1st cruise done :) what now!

[yorkshire1975]

We have just come back from the adriatic explorer with thomsons. Loved it. Now we are looking at the great late deals you can get. We picked thomsons because of the no tips policy. I am looking at other companies and am worried it is going end up costing a fortune in tips. Dont get me wrong, i dont mind tipping but i want to tip the people that I feel deserve to be tipped. (as did many of the staff on our 1st cruise) And how does the tipping work, do we do it cash? Any advise for any companies welcome.

[Keith1010]

Tips represent a very small total of the cruise fare. The cruise line sites will show if tips are included or not, and if they are not the recommended tips. Again, they are a relatively small item.

 

Keith

[paul929207]

On the mainstream lines appealing to Americans, tips run about $11 or 12 per person per day. So it is easy to estimate what the tips will be if you are considering one of them. This would include Carnival, NCL, RCL, HAL, Princess and Celebrity

[Keith1010]

In short, this represents a very small amount of money as Paul notes in his examples. There might be a few additional tips to consider above those but they are relatively small as well.

 

Keith

[Krazy Kruizers]

HAL

There is a Hotel Service Charge for all HAL passengers. It will either be $12 per person per day -- for all Suite passengers or $11.50 per person per day for all other categories. It is added onto your shipboard account at the end of each night. This covers the tips for your cabin stewards, dining room staff and the behind the scenes staff like the cooks, those who work in the laundry room, etc.

There is a form that you fill out if you want the Hotel Service Charge removed. They will ask you why you want to remove the charge.

 

Once you have signed the form and given your reasons, then the supervisors of the various departments are notified and your name is passed on to the people working under them. Your cabin stewards and dining room staff are also quizzed concerning their service for you.

 

Should you decide to sign that form, and should you decide to tip anyone anything, the people you have tipped are required to turn in that money to be placed in a pool to be divided among the crew. How honest are the workers? I don't know. But should a another crew member or a supervisor or anyone else finds out that a crew member kept tips from someone who signed that form, they will be fired.

For all drinks -- cocktails, wine, sodas, bottled water -- 15% is automatically added onto those bills.

We kept the Hotel Service Charge in place and tip extra to those who have made our cruise an enjoyable one.

[spookwife]

We have just come back from the adriatic explorer with thomsons. Loved it. Now we are looking at the great late deals you can get. We picked thomsons because of the no tips policy. I am looking at other companies and am worried it is going end up costing a fortune in tips. Dont get me wrong, i dont mind tipping but i want to tip the people that I feel deserve to be tipped. (as did many of the staff on our 1st cruise) And how does the tipping work, do we do it cash? Any advise for any companies welcome.

 

Tipping is a hot topic.

 

if you look at it as part of the fare, you may find that overall the prices are not that different between a mainstream line and one that is considered Luxury.

 

this is my personal opinion:( as an American who has lived in countries where tipping is an insult..Japan, and visited locales where it is less common..Australia and Great Britain)

 

Every mainstream line has a 'suggested amount' for tipping. add this to the base fare and decide if the price is workable. I also choose to prepay( regardless of whether it is required or not ) so that it really IS part of my cruise cost.

 

then once on board I change NOTHING unless I get truly abysmal service( has yet to happen) and then I tip extra, in cash as I see fit. do keep in mind that alcohol and other for fee items like soda and specialty coffees automatically incur a 15% tip. no need to add extra to that unless you really want to and have cultivated a relationship. also there are all inclusive packages where tipping is already included in the price.

[cb at sea]

On "no tipping" cruise lines, the gratuities are INCLUDE in the fare they quote....so you are paying them....you just aren't aware of it.

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On the mass-market lines, they quote you a lower rate, but then you need to tip. It's generally under $12 per person per NIGHT....so just figure that into the fare quote! (if you book a big suite, the tips may go up a dollar or two pp, pn.)

 

Tips can be added to your account, so that you never have to hand anyone money, if that's what's bothering you!

[Scrapnana]

Very few cruise lines have a "no tipping" policy. In most cases, they will add $10-15 per person per day to your onboard account. You may be interested in trying P&O. They have about the lowest daily gratuity amount at 3pounds 50 (per person per day aged 12 and over). You may remove that from your account onboard and hand cash to crew on last night. As of right now, P&O does not allow pre-payment of tips.

 

Glad you enjoyed your first cruise. Enjoy planning your next!