New to Princess? Please

[MikeNKim]

Hello so pumped just booked British Iles for next June but I have some questions

 

Are there tips and service fees like NCL or is it just the tips? I know it is frowned upon but can those be taken off and paid in cash? I don't want to get flamed as I have to do this as I can expense my account but not tips....weird perk of my employer and both Royal and Carnival allow this just not sure about Princess.

 

Also, does Princess have coke or Pepsi products? I hate coke so if it is coke can I bring my own on board with water?

 

TIA

 

I am sure I will have more stupid questions as I go.

 

Kim

[TLC535]

Welcome to Princess :)

 

Yes...the auto-gratuities (called "hotel charges" on your folio) can be removed & paid by cash...but not the 15% charged on cocktails or wine purchases.

 

I believe it is Coke products & yes you can bring your own Pepsi products & water aboard.

[Thrak]

Tips are automatically deducted from your account each evening. If you turn off the auto tip and then tip in cash the person you tip is required to turn it in and it goes into the pool. You aren't doing anybody any favors doing it that way. If you leave the auto tip in place and then also tip someone cash they get to keep it. You can, of course, turn off the auto tip but pay the full amount in cash at the customer service desk.

 

You can take as much soda or bottled water onboard as you like. If you put a luggage tag on a case it will be delivered to your cabin with the rest of your luggage.

Edited March 19, 2015 by Thrak

[TLC535]

Kim - If you haven't already found it, see link below to a wonderful British Isles review from a couple years ago...great read, tips & help get even more excited :D

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1652129&highlight=british+isles

[Astro Flyer]

Princess uses Coke products but you can bring all the soda you want on the ship.

 

Princess's website has a lot of helpful info to answer nearly any question you may have about their cruises. There you can read their official policy which is gratuities are automatically added daily ($11.50-$12.00/pp./night). For various reasons (frequently debated) it's the system Princess uses & is shared by most of the crewmembers. It's possible to change the amount or even to cancel it. If removing the tip, any cash you give is not kept by the crewmember & goes into the tip pool shared by everyone; if keeping the auto tip extra cash tips are kept by the crewmember.

 

I would never consider removing tips which some do because they're upset about something. Instead during the cruise I tell them about a problem & see if there's a solution. Hardworking crewmembers depend upon the tips as part of their income & I consider it part of my cruise fare.

Edited March 19, 2015 by Astro Flyer

[MikeNKim]

Thank you all for the info.

 

I did check the website and it stated what they are but not what other options I have to pay them.

 

I know I don't like doing it the drink ones are fine because they show the total not the price then the tip

 

I have always made sure to leave a note however since I cruise carnival so much they are aware of it since I didn't want anyone to get in trouble.

 

Thanks again all for the info and look forward to reading the trip report

 

Kim

[cinnamon]

Well said Astro Flyer.

[Northender]

Princess uses Coke products but you can bring all the soda you want on the ship.

 

Princess's website has a lot of helpful info to answer nearly any question you may have about their cruises. There you can read their official policy which is gratuities are automatically added daily ($11.50-$12.00/pp./night). For various reasons (frequently debated) it's the system Princess uses & is shared by most of the crewmembers. It's possible to change the amount or even to cancel it. If removing the tip, any cash you give is not kept by the crewmember & goes into the tip pool shared by everyone; if keeping the auto tip extra cash tips are kept by the crewmember.

 

I would never consider removing tips which some do because they're upset about something. Instead during the cruise I tell them about a problem & see if there's a solution. Hardworking crewmembers depend upon the tips as part of their income & I consider it part of my cruise fare.

I totally agree. We would never remove the auto tip either. There are a number of crew members that are part of this system. As an example, if you are upset with your cabin attendant, let him/her know. You can always tip more in cash for people you found did an outstanding job for you. A waiter in the dining room, a bartender, etc. Removing the auto tips hurts everyone, not just the staff member who did not do a good job.

[Colo Cruiser]

Slap a baggage tag on your water and give it to the porters. :)

[shredie]

If he removes the auto-tip but pays the amount in cash each day, he's not stiffing the crew. As I understand it, he need to modify the way tips are paid in order to conform to the rules of his employer. :confused:

[SwissDave]

If he removes the auto-tip but pays the amount in cash each day, he's not stiffing the crew. As I understand it, he need to modify the way tips are paid in order to conform to the rules of his employer. :confused:

 

 

I think you are correct.

OP, another way might be to prepay the tips via the cruise personaliser, get the receipt and submit that to the employer.

The advantage to that as well is a lower bill at the end of the cruise.

[MikeNKim]

I was hoping this wouldn't turn into one of "those" threads.

 

I would love to leave them on much easier for me as well. However, I don't have a choice. I have even asked my employer if I can reimburse them and it isn't a option. Neither on Carnival or RCCL has anyone told me that they wouldn't go to my cabin stewart, wait staff etc. I never stiff them, and have on occasion given more...not always but to some staff I have. I am not looking as a way to get out of paying them just paying them in a way that I can do.

 

Thank you all for the info.

[TLC535]

I think you are correct.

OP, another way might be to prepay the tips via the cruise personaliser, get the receipt and submit that to the employer.

The advantage to that as well is a lower bill at the end of the cruise.

 

This would be a great idea, but if I am not mistaken, prepaying the gratuities still shows up on your folio as a credit then the daily charge is deducted & still shows on your final bill...which if I am understanding correctly what the OP is saying...this cannot be on the bill they submit.

 

 

Kim...is your employer hiring ??? I would love to get reimbursed for cruising...lol ;-)

Edited March 19, 2015 by TLC535

[AKman2495]

Unless your employer knows that "Hotel charges" are gratuities on Princess..that's all he will see on the billing sheet. He may just go ahead and pay what's presented. If you remove them and pay independently, you won't get reimbursed.

 

Just a thought.....

[MikeNKim]

That is true not sure if they would click in to "hotel charges" that might actually be a good option....thanks

 

I don't get to expense the entire cruise just my on board account and I am taxed on it so it is good and bad. :)

[martincath]

I worked in HR in Ontario - your employer has no legal ability to refuse to accept a receipt which details MORE than what you are claiming. All they can ask for is receipts for what you ARE claiming, additional info is not even mentioned by statute, case law or HR guidelines.

 

As long as it's broken down, and you only claim the type(s) of expense that your contract allows, you can submit receipts covered in as many additional personally-paid charges as you want to.

 

If you don't want your employer to see how much you personally spent on booze for example, just redact the copy you hand over to only show what you're actually claiming.

 

But please don't claim anything you're not entitled to, even if it can be 'hidden' within a potentially-allowed type of expense - karma is a female dog... ;-)

[MikeNKim]

Ya true another good point. I just give them a copy of my on board account and I have a company credit card I use. I am not worried about the booze on there as we don't buy much in the ship so no worries there. Thanks again everyone

[LabGuy64]

If you tip in cash....do you really think the staff member is going to ask if you turned of the auto tipping?

 

 

Tips are automatically deducted from your account each evening. If you turn off the auto tip and then tip in cash the person you tip is required to turn it in and it goes into the pool. You aren't doing anybody any favors doing it that way. If you leave the auto tip in place and then also tip someone cash they get to keep it. You can, of course, turn off the auto tip but pay the full amount in cash at the customer service desk.

 

You can take as much soda or bottled water onboard as you like. If you put a luggage tag on a case it will be delivered to your cabin with the rest of your luggage.

[Astro Flyer]

If you tip in cash....do you really think the staff member is going to ask if you turned of the auto tipping?

 

If they don't report cash tips they risk being fired. When giving extra cash tips they ask for our name & cabin number so we put it on our envelope. If the auto tip is in place they get to keep it; if not it goes into the tip pool.

[Cruisin' Chick]

If you tip in cash....do you really think the staff member is going to ask if you turned of the auto tipping?

 

Cabin stewards and waitstaff are required to turn in any cash tips they get -- along with the cabin number of the passenger. If the passenger kept on the autotips, the crew member gets the cash back. If the passenger reduced or took off the tips, the cash gets turned into the tipping pool, and the crew member actually gets less from that cash.

 

If the crew member doesn't turn in the cash, and gets caught, he will get fired. And he/she lives in very small quarters.

[Colo Cruiser]

If you tip in cash....do you really think the staff member is going to ask if you turned of the auto tipping?

 

Believe me the they know who turned off the auto tips and who didn't.

They won't need to ask.

[SoCal Cruiser78]

...I don't get to expense the entire cruise just my on board account and I am taxed on it so it is good and bad. :)

 

I am fascinated by this thread, as I have never had an employer that would cover a nickel of any cruise I have been on :).

Edited March 20, 2015 by Ryndam2002
clarity

[Happiest when cruising]

I was hoping this wouldn't turn into one of "those" threads.

 

I would love to leave them on much easier for me as well. However, I don't have a choice. I have even asked my employer if I can reimburse them and it isn't a option. Neither on Carnival or RCCL has anyone told me that they wouldn't go to my cabin stewart, wait staff etc. I never stiff them, and have on occasion given more...not always but to some staff I have. I am not looking as a way to get out of paying them just paying them in a way that I can do.

 

Thank you all for the info.

I understand you do not wish to remove the auto-tip, perhaps you could just ask to have them on a separate folio, and pay with cash. That should not be a problem, but you should call Princess to confirm.

[LeeW]

All this assumes that you can't turn in an expense report and not claim the daily hotel charge for reimbursement. When I had bills mixing business and personal charges I just identified the business ones and turned those in.

[caribill]

The intent here is not to stiff the crew (the employer is a different question).

 

If treated the normal way, there would be a daily hotel charge (the gratuities or "auto-tip") which go into the pool and are shared by all the staff that are in the pool.

 

If the OP removes the daily charge and gives the same amount in cash to cabin steward and waitstaff, one of two things will happen.

 

either:

a) The cash will be turned in to a supervisor who sees that the auto-tip has been removed and the cash will go into the pool. Same amount of cash as the auto-tip would have been. Nobody gets stiffed. (However, the cabin steward and waitstaff may first get excited with a big tip and then resentful they do not get to keep it, just get a portion back from the pool participation.)

 

or

b) Theoretically if the cash tips are at least equal to what the auto-tip would have been, the cash will be returned by the supervisors to those that turned it in. In this case, those not personally tipped (buffet staff, room service staff, outdoor grill staff, etc.) will not get any share of the tip although they would have if the money was in the pool. (Main problem with this option is the two different area supervisors, dining and cabin, co-ordinate the information and know what the total of the tips is.)

Edited March 20, 2015 by caribill