question about tipping...

please don't flame me, i'm just asking cause i really have absolutely no idea!!!

if i am set up for MTD and my tips are pre-paid before i depart, what if i decide one night to get dinner elsewhere?

does that prepaid tip go to the new restaurant/server? do they know where you eat every day and move your tips around to the venue that you eat at?

seems complicated. i'm sure i'm overthinking.

thanks,

carrie and trevor

Your prepaid gratuities include tips for the main dining room staff and those who work in the Windjammer, so those locations are covered. As far as the allocation of tips for the particular main dining room servers, the system knows who your servers have been, but I don't know whether the tips are pooled among all the My Time Dining servers or if they are directed to those who served you specifically.

If you choose to dine in a specialty restaurant like Chops Grille, then you'll pay a service charge, some portion of which does include gratuity, but you may wish to tip the server in the specialty restaurant an additional amount. The prepaid gratuities do not include specialty restaurants.

If you have paid your tips for MTD, the tips also include your room steward. They do not include room service if you order from there. It is usually appropriate to tip the delivery for room service (about $2-$5 depending what was ordered).

Gregg

If you have paid your tips for MTD, the tips also include your room steward. They do not include room service if you order from there. It is usually appropriate to tip the delivery for room service (about $2-$5 depending what was ordered).

 

Gregg

Why is it appropriate? They are just doing their job. BTY I usually tip $1

Then I guess you remove all your tips for the room stewards and dining staff "because they are just doing their job".:eek:

If everyone leaves the tips as suggested, everyone who serves you gets what's coming to them.

Then I guess you remove all your tips for the room stewards and dining staff "because they are just doing their job".:eek:

Your pre-paid tips will cover most dining except for specialty restaurants (where the fee includes a tip) and room service. Of course you are always welcome to add additional if YOU feel the service was above and beyond.

One caveat to the above, you will be charged for room service between the hours of midnight and 5 AM (I think those are right, someone will correct me if I am wrong), that charge does include the gratuity.

As mentioned above, just a reminder, your pre-paid gratuities also include others such as your room steward.

Bottom line, yes I think you are over thinking it a little bit. Go with the flow and you will be fine.

Once you pre-pay tips you literally never have to tip anyone again for anything, including specialty restaurants. The fee for the restaurant has the tip built into it.

If you WANT to tip more, go ahead and your discretion, but it is not required, or expected and will not have any negative impact on your vacation, you will receive the same level of service as all others.

They do not include room service if you order from there. It is usually appropriate to tip the delivery for room service (about $2-$5 depending what was ordered).

Agreed. The amount of the tip should really reflect the size of the meal. Personally, I would never tip just $1.00 on a full meal from room service. :)

Once you pre-pay tips you literally never have to tip anyone again for anything, including specialty restaurants. The fee for the restaurant has the tip built into it.

 

If you WANT to tip more, go ahead and your discretion, but it is not required, or expected and will not have any negative impact on your vacation, you will receive the same level of service as all others.

Well explained. I believe OP is a first time cruiser and is sincerely asking out of naiveté. Hopefully she understands that leaving the pre-paid tips exactly as they are ensures her team gets what they deserve, even when dining elsewhere for an evening.

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We eat in specialty restaurants or the Windjammer the majority of evenings. The rest, in MTD. We, of course, prepay our gratuities and leave them in place. I trust the cruise line to know what to do with them and I don't give it a second thought!

Tip what you want, how you want, when you want and too who you want.

Agreed. The amount of the tip should really reflect the size of the meal. Personally, I would never tip just $1.00 on a full meal from room service. :)

 

 

 

Well explained. I believe OP is a first time cruiser and is sincerely asking out of naiveté. Hopefully she understands that leaving the pre-paid tips exactly as they are ensures her team gets what they deserve, even when dining elsewhere for an evening.

.

Isn't this paying a double tip then, if my prepaid covers my regular servers and then i pay again at a specialty restaurant???

Naive doesn't even scratch the surface!

Isn't this paying a double tip then, if my prepaid covers my regular servers and then i pay again at a specialty restaurant???

 

Naive doesn't even scratch the surface!

Regardless of whether you use the dining room on a particular night or not, your servers are there waiting to serve you. If you figure out how much actually goes to the server for that particular night, in my opinion, it is costing me in my time to figure out what adjustment us needed and make it then just leaving it alone.

Remember also your dining servers actually will wait on you in other places around the ship so it is not just dinner that is accounted for.

Yes, if you go to a specialty restaurant you MAY be tipping double for that evening but it all works out in the end. Personally I feel tips should be renamed a service charge as it is a large portion of the wages the staff count on.

Remember also your dining servers actually will wait on you in other places around the ship so it is not just dinner that is accounted for.

They do? Like at the bars??

on our first cruise, our main dining room waiter was also usually our lunch/breakfast server waiter to. it was awesome he would see us come into the windjammer grab us and before we had our food, he would have our drinks waiting for us. so yes, your server will be in other places on the ship.

The prepaid tips include the servers in all venues (WJ, Park Cafe, Promenade, etc. etc. etc). So, even if you don't dine in the MDR one night, your are "tipping" for all the other places to get food during the morning, afternoon, and dinner if you eat in non specialty venues. The tip is included in the venue price although many do tip extra, if deserved. Lastly, the daily tip includes your room steward.

I feel it is best to leave in tact, even if you eat all meals in Specialty because of all the areas I get served during the morning and afternoon that receive the pooled tip. (not to mention the room steward, linen guy, etc)

Just my humble opinion: The cruise lines have made tipping VERY easy by coming up with an amount and auto-charging it. Leave it the way it is and enjoy your cruise with one thing less to worry about. Don't make your life more complicated by trying to figure out who gets what, in what amount, what if I skip dinner one night, what if I want to give less, what if I want to give more, what if I want to tip in cash, what if I only want to tip certain people, etc, etc. Just let it go.

People on these boards spend way too much time debating this issue, and everybody claims to know exactly the ins and out of tipping on cruises (which obviously elicits some heated debates any time the topic is brought up).

Once again, pay your auto-tips and forget about it. If you feel someone deserves a bit more, just hand it out as you deem appropriate. But don't overthink. Everybody is being taken care of.

Tipping is something that's supposed to be simple but some people insist on turning it into Quantum Physics.

Just my humble opinion: The cruise lines have made tipping VERY easy by coming up with an amount and auto-charging it. Leave it the way it is and enjoy your cruise with one thing less to worry about. Don't make your life more complicated by trying to figure out who gets what, in what amount, what if I skip dinner one night, what if I want to give less, what if I want to give more, what if I want to tip in cash, what if I only want to tip certain people, etc, etc. Just let it go.

 

People on these boards spend way too much time debating this issue, and everybody claims to know exactly the ins and out of tipping on cruises (which obviously elicits some heated debates any time the topic is brought up).

 

Once again, pay your auto-tips and forget about it. If you feel someone deserves a bit more, just hand it out as you deem appropriate. But don't overthink. Everybody is being taken care of.

 

Tipping is something that's supposed to be simple but some people insist on turning it into Quantum Physics.

Well said. Even though it is called a "gratuity" I really do consider it a service charge. I don't want to spend my vacation worrying about how much to tip whom.

The prepaid tips include the servers in all venues (WJ, Park Cafe, Promenade, etc. etc. etc). So, even if you don't dine in the MDR one night, your are "tipping" for all the other places to get food during the morning, afternoon, and dinner if you eat in non specialty venues. The tip is included in the venue price although many do tip extra, if deserved. Lastly, the daily tip includes your room steward.

 

I feel it is best to leave in tact, even if you eat all meals in Specialty because of all the areas I get served during the morning and afternoon that receive the pooled tip. (not to mention the room steward, linen guy, etc)

This is a very good explanation. Thank you.

Just my humble opinion: The cruise lines have made tipping VERY easy by coming up with an amount and auto-charging it. Leave it the way it is and enjoy your cruise with one thing less to worry about. Don't make your life more complicated by trying to figure out who gets what, in what amount, what if I skip dinner one night, what if I want to give less, what if I want to give more, what if I want to tip in cash, what if I only want to tip certain people, etc, etc. Just let it go.

 

People on these boards spend way too much time debating this issue, and everybody claims to know exactly the ins and out of tipping on cruises (which obviously elicits some heated debates any time the topic is brought up).

 

Once again, pay your auto-tips and forget about it. If you feel someone deserves a bit more, just hand it out as you deem appropriate. But don't overthink. Everybody is being taken care of.

 

Tipping is something that's supposed to be simple but some people insist on turning it into Quantum Physics.

Yes, this is very well said. I consider myself a generous tipper and have/had no intentions of moving or changing my tips. I just want to make sure that I unserstand the nuances of everything and not look stupid.

Thanks!

Yes, this is very well said. I consider myself a generous tipper and have/had no intentions of moving or changing my tips. I just want to make sure that I unserstand the nuances of everything and not look stupid.

 

Thanks!

Another small note... any drink purchases will have an automatic tip on the bill to cover the bar staff. There is also another line for additional tip, don't feel compelled to have to add additional tip unless you have a bar server that you really like or has provided you service that you feel deserves an extra reward. :)

Another small note... any drink purchases will have an automatic tip on the bill to cover the bar staff. There is also another line for additional tip, don't feel compelled to have to add additional tip unless you have a bar server that you really like or has provided you service that you feel deserves an extra reward. :)

This is not true if you have purchased the drink package though, correct??

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Forums mobile app

This is not true if you have purchased the drink package though, correct??

 

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Forums mobile app

Tips are included in individual drink purchases and in drink package purchases. Refer to my original reply, no additional tipping is necessary on anything except at your discretion to add more.