Tips Dish for after-dinner mints etc

[RMLincoln]

I was quite surprised during our recent cruise on Maasdam to see a "tips" dish, with a few dollar bills in it, next to the case of after-dinner mints, ginger, figs and dates. It's been a few years since we previously sailed on HAL so maybe this is new fleetwide but I was disappointed. What's next?

m--

[CruiserBruce]

Was it labeled "Tips"?

[sansterre]

I have not ever witnessed a tips dish by the mints and dates.

[RMLincoln]

Was it labeled "Tips"?

 

No, it was not labeled tips but it had dollar bills in it so what else could it be? m--

[fatcat04]

Wow... we rarely even carry cash on board unless we have a specific tip we are delivering. Everything else is done with our cabin key card or drink card. Puzzling. Haven't seen this. :confused:

[sail7seas]

Was the Yum Yum man standing at the cart or was in 'un-manned'?

 

I've never seen a tip dish on any of our cruises and I wonder if one person didn't choose to put a dollar down and someone coming after did the same and before you know it, suddenly there was a 'tip dish' though it was never actually intended.

 

I seriously doubt HAL would sanction any steward doing that so can't imagine any other reason a dish with small bills was sitting there.

[sansterre]

Maybe it WAS full of dates. Was there a dining room steward standing nearby?

[SwissMyst]

Maybe some one thought a mint is where they made money? :rolleyes:

 

Now that there are more international travelers, their expectations about tipping may be quite different from those honored in the US. Best to always fall back on HAL being primarily a "cash free" environment, until it is time to deal with end of cruise gratuities.

[RMLincoln]

Yes there was a steward there giving out "yum yums" and the tips dish was outside the plasitc protective enclosure around the food items, it was off the side of the serving cart. I saw it multiple times on different nights but not every night although we didn't stop by there every night.

 

Just a curiosity and I was wondering if anyone else ever saw this on Maasdam or another ship. m--

[SwissMyst]

Yes there was a steward there giving out "yum yums" and the tips dish was outside the plasitc protective enclosure around the food items, it was off the side of the serving cart. I saw it multiple times on different nights but not every night although we didn't stop by there every night.

 

Just a curiosity and I was wondering if anyone else ever saw this on Maasdam or another ship. m--

 

What we found on our last Maasdam TA last fall was that very unpleasant "begging" for top scores on the cruise evaluation form.

[Salacia]

What we found on our last Maasdam TA last fall was that very unpleasant "begging" for top scores on the cruise evaluation form.

 

 

Sadly, it happens on other CCL ships too. Something must be prompting this new practice...could it be concerns about the new P&O policy?

 

See http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/apr/29/cruise-firm-performance-bonuses-tips?newsfeed=true

[luvcruisn']

We've had the "begging" for top scores on HAL ships long before P & O's new policy came into being. Stewards would tell us that they could be sent home if they didn't get a high score. It makes it difficult to comment on anything negatively, but sometimes there are things one wants to say.

[luvcruisn']

I never saw any kind of tips dish near the mints on the table as you exited the dining room on the Veendam. I did look over at it most nights, as I often took some mints with me. Some nights, the server was there, other nights one helped oneself.

[kazu]

We were on the Maasdam right before you and I never noticed a tips dish:eek: We did stop for our after dinner ginger and goodies every night. Doesn't mean it wasn't there - but I didn't see it - maybe someone asked for it? I hope this is not a trend as we do not go around the shp with dollar bills;)

[0bnxshs]

We've had the "begging" for top scores on HAL ships long before P & O's new policy came into being. Stewards would tell us that they could be sent home if they didn't get a high score. It makes it difficult to comment on anything negatively' date=' but sometimes there are things one wants to say.[/quote']

 

I've always mentioned to the stewards that begging for high scores from me is the quickest way to not get a high score. It usually puts a stop to it immediately. I explain that I am aware of their need for higher scores and that I am easy to please (I really am! :)) and that they will they get an excellent score for expected service. And, I do follow through, in other ways as well.

 

I also will mention on the surveys we receive that I really find it awful that the cruise lines' policy puts these hardworking men and women in a position to beg for scores. It happens across all lines we've been on, even when we haven't received a survey. :confused:

 

I've never seen a tip dish on board any ship we've been on, but I can't say I've ever really tried to find one (not to say others have).

[sail7seas]

Yes there was a steward there giving out "yum yums" and the tips dish was outside the plasitc protective enclosure around the food items, it was off the side of the serving cart. I saw it multiple times on different nights but not every night although we didn't stop by there every night.

 

Just a curiosity and I was wondering if anyone else ever saw this on Maasdam or another ship. m--

 

We were on the Maasdam right before you and I never noticed a tips dish:eek: We did stop for our after dinner ginger and goodies every night. Doesn't mean it wasn't there - but I didn't see it - maybe someone asked for it? I hope this is not a trend as we do not go around the shp with dollar bills;)

 

 

Were you on the upper or lower level of the dining room?

 

We were on the same cruise, weren't we? April 6 - 16. As I recall, you did Collectors and we did only the ten day.

 

We were on upper level of the dining room, dined there 6 nights of the ten and never saw the tip dish. I don't ever have anything from the cart but often DH stops for something. Almost every night, the cart was there but there was no Yum Yum present. The cart was not 'manned'.

 

I never saw a tip dish and am soooo soooo sure I would remember had I seen that.

 

It is possible, you saw it on nights we were not in the MDR...... actually, I just remembered, we were on the lower level of the dining room dining at an Officer's Table the last formal night.

 

[kakalina]

We have never seen a tip dish and I certainly hope we never do. It's just too Dunkin Donuts.

[mamaofami]

We were on the Maasdam in January, upper level dining room, and never saw a tip dish. I would remember if one had been there.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We were on the Maasdam in February. For starters we rarely saw the Yum Yum man when we left the dining room around 7:15 - 7:30 -- he was still helping to seat people at the Open Seating venue. We would see him escorting people to tables on both levels of the dining room.

When he did have the cart open -- I did not see a Tip Jar.

[Labmom3]

Can I ask what is yum yum man and what does he have in his cart? Sailing in June and I am curious.

[SwissMyst]

Can I ask what is yum yum man and what does he have in his cart? Sailing in June and I am curious.

 

A cute little pill-boxed hatted man in a button vested uniform who has various tasks around the ship, including often handing out traditional post-dinner digestive aids from a cart at the door to the dining room: mints; figs; ginger; dates.

[Labmom3]

Thank you! I'll look for him when we go.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Can I ask what is yum yum man and what does he have in his cart? Sailing in June and I am curious.

 

 

Here is a picture that maxout posted some time ago:

 

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[Himself]

They all look like the bell-hop on the old Philip Morris ads. I have NEVER seen a tip dish on any HAL Ship I have been on but I have been known to slip him a fin ($5.00 dollar bill) on the last night of the cruise.

[jkrislc]

Is it possible the dish was meant for something like used toothpicks and someone placed money in it not realizing what it was for? On a "cashless" ship, a tip jar or plate seems like an odd thing to have.