsody of the Seas 2/98
Zenith 6/99
Sea Princess 7/01
Mercury 01/03

When given a choice hubby prefers to do the envelope thing. On our Princess cruise we learned that most ships had the prepay(or rather where they charge your account) but that cruise was still the envelopes-hubby had to go to purser's desk for the envelopes. We were treated so nicely after we tipped-for example the steward would run up and unlock my cabin door for me when he saw me returning to the cabin it was amazing-I could not help but wonder if most passengers did not know the tips were not charged to their accounts. Anyway we had excellent service that cruise-it just seemed it went over the top that last night once we passed out the envelopes.

Anyway usually we tip about a third better then suggested-sometimes better-sometimes worse depending on service. I really prefer it that way because you can reward them for how well they serve you.

Carnival now charges you for tips on your sign and sail card. It seems to me-service was not as good at first as we had on our first 2 Carnival cruises when it was the envelopes. We did find though on Inspiration our waiters warmed up to us before the week was out. We privately tipped them a little extra. On Miracle it seemed the service was adequate as far as our steward was concerned so we did not give him any extra.

Carnival Tropicale 10/15/98 Western Caribbean
RCCL Sovereign of the Seas 11/22/99 Bahamas
Carnival Fascination 09/23/00 Southern caribbean
HAL Statendam 05/20/01 Alaska
RCCL Sovereign of the Seas 11/08/01 Bahamas
Pacific Princess 09/29/02 Bermuda
Carnival Inspiration 12/14/03 Western caribbean
Carnival Miracle 04/09/04 Bahamas

I found an interesting perspective on pre-paid tipping posted by cruise employees. I saved it and it is copied below. A “George Haswell” wrote most of it, but I have also merged some similar posted comments by other cruise employees.
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The Lowdown on Shipboard Tipping
Author: George Haswell (---.tcn-catv.ne.jp)
Date: 09-18-02 03:16

Tipping on Cruise Ships has become a very confusing concept for many, but it really shouldn’t be at all. I have worked on many different ships in my career. Please allow me to clarify some of the confusion.

I have worked on many different styles of ships in my career; large, small, upscale, economy, Caribbean, Mediterranean, World-wide, Scandinavian, Greek, Italian, American, German, Chinese, Russian.

On nearly every ship, the tipping system was always the same. The passengers gave envelopes of money to the stewards at the end of the cruise. Why did they do this? It is a long standing tradition - and the cruise lines recommend that they do it this way. Most stewards on most ships earn about US$30 - US$80 per month in salary. Anything else they earn comes form tips. Why is it done this way? Who knows? It just seems to have always worked that way. Do you like the traditions of cruising? This is one of them.

On nearly every ship the procedure was always the same; at the end of the cruise we all pooled the cash we had received and then received a cut of the pool, depending on our seniority, position, and a number of other factors determined by the Maitre d`s point system. It has always been pretty much this same way on every ship. Why? It has been a tradition for a long time - and nobody ever came up with a better way to do it.

In the past few years a few of the cruise lines have tried a new system. The ship charges the recommended tip to the cabin account automatically. From the employees point of view this is great news. We no longer need to chase people on the last day. On many ships as much as 20% of the guests "mysteriously disappeared" before giving out any envelopes. This really hurt us a lot. Was the service bad - or were they just being cheap? We never knew. We just lost the money. The cruise line never knew either. Was the service bad? If so, who were the bad waiters? We knew, but our bosses did not.

With this new system, far fewer passengers leave without tipping. We make more money. We still pool the tips the same way we always did - by the point system - but now we know which waiter is not doing his share. If the guests are not happy, they don’t just disappear. They fill in a form at the front desk and name the waiter who did a lousy job. Then the company sacks him and we get better help.

We do miss the personal touch of the guest handing us an envelope with cash. It’s a great way to say "Farewell". But more importantly now, I make more than before and am better able to support my family back home.

By the way, telephone cards and $2 bills are very cute, but I really need cash to support my family. Plain old dollars are the best tip for any steward.
…
Why is it so surprising that tips are pooled? On a ship, the crew works, eats, sleeps, and parties together as a team. That is a very important concept to them - and to the guests. Close teamwork delivers more efficient and professional hospitality services.
Did you really think that your favorite waiter set the table, plated all the food, ordered the drinks - and still had time to smile and chat you up? Of course not. He has quite a few "helpers" in the background whom you never see, making him look good and giving him the time to deliver that extra service you are expecting.

Did you think that your Stateroom Steward had time to scrub all the toilets, carry all the bags, dispose of all the garbage, pick up all the fresh linen, and a thousand other things - for all 18 cabins in his station every day, and then still have time to smile and chat you up ( and the other 17 cabins as well) several times a day? Of course not. He has many "helpers " who take care of those things so he can take care of you.

Since we find ourselves in the very traditional practice of using gratuities to pay salaries of shipboard workers, who is going to pay all those people you never see, who are doing the dirty work?
That`s why most ships pool tips.

Is it fair for the cruise lines to use tips to pay salaries to their staff? Who knows?
Is it fair that most restaurants in America use this practice to pay their service staff?
Is it fair that taxi companies do this to pay their drivers?
Is it fair that hotels do this to pay their bellmen?

It` s just the way it gets done.
…
Author: cap'nkruzer
Date: 04-17-03 07:15

Question for George Haswell...what’s wrong with $2.00 bills??
…
Author: Bruce Chafkin (12.8.177.---)
Date: 04-17-03 13:40

There is nothing wrong with $2 Bills, so long as you plan to give more than one or two.
But bare in mind that this is a rather rare type of American currency. If a Filipino or Indonesian ship employee takes this bill back to his home country, the local bank will probably refuse to change or accept it. In most of Asia, even a regular bank note with a slight tear or a pen mark is not accepted anywhere. In the Philippines, China or in Europe, you are out of luck. Banks there have never seen them before and suspect that they are counterfeit. You should see a waiter trying to "dump" his $2 bills the day before he signs off to go home. Nobody - including many US Businesses - will take them.
…
Author: Bruce chafkin (12.8.177.---)
Date: 07-11-03 22:55
-------------------------------------
Some others’ comments:
Most waiters prefer the new auto-tipping system. They make more money; their weaker colleagues are "found out" very quickly by management and replaced; everyone is happier (including the guests) and wealthier.

Crew working on ships are a very close and tight team. They live, work, sleep, breathe, eat, party, win, lose, celebrate, and fail as a team. Pooling tips doesn't sound like much fun for the guests, but the staff loves it. As a passenger, are you tipping to please yourself - or are you tipping to please the people who took care of you?? Think carefully about this one.

Yes, the cruise lines should just add the proper amount to the fares, eliminate tipping, and pay a proper wage to their employees. So should every sit-down restaurant in America and every taxi company around the world. Only a fool believes it will ever happen. There are very good - but not necessarily logical - reasons why human beings do the things we do. In a perfect world, nobody would pay good money to get on a ship that travels in a circle and drops you off where you started.

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Subject: Protest of Automatic Tips
…
Author: Bruce Chafkin (BChaf@hotmail.com)
Date: 09-16-02 01:52

Your comments are valid, but your logic is faulty. I agree that service on ships generally has gotten worse over the years.

But please read carefully: I have worked on 18 ships for 11 different cruise lines over the past 27 years. The internal tipping policies have been the same on every ship - ALL TIPS WERE POOLED. Please read that last sentence again. Its important.

When you gave me an envelope of some cash, it didn’t stay in my pocket very long. As soon as the last passengers disembarked the ship, all the service staff met at the Captain’s table in the dining room. We all put ALL cash tips on the table for counting. Then the Maitre d` split and handed the money out to EVERYONE, based on a complicated point system administered by him. Today with auto-tipping, the same system is in place. The only difference is that most of the cash comes from the Purser’s office. We still pool ALL the money in EXACTLY THE SAME WAY. NOTHING HAS REALLY CHANGED. Please read those last two sentences again. They are important.

To repeat, we ALWAYS knew we would receive a tip regardless of service levels. We still do know today that we will receive a tip regardless of service levels.

Now please explain to everyone how auto-tipping has damaged service levels?

Once again, I agree that service levels have generally deteriorated over the years (I also observe that the quality of guests has deteriorated at the same pace), but you may be blaming the wrong reasons for the problems that exist.

By the way, you should be aware that with "traditional tipping" (the envelope at the end of the cruise) an average 15% of the guests tipped nothing at all.

The new auto-tipping system makes it more difficult and potentially embarrassing for the Cheap Charlie to get out of tipping the staff. The average number of guests who remove the auto-tip and leave nothing at all has shrunk to 1% or 2 %. This means that the average waiter or steward working with auto-tipping is getting a bigger lump sum from the tipping pool.

Celem,

That is some great stuff that you found. It definitely helps to get a behind the scenes view of things. I have a friend that was a performer on the Magic or Wonder, I tried to pick his brain about tips and all to bring back and share with my fellow cruisecritics. He didn't know anything as performers are paid a salary.
Anyways, thanks again and hopefully this will open everyone's eyes on where the money goes and how.

thank you for the most informative piece of news on tipping. we used the envelope system years ago along with special tips as the cruise went along. we now use the auto tip system and find it just about the same and we still continue to use the special tips for service above and beyond. our staff on the star princess was above and beyond and they received the special tips every day from everyone in our party. i hope to encounter the same service on our next cruise.

We have also prepaid our tips. We did this because, we wanted to make sure that we took care of "first things first". This way we know, regardless of how much money we spend, that our tips are already paid. We will also tip as the week goes on. I am not sure why people want to bicker over paying upfront or passing out envelopes. The bottom line is we need to remember to tip. The crew is there working to make sure that we have an enjoyable week. You know just one smile in someone's day will brighten it! :)
Have a great day!!!!

I am prepaying my tips--I am also prepared to tip extra for good service. I will be using one forearm crutch and can manage by myself, but it is always nice if someone offers help.