Automatic Gratuities

[deliver42]

But you did see the people from the dining room. They were in the Windjammer and other venues on the ship. They do not rest between dining room meals.

[Thetrail]

Okay, I have to throw this in. While people like to think the staff prefer cash it is not true. They will certainly take it and will never say no however it is more inconvenient to them then you would think. They can't keep large amounts of cash in their rooms and it would be unsafe to do so anyways. Rooms are shared and there can be theft. This means that when they get extra money they need to take it down to the pursers office and deposit it to their account. This is time they do not have to spare. It must be done in their own time off which we all know they don't get a lot of.

Once the purser has the funds it works like a bank and the purser will do with the funds as the staff member has requested. It mostly goes into their bank accounts automatically in their home country. Only a small amount is kept in their on board account for their personal needs.

This information comes directly from a close friend of mine who worked on the ships. Take what you want from it, believe it or don't. Doesn't matter to me, just thought I would share what I know.

Please give us a break!!.....:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

[Thetrail]

Of course they have time off to spend however they wish but do you really think they want to spend the little time they have going to the pursers office to make a deposit? They work 7 days straight and its long hours so when they get rewarded with a half day off there thinking about other ways to spend it.

Again, everyone is free to do it the way they like and no staff will ever refuse cash. My point is not to remove it just to hand it to the staff member. That is not helping them, as some seem to think.

You really don't have a clue do you?....:rolleyes:

[Thetrail]

You think the note will actually be read? My guess is the cash will be removed and note & envelope will end up in garbage! Do you leave your waitress a thank you note? or the maid in a hotel?

 

They are not there for some social event - they are working. Being nice to you is in their job description - they are not there to be your new friend. Be polite, treat them with respect and tip appropriately - your cash is thank you enough.

Just to let you know your guess is WRONG! Received an email from our waiter we had on a recent B2B thanking us for the tips and for the dialogue we had with each other for two weeks running, think before you type....K.O.

[katjoeus]

That is so nice!! I think we all need to stop thinking of these people as robots; while I'm sure the appreciate (and need!! They usually send a lot of their earnings home to their families!!) the extra cash, I'm equally sure that they appreciate being treated kindly and small gestures like thank-you notes

[brfan]

I agree Chipmeister! It is so annoying that it is automatic and before any service has been provided. I strongly think people work harder if tips have to be "earned" as opposed to automatic.

 

How is it tipping before service? The autotips are not charged to your credit card until the last evening and the crew does not get the money until after the cruise is over.

 

The one item most forget is the after cruise evaluation, too many poor evaluations and that person is out of a job. I think that is a good motivator to provide good service.

[Miryam1234]

 

The one item most forget is the after cruise evaluation, too many poor evaluations and that person is out of a job. I think that is a good motivator to provide good service.

 

Especially since it seems that anything except for 10 is considered "poor".

Personally, I hate this since I may have 7 different MTD waiter teams, which can vary between poor, ok and fabulous which just cannot be evaluated with a single number.

[MrsKC08]

Quite frankly, you are wrong. We have a friend who works for Royal for more than the 16 years we've known him (he started at entry level and is now a top manager). When all this removing of tips came up I asked him exactly what the situation was. When you remove your tips, you are taking away $ from the staff behind the scenes.

 

You say you tip the people in cash who deserve it. The staff who wash your towels and sheets don't deserve it? The staff who do the prep work for what you eat don't deserve it? Really?

 

You totally mistook my comment of "the amount you pay doesn't all go to the people you think it goes to, and that is just fact."

 

What I am saying in that statement is that RCCL gets a portion of the automatic gratuities. Of that $13 or so a % goes to RCCL corporate and NOT the staff on the ship. They actually get about $10 of that to split among them. You know someone who works on RCCL, so do I and others if they have cruised enough. I also know people on Princess and Carnival as well as a CD from RCCL.

One thing I have learned in my years is that everyone knows someone! LOL

[Cruise Betty]

Curious to know at what age a child should start tipping?!

[packercruising]

Curious to know at what age a child should start tipping?!

 

Do you mean, for example, a 10 year old gets really good service for his/her banana split, should they tip extra?:rolleyes:

[Grandma Dazzles]

Curious to know at what age a child should start tipping?!

 

If you are sailing on RC children are billed the automatic gratuities just like any other passengers. There is no age limit. In fact, children probably make more work than an adult passenger. Standard gratuities are per person, per day.

[Biker19]

Curious to know at what age a child should start tipping?!

 

When they can afford it.

[hockeypapa]

WHY DONT THEY USE THE LEFT OVER OBC AND USE IT TO PAY THE STAFF??? IT IS GIVEN BY ROYAL AND IF YOU DON T USE IT ALL THEN THEY KEEP THE REST!!!! SO MAYBE THEY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE CHEAP!!!

:eek:

[Charles4515]

WHY DONT THEY USE THE LEFT OVER OBC AND USE IT TO PAY THE STAFF??? IT IS GIVEN BY ROYAL AND IF YOU DON T USE IT ALL THEN THEY KEEP THE REST!!!! SO MAYBE THEY ARE THE ONES WHO ARE CHEAP!!!

 

:eek:

 

 

 

Who doesn't to use all their OBC? [emoji51]

 

I think we know who is CHEAP!!! [emoji12] [emoji970]

 

 

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Edited August 23, 2016 by Charles4515

[KG1924]

Why do you think I'm angry ?

It was $507,never said exorbitant,I said it wasn't measly.

I never said I tip fair,I said I tip well.

How and how much I tip is nothing to do with you or anyone else,it's between me and the person i am tipping.

If you want to tell the world what a smashing fella you are for giving a waiter $20 for drinks and cheese and fruit,well good on you

 

I assure you I don't consider myself a "smashing fella" for tipping $20...for many reasons including that I'm a female. My point to that is this is how I view the auto grats. I also did not say it was wrong or right, just how it works for me. I like knowing that I've at least covered the recommended amount and will tip for anything above the expected service.

 

How and how much you do tip is others business when you type in on a thread about tipping and how $507 isn't measly-if you don't want to share that information then maybe don't jump down peoples throats about it on here. If you tip so well, then what is the magic number?

[CapeCodCruiser]

You totally mistook my comment of "the amount you pay doesn't all go to the people you think it goes to, and that is just fact."

 

What I am saying in that statement is that RCCL gets a portion of the automatic gratuities. Of that $13 or so a % goes to RCCL corporate and NOT the staff on the ship. They actually get about $10 of that to split among them. You know someone who works on RCCL, so do I and others if they have cruised enough. I also know people on Princess and Carnival as well as a CD from RCCL.

One thing I have learned in my years is that everyone knows someone! LOL

 

What proof do you have that RCCL keeps a portion of the grats? So the breakdown they publish is a lie? If so that is a lawsuit waiting to happen!

[ColoradoGurl]

I assure you I don't consider myself a "smashing fella" for tipping $20...for many reasons including that I'm a female. My point to that is this is how I view the auto grats. I also did not say it was wrong or right, just how it works for me. I like knowing that I've at least covered the recommended amount and will tip for anything above the expected service.

 

How and how much you do tip is others business when you type in on a thread about tipping and how $507 isn't measly-if you don't want to share that information then maybe don't jump down peoples throats about it on here. If you tip so well, then what is the magic number?

 

 

[emoji23][emoji23] agreed.

I am also curious as to what people are tipping who claim to remove the $13/day measly tip, only to turn around and "tip well." If they're tipping so well, then what's the point of removing the portion that's already there? It doesn't make sense to remove tips just to turn around and spend the same amount. Either you're leaving the tips on, and tipping extra in cash above that amount, or you're removing them so you can tip less (or, as many assume, not at all).

 

Or, what could be happening (for those who claim they are tipping more than $13/day), is they are removing the tips for the whole family, and then tipping more than $13/day, but much less than $13/day times their 5 people, and calling it good because they are considering their family unit one group and worthy of one tip for all of them, so in their minds they've convinced themselves they've tipped well for their family unit, but aren't actually tipping the amount for each family member. Maybe? Perhaps? Who knows.

 

 

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Edited August 24, 2016 by ColoradoGurl

[LMaxwell]

Either you're leaving the tips on, and tipping extra in cash above that amount, or you're removing them so you can tip less (or, as many assume, not at all).

 

 

Why is it only those two things and no other? You keep saying it, I think you actually believe it, but I haven't seen anything to back it up. Consider this, Royal provides the option, if they thought it was a problem, they'd do away with it. I think there's more than two explanations.

[ColoradoGurl]

Why is it only those two things and no other? You keep saying it, I think you actually believe it, but I haven't seen anything to back it up. Consider this, Royal provides the option, if they thought it was a problem, they'd do away with it. I think there's more than two explanations.

 

 

Because it makes rational sense. If a person removes tips, and then claims to tip well, then what is the point of removing the tips in the first place????? Just tip additionally. Yes, I keep saying the same thing because nothing else makes as much logical sense. I think royal will probably do away with it eventually, and I hope they do.

 

 

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[Computer Nerd]

I agree Chipmeister! It is so annoying that it is automatic and before any service has been provided. I strongly think people work harder if tips have to be "earned" as opposed to automatic.

 

while it is automatic, it is not before service is provided. you do not pay your final bill till the morning you leave the cruise and that is when you actually pay the auto tips. service has been provided before you pay which is why you can adjust them during the cruise if necessary before you pay.

[Charles4515]

while it is automatic, it is not before service is provided. you do not pay your final bill till the morning you leave the cruise and that is when you actually pay the auto tips. service has been provided before you pay which is why you can adjust them during the cruise if necessary before you pay.

 

They actually add the daily amount every day. But they can be adjusted any time during the cruise. So it can be done the last day for the whole cruise.

Edited August 24, 2016 by Charles4515

[Computer Nerd]

They actually deduct the daily amount every day. But they can be adjusted any time during the cruise. So it can be done the last day for the whole cruise.

 

they don't actually deduct anything. they just add it to your bill. but you don't pay that bill until you leave the ship so you don't actually pay the tips until that time when they actually charge you credit card.

[Charles4515]

Why is it only those two things and no other? You keep saying it, I think you actually believe it, but I haven't seen anything to back it up. Consider this, Royal provides the option, if they thought it was a problem, they'd do away with it. I think there's more than two explanations.

 

You convieniently forget to mention that the option is provided in the event the guest does not recieve satisfactory service. It as not an option to pay cash instead of the auto gratuities or to stiff the crew.

Edited August 24, 2016 by Charles4515

[LMaxwell]

If a person removes tips, and then claims to tip well, then what is the point of removing the tips in the first place????? Just tip additionally.

 

They are choosing to directly financially reward those who provided the one on one service and are removing any wonder or doubt about what happens when it is turned over electronically to management. It doesn't mean they are giving less. Could they give less? Sure. Could they give the same? Sure. Could they give more? Sure. But it just means they are choosing an option other than what you may choose. And they aren't breaking any rules of the system by doing so either. And that doesn't make you any more or less right than anyone else.

[LMaxwell]

You convieniently forget to mention that the option is provided in the event the guest does not recieve satisfactory service. It as not an option to pay cash instead of the auto gratuities or to stiff the crew.

 

The option is at the guests discretion. There is no qualifier.