Proof of 18% gratuity on specialty restaurants

[maywell]

No, you'd just be really cheap. And who wants to be known as "that guy"?

 

(Apparently, a lot of people...)

 

Nah, that's the Cruise Critic board which is very small minority on NCL cruise ships - Most other cruisers just avoid 'that guy' because well.. Who wants to be around a complainer / cheapie while enjoying vacation? *shrug*

[swedish weave]

Nah, that's the Cruise Critic board which is very small minority on NCL cruise ships - Most other cruisers just avoid 'that guy' because well.. Who wants to be around a complainer / cheapie while enjoying vacation? *shrug*

 

Not to "bust your bubble" but you wouldn't know who "cheapie" was unless he or someone else told you.

 

The nicest person you ever met might be smiling at you while lifting your wallet !!!

Edited March 24, 2015 by swedish weave

[maywell]

Not to "bust your bubble" but you wouldn't know who "cheapie" was unless he or someone else told you.

 

The nicest person you ever met might be smiling at you while lifting your wallet !!!

 

Sweetie, good luck lifting my wallet - you think I brought a waterproof pouch for swimming and crossbody anti-theft bag with flap on top which I wear on my right side reverse because I trust 'nice smiling' faces? You really must think I was born yesterday plus completely naive about evils of the world. And it easy to avoid 'that cheapie guy'- they like to boast too much about how they getting over whatever, drunk or not...

Edited March 25, 2015 by maywell

[Solararc]

I hear that All Inclusive Resorts don't have, a DSC or 18% gratuities added, maybe those who are not willing or wanting to pry open the steel trap of a wallet over a couple bucks for some hard working folks, would be more comfortable playing the "big man" at one of those resorts[emoji214][emoji214][emoji214][emoji214][emoji214]

 

 

*Living large one week at a time*

Edited March 25, 2015 by Solararc

[Robin122]

I have a friend who is a server on POA (and has been for a long time) and here is what he said about this:

 

"Yes the 18% gratuity started this week. And yes the specialty servers *are* part of the daily service charge as well."

 

I for one will refuse the charge (but will tip cash as I see fit at the specialty restaurants).

[Solararc]

Thank you.

 

Those numbers are just an approximate based on numerous lines, as well.

 

People need to stop freaking out, accept that NCL has policies on how they pay and reward their employees that will remain unbeknown to you, and either sail with them, or choose not to. If their employees were so mistreated and underpaid, they wouldn't be there and they wouldn't keep renewing their contracts.

 

 

AE, if we ever share a boat with you I'll buy you and your BF a drink I'll even tip extra to make up for the Weiner's that have the gratuities removed

 

 

*Living large one week at a time*

[AEckhardt]

AE, if we ever share a boat with you I'll buy you and your BF a drink I'll even tip extra to make up for the Weiner's that have the gratuities removed

 

 

*Living large one week at a time*

 

 

Lmao, thank you, Solar! I bet we'd all get along quite well!

[Solararc]

Lmao, thank you, Solar! I bet we'd all get along quite well!

 

 

Agreed ! [emoji106]

 

 

*Living large one week at a time*

[Jancruz]

I have a friend who is a server on POA (and has been for a long time) and here is what he said about this:

 

"Yes the 18% gratuity started this week. And yes the specialty servers *are* part of the daily service charge as well."

 

I for one will refuse the charge (but will tip cash as I see fit at the specialty restaurants).

 

How are you going to refuse to pay when it is part of the cost of the meal..

Jancruz1

[Demonyte]

How are you going to refuse to pay when it is part of the cost of the meal..

 

 

Because it is not. It is an additional auto-gratuity added to the check. You can definitely refuse to pay it.

[backsbanny]

I will do the same refuse to pay this ridiculous auto gratuity and then tip cash only to the crew that i want i have it

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[AEckhardt]

Because it is not. It is an additional auto-gratuity added to the check. You can definitely refuse to pay it.

 

 

If you buy the UDP, I believe it's adding into the purchase price. How will people avoid it then?

[maywell]

If you buy the UDP, I believe it's adding into the purchase price. How will people avoid it then?

 

I'm not buying the UDP, so it easy for me to just avoid the specialty restaurants - not happy that my DSC is paying for staff I'm clearly not going to use. But that's the price one pays when you don't want to deal with so much cash &/or envelopes during vacation- losing the right to dictate exactly who gets it and I highly doubt people will remember all the faces all those that help them out. That's just being me being honest....*shrug*

 

Like a couple posters said - If it truly upsets you; why are you dining at a restaurant that you pay extra in the 1st place? Paying the cover charge, the DSC and auto 18% tip - That should make anyone think twice if they want to eat in there without the UDP. But with the UDP, at least you can eat at separate specialty restaurants twice or 3 times a day for the duration of the trip if you want without tipping extra at all because the new one has the auto tips automatically included. If you have the UDP, what are you complaining about because its already added and you prepaid anyway, so how are you removing the 18%? ... :confused: I'm curious about that too.

Edited March 25, 2015 by maywell

[Demonyte]

If you buy the UDP, I believe it's adding into the purchase price. How will people avoid it then?

 

You can adjust your DSC with appropriate amount or request a refund at Guest Services. After all, the auto-gratuities are added to the prices "for our convinience" (per NCL's reply here) - not because they would be mandatory and non-refundable.

Edited March 25, 2015 by Demonyte

[maywell]

You can adjust your DSC with appropriate amount or request a refund at Guest Services. After all, the auto-gratuities are added to the prices "for our convinience" (per NCL's reply here) - not because they would be mandatory and non-refundable.

See here's the thing - I can see that being easy to do if you're a suite guest on non-Breakaway ships like the Jewel, where one of the perks for breakfast and lunch is eating at specialty restaurant for free. But if you're a suite guest on a Breakaway-ship, you don't have that perk because all of free dining perks are enclosed in the same area with key card access to boot. One has to actually step out of the Haven area to use the specialty restaurants cpmpare to others which are just not set up that way. Plus the DSC also cover the Haven restaurants as well.

 

Those guests - suite guest on non-Breakaway ships- I can see having as easy time reducing the DSC. Everyone esle, NOPE; has to be pretty catastrophic like bed bugs seen by all even Guest Services - not just giving back the DSC but tossing in a whole bunch iof freebies too....

 

Sent from my SGH-T399 using Tapatalk

[Demonyte]

See here's the thing - I can see that being easy to do if you're a suite guest on non-Breakaway ships like the Jewel, where one of the perks for breakfast and lunch is eating at specialty restaurant for free. But if you're a suite guest on a Breakaway-ship, you don't have that perk because all of free dining perks are enclosed in the same area with key card access to boot. One has to actually step out of the Haven area to use the specialty restaurants cpmpare to others which are just not set up that way. Plus the DSC also cover the Haven restaurants as well.

 

Those guests - suite guest on non-Breakaway ships- I can see having as easy time reducing the DSC. Everyone esle, NOPE; has to be pretty catastrophic like bed bugs seen by all even Guest Services - not just giving back the DSC but tossing in a whole bunch iof freebies too....

 

First of all, what the heck Haven or suites have to do with this matter? This is about extra gratuities for speciality dining and applies to all passengers that use speciality restaurants.

 

Secondly even if suites had anything to do with this, there is no "eating at speciality restaurant for free" because the venue is not a speciality restaurant at the time on any ship - it is a private venue that is complimentary.

 

Third, I didn't say that one should remove the DSC, just to adjust it. This is so that the double dipping for restaurant staff would get corrected for those days that extra gratuities are charged. (Personally I didn't think that I'd ever be pro-adjusting-DSC but in this case it is in order.)

Edited March 25, 2015 by Demonyte

[maywell]

First of all, what the heck Haven or suites have to do with this matter? This is about extra gratuities for speciality dining and applies to all passengers that use speciality restaurants.

 

Secondly even if suites had anything to do with this, there is no "eating at speciality restaurant for free" because the venue is not a speciality restaurant at the time on any ship - it is a private venue that is complimentary.

 

Third, I didn't say that one should remove the DSC, just to adjust it. This is so that the double dipping for restaurant staff would get corrected for those days that extra gratuities are charged. (Personally I didn't think that I'd ever be pro-adjusting-DSC but in this case it is in order.)

 

Want to know why saying that? Because most of specialty dining / UDP is for dinner ONLY, even paid restaurants that open are la carte. The options for breakfast and lunch are cover by DSC unless you want to buy your coffee and pastries from the coffee shop.

 

DSC covers more than you think - that how nickel & dime cruise lines gets you. Yeah, the cruise fare pays for the free food and board, doesn't necessarily means it covers the staff to serve you. If you paid the UDP already, you pretty much paid the auto 18% when you brought either it before or after the change- which makes it a moot point to even argue about it because they already got you.

 

Sent from my SGH-T399 using Tapatalk

[rochelle_s]

Want to know why saying that? Because most of specialty dining / UDP is for dinner ONLY, even paid restaurants that open are la carte. The options for breakfast and lunch are cover by DSC unless you want to buy your coffee and pastries from the coffee shop.

 

DSC covers more than you think - that how nickel & dime cruise lines gets you. Yeah, the cruise fare pays for the free food and board, doesn't necessarily means it covers the staff to serve you. If you paid the UDP already, you pretty much paid the auto 18% when you brought either it before or after the change- which makes it a moot point to even argue about it because they already got you.

 

Sent from my SGH-T399 using Tapatalk

 

You now have to pay an automatic 18% on purchases at the coffee shop. as well.

 

 

Rochelle

 

 

Rochelle

[hawkeyetlse]

Third, I didn't say that one should remove the DSC, just to adjust it. This is so that the double dipping for restaurant staff would get corrected for those days that extra gratuities are charged. (Personally I didn't think that I'd ever be pro-adjusting-DSC but in this case it is in order.)

As a practical question, since the DSC is a fixed charge, but the 18% auto-tip is a variable charge, how would you recommend adjusting the DSC in each specific situation? A specialty dining charge can be very very low ($15 for the cheapest cover charge, but even less if you just have one item from an à la carte venue), and it can be very very high (the sky's the limit in theory, but let's say $40 or $45 would be quite feasible at Cagney's or Le Bistro). So the 18% auto-tip can vary from $1/$2 to $8 or more (i.e. more than half of what anyone pays as DSC). Would you always ask for the equivalent amount to be removed from your DSC?

[maywell]

You now have to pay an automatic 18% on purchases at the coffee shop. as well.

 

 

Rochelle

 

 

Rochelle

I also forgot about bottles of water, too. Thank you for the reminder - if being charge for everything doesn't make one rethink about using a nickel and dime line like NCL, nothing will....

 

Sent from my SGH-T399 using Tapatalk

[Demonyte]

As a practical question, since the DSC is a fixed charge, but the 18% auto-tip is a variable charge, how would you recommend adjusting the DSC in each specific situation? A specialty dining charge can be very very low ($15 for the cheapest cover charge, but even less if you just have one item from an à la carte venue), and it can be very very high (the sky's the limit in theory, but let's say $40 or $45 would be quite feasible at Cagney's or Le Bistro). So the 18% auto-tip can vary from $1/$2 to $8 or more (i.e. more than half of what anyone pays as DSC). Would you always ask for the equivalent amount to be removed from your DSC?

 

This is just my personal opinion, but since the speciality dining staff were and still are (as there has been no official statement or documentation to prove otherwise) covered by DSC, and it is NCL's opinion that the variable fee is appropriate to cover for their service, that is the amount that is being double charged now.

 

Therefore the amount of the auto-gratuity is in my opinion about the right amount to have the DSC adjusted by in order to prevent NCL charging twice for the same service.

[Imalismom]

What if you have prepaid the dining plan? In essence you should not be getting a bill unless you have drink charges, <-- is this correct?

 

How is the 19% handled then, especially since I have prepaid all my gratuity charges already.

[Demonyte]

What if you have prepaid the dining plan? In essence you should not be getting a bill unless you have drink charges, <-- is this correct?

 

Yes, since you won't get a bill (well, actually you will probably get a zero bill), there is nothing to add the 18% on - zero total with 18% gratuity is still zero.

Edited March 25, 2015 by Demonyte

[SJ]

You now have to pay an automatic 18% on purchases at the coffee shop. as well.

 

 

Rochelle

 

 

Rochelle

 

I think the 18% is on any bill you're signing now. Even those character breakfasts where they serve atrocious food. This is the new reality unless we stand together and don't give in.

 

As for our cruise ticket not covering staff to serve us, shouldn't it? Would people finally say enough is enough when the captain is part of the DSC because our cruise ticket doesn't cover someone to safely guide the ship to our destination? Please don't say that won't happen because no one thought this 18% would either. Plus since there is no transparency at NCL, we don't know who is dipping into the DSC pool.

 

I have no objection in rewarding staff for serving me, I object in rewarding NCL while pretending it is for the staff.

[punkincc]

I have a friend who is a server on POA (and has been for a long time) and here is what he said about this:

 

"Yes the 18% gratuity started this week. And yes the specialty servers *are* part of the daily service charge as well."

 

I for one will refuse the charge (but will tip cash as I see fit at the specialty restaurants).

 

Since you have a source actually working on a ship, curious how this was presented to the servers by NCL as far as why it was being done. What is the servers point of view? Has his share of the DSC been decreased as a result of the addition of the 18% auto grat?

 

I don't like this 18% add on either, but I have to keep reminding myself that the DSC is not just simply pooled and divided equally between x number of employees. Some are more or less "equal" than others;). Would be interesting to hear what NCL is saying to the employees if your friend is willing to share.