Tips to bar staff - clarified

[Krazy Kruizers]

Here is a twist to consider. On the Oosterdam and then on the Zuiderdam last year we learned that many of the bar staff rotate lounges, cruise to cruise. For instance, the server in the Explorers Lounge for our cruise was moving to the Ocean Bar the next. I have this mental image of total chaos as at the beginning of each cruise as the staff for that cruise at each bar takes a vote??!!??

 

Then there is the matter of them moving around each day. For instance, one of our favorites on the Zuiderdam was also on the Rotterdam. She worked the Lido during the day and the Ocean Bar at night. Our wonderful wine steward in the MDR served drinks around the Lido in the afternoon.

 

I have a headache - I think I need a drink!

 

 

The bar tenders and bar staff and wine servers have been changing lounges/bars on HAL ships for years. Depending on the length of the cruise, depends on how often they are interchanged. And yes -- many of them have to work elsewhere -- private parties, in the Lido, etc.

We did have an incident on one of our cruises -- half way through a 21 day PanAmerican cruise, one of the servers complained that he was in an area where is was not getting a lot of people asking for drinks and asked to be moved to a busier bar. His wish was granted but I often wonder how a couple of other bar staff felt when they got moved.

[cruz chic]

I'm in the camp of thinking the 15% is enough. 99% of the time I sit at the bar when I'm in a lounge. I don't think making a drink and handing it to me is worth more than 15%. Before someone calls me a cheapskate I generally do tip over and above the HSC for room and MDR stewards. I also tip for room service.

Edited September 10, 2014 by cruz chic

[cruz chic]

I have always felt that auto tips reduce service levels, as there is less incentive. Just my opinion of course.

 

My opinion too.

[solocanadian]

We have always tipped the bar staff, even before the 15% add-on a couple of years ago (five at least? really!?!) We have several (many;)) Dutch girl hats with best wishes from the bar staff -- on one cruise we got two, one for the Piet Hein (as Jimmy Buffet sang, "step up and show your age") and one for the Crow's Nest.

 

We get pampered and enthusiastic service at all bars now. I was somewhat surprised recently to realize I was in the middle of a tipping snit when I offered my uncensored and unmedicated opinion, but we will always fail on the side of tipping the staff: many times in our salad days (to finish the quotation, when we were green in judgement), we were the staff, and we adored tips.

 

Old friend Voltaire, from at least two previous cruises we collectively figured out, and understudy Marvin, in the Crow's Nest on Amsterdam the last two weeks were among the best we have seen on HAL -- old-timers will recognize that that is high praise, indeed.

 

Dave

Dave, remember Michael King? :) He was tops.:cool: Long retired now.

[Lizzie68]

Not singling you out, but my point in this thread was NOT to comment on, or wonder about, what agreement the servers have with each other. It was to address an earlier assertion that the pooling/sharing of tips among the bar staff was HAL mandated and compulsory. I suspect that the bar servers who told a passenger that they were forced to pool tips may have been in the minority vote among those they worked with at a particular bar.

 

Gotcha. Yes, I've read that too. I have no idea how the system works, I just assume there is one.

[MOM2CHADALI]

We always bring cash for extra tips. I've seen the bartenders put it in a jar and some put it in their pocket. I tip for service. I prefer the person I give it to have it but once I hand it over, it's no longer up to me.

 

Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have always tipped the bar staff, even before the 15% add-on a couple of years ago (five at least? really!?!) We have several (many;)) Dutch girl hats with best wishes from the bar staff -- on one cruise we got two, one for the Piet Hein (as Jimmy Buffet sang, "step up and show your age") and one for the Crow's Nest.

 

We get pampered and enthusiastic service at all bars now. I was somewhat surprised recently to realize I was in the middle of a tipping snit when I offered my uncensored and unmedicated opinion, but we will always fail on the side of tipping the staff: many times in our salad days (to finish the quotation, when we were green in judgement), we were the staff, and we adored tips.

 

Old friend Voltaire, from at least two previous cruises we collectively figured out, and understudy Marvin, in the Crow's Nest on Amsterdam the last two weeks were among the best we have seen on HAL -- old-timers will recognize that that is high praise, indeed.

 

Dave

 

 

We also have quite a few of the special Dutch Hats -- not just from the Bar staff -- but from others as well.

You are fortunate to get special attention from the bar staff. Wish we would encounter some of the ones we used to know. Guess they have left HAL and moved on.

[cbr663]

We also have quite a few of the special Dutch Hats -- not just from the Bar staff -- but from others as well.

You are fortunate to get special attention from the bar staff. Wish we would encounter some of the ones we used to know. Guess they have left HAL and moved on.

 

That is to be expected with HAL's current tipping policy that produces inconsistent and variable income for its servers. Those with a greater skill set are more likely to leave for employment opportunities where there incomes are more stable and guaranteed.

[RetiredMustang]

We also have quite a few of the special Dutch Hats -- not just from the Bar staff -- but from others as well.

You are fortunate to get special attention from the bar staff. Wish we would encounter some of the ones we used to know. Guess they have left HAL and moved on.

 

KK,

 

I did not realize you could get the hats for something other than bar-dwelling :D. That special action is long-gone now, but I remember when the crew would go to such effort to make the hats with the liquid embroidery pens. I'm truly interested: What/where else did you get them?

 

Also, no doubt many of the crew do a few, or many, contracts and get on with their lives; I've heard from some that "Old Harry" or "Katrina" or whoever, has gone home to Indonesia or the Philippines, where his/her training and experience on HAL makes him/her a very marketable asset to the high-end hotels in Jakarta or Manila, or elsewhere in the resorts.

 

But, now and then, I run across a crew member who has moved up in the HAL ranks. Once I knew a barman, and a couple of cruises later saw him with the diamond-shaped device on his shoulder boards (my Navy background thinks "Chief"). A few cruises later, I ran across him and he had a single gold stripe with the yellow band indicating hotel staff officer (and I think "Ensign"). Then, a cruise or two ago, I saw him as the beverage manager or something equivalent, with two gold stripes and hotel staff yellow (Lieutenant). Sometimes, they move up, but not on.

 

Dave

Edited September 10, 2014 by RetiredMustang

[RetiredMustang]

Dave, remember Michael King? :) He was tops.:cool: Long retired now.

 

I'm sorry, but no, I don't remember that name. That is not to say I was not served by him once ... or many times. ;)

 

Dave

[sail7seas]

We also have quite a few of the special Dutch Hats -- not just from the Bar staff -- but from others as well.

You are fortunate to get special attention from the bar staff. Wish we would encounter some of the ones we used to know. Guess they have left HAL and moved on.

 

 

I treasure my collection of the beautiful painted Dutch hats but wonder when you say "Not just from the Bar staff"?

 

It is the Filipinos who painted those hats and I don't recall any of the Indonesian crew doing them? The bar staff are from Philippines. Some of those hats are true works of art and worthy of framing.

[cruz chic]

I know this is off topic but I would love to see a pic of these painted hats. I started cruising with Hal in 1984. I had a lapse in judgement between 1984 and 1998 :D and didn't start cursing with Hal again until 1999. I don't think I've ever seen one of these hats and have only heard about them here. Thx.

[sail7seas]

I know this is off topic but I would love to see a pic of these painted hats. I started cruising with Hal in 1984. I had a lapse in judgement between 1984 and 1998 :D and didn't start cursing with Hal again until 1999. I don't think I've ever seen one of these hats and have only heard about them here. Thx.

 

 

 

Hopefully KK will see this post.

I'd love to post photos of a few of my favorites but I don't know how. :o

One of these days, I have to learn. :eek:

 

[cruz chic]

Hopefully KK will see this post.

I'd love to post photos of a few of my favorites but I don't know how. :o

One of these days, I have to learn. :eek:

 

 

I've had luck with the tapatalk app but that would require an iPad or a smart phone. Don't know if you do or don't have either. Love my iPad but hate my stupid phone :rolleyes:.

[sail7seas]

My 9 year old flip phone doesn't do photos. :eek: :D

 

I'm not into all the techie gadgets...... obviously. :D

[cruz chic]

I'd still have my flip phone but it bit the dust a year ago. I went with the cheapie special phone and that's what I got. Live and learn. If my iPad bites the dust I'll get another one. I rarely use my desktop anymore.

[PathfinderEss]

Dave, remember Michael King? :) He was tops.:cool: Long retired now.

I remember Michael King, he was the best of the best. I still run into bartenders that knew and worked with him every once in a while.

[DeeniEncinitas]

We do the same. We also wait until the last couple of days to give the extra $$ to those who have become our "regulars". The extra tip isn't just for service but that server's excellent attitude.:)

 

Exactly!

We do the same thing!

Especially when you see the same servers from your other HAL cruises and they remember you since you have built a relationship!!

[POA1]

I know this is off topic but I would love to see a pic of these painted hats. I started cruising with Hal in 1984. I had a lapse in judgement between 1984 and 1998 :D and didn't start cursing with Hal again until 1999. I don't think I've ever seen one of these hats and have only heard about them here. Thx.

 

Sometimes spell check makes me smile. Read the third last sentence. (If you don't count Thx as a sentence, it's the second last one.)

[BruceMuzz]

Service staff on cruise ships are generally very clever.

 

They all learned many years ago how to best answer passengers' questions about tips.

If and when they do pool and share tips, they almost never admit it publicly.

 

Generally the people asking the question want their full tip to go to their favorite server. If they find out that the server has to share the tip money with other servers who may not even be known to the tipper, the amount of the tip nearly always goes down.

 

So the standard answer to nearly anyone asking about tip pooling is: " We get to keep it all".

[cruz chic]

Sometimes spell check makes me smile. Read the third last sentence. (If you don't count Thx as a sentence, it's the second last one.)

 

Oppppppssssss. And I can't spell properly at the best of times. I also curse a lot:D.

[cbr663]

Service staff on cruise ships are generally very clever.

 

They all learned many years ago how to best answer passengers' questions about tips.

If and when they do pool and share tips, they almost never admit it publicly.

 

Generally the people asking the question want their full tip to go to their favorite server. If they find out that the server has to share the tip money with other servers who may not even be known to the tipper, the amount of the tip nearly always goes down.

 

So the standard answer to nearly anyone asking about tip pooling is: " We get to keep it all".

 

This has been my experience also. Indirect communication is common on a HAL ship. It's one of the reasons why you can ask 3 different staff members the same question and receive 3 different responses. Many believe that telling the customer what he or she wants to hear is good customer service.

[sail7seas]

My DH and I with very few exceptions have tipped the bartenders in Ocean Bar and Crows Nest (or Pinnacle Bar) at the end of each cruise. If we have been helped regularly throughout the cruise by two or three at the same bar, we tip them all.

 

After Bruce Muzz's post, I am starting to rethink that. I knew bartenders pool their tips but I am now thinking I may do the same? I may have one envelope for all of them designated for them to share. Rather than an envelope for each, what about one for all?

Any opinions?

 

[Randyk47]

My DH and I with very few exceptions have tipped the bartenders in Ocean Bar and Crows Nest (or Pinnacle Bar) at the end of each cruise. If we have been helped regularly throughout the cruise by two or three at the same bar, we tip them all.

 

After Bruce Muzz's post, I am starting to rethink that. I knew bartenders pool their tips but I am now thinking I may do the same? I may have one envelope for all of them designated for them to share. Rather than an envelope for each, what about one for all?

Any opinions?

 

 

Personally I wouldn't do it unless we'd been equally served by the staff. When I think back, with a few exceptions, we somehow became the almost exclusive attention of one server. To this day the wonderful Ronald and equally charming Reggie (of the Regina and Reggie fame :)) stick out in my mind. Certainly if our primary server wasn't available and one or more of the other servers would quickly step in and they would get a tip, though usually smaller, than our primary. Same is true of bartenders and the fantastic Michael comes to mind but he was exceptional and special and we will never forget him taking Carey behind the bar to show her how to fix coral lemon drops. :) Other than him we did understand and have extended a pooled tip to all the bartenders.

Edited September 11, 2014 by Randyk47