Gratuities to be added to sea pass account daily.

[appleosprey]

Me and my partner are new to cruising. We did our first cruise last March on Liberty and we loved it, so much so we did a New Zealand cruise on Radiance. We are now going transatlantic on Liberty in April.

 

We are from UK and we had My Time Dining the first cruise and had to pre pay gratuities, it was new to us and we received the best service from staff it was amazing. I didnt mind paying the gratuities as they were well deserved by the staff and seemed reasonable.

 

Personally I think if a cruise is $500 and gratuities are $100 then the cruise should be sold as $600. In the UK our prices include the tax. If a t shirt is £20 then it includes tax. I never can get my head around the USA where if a tshirt is $20 then I have to add tax, why not have the all inclusive price. When I am looking at the price, I want to know the price that is going to be charged to my card not a price that doesnt include the extras.

 

The cruises should be marketed as the full cost. If someone is searching for a cruise and the see a Royal Caribbean cruise as $600 (all inclusive) and they see a NCL cruise for $500 (without gratuities included), then that person should not be inclined to go for the NCL because its cheaper as they both would be the same. Anyone who cant figure that out should not be allowed to cruise because they are too stupid. Have a final price for the cruise. End of story.

 

There are a lot of people on here who are talking B.S. in my opinion. Who cares if you "allegedly" want to pay cash to your waiter, room attendant etc. The policy has now changed just give your gratuities as RCL ask like other cruise lines. You should only take off the tips if you get bad service. Otherwise you are probably not even going to pay tips. I think its creepy to hand someone cash as I have brought up differently. Maybe thats how some people have been brought up so its a difference in cultures.

 

I would prefer to have my gratuities prepaid and not give an envelope to anyone.

 

It seems to me that there are alot of people who are not happy that they will have to pay tips and you know that when you go down to guest services to remove your tips you will look cheap and tight

 

Stop ranting about the new procedure, this is designed to give the employees better paid conditions, the real problem is that you have to tip in the first place. Royal Caribbean and all other cruise lines should PAY DECENT WAGES to staff like they do in other countries.

 

I hate tipping in the USA, I always leave 10% and there is a message in the credit card folder with a message for our international guests saying that we should tip 15-20 %. I feel like writing a message back and saying "pay your staff decent wages you tight gits" I come from Australia and we get paid DECENT wages for ALL staff and our customer service is genuine and not fake like we get when we dine in the USA.

 

The whole system of tipping is wrong IMO. Australians have the best system in place, everyone gets paid decently, people are generally treated genuinely and no one needs to tip.

 

Sorry If I offend anyone but we are paying tips to RCL employees because they are paid crap. If they were well paid then I would not want to tip them.

 

I live in the UK and I tip in restaurants as well as the wages are low here for waiters, its such a shame that you have to pay for good service.

 

And to all those who tip the windjammer staff......... Sure I believe you!

[BND]

It is more convenient to include it as a pre paid option. Itemise it alongside the initial fare and pay for it when the cruise fare is due.

 

None of this garbage about taking back tips or making the staff work harder for more money as that is a very low form of exploitation.

 

The daily collection is ridiculous and complicates credit card transactions. Most cruise lines do an authorisation daily on your credit card then charge in full at the end of the cruise so when you get home not only do you have the full charge on your card but a weeks worth of authorisations that wont dissapear until a certain time period expires.

 

Too many countries in the world do not tip and pay a decent wage. Now that the cruise industry has boomed and is selling to cultures that do not tip it is time to make the pay as part of the initial cruise fare.

 

You do have the option to pay with your full fare. We do it all the time.

 

You have daily charges on your onboard account if you purchase anything onboard and they do not do an authorization daily. They do one every few days usually. We've had authorizations on our card after cruises ever since we've been cruising. It's standard practice.

[tngeebee]

:) Don't mind the tipping policy. I like it better than stuffing envelopes. And when we first get onboard I always give the cabin person $20 up front and you should see what great service we get from that. And because of that great service they get another $20 when we leave. They work very hard for there money.

[Markanddonna]

The staff mentioned that the Mariner and another ship were going to be permanently sailing in Asian countries where tipping is not customary and they were going to include tips in the price of the cruise. Perhaps, RCL thought that this might be a good policy on every ship since many countries automatically include the tip at restaurants anyway. I think the staff will be better served long term with this policy.

 

Two things I wonder: did the Triumph passengers pay tips to their wonderful staff or did Carnival make good on this for their employees?

 

Will automatic tipping do away with the singing and dancing waiters on RCL? I sure hope so. Painful for all of us to watch and for them to perform.

[galavant3]

 

Stop ranting about the new procedure, this is designed to give the employees better paid conditions, the real problem is that you have to tip in the first place. Royal Caribbean and all other cruise lines should PAY DECENT WAGES to staff like they do in other countries.

 

I hate tipping in the USA, I always leave 10% and there is a message in the credit card folder with a message for our international guests saying that we should tip 15-20 %. I feel like writing a message back and saying "pay your staff decent wages you tight gits" I come from Australia and we get paid DECENT wages for ALL staff and our customer service is genuine and not fake like we get when we dine in the USA.

 

The whole system of tipping is wrong IMO. Australians have the best system in place, everyone gets paid decently, people are generally treated genuinely and no one needs to tip.

 

 

I understand what you are saying. What you might not know is that many waiters earn far (and I mean FAR) more with the tipping policy than they ever would if their employer paid them a "decent wage". I've worked as a waitress and there is no way any employer would have paid me what I earned in tips. In other words, good waiters like the policy the way it is and do not feel like their employer is treating them unfairly.

[VK3DQ]

The rate of wages that a cruise line pays to its staff is nothing to do with us!

 

If the cruise line cannot afford to pay a wage level that its staff find acceptable , then its not charging its customers enough for their cruises :D

 

 

Pay the staff a proper living wage !!

 

I dont think our friends from the USA understand the Australian wage system and the concept of fair play for all which underpins it.:)

 

 

Pay a fair price for your cruise , if you get service from someone which is above the standard that you would normally expect , then you are free to tip as you see fit.

 

The cruise line MUST include all costs of the cruise on you Tax Invoice in Australia , anything else is illegal .:eek:

 

Best regards to all

 

john

[ARCruisinNana]

I agree. We always book in suites. We used to do per-paid gratuities with kids included and tip extra at the end and as we went along if we had a special request.

 

I am in the "if you can't afford to tip the suggested amount, you can't afford to cruise" camp.

 

"Like"

[Debde]

:confused:

 

why would you stand in line (if you plan to tip the recommended amt) and want to do the same thing. just let them do it for you. if you plan to tip more, just add the extra in a separate envelope and hand it to him or her..

unless you have an alternative motive. :confused::confused::confused:

 

There is no alternative motive. It is a tip-to be given by the consumer to let employees know they have done excellant service. I want to know they are getting all I have put aside for them.

I do not trust corporate doing the right thing here.

Now-if they called it a surcharge or just raised the cruise fare-I would not have posted one thing here and went on with my day!!!;)

I will stand on-line and make a point and hope that my servers and stateroom attendant are handed cold hard cash because I DO know how hard they work and want to show MY appreciation. Not what some suit thinks they should get!!

[isdoo]

Why are people saying it is mandatory - it is not.

 

You can still get the tips removed if you wish to pay cash or not pay at all.

 

This is the same system as Celebrity operate.

 

It is NOT mandatory.

[VK3DQ]

Why are people saying it is mandatory - it is not.

 

You can still get the tips removed if you wish to pay cash or not pay at all.

 

This is the same system as Celebrity operate.

 

It is NOT mandatory.

 

Its a very clever system designed to make the customer feel guilty if they do not conform to the norm:cool:

[teajak]

Don't blame the cruise lines,this is the fault of the people that stiffed the room stewards and skipped dinner on the last night,didn't tip for kids,etc. Everyone knows in advance the tipping situation so you have two choices,cruise or stay home.There is absolutely no difference to this rule of pre-paid tips,same amount,same people just more convenient.RCI is just late to the game ,other lines have been doing it for years.

[Markanddonna]

I am shocked that some parents think that they should have no or reduced tips for their kids because "the parents clean up after them". My experience tells me that the crew cleans up the floor and the table crumbs and mess. No, I guess as a former teacher, I am not surprised.

 

Kids typically get far more in services than the adults. Our cruise money helps to fund the childrens' area and they have full use of almost all areas. The areas that they don't use generate major bucks for the cruises: casino and bars/alcohol.

 

People should pay the same tips for their children as adults. A cruise is not an entitlement or a mandatory experience for kids.

[Debde]

Its a very clever system designed to make the customer feel guilty if they do not conform to the norm:cool:

 

Thank you. Although I would of used the word sneaky!!;)

 

It amazes me, how so many here claim to know so much and so much about crew personal likes and paychecks how thay can not see this is going to really s#c& for them.

The only way the company can do the right thing is rasie our cruise fare so they can pay them better and let us do the tipping.

 

Like I said-kool aid.

[VK3DQ]

Thank you. Although I would of used the word sneaky!!;)

 

It amazes me, how so many here claim to know so much and so much about crew personal likes and paychecks how thay can not see this is going to really s#c& for them.

The only way the company can do the right thing is rasie our cruise fare so they can pay them better and let us do the tipping.

 

Like I said-kool aid.

 

Yes and we will make you line up at the service desk so all the other customers and see who the "cheap" ones are...

 

;)

[CruisesOnMyMind]

:) Don't mind the tipping policy. I like it better than stuffing envelopes. And when we first get onboard I always give the cabin person $20 up front and you should see what great service we get from that. And because of that great service they get another $20 when we leave. They work very hard for there money.

 

 

Out of pure curiosity, can you give an example of the "great service". I thought I was having great service all along! Just can't image what we could get with an extra 20 up front.

 

I do hope you are also paying the recommended tip amount:D

 

I am in favor of the new tipping policy.

[Debde]

Yes and we will make you line up at the service desk so all the other customers and see who the "cheap" ones are...

 

;)

 

You really don't read my posts do you?? ;)

[niko40]

Why are people saying it is mandatory - it is not.

 

You can still get the tips removed if you wish to pay cash or not pay at all.

 

This is the same system as Celebrity operate.

 

It is NOT mandatory.

 

At last someone who gets what I have been saying all along just wonder how long it will take before everyone stops fighting amongst themselves and realises this :eek::rolleyes:

[VK3DQ]

You really don't read my posts do you?? ;)

 

I thought your last post was one of the most informed on this topic that a poster located in the USA has made

 

 

I think most people that I have met from the USA are very nice kind people, I just cannot get my head around their acceptance of this low wage + tips system, I find it a most degrading system .....:)

 

regards

 

john

[Debde]

Don't blame the cruise lines,this is the fault of the people that stiffed the room stewards and skipped dinner on the last night,

 

Do you have super mind reading powers?

how do you know if someone does not go to the MDR for dinner that they may have already pre-paid.

 

I think all of you guys that say you pre-pay, don't and lie about it because you are the cheap ones!!!:p

[appleosprey]

I understand what you are saying. What you might not know is that many waiters earn far (and I mean FAR) more with the tipping policy than they ever would if their employer paid them a "decent wage". I've worked as a waitress and there is no way any employer would have paid me what I earned in tips. In other words, good waiters like the policy the way it is and do not feel like their employer is treating them unfairly.

 

Im sure if they are getting 20% tips they would like the wages. If I lived in AMerica I would be a bartender and get 1 or 2 dollars for every drink I serve.

 

I know its what there used to but surely a bartender or waiter should be paid well but not too too much, or I may be wrong? They should be paid a decent wage but Im sure some waiters could earn hundreds of dollars per evening with 20% tips. I believe we need to find a balance

[galavant3]

Im sure if they are getting 20% tips they would like the wages. If I lived in AMerica I would be a bartender and get 1 or 2 dollars for every drink I serve.

 

I know its what there used to but surely a bartender or waiter should be paid well but not too too much, or I may be wrong? They should be paid a decent wage but Im sure some waiters could earn hundreds of dollars per evening with 20% tips. I believe we need to find a balance

 

I totally understand why this seems so odd to people from other countries.

 

But, since this is what we've done and known for so long, it would be very hard to change 300 million people.

 

Plus, many people choose to become a waiter because they like they way they are compensated. It isn't like these workers are clamoring to be paid minimum wage.

[setsail]

You really don't read my posts do you?? ;)

 

A question, when you eat at SR's do you demand that they remove the part of the 20 or 30 pp bill that is the tip so you can then give a cash tip of your choosing?

[VK3DQ]

There are good ships and there are wood ships, the ships that sail the sea,but the best ships are friendships and may they always be

 

Thats nice , however in our family it normally reads.

 

 

There is no ship like relationship with the possible exception of hardship

 

:D

 

Best regards

 

John

[isdoo]

Thank you. Although I would of used the word sneaky!!;)

 

It amazes me, how so many here claim to know so much and so much about crew personal likes and paychecks how thay can not see this is going to really s#c& for them.

The only way the company can do the right thing is rasie our cruise fare so they can pay them better and let us do the tipping.

 

Like I said-kool aid.

 

It will make no difference to the crew.

 

This system is in place on Celebrity - it works well.

 

Do you think the crew on those group ships are hard done by? Of course not.

 

If you feel the need to tip extra, then do so in cash.

 

This is very simple system.

 

If you wish to tip the same way as you do now - you CAN - simply go to guest relations and request that the tips are removed. You can then tip in cash at whatever level you like.

 

Celebrity publicise clearly in the daily sheet as to the cut-off for removing the tips - I expect that RCI will do exactly the same.

 

Simples!

[VK3DQ]

A question, when you eat at SR's do you demand that they remove the part of the 20 or 30 pp bill that is the tip so you can then give a cash tip of your choosing?

 

Why would you do this ??? its quite clear that the SR venues are sold as a separate item , they are not included in your cruise price .. I dont have a problem with that concept.

 

Best regards

 

john