Tell us about your BEST and/or WORST cabin steward.

[cruisecritiquer]

Have you ever had a falling out with your cabin attendant on a cruise? It’s an unusual event, as cabin stewards usually are the smiling, front-line points of contact passengers have with crew. But anybody can have an off day.

 

From the sounds of the discussion on the Cruise Critic forums, member Cardqb and partner seem recently to have had a breakdown of communication with their cabin steward on Carnival Splendor, whom they describe as “horrible.” Member Tapi also tells of a tale about a steward so bad, he asked for a different steward, and was subsequently “stalked” by the original one.

 

We should stress these are very unusual events, and most people enjoy the banter that develops with their cabin steward (and many of our own members have expressed the view that Cardqb is expecting a butler’s level of service from a cabin steward).

 

It’s something that’s unique to cruising; you rarely see this rapport with the cleaning staff in a hotel. And yes, you can argue that the cabin stewards are paid to look after you — so why make an effort to make their lives easier? — but somehow, most of us believe the relationship is two-way street.

 

So here are our top tips for getting the best out of your cabin steward:

 

1. Seems obvious, but leave the cabin tidy. A quick sideways glance into open doors of other cabins being cleaned (and I’m sure we all peek) can be a real eye-opener when you see the mess. Do you really want some stranger picking up your underwear?
   
2. Take time to exchange greetings. Some cabin stewards like a quick hello and a smile, or a chat about their families back home. You can develop a great natural rapport with the cabin stewards just by chatting and being friendly. It can even result in extra chocolates on the pillow.
   
3. Address your cabin steward by name. Sounds simple, and it is. It’s also common courtesy.
   
4. Discuss any special requests you have at the beginning of the cruise. For example, if you don’t want your ice bucket filled in the mornings, tell him, and shave a minute or two off his work time.
   
5. If you leave a written note, make sure it’s clear and legible. English is often the lingua franca onboard, but it might not be the first language of your steward.
   
6. This is a controversial one, but some cruisers set things off on the right foot with a pre-cruise sweetener of $20 or so to their room stewards. Whether this is saying, “I’m going to be extra demanding” or “There will be bigger rewards at the end for good service,” you’ll probably get the steward’s attention.
   

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/blog/index.php/2012/11/27/6-simple-tips-for-keeping-your-cabin-steward-friendly/

[willise]

By far, our best cabin steward was on the Spirit in 2010 from Boston to Bermuda. His name was Rod - absolutely fantastic!!

 

He was the one of the main reasons we decided to stick with NCL. Unfortunately we haven't seen him on any of our other Boston Bermuda cruises.

 

Maybe we will see him on the Dawn in a couple of weeks:)

[roger001]

We've never had less than wonderful cabin stewards. Every single one of them! I can almost still name them all. We see some again when we cruise the same ship and it's like seeing a good friend every time.

[vols_159]

Always had great cabin stewards

[vols_159]

Oh and I'm not gonna tip at the start of the cruise if they earn it ill tip at the end... And I've always tipped at the end

[ColinIllinois]

To be honest I can't remember a single one of my cabin steward's names. They come in and clean my room when I'm not there and I pretty much never have any special requests. If I do see them it's a pleasant exchange of small talk and thats about it.

 

For me that's fine and a successful experience.

[Fins2theleft]

We had a miserable cabin steward on our Gem cruise in 2009. We left the day after Christmas and got back the day after New Year's, so I don't know if she was missing her family or what. I do however tip a good steward at the end of the cruise.

[mpk218]

Dont forget to fill out the " You done good card " and drop it in the box by reception . Those are worth their weight in gold to the crew . ;)

 

Only had one terrible cabin steward in all my years . I dont recall her name but

we were on RCL . I swear there was a bigger mess in the cabin after we returned than before we left on a regular basis .. ( no , we did not say anything to the HD ) :eek:

 

And she was just pissed all the time ...

[MsTabbyKats]

The only one that stands out was on our last Miracle cruise. Her name was "Sunny" and she was very friendly and around all the time. (DH and I are really low maintenance people...so it wasn't as if we needed her around). She was telling us about her Best/Worst passengers. :)

 

We generally give the steward a few dollars at the beginning, just in case we do have "a demand".

[cruisecritiquer]

I would LOVE to hear their best/worst passenger stories. Too bad they don't have their own subforum. :D

[NLH Arizona]

I've never pre-tipped (and never will) and have had great room stewards on all of my cruises. If feel that if you give respect, you will get respect.

[MsTabbyKats]

I would LOVE to hear their best/worst passenger stories. Too bad they don't have their own subforum. :D

 

Oh...mostly how passengers think that the stewards are "their servants"....and that they leave the cabins like a hurricane hit. I believe there was also a story about someone expecting her to "babysit".

[Dr. Cocktail]

It's funny - in all of my cruises, I have only ever had one really bad cabin steward and that was on Norwegian Dawn. Testy, lazy, unsmiling and always acting as if he was doing us a favour.

 

My partner and I are both extremely friendly and leave our room looking like the brochure picture - you would swear there wasn't anyone in the room.

 

In any case, it became very obvious that the steward wasn't vacuuming the room.

 

What did we say or do? Nothing. We both firmly believe that you NEVER do anything to antagonize anyone who has direct access to your toothbrush and your toilet!!!

[xenagurl]

We've/I've had some that were about 80 on the scale of 100, but never a bad one. Quiet ones (which I think is fine, but some are put off by that) but never bad.

 

Many I remember by name and one of my favorites (Clark) I first met on the Jade and then just recently saw him on the Breakaway, we both recognized each other and had a nice reunion. :)

[babyher]

To be honest I can't remember a single one of my cabin steward's names. They come in and clean my room when I'm not there and I pretty much never have any special requests. If I do see them it's a pleasant exchange of small talk and thats about it.

 

For me that's fine and a successful experience.

 

 

 

You pretty much said it for me too.

[vols_159]

Dont forget to fill out the " You done good card " and drop it in the box by reception . Those are worth their weight in gold to the crew . ;)

 

Only had one terrible cabin steward in all my years . I dont recall her name but

we were on RCL . I swear there was a bigger mess in the cabin after we returned than before we left on a regular basis .. ( no , we did not say anything to the HD ) :eek:

 

And she was just pissed all the time ...

 

Ncl still has style cards?

[graphicguy]

All but one were outstanding, tending to any request promptly and with a smile.

 

The only "bad one" was on my Celebrity Solstice cruise (balcony stateroom). He acted as if he couldn't be bothered and that requests (even simple ones like extra ice) were putting him out. This was AFTER I gave him $20 up front, first day of the cruise to keep extra ice in the cabin.

 

About the middle of the cruise, I think he got tired of hearing my every morning request for extra ice and became scarce as I only saw him one other time, after that.

[william]

Best cabin stewart was on the Majesty out of Boston, before Ncl bought it . THis is when you tipped in the envelopes. He was so good he got his tip plus are waiters. Are waiter was the worse, whenever my husband asked for something, example one night chocolate ice cream. He would say oh I have to go down all the way to the store room. This happened many nights. Then toward the end of the night he is telling are table how they live on their tips. Sorry buddy should of thought of that when my husband asked you for stuff. When we got back to are cabin the last night are cabin steward was waiting to thank us for the huge tip we left him. More then double then what you are suppose to give.

[Mooder]

We have never had a BAD steward, but some are certainly better than others. I don't mind if I never see them but its fun to at least be friendly when we do. Our best was Juana on the Breakaway. Not only was she friendly and efficient, she made us feel as though there is much more to her job description, including taking care of us by keeping an eye on the teenagers' comings and goings, cleaning our 'disposable' drinking cups, safekeeping "lost" valuables, finding extra loungers for us, etc etc. She was our den mother. :)

[johnsak123]

I never really had a bad steward but friends I sail with got a snotty comment when they bumped into the steward when leaving the room They like to lounge about the cabin and balcony for a good portion of the day

When they were leaving he said "finally you are leaving the room"

I thought that was rude.

[dexddd]

Worst was on PoA. Just not the level of service like on the other ships (or at least at the time). Best Michael on the Dawn last year.

[Lovemygreekgeek]

Francisco last year on the Dawn was AMAZING. I miss him! He was a wonderful steward, but just an all around good person. I can't believe how often we ran into him (all over the place) and we'd always stop for a short chat even though I'm sure he had so much to do. He was very helpful, and even though we tipped him at the end and filled out a card, I regret not doing more to show him how much we valued his service! I hope I see him again this year!

[bean24]

I had an amazing steward on my first Dawn cruise. I had fallen and injured my leg and was reduced to using crutches the rest of the trip. I didn't want my husbands trip ruined too, plus I was on strong pain medicine so for a few days I just stayed mostly in the cabin. Armando would come by every few hours with ice and check to see if I needed anything. Needless to say he was very well tipped.

 

 

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[1witchydiva]

Anna was the absolute best on the Breakaway. She came and brought me a card and cupcake on my birthday and made a towel "animal" in the shape of a cake. My room was always clean and she was always around asking if we needed anything. So sweet and so friendly. We spent time talking to her. She really helped make our vacation memorable. :)

[DevCruise]

Worst was on PoA. Just not the level of service like on the other ships (or at least at the time). Best Michael on the Dawn last year.

 

It's funny you say that. Our best room steward was a woman named Emi on the PoA. We absolutely loved her.