Additional tips

[hm9912]

I plan to tip our steward on first encounter hoping to make an impression on him even though we are minimally demanding cruisers, but not sure how much to tip. We are keeping the automatic gratuity in place and I'm sure he will have access to that information. Any suggestions? It is 7 days to Alaska.

 

We always tip the cabin steward $10s shortly after our first meeting and again at the end of the cruise. You'd be amazed at how well they take care of you.

 

Howard

[iceleven]

On our last cruise we could tell right away that our bed needed a mattress topper so as soon as we met our room steward we put in a request for that (and extra hangers) and tipped him $10. It wasn't a bribe, but rather an acknowledgement that he had to remake our bed on the busy embarkation day.

 

Our service all week was exceptional so we gave him another $70 or $80 at the end of the cruise.

 

We did the same and for the same reason (bed topper). We never thought of it as a bribe. We gave him $10 to show our appreciation for his extra efforts. Oddly enough, he was the only bad room steward we have ever encountered in all our many years of cruising. He seemed surly at times even. We're really easy passengers and pretty much clean up after ourselves all the time. We make our steward's jobs very easy. Give us clean towels and ice and we're pretty much happy sailors. This is the one and only time we did not add a tip for our steward at the end of the cruise. I never knew if he thought that because we tipped him early in the cruise that it was all he would be receiving from us, thus his bad service. I guess we'll never know. It was the first and last time we tipped on the first day.

Edited August 26, 2015 by iceleven

[Happy2cruise]

We always tip the cabin steward $10s shortly after our first meeting and again at the end of the cruise. You'd be amazed at how well they take care of you.

 

Howard

We tip at the end of the cruise and always amazed how well they take care of us:)

[Thrak]

We always tip the cabin steward $10s shortly after our first meeting and again at the end of the cruise. You'd be amazed at how well they take care of you.

 

Howard

 

I'm always amazed at how well the stewards take care of me. That's the reason I do give them a tip at the end of the cruise. They have no idea whether or not I am going to tip and they still give me excellent service.

[olvrxyzh]

I plan to tip our steward on first encounter hoping to make an impression on him even though we are minimally demanding cruisers, but not sure how much to tip. We are keeping the automatic gratuity in place and I'm sure he will have access to that information. Any suggestions? It is 7 days to Alaska.

 

We have family members who rely on tips to make a decent living. On our last cruise, we left $10 in an envelope with the steward's name on it each morning; on the last day we left him an additional $40. I had a mobility scooter; every time he would see me coming, he would come running and unlock my cabin door.

Edited August 26, 2015 by olvrxyzh

[Donder1]

We always leave the auto tip on and try to be considerate and friendly towards the room steward (and make a point of learning his name). I leave a short note on first day asking politely for wine glasses, extra pillows, ice. That's about it.

[IECalCruiser]

On our 17 cruises on Princess we have never tipped our steward in advance.

[AZ Ocean Lover]

My husband was convinced that he had to tip the steward at the beginning of the cruise to insure good service. We had a great steward and was rewarded at the end of the cruise as well. On the next cruise my husband did the same thing and we had the worst steward so never again at the beginning of the cruise (for no special reason - we would give him a tip for special requests).

 

The funny thing was that my husband felt he had to tip the Mater'd (sp?) at the beginning of the first cruise. I don't know what he thought this would "buy" us. I think he realizes now that service is great whether you pre-tip or not.

[#1Nanna]

We give a tip of $10 or $15 on the first day, more as a thanks for the extra effort in getting us settled in. As it already has been said, turn around day is extremely busy for them & that is also the day that I have the most requests. Mattress topper, sheet, extra pillow & hangers. The rest of the cruise I rarely have a request. We always leave the auto tip in place & give a more generous tip in addition at the end of our cruise if we have received excellent service, (and we always have).

Edited August 26, 2015 by #1Nanna

[Astro Flyer]

Sometimes we'll bring a small gift from home such as chocolate covered macadamia nuts as a way to say "hello" to our cabin steward/stewardess. :)

[Shelly97060]

We have never tipped our steward in advance and have never felt the need to.

[framer]

Never before, but unless you have problems with someone, something after, yes. What interesting that you will run into someone that remembers you from a past cruise. Has apended several times in the dining room where a near by waiter had been a waiter on a previous cruise. Trust me the waiters talk.

 

framer

Edited August 27, 2015 by framer

[scott4020]

Be kind and respectful, learn their name, that's the tip I give at the beginning and I have always received good service. I do tip them at the end of a cruise and if they have been exceptional I fill out a comment card.

[pascalburns]

always give a little extra at the end of the cruise.:)

[pcsunlover]

We did the same and for the same reason (bed topper). We never thought of it as a bribe. We gave him $10 to show our appreciation for his extra efforts. Oddly enough, he was the only bad room steward we have ever encountered in all our many years of cruising. He seemed surly at times even. We're really easy passengers and pretty much clean up after ourselves all the time. We make our steward's jobs very easy. Give us clean towels and ice and we're pretty much happy sailors. This is the one and only time we did not add a tip for our steward at the end of the cruise. I never knew if he thought that because we tipped him early in the cruise that it was all he would be receiving from us, thus his bad service. I guess we'll never know. It was the first and last time we tipped on the first day.

 

Exactly! We have never tipped a room steward at the start of the cruise for no reason. But, after we saw the cabin and requested that the bed be remade with a topper and asked for additional hangers and a pillows, we felt an acknowlegement of the extra service was warranted. We do the same thing on land when requesting "extras" delivered to our hotel room when needed.

 

We are pretty easy going and fortunately so far on all of our cruises our needs have been consistently met - ice bucket kept full, cabin cleaned promptly, etc., so we have always tipped extra at the end of the cruise. If that ever changes, then we would most likely forgo the additional tip.

[tserface]

We're the same as some others here. We don't automatically tip at the beginning, but there are times when we ask for the bed topper, some ice, we get great towel animals, or need something else extra and then we will leave a thank you note with a tip as a thank you for the extra help. If the service is good, which it often is, we leave an extra tip at the end even if we prepaid, but we know that is not expected or required. We just think the experience is half of the vacation and if people make us feel special we like to say thank you before going back to our regular lives.

 

Tom

[mek]

I guess I'm always confused by people who tip upfront because they claim they get amazing service. Unless you are traveling with children,(been there, done that), or a special needs person, just how much service do people need?

 

I ask for extra ice and a box of tissues during a cruise and very little else. All I need is to have my room clean and tidy and I'm a happy person. And I generally leave extra at the end of a cruise if everything has gone well.

 

What services do people expect and receive that is so over and above that they feel the need to tip upfront????? Not talking about suites where it's understood that special services are provided.

Edited August 27, 2015 by mek

[terrysko2000]

We leave a $20 tip after the first day. Our last steward came to the room right away on the first day and introduced himself. He called us Mrs or Mr and our first names all the time. We had towel animals in our room every night and a full ice bucket and fresh towels immediately. We shower several times a day (after excursions etc) and he always took care of this. If he saw one of us without the other he always was concerned if everything is alright. I also tip my bartender - we do it at home and when we travel to Vegas so why not on the ship. My husband always says if you are going to spend the money do it right. We also tip at the end of the cruise - we have never had a reason not to! just my opinion :)

Edited August 27, 2015 by terrysko2000

[Potstech]

Would he have done the same things without the first day tip? You will never know without asking those in the cabins around you. That may be just the standard service he provides.

[Colo Cruiser]

Whats he going to say? I won't do it until you tip me first?

[wizard-of-roz]

I guess I'm always confused by people who tip upfront because they claim they get amazing service. Unless you are traveling with children,(been there, done that), or a special needs person, just how much service do people need?

 

I ask for extra ice and a box of tissues during a cruise and very little else. All I need is to have my room clean and tidy and I'm a happy person. And I generally leave extra at the end of a cruise if everything has gone well.

 

What services do people expect and receive that is so over and above that they feel the need to tip upfront????? Not talking about suites where it's understood that special services are provided.

 

I cruise with a Service Dog and although I do all the work for cleaning-up and ALWAYS make sure that his toys, feed bowls, etc. are cleaned before the Steward enters......there's always the potty box that needs attention, i.e. refilled with litter or garbage dispenser dumped.

 

I always leave an extra big tip because I do request that the cabin be vacummed daily.

[Cruisin' Chick]

Would he have done the same things without the first day tip? You will never know without asking those in the cabins around you. That may be just the standard service he provides.

 

Exacty. It's just an assumption that some people are being treated special because of the first day tip.

 

We have never tip the steward the first day. We also don't besiege him or her with special requests as the crew are extremely busy. We'll check to make sure we have life jackets for each of us (sometimes there might not be one for our girl, so definitely that's a must, not a special request). But we're not going to say, oh, make sure (green handshake given) to keep our ice bucket filled, bring us extra bedding, etc.

[19woody19]

I don't consider myself cheap or extravagant but I am a little surprised by what some cruisers leave for tips. We keep the auto-tip and then leave a card with a note and tip at the end of the cruise. Usually $50 for our steward, sometimes more if they were exceptional, and the same for our MDR servers. On our last cruise we were seated with two wonderful sisters, aged 89 and 85, and the main server always went above and beyond to assist them. At the end, the sisters didn't leave a tip for her or her assistant and I imagine their financial situation was pretty limited. We gave the assistant $50 and then gave the young lady a special thank you note on behalf of the sisters along with $150. I work hard for my money but not as hard as those working on the ship and it pleases me to know I can reward someone for a job well done.

[Colo Cruiser]

I don't consider myself cheap or extravagant but I am a little surprised by what some cruisers leave for tips. We keep the auto-tip and then leave a card with a note and tip at the end of the cruise. Usually $50 for our steward, sometimes more if they were exceptional, and the same for our MDR servers. On our last cruise we were seated with two wonderful sisters, aged 89 and 85, and the main server always went above and beyond to assist them. At the end, the sisters didn't leave a tip for her or her assistant and I imagine their financial situation was pretty limited. We gave the assistant $50 and then gave the young lady a special thank you note on behalf of the sisters along with $150. I work hard for my money but not as hard as those working on the ship and it pleases me to know I can reward someone for a job well done.

 

 

A very nice gesture. :)

[Iamcruzin]

Why are you trying it impress the steward? He/She should be trying to impress you. I will tip before the end of the cruise if I request something extra. Last time my wife who has long hair needed more conditioner. So when he brought the extra bottles I tipped him $5.00.