WOW Envelopes

[Truluv]

If you've prepaid your tips, do you use your WOW envelopes anyway? Do you tip your steward (pleasant & good service) an extra $20 or $40?

[LizzieandLuke]

Yes, as long we get good service everyone gets an envelope. We had to ask for extra on our trip.

[reallyhooked]

Yes, as long we get good service everyone gets an envelope. We had to ask for extra on our trip.

 

Extra's available at Guest Services.

[VTSKIandCRUISEGUY]

And you can put the extra tips on your account.

[Saab4444]

Yes, as long we get good service everyone gets an envelope. We had to ask for extra on our trip.

 

 

So for goog service you pay extra and for bad service you pay 12 USD per person per day? For me this is too much honestly.

[Host Anne]

There are typically at least two or three crew members on every cruise that go above and beyond for us. We've always given then some extra money. We simply hand it to those individuals on the last night of the cruise. We've done this since we began cruising in the early 90s.

[APDMOM]

So for goog service you pay extra and for bad service you pay 12 USD per person per day? For me this is too much honestly.

 

Personally, if I get poor service, I would report the issue. If it does not improve, I will remove that portion of tips toward the end of the week. Thankfully, this has never happened to us though. We have always had very good to great/excellent service.

 

As for the extra tip: We do give an extra $5 -$20 per person if we feel like they went above and beyond. I also write WOW cards for great service. On our recent Oasis cruise, one girl at the Promenade Cafe was especially friendly and positive despite some poor treatment by customers. We tipped her extra every time I ordered a latte, then noticed she always shared the tips with others in the café. So, I wrote her an extra WOW card for her excellent service.

 

Be sure to have your C&A number ready for the WOW cards (different from the WOW envelopes). They stated it would be considered invalid without all the info.

[brillohead]

In addition to the standard grats charged to my account, I typically give the room steward and MDR waiter an extra $20, and the ass't waiter an extra $10-$15.

 

I didn't bother with envelopes for my MDR staff -- I just slipped the cash into their hands on the last night. I did use the envelope for my steward, just left it on the bed when he came in for evening service the last night.

 

I've never received service that I didn't feel deserved an extra $20 for the week, less than $3/day. They work hard and they don't make much of a "paycheck" wage at all.

 

I just consider the tips (daily grats plus any I add at the end of the week) to be a cost of the cruise. If I were to eat at a land-based restaurant for three meals/day, I would be spending way more than that on tips for those meals!

[LizzieandLuke]

So for goog service you pay extra and for bad service you pay 12 USD per person per day? For me this is too much honestly.

 

NO $12 a day is the cost of the cruise - an extra $20 is a thank you.

 

I've never received service that I didn't feel deserved an extra $20 for the week, less than $3/day. They work hard and they don't make much of a "paycheck" wage at all.

 

I just consider the tips (daily grats plus any I add at the end of the week) to be a cost of the cruise. If I were to eat at a land-based restaurant for three meals/day, I would be spending way more than that on tips for those meals!

 

I agree with you 100% - if I have good service giving an measly extra $20 (from my family of four no less) isn't going to break me. I am very fortunate to be able to cruise and am happy to reward those who gave me a great week.

[cruisenfever]

So for goog service you pay extra and for bad service you pay 12 USD per person per day? For me this is too much honestly.

You can always go to Guest Services and have your gratuities adjusted if you are not getting good service.