New gratuities by May 1st, 2016

[Clarea]

So is the tips divided through the whole fleet? Or just per ship.

Is a crew member on Voyager getting the same as Freedom per month?

My guess is about 80% of Aussies remove the auto tips. Most would give a tip to the room guy and waiter at well below the recommended amount.

No, to my knowledge, tips are not shared fleet wide.

 

Had no idea that the tips were being removed to that extent. Do the drink prices on the ships sailing from Australia have the tips built into the prices?

Edited April 2, 2016 by clarea

[springaussie]

No, to my knowledge, tips are not shared fleet wide.

 

Had no idea that the tips were being removed to that extent. Do the drink prices on the ships sailing from Australia have the tips built into the prices?

 

 

 

All drink prices in Australia since 14/15 season include the tip in the price with no break down amounts showing how much the tip is worth.

[OTownNick]

Wow! Apparently this is big news. It made it to my local news station here in Rhode Island. They said the average tips for a family of four is now $400. :D

 

But they fail to mention this "increase" would only be $2/day for a family of 4...that part doesn't sound news-worthy

[OTownNick]

If they serve me and bring me stuff personally then you can tip those directly. Stateroom attendant we pay directly as they personally service our room.

 

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So the people in the Windjammer who bring you drinks every meal, the asst. waiter who brings your bread and assists the waiter in the MDR?, not to mention there are crew who assist those who serve you directly. That's a lot to keep track of and people are surprised at the number of behind the scenes crew who ALL work together to make sure we are served properly. That, in my opinion, is why the auto-tips are a good idea...then if you want to tip a staff additionally for extra ordinary service, that goes a long way.

[springaussie]

Pre paid prices in Australia have risen from $11 AUD to $18.22 AUD in 2 years.

That is a big part of the reason why so many are being removed here.

[Bound4Bermuda]

And you are entitled to allow Royal to steal from you.... But you are not entitled or allowed to tell others what they must do or believe. Royal is stealing with the Auto Gratuity policy that they have in place. I will keep posting as I see fit and know is correct.

 

 

No need! You posted that Royal is "stealing" with the auto gratuities probably more than a dozen times (feels like 3 dozen times, but I'm not going to go back and count) between this thread and another thread on the topic. We all get that's what you think! It doesn't make it any less unfounded--especially when you've also said many times that you remove the gratuities so they're not "stealing" from you. This is how inflation works! Every good and service you pay for goes up in price over the years. I picture you arguing with vending machines and yelling at the cashier in the grocery store over rising costs.

 

 

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[Ocean Boy]

No need! You posted that Royal is "stealing" with the auto gratuities probably more than a dozen times (feels like 3 dozen times, but I'm not going to go back and count) between this thread and another thread on the topic. We all get that's what you think! It doesn't make it any less unfounded--especially when you've also said many times that you remove the gratuities so they're not "stealing" from you. This is how inflation works! Every good and service you pay for goes up in price over the years. I picture you arguing with vending machines and yelling at the cashier in the grocery store over rising costs.

 

 

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Every argument on this thread has been used dozens of times over the years of incessant discussions about this topic. That is how gratuity threads work. It also happens to be how threads about bathrobes work too if you care to visit that thread.

[marci22]

No need! You posted that Royal is "stealing" with the auto gratuities probably more than a dozen times (feels like 3 dozen times, but I'm not going to go back and count) between this thread and another thread on the topic. We all get that's what you think! It doesn't make it any less unfounded--especially when you've also said many times that you remove the gratuities so they're not "stealing" from you. This is how inflation works! Every good and service you pay for goes up in price over the years. I picture you arguing with vending machines and yelling at the cashier in the grocery store over rising costs.

 

You're not really being fair to expat. His perspective is that it's stealing. I don't think I'd call it stealing but I don't like it either.

 

Tips used to be given to the individual based on guidelines that the cruiseline handed out. It was easy enough to give whatever you wanted to give.

 

Now they have increased the amounts a few times, made it a daily auto-debit to your account, and although you can remove tips, they do make it cumbersome. Additionally, your tips are now being 'shared' by various people, leading me to believe it is more of an across the board wage subsidy than a real gratuity. No one knows who is getting what; we are just told to pay it and move on. So why not make it part of the price? They really aren't being consumer friendly.

 

So all of those things can get on peoples' nerves. Expat has simplified it by referring to it as 'stealing'.

Edited April 2, 2016 by marci22

[OTownNick]

I don't tip the manager in a restaurant do I? Why would I tip the bread role guy? My waiter serves me and deals with any problems and basically ensures I get what I ask for... That's why you tip them

 

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I believe the assistant waiters deserve a share of the tips. They work hard to serve you as do many others on the ship who serve you whether you realize it or not.

[Ocean Boy]

So the people in the Windjammer who bring you drinks every meal, the asst. waiter who brings your bread and assists the waiter in the MDR?, not to mention there are crew who assist those who serve you directly. That's a lot to keep track of and people are surprised at the number of behind the scenes crew who ALL work together to make sure we are served properly. That, in my opinion, is why the auto-tips are a good idea...then if you want to tip a staff additionally for extra ordinary service, that goes a long way.

 

Technically, doesn't EVERY member of the crew in someway play a role in making sure your cruise is enjoyable? Does it matter if they clean the dishes off of the table in the Windjammer, tie the ship up to the pier so you can go enjoy a port of call, vacuum the passageway leading to your cabin, or pump fuel onto the ship so you don't end up dead in the water out at sea? Yes, the behind the scenes crew ALL work together to make sure your cruise goes off well. How far and wide to you throw the net for those included in the "gratuities"?

[Ocean Boy]

I'm sorry but gratuity is not for them. They should be on standard wages paid by royal. Not paid by guests. Gratuity is for good service rendered by a member of serving staff. Royal are just using guests to meet their wage bill.

 

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That is how it used to work. We tipped the folks who served us. If they then had to split those tips that was their business and not mine. Now we give RCI the money to do what they want with it. Posters here often times say that Americans understand the culture of tipping better than people from other countries. However, the cruise lines have morphed the custom of tipping into something that many Americans actually find foreign. That is why there is so much difference of opinion on these threads.

 

See, I pretty much agree with you even if you don't like the periodic diversions from the topic of the thread.;)

[Ocean Boy]

I don't like the diversions because every post generates an email and alert on my phone lol.

 

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You do realize that you can change the methods of notification of a new post to the threads that you are following, right?

[Ocean Boy]

I did look for that but couldn't find it

 

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User CP....

Messaging and Notifications....

Default Thread.....

Subscription mode

 

 

Make your choice of how you'd like to receive notifications.

[OTownNick]

Technically, doesn't EVERY member of the crew in someway play a role in making sure your cruise is enjoyable? Does it matter if they clean the dishes off of the table in the Windjammer, tie the ship up to the pier so you can go enjoy a port of call, vacuum the passageway leading to your cabin, or pump fuel onto the ship so you don't end up dead in the water out at sea? Yes, the behind the scenes crew ALL work together to make sure your cruise goes off well. How far and wide to you throw the net for those included in the "gratuities"?

 

That's why I favor the daily grats as the ship recommends. I always give extra in cash as warranted

[Ocean Boy]

I found it finally

 

 

 

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Now the diversions will not be so annoying?:D:D:D

[Thoie]

Technically, doesn't EVERY member of the crew in someway play a role in making sure your cruise is enjoyable? Does it matter if they clean the dishes off of the table in the Windjammer, tie the ship up to the pier so you can go enjoy a port of call, vacuum the passageway leading to your cabin, or pump fuel onto the ship so you don't end up dead in the water out at sea? Yes, the behind the scenes crew ALL work together to make sure your cruise goes off well. How far and wide to you throw the net for those included in the "gratuities"?

 

I think the people I appreciate most on a cruise are the ones who keep the toilets flushing, the showers issuing warm water, and the aircon working. How do we go about tipping them?

[Oak Hill Cruisers]

I don't know about some of you guys, but I was always happy to get a step increase or COLA adjustment to my Federal Government salary.

 

We are happy to see those hard working crew members getting extra $$$.

 

Our $.02

[land lover]

Keep the thread on topic. No one cares about state slogans and other stuff

 

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I do, I just learned something and I am from PC CA.;)

[marci22]

I don't know about some of you guys, but I was always happy to get a step increase or COLA adjustment to my Federal Government salary.

We are happy to see those hard working crew members getting extra $$$.

 

 

We don't know if anyone is getting more money. The way that RC words it, it sounds like they are distributing more of it to 'other workers'. So you are taking over even more wage subsidizing than before. Royal is getting more money to use however they want.

Edited April 3, 2016 by marci22

[Clarea]

All drink prices in Australia since 14/15 season include the tip in the price with no break down amounts showing how much the tip is worth.

Thanks, I wonder why they don't bake the tips into the cruise price for cruises out of Australia.

[Expat Cruise]

Royal does not want to operated under US Labor laws. They do everything they can to be able to operate with control from the US Labor Department. If you posters who keep saying how we should help these poor crew members really want to help them then get Royal to operate as a US staffed and paid crew.

 

What Royal and other cruise lines do is to want to be a US Operator when it comes to stealing money in the form of Auto gratuities which they then control and spread as they see fit. But they don't really want to help the crews they just want us to pay the crews.

 

RCCL has a corporation is not responsible for caring about the crews, they are responsible to the shareholders. And it makes prefect sense to con the passengers into paying extra money for staff wages.

[nicolamac]

Just wondering can you get them refunded like you do on the princess as I like to choose who I pay mine to eg the room attendant and regular dining staff that take care of me. Never sailed on the rcl before

 

 

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[Clarea]

Just wondering can you get them refunded like you do on the princess as I like to choose who I pay mine to eg the room attendant and regular dining staff that take care of me. Never sailed on the rcl before

You can go to Guest Services and have them stop auto gratuities. I've not heard of them being refunded.

[Expat Cruise]

Just wondering can you get them refunded like you do on the princess as I like to choose who I pay mine to eg the room attendant and regular dining staff that take care of me. Never sailed on the rcl before

 

 

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Just go to guest services and have them removed once you are on the ship. But do not select to prepay them during the booking process, getting a refund would make it harder.

 

If you did prepay them contract Royal and get the credit back to your charge card before you sail. If your package included no cost gratuities you can not change things.

 

I always have removed the auto daily gratuity from my account. I will never pay it.... don't care what the company says, never going to happen. For me these auto daily gratuities are nothing short of robbery and thief.

 

I have more respect for a armed robber than Royal over this, at least he/she puts a gun in my face and says they are stealing. Royal wants to say how poor hard working crews have little money and are so needy, and work so hard to make my cruise better.... All worthless garbage from company PR, pay your own employees, if they can't live on what they make find another job.

[messengerc21]

Just go to guest services and have them removed once you are on the ship. But do not select to prepay them during the booking process, getting a refund would make it harder.

 

If you did prepay them contract Royal and get the credit back to your charge card before you sail. If your package included no cost gratuities you can not change things.

 

I always have removed the auto daily gratuity from my account. I will never pay it.... don't care what the company says, never going to happen. For me these auto daily gratuities are nothing short of robbery and thief.

 

I have more respect for a armed robber than Royal over this, at least he/she puts a gun in my face and says they are stealing. Royal wants to say how poor hard working crews have little money and are so needy, and work so hard to make my cruise better.... All worthless garbage from company PR, pay your own employees, if they can't live on what they make find another job.

 

A Little Harsh!