How much is too much?

[crochetcruise]

Many are rotated between Anytime and Traditional dining. This is why when people ask for a recommended team in a dining room, chances are they may be in a different one a few months later.

 

Many also forget about the waitstaff in the buffet. Many don't also work in the dining rooms.

 

So it would be quite acceptable for me to give someone in the buffet who helps me a couple of $ for their assistance? As an Australian, the tipping culture is a bit of a challenge, but needing extra assistance from taxi drivers through disability, I will often round up the fare to give a little to them in thanks.

 

Will be sailing on the Golden Princess Melbourne-Sydney, Australia immediately before she sails back to LA in April 2016. Getting excited with the planning, everything's coming together nicely. Now all I need to do is wait patiently! And I'm NOT naturally a patient person!

 

Have just realised as the ship is returning to the US I can get USD. I have a small card holding metal case with 6 pockets, so am thinking of folding a couple of $ and tucking the folded notes into each pocket so I have tipping money handy.

 

Crochetcruise :cool:

Edited December 2, 2014 by crochetcruise
Additional information

[Happy2Crews]

Often times at the end of the day we will be in the buffet for our evening meal. So many times we see staff members working hard, and we know it's been a long day for them.....and still they do not hesitate to make nice in all sincerity. There were times when they wouldn't even let me refill my own glass of water It's moments like that that we thoroughly enjoy leaving a few bucks slide next to a plate they will soon be clearing after we leave. We know it's not much, but hope they know how much we appreciate the services they provide.

[JimmyVWine]

If someone takes a 17 day land vacation in most places with hotels and restaurants, they are going to pay far more in tips than $11.50 per day.

 

It's incredible how this gets lost in all of the static. A person's daily tip on a land based vacation would far exceed the auto tip amount.

 

Breakfast in a restaurant or room service: $10. Tip=$2.00

 

Lunch in a restaurant: $20. Tip=$3.50

 

Dinner in a restaurant: $40. Tip=$7.00

 

Chamber Maid: Tip=$3.00-$5.00

 

Bartenders: Princess adds 15% to all drinks, but on land you are likely to round up to a whole dollar figure and drive your tip up to closer to 20%. So we'll just add $2.00 additional dollars here.

 

So we are up to $17.50-$19.50 per day and we haven't tipped bellmen, concierges, sommeliers, pool attendants or any number of other people.

[Coral]

It's incredible how this gets lost in all of the static. A person's daily tip on a land based vacation would far exceed the auto tip amount.

 

 

I am sometimes anxious to get on a ship when tipping is controlled!

 

If I fly in the night before, I tip the taxi driver to the hotel. I tip the bell captain who takes my bags into the hotel, I tip the person who takes my bags to my room. I tip for dinner. The following morning, depending on much luggage we have (I often traveled with a disabled parent and Service dog so I had my hands full), I often call the bell captain to get our luggage and then tip him, then tip the taxi driver to take us to the ship and then once to the ship, I tip the porters there. Oh I forgot breakfast in there where I tip..... I also try to tip the housekeeping staff at the hotel a few dollars.

 

$11.50/day seems like a bargain compared to what I tip in the 24 hours before I reach the ship.

 

This doesn't even address the days spent if I fly in a few days early and spend time on land before the cruise.

[KruzeKrazy!]

To me it's not if or how much to tip EXTRA but more about to NOT remove the autotip. The cruise line determines what is fair/expected over the course of the contract so I would not feel comfortable shorting the staff from that.

 

And we always tip room service and extra to our cabin steward as we stay in suites and think they deserve extra.

 

All that said if you think about it on-land tipping based on a % is really quite dumb. A server at a given restaurant does no more work bringing, say, a $40 filet than a $20 sirloin but gets twice the tip...

 

But it is what it is...

[Pierlesscruisers]

While my wife and I tip in addition to the auto tip and have no problem with that, I am curious about one thing I've heard in this and other discussions is that you're able to remove the auto tip from your account, allegedly somewhere in your cruise personalizer. Out of curiosity, I've looked for that area but have been unable to find it. Where, exactly, is that, does anybody know? Obviously, somebody does, hopefully one of those somebodies will read this message and tell me. Does it only become visible within a certain period right before the cruise or what? I can not imagine ever removing the tip charges, but would like to see if it actually is there somewhere.

 

Tom

[shredie]

While my wife and I tip in addition to the auto tip and have no problem with that, I am curious about one thing I've heard in this and other discussions is that you're able to remove the auto tip from your account, allegedly somewhere in your cruise personalizer. Out of curiosity, I've looked for that area but have been unable to find it. Where, exactly, is that, does anybody know? Obviously, somebody does, hopefully one of those somebodies will read this message and tell me. Does it only become visible within a certain period right before the cruise or what? I can not imagine ever removing the tip charges, but would like to see if it actually is there somewhere.

 

Tom

 

 

I think it must be done at the Passenger Services desk on board.

[waltd]

While my wife and I tip in addition to the auto tip and have no problem with that, I am curious about one thing I've heard in this and other discussions is that you're able to remove the auto tip from your account, allegedly somewhere in your cruise personalizer. Out of curiosity, I've looked for that area but have been unable to find it. Where, exactly, is that, does anybody know? Obviously, somebody does, hopefully one of those somebodies will read this message and tell me. Does it only become visible within a certain period right before the cruise or what? I can not imagine ever removing the tip charges, but would like to see if it actually is there somewhere.

 

Tom

 

I believe as stated above you can only remove the tips while on board ship.

[lovey1103]

Our waitstaff in Traditional Dining has asked for our room number. They had a clipboard and was asking people. I think it was to see who was showing up and who wasn't but most cruises, we have been asked our cabin number.

 

----

 

For me, $11.50/day is minimal tip for the services they provide (clean bathrooms and cabins 2x a day plus restaurant service). If I can't afford what Princess recommends, then I can't afford to cruise. If you can afford to take the long cruises, then you need to budget for tips IMO. Or, take shorter cruises.

 

If someone takes a 17 day land vacation in most places with hotels and restaurants, they are going to pay far more in tips than $11.50 per day.

 

If you think Princess's tips are too much, find another way to vacation such as camping where tipping isn't necessary.

Now, that last line was LOL funny!

[jennybenny]

Another curiosity. Does anyone know how wait staff are assigned? That is MDR vs ATD. When people say they tip extra to a good MDR waiter (because they see the same one every night) but not the ATD waiter (because they only serve them once) is that really fair? Do they not work every night and the job may be harder because they have to please different people every night. Are those with less time in assigned where the tips will be lower and they expect it?

I'm not being critical of the line of thought, just wondering if people have thought of it this way.

 

I don't know if it is still possible, but in the past we have always done Anytime dining and gotten the same server every night. We have requested the same table at the same time and have gotten it. We just request it the first night and we are set. In their own way they do early and late seating in the anytime dining rooms. At least, that's how it was up to 4-5 years ago when we took our last Princess cruise. Hoping it will be the same for us this time around.

 

Glad to hear they rotate servers from traditional MDR to anytime during their rotation. We normally extra trip our server at the end of a cruise. I have never had bad service--knock on wood. We have never taken the auto tip away.

[Bill B]

I wish the lines would stop calling them "gratuities" and call then what they really are - wages. Alas, it will never happen because pax have the option of not paying.

[pablo222]

It's incredible how this gets lost in all of the static. A person's daily tip on a land based vacation would far exceed the auto tip amount.

 

Princess should add a 'Resort Fee', and be done with it.

[caribill]

I wish the lines would stop calling them "gratuities" and call then what they really are - wages. Alas, it will never happen because pax have the option of not paying.

 

And land restaurants should change the word "tip" on the bill to "wages" also?

[lolane1]

I wish the lines would stop calling them "gratuities" and call then what they really are - wages. Alas, it will never happen because pax have the option of not paying.

 

Sounds like this really irks you. But seriously, they are gratuities just as much as those paid to a waiter in a restaurant, a taxi driver, or any other service provider. Many restaurants in NY now have suggested amounts for tips already calculated on your bill, 15%, 18% and 20%, so you have an idea of the amounts. I guess this is done for the math impaired. Eeks, imagine if they suggested you tip 15% of your fare!!!!!!! Auto tip is truly a bargain.

Edited December 6, 2014 by lolane1
addition

[chrysalis]

Eeks, imagine if they suggested you tip 15% of your fare!!!!!!! Auto tip is truly a bargain.

 

There are lots of cruises that can be had for $80 per day or less for an inside....and at 15%.....well, you can do the math.

Edited December 6, 2014 by chrysalis

[Bill B]

Sounds like this really irks you. But seriously, they are gratuities just as much as those paid to a waiter in a restaurant, a taxi driver, or any other service provider. Many restaurants in NY now have suggested amounts for tips already calculated on your bill, 15%, 18% and 20%, so you have an idea of the amounts. I guess this is done for the math impaired. Eeks, imagine if they suggested you tip 15% of your fare!!!!!!! Auto tip is truly a bargain.

 

I see your point. However, land based service providers are protected by minimum wage and labour laws. The gratuities for cruise ship service providers, when added to their paltry base salary, in most cases don't bring their gross income up to even the lowest minimum wage on land... and a lot of them are working sixteen hours a day, seven days a week for ten months.

 

I think you're really only tipping on a cruise ship if you hand them cash over and above the auto tip amount.

[Iamcruzin]

I wish the lines would stop calling them "gratuities" and call then what they really are - wages. Alas, it will never happen because pax have the option of not paying.

 

I subscribe to the crew page on Facebook. Every once in a while one of the crew members will ask what the wage is for a particular job. The other day someone inquired what the wage was for a particular position. It was for a behind the scenes position. The wage was $900 a month and the person who answered the question also advised that it was a hard job. If you break it down it's $30 a day for a 30 day month. This position wouldn't be a position where you get tipped extra by a passenger. I hardly think that an $11.50 a day hotel charge is subsidizing a wage once you break it down and divide it up among the staff.

 

By the way everyone on the crew page has a positive attitude and are happy to have been offered a job.

Edited December 6, 2014 by Iamcruzin

[LMaxwell]

 

I think you're really only tipping on a cruise ship if you hand them cash over and above the auto tip amount.

 

Disagree. The daily auto gratuity is optional, therefore leaving it in place is a tip. handing additional cash is additional tip, not the only tip.

[kruisey]

I subscribe to the crew page on Facebook. Every once in a while one of the crew members will ask what the wage is for a particular job. The other day someone inquired what the wage was for a particular position. It was for a behind the scenes position. The wage was $900 a month and the person who answered the question also advised that it was a hard job. If you break it down it's $30 a day for a 30 day month. This position wouldn't be a position where you get tipped extra by a passenger. I hardly think that an $11.50 a day hotel charge is subsidizing a wage once you break it down and divide it up among the staff.

 

By the way everyone on the crew page has a positive attitude and are happy to have been offered a job.

 

Remember you have to plus board and lodgings on to the $30 per day and no income tax.

The employees work so hard . I agree that sharing $11.50 per day amongst them all is not enough although it is the passengers that pay this.

Really feel so sorry for them that when budgeting for my cruise i always go by length and include extra tips.

Folks that are new to cruising might feel that paying $11.50 per day is enough or too much and withdraw because they do not understand the circumstances.

On the other hand look at all the complaints we budget folks would make if Princess bumped the cost of the cruise up because they decided to give their employees a decent living wage ?

This is really a no win argument don't you think?

[Iamcruzin]

Remember you have to plus board and lodgings on to the $30 per day and no income tax.

The employees work so hard . I agree that sharing $11.50 per day amongst them all is not enough although it is the passengers that pay this.

Really feel so sorry for them that when budgeting for my cruise i always go by length and include extra tips.

Folks that are new to cruising might feel that paying $11.50 per day is enough or too much and withdraw because they do not understand the circumstances.

On the other hand look at all the complaints we budget folks would make if Princess bumped the cost of the cruise up because they decided to give their employees a decent living wage ?

This is really a no win argument don't you think?

 

By any chance do you remember the suggested tipping standards for the saff before auto tip? I feel like it worked out to be more than $11.50 a day back in 1991 on my first Princess cruise.

[chrysalis]

Remember you have to plus board and lodgings on to the $30 per day and no income tax.

The employees work so hard . I agree that sharing $11.50 per day amongst them all is not enough although it is the passengers that pay this.

Really feel so sorry for them that when budgeting for my cruise i always go by length and include extra tips.

Folks that are new to cruising might feel that paying $11.50 per day is enough or too much and withdraw because they do not understand the circumstances.

On the other hand look at all the complaints we budget folks would make if Princess bumped the cost of the cruise up because they decided to give their employees a decent living wage ?

This is really a no win argument don't you think?

 

As stated earlier, a "decent living wage" means totally difference things in various countries.....a quick google search will show you how wide-ranging average wages are around the world. So, compare that to the home countries of ship-board crew, and for some (compared to back home) they make a lot of money. This is especially true if not paying room, board or taxes.

[KruzeKrazy!]

lamcruzin -

 

I agree - if I recall correctly if one added up all the suggested tips (and, of course, complied) it did total more than the autotip when first introduced.

 

I recall at first not liking a "forced" tip but when I did the quick math it was less and so much more convenient. So for with that - plus the fact that the staff works so hard for such long hours, lives in cramped and not-too-private conditions, and is away from family for so long so they so deserve it - we're a fan of autotip.

Edited December 6, 2014 by KruzeKrazy!

[lolane1]

I see your point. However, land based service providers are protected by minimum wage and labour laws. The gratuities for cruise ship service providers, when added to their paltry base salary, in most cases don't bring their gross income up to even the lowest minimum wage on land... and a lot of them are working sixteen hours a day, seven days a week for ten months.

 

I think you're really only tipping on a cruise ship if you hand them cash over and above the auto tip amount.

 

Well, I have a cousin who works for S**rs, in the appliance area and I couldn't believe it when he told me that they work on commission ONLY. So, after an 8 hour day, they earn zip, nada, zilch, zero without a sale. Unbelievable. It's got to be legal or this major company wouldn't be doing it. That's not a paltry wage. That's no wage.

 

$900 a month DISPOSABLE income (no rent, food, home owners expenses, etc.) and living in a country where this money goes a long way, suddenly doesn't look as bad. I tell you that with the cost of living in Manhattan, there were many years (granted, years ago) that I would have given my eye teeth for 900 dollars a month disposable income, especially after I paid my rent.

 

If you are looking at minimum wage in the US, there are a lot of struggling people who work more than one job, and on weekends. who can barely make their rents and living expenses. Life in the US can be no bargain either.

 

Many of us are truly fortunate. I count my blessings every day. I tip waiters and taxi drivers well, and appreciate the services they provide. And personally, I think minimum wage is sorely below the amount necessary for a decent life in many areas of our country.

 

Anyway, I am now off my soapbox. And I also get where you are coming from. :):)

[Coral]

 

$900 a month DISPOSABLE income (no rent, food, home owners expenses, etc.) and living in a country where this money goes a long way, suddenly doesn't look as bad. I tell you that with the cost of living in Manhattan, there were many years (granted, years ago) that I would have given my eye teeth for 900 dollars a month disposable income, especially after I paid my rent.

 

Most of these employees have families back home that they are supporting. It is not just for them.

 

Also - I am guessing if you want to work 12-15 hours a day, 7 days a week for 9-10 months at a time, you can probably come up with an extra $900 a month. Honestly, there are not many Americans (including myself) that are willing to work their hours and being treated poorly by many (we have all witnessed this) for the wage that they get. Heck, even if I am treated well, I don't want those hours.

Edited December 7, 2014 by Coral

[Bill B]

Remember you have to plus board and lodgings on to the $30 per day and no income tax.

The employees work so hard . I agree that sharing $11.50 per day amongst them all is not enough although it is the passengers that pay this.

Really feel so sorry for them that when budgeting for my cruise i always go by length and include extra tips.

Folks that are new to cruising might feel that paying $11.50 per day is enough or too much and withdraw because they do not understand the circumstances.

On the other hand look at all the complaints we budget folks would make if Princess bumped the cost of the cruise up because they decided to give their employees a decent living wage ?

This is really a no win argument don't you think?

 

Fair enough, but also remember -

When calculating the average salary of any cruise ship worker, it is necessary to factor in the expenses incurred by taking the job. Cruise workers are often lied to by recruiters about their salaries, required to pay for training and to make a 'gift' to recruiters. Cruise lines know this goes on but turn a 'blind eye' to it. Cruise workers have to pay for their transportation to the ship, any visas or work permits and medical or legal permits. At the completion of a contract, the line will often pay for a flight home but this is not always the case. P&O was found guilty of paying waitstaff as little as 250 pounds or about $400 per month. When the hours and days are calculated, this can amount to as little as $1.25 an hour. High-end lines usually pay more for a higher level of service and a more experienced staff. All cruise lines do everything possible to reduce the cost of operations, including registering ships to nations with lax labor laws that allow for long hours, low pay and few if any benefits.

 

If you want to know what the price of a cruise is where gratuities are not charged and salaries are 'bumped up' in compensation, just look a Princess Australia.

 

You're right - in the end, it really is a no-win situation... and we're just arguing semantics.