Is Dynamic Dining the end of using OBC for gratuities?

[Folk Singer]

Which would mean that a year from now, when 5 (Q, An, Al, Oa, Fr) of RCI's newest ships are DD (more than 1/4 of their fleet in terms of volume) those OBC $s could change RCI's costs dramatically. Those OBC dollars cost RCI much less if used for anything other than gratuities ($10 spent on a drink costs them $1, $10 spent on gratuities costs them $10). If you were an RCI bean counter what would you do?

 

It does mean more in profit and share price dividends. :eek:

[LMaxwell]

If you were an RCI bean counter what would you do?

 

I was always surprised RCI allowed use of OBC for gratuities. If I were in charge of revenue I could think of even more steps I'd take but I don't want to give them any ideas...

[RoamingRetirees]

I was always surprised RCI allowed use of OBC for gratuities. If I were in charge of revenue I could think of even more steps I'd take but I don't want to give them any ideas...

 

A lot of the OBC comes from TA's. Why couldn't you use it for gratuities?

[Biker19]

A lot of the OBC comes from TA's.

The TA OBC comes out of revenue provided by RCI - so indirectly it's RCI OBC.;)

[RocketMan275]

A lot of the OBC comes from TA's. Why couldn't you use it for gratuities?

 

Various posters have stated that OBC from a TA is refundable. Consequently, you can use if for anything. If nothing else, don't spend it on board, and it will be refunded to your credit card where it can be used to offset other charges to the card such as gratuities. Cash is fungible.

[RoamingRetirees]

Various posters have stated that OBC from a TA is refundable. Consequently, you can use if for anything. If nothing else, don't spend it on board, and it will be refunded to your credit card where it can be used to offset other charges to the card such as gratuities. Cash is fungible.

 

This is true. We once received 8 cents back. :D

[LMaxwell]

Not all TA OBC is refundable. We once received $100 and found out onboard that $15 was refundable and $85 was not. I do not know how that gets allocated or decided. The refundable portion guest services cashed out with no fee; the balance we had to cash out in the casino for 5%, though some report the purser will distribute this money without a fee on the last day of the cruise.

[RocketMan275]

This is true. We once received 8 cents back. :D

 

Quite frankly, I really wonder if this isn't a 'tempest in a teapot'. I will believe in unused OBC when I see a Unicorn walking down the promenade.

[RoamingRetirees]

Quite frankly, I really wonder if this isn't a 'tempest in a teapot'. I will believe in unused OBC when I see a Unicorn walking down the promenade.

 

Actually, we spend very little other than gratuities. We normally book private excursions. There have been times we bought some stuff in the shops in order not to lose the OBC.

[Onessa]

I like to look at requiring pre-pay of gratuities is the same as upping the price of the cruise and making it a "no tips" cruise. I add in the price of the tips when comparing cruises so I would really prefer it if the cruise lines would simply pay their staffs a decent wage and then charge me accordingly. Comparing all of the assorted fees and such is really getting to be irratating!

 

I cruise 90% for the itinerary, 10% for the cruise experience. All I want/need is a clean and comfortable room, a breakfast buffet, and a nice dinner.

 

I've gotten so sick of the high on-board prices and other games the lines play that I have discovered that without even trying, I have had zero on-board charges (for a family of 3) my last four cruises. I had arranged with my TA for "compensation" other than an OBC so I did not have to worry about refunds or the like

 

We save beer purchases for on-shore where the selection is better and prices are too. We typically eat lunch at a local spot and do our wine drinking there. After being held "hostage" one too many times at some schlocky tourist shop, we stopped doing ships excursions -- it is on-our-own or private tours only. I don't need to gamble on-board. I can walk to a casino from my home and never bother going there.

 

I know the cruise lines "hate" me for not beefing up their profits -- but when they keep pushing and pushing and pushing with all of these extra (overpriced) expenses, they hit my breaking point.

[styxfire]

I personally don't understand why some people have a problem with prepayment. You're going to pay it anyway, the chances of bad services are pretty small, and you're not going to earn more than a dollar or two if the money's in your savings account -- why not just prepay and remove one small chore from your vacation?

I have a problem w/ pre-payment because I prefer to pay tips with my OBC. On my last booking, I got hosed by accepting a travel agent's offer of a large OBC, and not finding out until later that traditional dining was full so we were forced to have MTD. Which added $300 to the amount I had to pay the travel agent.

 

Now I'm boarding the ship w/ $375 OBC (and there is nothing worth $375 on the ship that I would want), and $300 less in my checkbook.

 

OBC isn't "free money". It's money with which I'd planned to pay the cost of the cruise. Prepayment prevents that.

[SherriZ366]

Not all TA OBC is refundable. We once received $100 and found out onboard that $15 was refundable and $85 was not. I do not know how that gets allocated or decided. The refundable portion guest services cashed out with no fee; the balance we had to cash out in the casino for 5%, though some report the purser will distribute this money without a fee on the last day of the cruise.

Will follow your advice if the put DD on FR and we have to pre-pay gratuities. We have $400 OBC for each of our next 2 FR cruises -- a cancelled sailing for drydock and a full ship charter. Figure DH will be happy to get money to gamble and i may order a more expensive wine but if we have anything left, we will probably get more money in the Casino even if it is a 5% fee.

[MrsPete]

I like to keep my money in my pocket. Why does RCI have the money before I cruise as they are going too get it anyway?

I get it -- you like to control where your money is. That's an emotional thing. But does it actually amount to any difference in the long run?

We almost always have OBC and use it to pay the gratuities. I'm not worried about bad service or earning "a dollar or two." That "one small chore" really isn't a chore, since they automatically add it to your Sea Pass account--it does not require any effort. We just prefer to use our OBC to pay for it. What is wrong with that?

Paying with OBC is a great reason NOT to want to pay tips ahead of time. However, that applies only to a relatively small number of cruisers who BOTH have OBC available to spend AND don't spend it on drinks, tee shirts, excursions, etc.

 

However, even if the tips are added to your account automatically, it IS still "a small chore" in that you should check to see that it was credited properly. A make or break thing? Not even close, but it is something that you should spend a moment verifying.

[MrsPete]

A lot of the OBC comes from TA's. Why couldn't you use it for gratuities?

Well, the ship is trying to make a profit -- so think about it from a business point of view. They'd PREFER you spend that OBC on spa treatments, excursions, specialty restaurants . . . and then pay your gratuities out of your own pocket. More profit for them, regardless of the source of the OBC.

[MrsPete]

Which would mean that a year from now, when 5 (Q, An, Al, Oa, Fr) of RCI's newest ships are DD (more than 1/4 of their fleet in terms of volume) those OBC $s could change RCI's costs dramatically. Those OBC dollars cost RCI much less if used for anything other than gratuities ($10 spent on a drink costs them $1, $10 spent on gratuities costs them $10). If you were an RCI bean counter what would you do?

Yes, I see it clearly from that point of view. It's not guest-friendly, but it's a fact. I can see that they'd try to maneuver the options to steer guests away from using OBC for gratuities.

 

Keep in mind, though, that most people don't have enough OBC for this to be a big issue. Also remember that most people, when presented with "free money", tend to blow through it FAST. I doubt large numbers of cruisers are actually using their OBC for gratuities. People on this board probably aren't typical of most cruisers; people here are studying how to get the most value from their money.

[RoamingRetirees]

Well, the ship is trying to make a profit -- so think about it from a business point of view. They'd PREFER you spend that OBC on spa treatments, excursions, specialty restaurants . . . and then pay your gratuities out of your own pocket. More profit for them, regardless of the source of the OBC.

 

That goes without saying. When I shop at a store, I look for the best price; they want to charge as much as possible.

[RoamingRetirees]

Yes, I see it clearly from that point of view. It's not guest-friendly, but it's a fact. I can see that they'd try to maneuver the options to steer guests away from using OBC for gratuities.

 

Keep in mind, though, that most people don't have enough OBC for this to be a big issue. Also remember that most people, when presented with "free money", tend to blow through it FAST. I doubt large numbers of cruisers are actually using their OBC for gratuities. People on this board probably aren't typical of most cruisers; people here are studying how to get the most value from their money.

 

You are right. Most people blow through their money. We don't--one reason we can cruise quite often. :D

[MrsPete]

Actually, we spend very little other than gratuities. We normally book private excursions. There have been times we bought some stuff in the shops in order not to lose the OBC.

I tend to spend rather like you - but I'm certain we're uncommon.

[MrsPete]

I have a problem w/ pre-payment because I prefer to pay tips with my OBC. On my last booking, I got hosed by accepting a travel agent's offer of a large OBC, and not finding out until later that traditional dining was full so we were forced to have MTD. Which added $300 to the amount I had to pay the travel agent.

 

Now I'm boarding the ship w/ $375 OBC (and there is nothing worth $375 on the ship that I would want), and $300 less in my checkbook.

 

OBC isn't "free money". It's money with which I'd planned to pay the cost of the cruise. Prepayment prevents that.

I see your point, but the problem here wasn't pre-payment . . . it was NOT being able to get the dinner seating you wanted.

 

However, you're not sunk: I don't know the source of the $75, but you should be able to go to Guest Relations onboard and ask for the $300 in cash. You can then use that money for your island stops or even gas money to get back home after the cruise.

 

So it all works out fine in the long run.

[MrsPete]

That goes without saying. When I shop at a store, I look for the best price; they want to charge as much as possible.

 

You are right. Most people blow through their money. We don't--one reason we can cruise quite often. :D

These statements both make sense to me.

[LMaxwell]

Being in control of my money is not emotional (Well, maybe to a certain degree, but it is not rooted in emotion). Rather it is part of a disciplined personal money management strategy, part of which dictates keeping my money mine as long as practical (to the point it does not cost me money to keep my money). Depending on the length of a cruise and number of people I am paying for those gratuities can be a significant portion of the total price of the cruise. Therefore if I *do* have OBC I'd prefer to pay from that versus paying 2.5 months + ahead of time.

 

That said, the conflicting accounts in this thread tell me that RCI does not have a firm policy about this with regards to dynamic dining and is not treating all people equally.

[Lady Hudson]

Being in control of my money is not emotional (Well, maybe to a certain degree, but it is not rooted in emotion). Rather it is part of a disciplined personal money management strategy, part of which dictates keeping my money mine as long as practical (to the point it does not cost me money to keep my money). Depending on the length of a cruise and number of people I am paying for those gratuities can be a significant portion of the total price of the cruise. Therefore if I *do* have OBC I'd prefer to pay from that versus paying 2.5 months + ahead of time.

 

That said, the conflicting accounts in this thread tell me that RCI does not have a firm policy about this with regards to dynamic dining and is not treating all people equally.

 

Please help. Does RCI have a stated policy anywhere that DD requires prepaid gratuities? I just made final payment for Quantum and did not have to pay gratuities in advance. Could it be that some TAs or RCI vacation planners just confused DD with MTD? I would not be happy if I could not use OBC for gratuities.

Edited October 11, 2014 by Lady Hudson

[Clarea]

Please help. Does RCI have a stated policy anywhere that DD requires prepaid gratuities? I just made final payment for Quantum and did not have to pay gratuities in advance. Could it be that some TAs or RCI vacation planners just confused DD with MTD? I would not be happy if I could not use OBC for gratuities.

I've not yet seen any policy from Royal with regard to gratuities and DD. All we have to go on is people's experiences posted here.

[RoamingRetirees]

Please help. Does RCI have a stated policy anywhere that DD requires prepaid gratuities? I just made final payment for Quantum and did not have to pay gratuities in advance. Could it be that some TAs or RCI vacation planners just confused DD with MTD? I would not be happy if I could not use OBC for gratuities.

 

I wasn't happy either when I booked the 53-day repositioning cruise when I was on Allure, and the agent said we were required to prepay. We received OBC from RCI for booking on board, and I knew my TA would be giving me more. Fortunately, my TA agreed to pay the gratuities for us in lieu of OBC, so at least we only have the RCI OBC to spend.

[LMaxwell]

Please help. Does RCI have a stated policy anywhere that DD requires prepaid gratuities? I just made final payment for Quantum and did not have to pay gratuities in advance. Could it be that some TAs or RCI vacation planners just confused DD with MTD? I would not be happy if I could not use OBC for gratuities.

 

There are conflicting reports and no clear policy from RCI on this subject. It's not confusion so much as lack of direction.