Letter to steward?

[DoulaAnn]

Someone, on one of the boards, posted a letter they always give the steward as they get on board with their special requests. I have searched in every way I can think of for this letter and have had no luck. If you are the OP or if you can give me the link to that thread, I would be very grateful. It was an amazing letter that I should have bookmarked at the time.

 

Ann

[Stevesan]

You can use this format precruise. That way you don't load any last minute surprises on your cabin steward. Just substitute your druthers for mine.:p

 

 

Name:

Booking Number-

Voyage Number & Cruise ship-

Sail Date -

Cabin Number -

Phone Number -

Web Address -

　

　

Fax Transmittal Form

　

To: Princess Cruises

ATTN: Special Services

Fax: 661 284 4885

　

Please request cabin steward place a mattress topper and a top sheet on queen arrangement bed.

　

　

Thank You

　

[Bogof1]

You don't need to do a letter. Just make a mental note of what you would like and talk to him or her. It's no problem.

[skynight]

We just mention our requests on the first day when we board. The steward may have completed their work when you board and may not be around. In that case we just leave a note on the bed. The steward's name is shown on a card on the desk. We never had a problem.

[DoulaAnn]

I know I can leave a note, but the letter that was on here had some ideas I hadn't even thought of. I'm looking more for content. So far, we know we can ask for different/more pillows, wine glasses, ice in the bucket each afternoon, and let him know we are placing the soft drinks from the refrigerator behind the TV. Just trying to figure out if there was anything else. We didn't need the mattress topper on our last Princess cruise.

 

Any suggestions anyone?

[DoulaAnn]

Our experience on our Diamond Princess to Alaska last year was that we rarely saw our steward. I had heard so many stories about people loving their steward and talking to him/her a lot, and bringing back gifts from shore for them, etc, that I was really surprised when ours was so stand-offish. Even when I saw him in the hall there was no conversation. Even when we left him a message on the number on our desk, he wasn't that communicative and seemed to still avoid us when we were there. That is why I am preparing a note.

[AKman2495]

Our experience on our Diamond Princess to Alaska last year was that we rarely saw our steward. I had heard so many stories about people loving their steward and talking to him/her a lot, and bringing back gifts from shore for them, etc, that I was really surprised when ours was so stand-offish. Even when I saw him in the hall there was no conversation. Even when we left him a message on the number on our desk, he wasn't that communicative and seemed to still avoid us when we were there. That is why I am preparing a note.

 

Wow! Not all stewards are like that-believe me. Our steward on the last cruise was great. When we were unpacking, I paged him-there is a number you can call-and asked him a couple of questions. I tried to tip him $20 (I read that this is a good thing to do right off the bat) but he brushed it aside.

 

We saw him often and he was great. He took pictures of us on our first formal night.

 

Our cruise was a B2B the first was a 3 day repositioning cruise and the second was a 14 day cruise through the panama canal. At the end of the first cruise, we were in our room in LA and he brought a flower arrangement in. Apparently it came from another room and would have been dumped. While some might be offended at getting "leftovers", my wife, being a frugal hoarder type, was thrilled to get the flowers, which were in perfect condition and lasted through much of the rest of the cruise.

 

That was a little touch that endeared him to us.

 

In the canal he came out on the back deck during his break and we chatted about his many trips through the canal.

 

So, perhaps on your next cruise you will get a winner...Who knows?

[Julia’s Journey’s]

I read the thread with the letter for the steward and did a quick search but didn't find it. I believe it was on the Royal thread.

[madjohn]

I think you just wait and ask. Unless it is really unusual or you can stay in the cabin until it is done (like the sheet thing, take care of it the next day, It wont bother me for night).

 

I have had very very friendly ones and ones I never saw. Must say that the ones I never saw, I never had a problem with them. They did everything and I was always amazed that I never saw them.

[DoulaAnn]

Wow! Not all stewards are like that-believe me. Our steward on the last cruise was great. When we were unpacking, I paged him-there is a number you can call-and asked him a couple of questions. I tried to tip him $20 (I read that this is a good thing to do right off the bat) but he brushed it aside.

 

We saw him often and he was great. He took pictures of us on our first formal night.

 

Our cruise was a B2B the first was a 3 day repositioning cruise and the second was a 14 day cruise through the panama canal. At the end of the first cruise, we were in our room in LA and he brought a flower arrangement in. Apparently it came from another room and would have been dumped. While some might be offended at getting "leftovers", my wife, being a frugal hoarder type, was thrilled to get the flowers, which were in perfect condition and lasted through much of the rest of the cruise.

 

That was a little touch that endeared him to us.

 

In the canal he came out on the back deck during his break and we chatted about his many trips through the canal.

 

So, perhaps on your next cruise you will get a winner...Who knows?

 

I sure hope you are right. It wasn't that he didn't do anything -- kept the room clean and all, but just was invisible. Maybe some people like it like that, but I had expected to meet him. Would have LOVED to have someone take our picture at any point. Thanks for letting me know mine was a different experience.

 

Ann

[Ethel5]

I sure hope you are right. It wasn't that he didn't do anything -- kept the room clean and all, but just was invisible. Maybe some people like it like that, but I had expected to meet him. Would have LOVED to have someone take our picture at any point. Thanks for letting me know mine was a different experience.

 

Ann

 

Since many cultures of the Stewards teach to not speak until spoken too, I always make the first move and introduce myself by my first name and with a smile. :)

[fishin' musician]

I think it would be tough to get a message to the stateroom steward. FWIW, they've never seperated our beds in spite always requesting it in the cruise personalizer, same with the requests for egg crates back when the beds were really bad. It was never a problem for them to do once aboard, but they never seem to receive the advance notification.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Wow! Not all stewards are like that-believe me. Our steward on the last cruise was great. When we were unpacking, I paged him-there is a number you can call-and asked him a couple of questions. I tried to tip him $20 (I read that this is a good thing to do right off the bat) but he brushed it aside.

 

We saw him often and he was great. He took pictures of us on our first formal night.

 

Our cruise was a B2B the first was a 3 day repositioning cruise and the second was a 14 day cruise through the panama canal. At the end of the first cruise, we were in our room in LA and he brought a flower arrangement in. Apparently it came from another room and would have been dumped. While some might be offended at getting "leftovers", my wife, being a frugal hoarder type, was thrilled to get the flowers, which were in perfect condition and lasted through much of the rest of the cruise.

 

That was a little touch that endeared him to us.

 

In the canal he came out on the back deck during his break and we chatted about his many trips through the canal.

 

So, perhaps on your next cruise you will get a winner...Who knows?

 

And many people here have said they will not pre-tip as it might be considered a bribe (which may be why your last steward waved you off).

 

I think we've had the cabin steward stop by on every cruise we've been on (I don't remember an exception) and we've introduced ourselves. Usually we don't do requests. If our robes aren't in the closet, and we feel like having them, we might ask about that (but it's certainly not a must have). For sure, we'll make sure there's life jackets for the three of us. But that's a necessity. Often we'll have a steward that is making sure our ice bucket is filled every day (something we don't ask for; probably the ones who do so, are filling the ones for all of their cabins), or placing a plate of cookies on our desk for our little one (even though, I'll often get to them first:o). Sometimes, if you're not coming off as demanding, but friendly and civil, you might have a better experience with your steward.

[DrivesLikeMario]

EVERY crew member should acknowledge you with a polite, "Good morning", "Good evening", "Hello", "welcome back" or similar type of greeting. It's part of the Princess C.R.U.I.S.E. training. If your cabin steward didn't do this, he must have not been worried about the consequences. This philosophy is foremost in their training so it's not like he didn't know that he should greet you every time he sees you walking past him. Maybe he was overtly shy or was leaving and wasn't concerned about getting caught for not greeting you properly. :confused:

[chamima]

I think the letter you're referring to was on one of the "Secrets" threads.

It was either Princess or Celebrity.

 

Here's a link to a couple:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1841176

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1841192

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1260835

 

Good luck

[chamima]

Aloha rachelfran,

 

I am sorry that I did not check back on this thread. I had a friend send me a message about your inquiry. I am a list kind of person. If I don't write something down, I will forget it. It also makes it easier for the steward. He doesn't have to write it down or remember. He takes the list with him. Of course, there are always a thing or two that I forget.

 

This is my list. You are welcome to modify it to meet your needs. On the Hawaii cruise, I made a candy lei to give to my steward with a flower crafted out of money. On other cruises, I might give gifts that include goodies from Hawaii (always have it on hand) or chocolates from Trader Joes or small tokens of my appreciation.

 

February 13, 2013

 

Dear Cabin Attendant,

 

We are so excited to be on this cruise and know that you will help make this a very pleasant voyage. Would you please take care of a few things for us, at your convenience?

 

1. We need two of everything since we are two good friends who happen to enjoy cruising together (this would include shampoo, and other toiletries)

 

2. We can always use more hangers (check out the supply first)

 

3. We would like to have, at least 6, fresh face/wash towels in the bathroom.

 

4. Would you please leave 3 Patters each evening (I keep one for my scrapbook and fold one to carry with me…and then there’s one for xxx).

 

5. Please keep our ice bucket filled twice a day.

 

6. Would you find us 2 wine glasses for the cabin?

 

7. 2 pens / a few more notepads

 

 

I am handing you a list because in all of my excitement, I am sure I would forget to mention something.

 

Mahalo nui loa,

 

Now to address the laundry question. Once I discovered the Purex sheets, I bought several containers. When it first came out, there were lots of "buy one get one free" promotions. Now that they are rare to non-existent...I use them very sparingly. I sure wish they would bring this back on the market. They are T-E-R-R-I-F-I-C.

 

Renee

 

My curiosity got the better of me.

Is this what you wanted?

[PescadoAmarillo]

We always write our requests on the notepad in the room. Short and sweet; English is usually not the steward's first language. Our list is very basic:

- no ice required

- no decorative pillows/bed covers

- no hand towels

- extra washcloths, bath towels and pool towels

- 2 Patters

- steady supply of laundry bags and forms

 

We are always thanked for doing this. Each steward has 18 cabins; remembering instructions from 36 people can't be easy. This does not mean we don't introduce ourselves to our steward, or aren't pleasant or friendly.

[DoulaAnn]

My curiosity got the better of me.

Is this what you wanted?

 

Karen, that is the one! HOW did you find it? Thanks for the hard work in finding it.

 

Now that I see it, I do think that perhaps just a brief list (as described by the post that followed yours) is a better idea.

 

Ann

[DrivesLikeMario]

Karen, that is the one! HOW did you find it? Thanks for the hard work in finding it.

 

Now that I see it, I do think that perhaps just a brief list (as described by the post that followed yours) is a better idea.

 

Ann

 

Definitely don't go with the letter format. English isn't usually their first language and their understanding of it being written may be slim. Post-it notes are good enough with something like,

 

Cabin D-707:

Ice-every day

Top sheet

 

If you explain nicely what you'd like and say that you just wrote a quick note to remind him, it might help make his job easier. :)

[cr8tiv1]

My curiosity got the better of me.

Is this what you wanted?

 

Thank you Karen. I haven't been checking in as often as I usually do. You are a great detective.

 

Everyone has his/her little travel quirky routines. Cruise Critic is great for picking up new ideas. I am glad someone else thought my idea was helpful.

[Iamcruzin]

I know I can leave a note, but the letter that was on here had some ideas I hadn't even thought of. I'm looking more for content. So far, we know we can ask for different/more pillows, wine glasses, ice in the bucket each afternoon, and let him know we are placing the soft drinks from the refrigerator behind the TV. Just trying to figure out if there was anything else. We didn't need the mattress topper on our last Princess cruise.

 

Any suggestions anyone?

Are you looking go give the steward more work? They will do whatever you ask with in reason. If you can't come up with your own ideas do you really require that service and it seems to me that if you can't remember the service someone else posted it couldn't be that important to you.

[pris993]

We always connect with the steward, one on one, the first day. I make a list not for the steward but to help me remember, so I am not running the steward back and forth. This seems to work out well. If we did not see the steward we page him or her.

[LoveThisCruisingThing]

Are you looking go give the steward more work? They will do whatever you ask with in reason. If you can't come up with your own ideas do you really require that service and it seems to me that if you can't remember the service someone else posted it couldn't be that important to you.

 

In total agreement. That letter had throne of snootiness written all over it. 6 washcloths for two people? The only thing I ask my steward is for ice everyday.

[Iamcruzin]

In total agreement. That letter had throne of snootiness written all over it. 6 washcloths for two people? The only thing I ask my steward is for ice everyday.

 

I don't have a problem with someone asking for 6 wash cloths if that's what they use in a day I just don't understand why someone needs to use someone else's ideas. My wife has long hair so we ask for extra conditioner and an extra towel to dry her hair. I'm sure that other women my not require this. But to ask just for the sake of asking is where I'm lost.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Are you looking go give the steward more work? They will do whatever you ask with in reason. If you can't come up with your own ideas do you really require that service and it seems to me that if you can't remember the service someone else posted it couldn't be that important to you.

 

I so agree. When we first get to our cabin, we'll check to make sure things are functioning (faucet, toilet). We take out the cans out of the fridge if they're in there and place on the TV shelf -- and I would guess that most stewards get it that we're not planning to open these. We haven't had a dearth of hangers as hubby's suit, shirts and my dresses are on hangers in the garment bag, so we'll use those too. And I don't get worry about needing extra containers of shampoo, etc., as we'll just share one a container, which will get replaced. Hubby likes his mattress on the firm side (so he actually likes the beds on Princess:rolleyes:), but his pillow on the soft side, so if we're driving to the port, he brings a pillow.

 

And I'm the keeper of the Patters for my family. If my daughter wants one, she knows where the passenger services desk is.

 

The one thing that seemed to be missing from our cabin the last cruise was a notepad, but I brought a scratch pad and pen, so we used those. Must be the girl scout in me.