NCL Tipping Question

[smeyer418]

Back in the day when passengers tipped by envelope, we had assigned waiters as well as cabin staff. We handed the envelopes of cash to our servers and wait staff, thanking them for impeccable service.

 

My question is, how were the behind the scenes employees, such as laundry workers, paid in those days? Today they share in the tip pool. Was their salary higher to compensate for lack of tips?

no they were tipped out from the money given directly as tips.

[ImADaneFan]

I have a tip question that's a little different.

 

When we go to a specialty restaurant we tip extra. We normally add it on the tip line when we sign for the meal.

 

My questions is this: Does your actual server receive that tip, or does it go into a pool for the staff that worked that night?

Or if we leave a tip in cash does the waiter get to keep it or does it go into a pool?

 

I have never thought to ask and I want to make sure that tip actually goes the person that gave me great service.:)

[FreestyleNovice]

$12 per day per person. Billed to your on board account every morning. That covers tips for everyone on board except the concierge, your butler and kids club staff. Very few people use those people so the Discretionary Service Charge (DSC) does not cover those positions.

 

LMB, adjusting can only be done on the last night and/or morning of debarkation right? Your signature indicates it can be done any time but I am not sure if that's the case? Not that I agree but I recall reading something about it.

[Love my butler]

LMB, adjusting can only be done on the last night and/or morning of debarkation right? Your signature indicates it can be done any time but I am not sure if that's the case? Not that I agree but I recall reading something about it.

 

Actually my signature does not indicate it can be done anytime. My experience has been the customer service desk directs you to adjust the DSC on the last evening up until the last morning. I don't know if this is a fleet wide policy or just ship to ship.

[Love my butler]

Just as you say their are poorly performing crew who are rewarded thru the DSC, there are fantastic performing crew members who are stiffed when one deducts the DSC.

 

Yeah, that would be the double edged part.........

[NLH Arizona]

Yeah, that would be the double edged part.........

And it is really sad that some would stiff these exceptional staff members, but then I guess some just don't care.

[smeyer418]

I have a tip question that's a little different.

 

When we go to a specialty restaurant we tip extra. We normally add it on the tip line when we sign for the meal.

 

My questions is this: Does your actual server receive that tip, or does it go into a pool for the staff that worked that night?

Or if we leave a tip in cash does the waiter get to keep it or does it go into a pool?

 

I have never thought to ask and I want to make sure that tip actually goes the person that gave me great service.:)

In general if you leave it on the slip, its pooled. if you give it in cash to someone specific they can either keep it or pool it. Since most are part of a service team, most but not all pool it. If however you have removed the DSC should go back in to the regular pool.(assuming that since you are in a specialty restaurant they know who you are) but not always.

Whether a ship will accept a removal other than the last night is moe dependent on the Hotel Director and what he or she wants. They are responsible to the home office if there are "excess" removals.

[ImADaneFan]

In general if you leave it on the slip, its pooled. if you give it in cash to someone specific they can either keep it or pool it. Since most are part of a service team, most but not all pool it. If however you have removed the DSC should go back in to the regular pool.(assuming that since you are in a specialty restaurant they know who you are) but not always.

Whether a ship will accept a removal other than the last night is moe dependent on the Hotel Director and what he or she wants. They are responsible to the home office if there are "excess" removals.

Thanks that's exactly what I wanted to know. We NEVER remove the DSC and always tip extra, but I wanted to make sure that our waiter was actually receiving the tip we left.

[luddite]

It is sad the cruiseline is stiffing them. I only tip the front line personnel. The people behind the scenes (laundry, dishwashers) should be paid by the cruiseline.

 

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Your DSC takes care of them. It is nice that you also tip some of the fellows as well.

[smeyer418]

btw the base salary of the waiters and room stewards are in the neighborhood of $100 PER MONTH. They do bring home more because they are paid a minimum drawer against the DSC in the neighborhood of $1750 per month(plus or minus). The dishwashers/laundry were paid about $500-800 per month. slightly more now with a guaranteed DSC. The dishwashers want to be waiters and the laundry people want to work as stewards...but these both require a better command of English.

 

and if you don't believe that they won't pay them more...where did the lobsters tails go?

and the cruise lines have been up to the US Supreme Court twice on how the 1/4 of 1 Percent tax is calculated(does it have to be paid on port charges? which the cruise lines consider a pass through)

[NLH Arizona]

So in any case whether you pay them in the DSC or pay it in the fare its you who pay in any way.

I think the issue is, that some go to guest services and have the DSC deducted saying they had bad service or are tipping cash just to get their $12 a day back and are not tipping or only tipping a few. Thus, they are not paying the crew in any way shape or form and that is why I wish NCL should just raise the fare $12 or $15 a day and go back to optional tipping.

[luddite]

You wouldn't be paying more, they would just add the cost of the DSC into the fare. If you wanted to tip additional, then you could. My point was also, that they can't remove it when it is part of the fare.

 

It would cost more. It costs more than 10 dollars for a company to pay an employee ten dollars.

[luddite]

The dsc is an increase in fare if they make you jump through hoops to remove it. Unbelievable what these cruiselines get away with.

 

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The DSC is part of the cost of the trip. If you do not wish to pay it....well, you shouldn't go.

[jackson bernard]

And it is really sad that some would stiff these exceptional staff members, but then I guess some just don't care.

 

Even more sad how people watch for price adjustments, on board credits, free dinners and other perks essentially lowering the ability of the cruiseline to pay these folks what they deserve.

 

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[Love my butler]

Even more sad how people watch for price adjustments, on board credits, free dinners and other perks essentially lowering the ability of the cruiseline to pay these folks what they deserve.

 

Completely agree. The free market should be abolished! It's un-American!

[luvtheships]

Even more sad how people watch for price adjustments, on board credits, free dinners and other perks essentially lowering the ability of the cruiseline to pay these folks what they deserve.

 

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You are blaming the pax because the cruiseline has a sale?

 

I guess you don't believe in capitalism then and probably don't realize that when you purchase an item in a store that if it goes on sale the next week you are entitled to the discount price too and all you need to do is bring in your receipt for a price adjustment ?

 

Ships hate to sail with unsold cabins

Planes hate to fly with empty seats

Hotels hate to have empty rooms overnight

 

Lost revenue that can never be made up my friend

 

 

 

 

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Edited July 23, 2014 by luvtheships

[luvtheships]

Completely agree. The free market should be abolished! It's un-American!

 

Unfortunately Mr. Butler, that seems to be coming to fruition.

 

 

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[smeyer418]

You are blaming the pax because the cruiseline has a sale?

 

 

..

 

 

 

 

what's even more sad is that he blames the cruise line when passenger's remove the autotip as it should be paid by the cruiseline not the passenger(as if the passenger doesn't pay for it anyway).

[jackson bernard]

what's even more sad is that he blames the cruise line when passenger's remove the autotip as it should be paid by the cruiseline not the passenger(as if the passenger doesn't pay for it anyway).

 

Before I pay, I would like a detailed breakdown of where the charges are going. Carnival seems to be able to bresk it down. I refuse to tip the front desk staff, the people that wash the sheets, or the entertainers. Those are the cruiselines responsibility.

 

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[jackson bernard]

Agreed .... just read up on DSC from legit sources and not message board threads and it is needed ... the base salary for many posts on the ship is as low as $50 a month without DSC.

 

That said I would rather prefer the cruise fare to be raised by $84 pp per week and DSC no longer applied! It perpetuates a culture of tips.

 

They will never do that as they wouldn't be able to advertise what the real fares are

 

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[sparks1093]

Before I pay, I would like a detailed breakdown of where the charges are going. Carnival seems to be able to bresk it down. I refuse to tip the front desk staff, the people that wash the sheets, or the entertainers. Those are the cruiselines responsibility.

 

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NCL does tell us who the service charge is distributed to (I believe it was quoted in this thread), they just don't tell us how much. If I were eating out at mid-priced restaurants for three meals a day the tips would far exceed $12 per day per person. When I eat out at a restaurant I don't worry about whether or not my server is keeping all of the tip or tipping out other staff members with it and I don't really care who gets a portion of the service charge- I figure it's earned many times over (I have worked onboard ships and know how demanding it is).

[jackson bernard]

NCL does tell us who the service charge is distributed to (I believe it was quoted in this thread), they just don't tell us how much. If I were eating out at mid-priced restaurants for three meals a day the tips would far exceed $12 per day per person. When I eat out at a restaurant I don't worry about whether or not my server is keeping all of the tip or tipping out other staff members with it and I don't really care who gets a portion of the service charge- I figure it's earned many times over (I have worked onboard ships and know how demanding it is).

 

Carnival does to some extent. NCL does not. May be going straight into the executives pockets for all we know.

 

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[sparks1093]

Carnival does to some extent. NCL does not. May be going straight into the executives pockets for all we know.

 

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You may go to the NCL FAQ and read "Staff members including restaurant staff, stateroom stewards and behind-the-scenes support staff" which constitutes the traditionally tipped and tipped out staff on other cruise lines or land based establishments. (And I doubt that it's going into an exec's pockets because it it was then that means that the cruise line is paying the crew directly rather than through the service charge.) My obligation ends when I pay the service charge, it's then up to NCL to distribute to the people that should get it (and if someone on the staff goes the extra mile for me and mine then I have several options for recognizing that, including a cash tip).

[rics321]

They will never do that as they wouldn't be able to advertise what the real fares are

 

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Well the only way to change the cruise line behavior is everyone collectively needs to stop DSC and then the cruiselines will start adding it to the fare. But that will not happen ... so we are kinda stuck.

 

That said I do see your point. When we book a hotel room we just pay for the hotel room ... all people are paid out of it. So why should a cruise line be any different? Seems to me they want to expand the tipping culture. I alone cant fight it and I don't wanna stiff the poor people making $50 a month.

 

Tipping typically should be for people who directly provide you service and not any random person you come in contact with.

 

Oh the worst thing about tipping on ncl cruise ship is they fold the check to the part of additional gratuity ... thinking you are dumb enough to add more without noticing the 15% already tacked on!

[smeyer418]

...

 

That said I do see your point. When we book a hotel room we just pay for the hotel room ... all people are paid out of it. So why should a cruise line be any different? Seems to me they want to expand the tipping culture. I alone cant fight it and I don't wanna stiff the poor people making $50 a month.

 

Tipping typically should be for people who directly provide you service and not any random person you come in contact with.

 

...

 

In the US at least when you book a hotel room the room cleaner who normally only does your room once a day and probably has twice the number of rooms that the stewards do on the ship is paid at least the non-tipped US minimum wage and overtime. If you are at a resort that includes some meals most(not all) have a resort fee or a service charge added(and its almost always more then $12 a day). The ones I use charge 15% at least on the entire charge...so its $50+ per day for the room and meals..and they don't tell you were it goes either. and BTW even when its just a room I tip the maids anyway.

 

see for example only

http://www.ranchodeloscaballeros.com/?WT.srch=1&WT.mc_id=PPC2P&DCSext.ppc_kw=rancho+de+los+caballeros&ppc_ac=Brand&ppc_ag=Brand+Broad&ppc_mt=Broad&platform=c

Edited July 24, 2014 by smeyer418