Gratuities to be added to sea pass account daily.

[retird]

If this policy comes to the US then I will definitely be taking my business elsewhere.

 

If it is FORCED upon you to provide a "tip", then it is not a TIP at all.

 

I will certainly be voicing my displeasure to RCI if this includes the US and, probably, cancelling the cruise that we have reserved for November.

 

 

 

we will miss you.

[k9x8]

Do (some of) y'all have a hissy fit when a service charge is added to your restaurant bill? Do you demand it be removed, whether in the UK or elsewhere?

 

To be fair, the only squawking I've heard over the service charge, plainly stated on the menu, came from an American "gentleman" in Italy. The hubs and I wanted to crawl under our table as this guy demanded to know why he had to pay that 10% up front.

 

We simply accept it as part of the foreign culture. And, yes, I'm willing to pay extra to sit at an outdoor table while enjoying my exquisite coffee, and to tip extra for the consistently excellent service.

[Ashland]

LOL

Please.........maybe 25 americans posting yipee on the thread!! Not a big majority when thousands sail on one ship at a time..

 

I hate it and are probably one of the 'not surprising'.:D

I'm probably one of those too ;):D

[orville99]

Now if they'd only drop the pre-pay for MTD requirement (since everyone will be paying one way or another), I can finally find a use for my OBC:)

[HaraldOslo]

Do (some of) y'all have a hissy fit when a service charge is added to your restaurant bill? Do you demand it be removed, whether in the UK or elsewhere?

 

Yes.

 

When I buy food in a grocery store, I pay $X. When I eat at a restaurant I pay $X + $Y. The $Y is supposed to cover the cost of preparing and serving me the food, covering all the expenses the restaurant has, including the wait staff.

 

If the service is excellent I will gladly add $Z in tip on top of that. In norwegian restaurants tipping is not mandatory, and waiters share their tip with the chef. After all, they are a team. But if the food and service is "as expected/satisfactory" in relation to what I paid for the meal, then I pay 0 tip.

 

Do you tip at McDonalds? Why not?

 

When staying at a hotel I expect what I pay to cover the expenses of providing me a room and a bed, and someone to clean it. If not, what the hell am I paying for?

 

Note: If I have spilled something or otherwise left a mess, I will leave some extra tip for the cleaning staff. Because I am giving them more work than expected :-)

[blondcat]

Good idea I think (I'm also a tip paying Brit). I always do the prepaid tips although prefer to do so once on board rather than pay in advance - don't see why they should have my cash during the period before I get on the ship.

 

Always thought it was very unfair that two people enjoying an identical cruise can pay two different amounts by one of them avoiding tips.

 

And if Royal have found that only Brits avoid paying the tips and that's why we've been singled out, so be it. But I find it a teeny bit hard to believe that no one from any other nation has ever avoided paying tips.

 

Regardless - no change for me as I already pay them :-)

 

Sent from my BlackBerry 9300 using Tapatalk

[lady_cruiser]

BUT you can still prepaid your gratitudes. I just read on guidelines. See post #2

[k9x8]

Yes.

 

When I buy food in a grocery store, I pay $X. When I eat at a restaurant I pay $X + $Y. The $Y is supposed to cover the cost of preparing and serving me the food, covering all the expenses the restaurant has, including the wait staff.

 

If the service is excellent I will gladly add $Z in tip on top of that. In norwegian restaurants tipping is not mandatory, and waiters share their tip with the chef. After all, they are a team. But if the food and service is "as expected/satisfactory" in relation to what I paid for the meal, then I pay 0 tip.

 

Do you tip at McDonalds? Why not?

 

When staying at a hotel I expect what I pay to cover the expenses of providing me a room and a bed, and someone to clean it. If not, what the hell am I paying for?

 

Note: If I have spilled something or otherwise left a mess, I will leave some extra tip for the cleaning staff. Because I am giving them more work than expected :-)

 

"Yes" you have a hissy fit? :confused:

 

No, I don't tip at McDonald's because I don't eat there. <bleah> (Do European McDonalds add a service charge? Not being snarky - just wondering.)

 

That's my point. The gratuity paid on a cruise is no different than your $X + $Y example.

 

Yes, we generally leave something for the housekeeper at a hotel. Guess it's simply our custom, and I've yet to find anyone on either side of the pond insulted by our showing gratitude.

[k9x8]

But I find it a teeny bit hard to believe that no one from any other nation has ever avoided paying tips.

 

OK- slightly off topic, but when we eat out with my in-laws, we always have a few accessible dollars to add to the $1 per diner tip they leave, no matter the cost of the meal.

 

When I was at Guest Services on Celebrity, it was an American couple I heard having their daily gratuity removed. I didn't hear a reason, just the request that it be done.

[MickD]

Always prepay our tips !!!

My only moan is that on our last two cruises the cabin attendant left an envelope on our bed with his name hand written on it.

Plus other envelopes for the dining staff.

He was well aware that we had prepaid and where we do nomally give a bit extra to certain staff found it a bit over the top and felt obliged to tip twice.

[TEXASMUNK]

pricing and tipping vary by country. In the USA, travelers do not have a myriad of governemnt programs, which cost $$$$$, that travelers in England or France have. So any company will adjust pricing and tipping, to adjust to a more expensive market place. If you don't like it, don't cruise.

[fishtaco]

I am surprised this email hasnt yet reached us Aussies:D:D: I am sure its on its way.

 

P&O And Princess had this system in Australia,if you didnt pre pay you were charged daily regardless. You could remove the daily charge by visiting guest services but needed to explain why or have a good reason!

 

On P&O Australia the queue at guest services last day rivalled any tender queue ever seen:)

 

To be honest the majority of removals were from families that thought their young children/ young teenagers should not pay forced tips and P&O is a family cruise line with many children and first time cruisers on every cruise.

 

P&O and Princess Australia now include Gratuities in the "cruise price" but with princess it is only for non Americans! There have been reports of some very upset USA cruisers who sailed Princess Australia and paid pre paid Grats only to find the majority of those onboard (Australians) had no grats to pay at all:D

 

Gratuities are doing a full circle and will be coming back to what it should be a personal tip for service!

 

One word of caution for UK RCI cruisesr not pre paying in advance,check your on board account regularly as quite often the imposed daily charge or tip can be charged twice by accident:rolleyes: during shift changes in the pursers department.

 

I like auto tips but many do not. with auto tips that are charged daily you can remove or adjust that days if you feel it necessary due to unfavourable service and the message is swiftly conveyed to staff in your area.

 

So called tip "Stiffers" are wide spread in USA, but other nations tip or not in their own countries by personal choice, they can only be "Stiffers" if they dont tip in USA:p

 

My RCI cruise price that I paid for through RCI Australia was more expensive than the RCI USA price for the same cruise by around the Pre paid gratuity amount,I feel RCI is already charging us non tipping Australians for gratuities in the cruise price same as P&O/Princess but just not official?

 

I also feel the compulsory Gratuity charged along with the fare for MTD is an actual extra service charge and not a tip of any sort! or why would it be compulsory for the lavishly over tipping American market?

[zekekelso]

My main objection is paying for a service I don't receive or need !

 

Kinda like how you pay for the rock walls you don't climb, the shows you don't see, the night clubs you don't dance in, the kids clubs you don't use, etc. etc. etc.

 

The price we pay should include service charge/ gratuity when we sign the contract .

 

Exactly... that's the way we are hopefully headed with mandatory charges in the contract.

[fishtaco]

Always prepay our tips !!!

My only moan is that on our last two cruises the cabin attendant left an envelope on our bed with his name hand written on it.

Plus other envelopes for the dining staff.

He was well aware that we had prepaid and where we do nomally give a bit extra to certain staff found it a bit over the top and felt obliged to tip twice.

 

This is because pre paid gratuities on a cruise are a wage subsidy to those paid less remuneration for their daily service by the amount of the expected gratuities!

 

If Gratuities were spread around "all cruise staff" then they would not be a wage subsidy but a tipping pool for all cruise staff.

 

You should always tip in cash for good service on a cruise because it is expected and the done thing:)

 

This is proved when you ask a lower paid staff member for something and mention you will tip immediately, nothing is too much trouble even a cabin full of towel animals!

 

Go to the guest services desk and tip them a $20 and request a balcony lounger,the answer will be the exact same for the cash tipper as the non cash tipper!

[BeachChik]

It will probably work similar to carnival. They are automatically added to your account but for those that prefer to pay in cash you can go to customer service and have them removed.

[setsail]

Always prepay our tips !!!

My only moan is that on our last two cruises the cabin attendant left an envelope on our bed with his name hand written on it.

Plus other envelopes for the dining staff.

He was well aware that we had prepaid and where we do nomally give a bit extra to certain staff found it a bit over the top and felt obliged to tip twice.

 

An envelope did this to you:rolleyes:

[peteukmcr]

Well, I've caught up with this thread and I am disgusted with the attitude and constant labelling of us Brits as people who 'stiff' the staff. We have always tipped, and since the option of MTD have had to prepay our gratuities.

 

I have not received the email and sail in May. Perhaps I didn't get it because we have already elected to prepay having selected MTD. And why have we selected MTD? So that we don't end up alone on the last night when our tables mates don't materialise, mmm I wonder why? And who comprises the largest percentage of guests on a Caribbean cruise, just saying. Work that one out. You don't have to be a scientist to work that one out. Oh, come on then, give me all the excuses why people don't turn up to the MDR on the last night, yawn. There's one reason and one reason only, to stiff the staff.

 

There are so many responses I want to report on this thread as offensive, but it won't change anything. People in the US have the perception that we Brits never pay gratuities. That will never change. There will always be some people from the US who will shout 'yippee' (yes, you know who you are) whenever you think the Brits are being brought into line to conform to your culture.

 

There will always be the ones you say 'get over it, get over yourself, move on and don't cruise', well I won't bow to your desires. I will continue to cruise, I can hold my head up because I tip.

 

I can also hold my head up in the Diamond Lounge on the last evening of a cruise when we are the only ones there, and those loud demanding guests who have been 'doing Europe' and clicking their fingers at the wait staff all week are noticeable absent on the last night. Mmm, I wonder why? And don't start trying to tell me that they may have already been in the lounge and tipped the staff, or tipped the staff each night, because I've seen them leave without tipping. So don't start criticising us Brits.

 

People in glass houses should not throw stones.

[peteukmcr]

Why are they just dealing with UK customers (European, too, apparently) first on this issue?

 

Just look at the responses on this thread.

 

ALL of the responses that are VEHEMENTLY AGAINST the change are from the UK (with two notable - and not surprising - exceptions).

 

The Americans on this thread are saying things liked "YIPPEE!"

 

That is the reason.

 

:cool:

No, I am not VEHEMENTLY AGAINST this change and I'm from the UK. And I did not respond to that effect, so I object most strongly to your accusation. What I am vehemently against is the insinuation that all Brits don't tip and the constant degrading of Brits on tipping threads on these boards by others.

[peteukmcr]

Merion mum

 

A point of note , in Europe we don't benefit from price drops or all the extras American TA's lavish on bookings made in America .

 

I've cruised on RCI since 2006 and have always tipped where good service has been received.

 

My main objection is paying for a service I don't receive or need !

 

If I don't see the head waiter why should I tip him ? I'd rather give my hard earned cash to my waiter or asst waiter or room attendant.

 

As for the Americans saying yippee, I've come across a number of tight Americans who don't show on the last night to pay up after giving lounge, dining and wait staff a hell of a time .

 

The price we pay should include service charge/ gratuity when we sign the contract . If someone goes above what you expect . Splash the extra cash in their palm .

 

Best regards a tipping European National , UK citizen and Proud Scotsman

 

Regards Bryce

Bryce, well said, I so wish there was a 'like' button, although this is from a Proud Mancunian!:D

[Charles4515]

If this policy comes to the US then I will definitely be taking my business elsewhere.

 

If it is FORCED upon you to provide a "tip", then it is not a TIP at all.

 

I will certainly be voicing my displeasure to RCI if this includes the US and, probably, cancelling the cruise that we have reserved for November.

 

Taking your business elsewhere means you won't be doing cruises. The other mainstream cruise lines already do this policy.

[Mark_K]

It does actually say in the email that you can ask for the charge to be removed "in the unlikely event you receive less than excellent service". As I have said before, this will NOT stop the "stiffers"...it will simply mean they have to queue at Guest Services in order to do their "stiffing".

It says that you can request that they be removed, it doesn't say that they will honour your request with no explanation beyond I'm cheap.

[debbs0723]

I'm still a little confused as to whether this is just a UK thing or not. We are leaving out of New Orleans in 3 weeks. I did not prepay tips because we have an onboard credit that covers ours so I thought I would wait. I would always prefer handing the tip in cash directly to the person. If we had not had the onboard credit I usually make envelopes before we even leave so they can have cash.

 

I don't really mind this from a financial standpoint because it is not going to change whether I tip or not. However, I know that after awhile when a staff in any service industry knows for sure they are getting tips the service can decline.

 

Does anyone know if this policy will be in effect for my cruise? I would just like to let my parents know since they are traveling with us.

 

Thanks,

Debbie

[travelplus]

I live in the USA and have not gotten such an e-mail. My speculation is this policy is for European bookings where they are used to Service Included fees and don't tip. due to the customs of Europe. I'm just speculating and do not want to create a fight here on CC.

 

I guess RCCL looked at statistics and saw that Europeans think the tips are included so they don't bother and see the envelop in their stateroom and use it to mail a card home rather than for its intended use.

 

On our last cruise we put cash in the envelops and handed it to the appropriate staff members. I like this way better because you can personally thank each person and hand them their gratuity.

 

Automating the process can have its benefits however if you really wanted to adjust it you would just leave less in the envelopes but I would not know why you would if you got good service.

[Charles4515]

I live in the USA and have not gotten such an e-mail. My speculation is this policy is for European bookings where they are used to Service Included fees and don't tip. due to the customs of Europe. I'm just speculating and do not want to create a fight here on CC.

 

I guess RCCL looked at statistics and saw that Europeans think the tips are included so they don't bother and see the envelop in their stateroom and use it to mail a card home rather than for its intended use.

 

On our last cruise we put cash in the envelops and handed it to the appropriate staff members. I like this way better because you can personally thank each person and hand them their gratuity.

 

Automating the process can have its benefits however if you really wanted to adjust it you would just leave less in the envelopes but I would not know why you would if you got good service.

 

If you go to the Faqs on RCI's web site it has the new policy. Guess they have not sent us the email yet.....

 

http://www.royalcaribbean.com/customersupport/faq/details.do?pagename=frequently_asked_questions&pnav=5&pnav=2&faqSubjectName=Gratuities&faqId=5520&faqSubjectId=415&faqType=faq

[phish tales]

I have reported this post for the aggressive description used of "deadbeats". I hope it will be removed shortly

 

 

it is ok for the tv, radio and newspaper to refer to a dad as a dead beat dad because he does not pay his child support, but let someone who skips out without giving their cruise staff the suggested tips get called "dead beat"and then we get a HISSY FIT. :confused::confused::confused: