Tipping on The Majesty

[Louand66]

We are currently on the Majesty and wondered how we go about tipping the waiting staff.

 

We know that tips are included but want to give them a bit extra.

 

So the question is do you tip 1 person and they share it (we have 2 waiters and a drinks lady) or do you tip them individually.

 

Many thanks

 

Lu

[Pensioncruiser]

Hi we always tip all three individually plus cabin steward and sometimes someone in the bar if they have looked after us particularly well.:rolleyes:

[Chaffesbird]

We returned last week from the Majesty. We tipped each of our 2 waiters €20, our wine waiter €20 and the same for our cabin stewards. Doesn't sound a lot for a week of looking after us, but we only had about €100 odd left.

[GeoffH]

Did you have the same waiters each day?

 

I thought Majesty had open sittings, so you go at any time and are seated in a different place each night.

 

Have I got this wrong?

 

We are on the Majesty this Friday.

[Pensioncruiser]

All Thomson ships are open seating but if you like a particular table/station and you don't mind eating early you may find they will look after you as they know you will probably look after them

 

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[Chaffesbird]

We had 2 lovely waiters and we ate around 8.15. We queued with everyone else and when it was our turn, we told his where we wanted to be. Only once was the table not quite ready for us. The earlier diners had left but the table was still be reset for us.

[davecttr]

Tips are included so why worry about tipping waiters :confused:

[Pensioncruiser]

Some people like to and some don't we like to tip but I wouldn't question someone that didn't.

 

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[GeoffH]

OK I understand now.

Not been on a Thomson cruise for a few years.

Last time it was early or late sitting with same table every night.

 

Thanks

[okavango]

Tips are included so why worry about tipping waiters :confused:

 

Totally fictiscous,only part of Thomsons marketing strategy, makes people think they have actually paid something when in reality there is no element of included tips in the staff's salary.

Ask any member of staff how much they get as tips in their salary.

[davecttr]

Totally fictiscous,only part of Thomsons marketing strategy, makes people think they have actually paid something when in reality there is no element of included tips in the staff's salary.

Ask any member of staff how much they get as tips in their salary.

So if passengers do not give these extra 'tips' Thomson staff will be getting less salary than if they worked on other cruise lines where say 'auto gratuities' were paid?

 

I don't believe it!

 

what I do believe is the 'salary' includes an amount that would normally come direct from passengers via tips. Passengers pay for it of course in their fare. It is not listed on their pay slips as 'tips' therefore what they say is true

 

Why would Thomson staff who are getting less pay than if they worked for other cruise lines always look so happy and are efficient. surely they should be surely and always moaning.

 

Talking of which a bar tender on Majesty was moaning to me that he did not even get enough to eat properly. Actually that was because the bulk of his salary was sent back home and he got pocket money.

 

Take what the crew say with a pinch of salt,

[okavango]

So if passengers do not give these extra 'tips' Thomson staff will be getting less salary than if they worked on other cruise lines where say 'auto gratuities' were paid?

 

I don't believe it!

 

what I do believe is the 'salary' includes an amount that would normally come direct from passengers via tips. Passengers pay for it of course in their fare. It is not listed on their pay slips as 'tips' therefore what they say is true

 

Why would Thomson staff who are getting less pay than if they worked for other cruise lines always look so happy and are efficient. surely they should be surely and always moaning.

 

Talking of which a bar tender on Majesty was moaning to me that he did not even get enough to eat properly. Actually that was because the bulk of his salary was sent back home and he got pocket money.

 

Take what the crew say with a pinch of salt,

 

The staff are not employed by thomson so their rate of pay is of no real concern to them.

They can earn far more with some other cruise lines, some do move on and some are quite happy with what they get, just like this country people may do the same job for vastly differant salaries.

If tips are supposedly included why does their salary not go up and down depending on occupancy.

The staff can get plenty to eat,sometimes depending on working hours there might not be a great choice, some dont like the choice of food at all.

Its up to the staff (or more likely their wife LOL) how much money goes back home.

I know a lot of crew far more intimately than you ever will so believe me there are no tips in any shape/name/form.

[davecttr]

A quote from the Thomson site

 

Unlike most cruise lines, we don’t think that tips and service charges should cost extra, so we’ve included them in the price. That means you’re not expected to tip any of our crew-unless, of course, you want to

 

So you saying they are lying ?

[okavango]

"A quote from the Thomson site

 

Unlike most cruise lines, we don’t think that tips and service charges should cost extra, so we’ve included them in the price. That means you’re not expected to tip any of our crew-unless, of course, you want to"

 

So you saying they are lying ?

 

YES, why cant they just be honest and say any gratuities are at the customers discretion, which still gives them that edge over their competitors, lets face it thomsons are very good at glossing over/bulling things up trying to make themselves look good.

[jake 26]

If tips are supposedly included why does their salary not go up and down depending on occupancy

 

.

 

Surely their pay is contractual and is based on a salary plus a share of average expected gratuity income, and that gratuity income comes from the margin that Thomson say is built into the price. So therefore it won't fluctuate with occupancy.

 

They seem to be a contented lot to me.

 

I agree with building gratuities into the headline price. If someone goes beyond their call of duty, or exceeds my expectations I will tip them extra. Otherwise I won't get on the tipping merry go round.

 

On P&O I left the auto grats in place as I feel that P&O underpay their staff and use the tips to make up their income.

Edited January 18, 2017 by jake 26
correction

[okavango]

Surely their pay is contractual and is based on a salary plus a share of average expected gratuity income, and that gratuity income comes from the margin that Thomson say is built into the price. So therefore it won't fluctuate with occupancy.

 

They seem to be a contented lot to me.

 

I agree with building gratuities into the headline price. If someone goes beyond their call of duty, or exceeds my expectations I will tip them extra. Otherwise I won't get on the tipping merry go round.

 

On P&O I left the auto grats in place as I feel that P&O underpay their staff and use the tips to make up their income.

 

Their salary has got nothing to do with thomson

[jake 26]

Their salary has got nothing to do with thomson

 

Please clarify

[okavango]

Please clarify

 

They dont work for thomson

[jake 26]

They dont work for thomson

 

So who do they work for?

 

If they work on a TUI Thomson ship they are working for Thomson directly or indirectly, but either way Thomson must have contracts in place which have been negotiated to provide services for an agreed sum. Therefore Thomson set their pricing in relation to to that sum, and that negotiation will have direct bearing on the pay received by the staff employed to provide those services.

[okavango]

So who do they work for?

 

If they work on a TUI Thomson ship they are working for Thomson directly or indirectly, but either way Thomson must have contracts in place which have been negotiated to provide services for an agreed sum. Therefore Thomson set their pricing in relation to to that sum, and that negotiation will have direct bearing on the pay received by the staff employed to provide those services.

 

On non thomson/tui owned ships the staff work for the ship owners and they determine their salary/contract.

On thomson/tui ships the staff work for the management company who have got the contract to run the ships, the staffs salary/contract are managed by that company.

About the only thomson employees onboard are the thomson manager and i presume destination services staff.

[jake 26]

On non thomson/tui owned ships the staff work for the ship owners and they determine their salary/contract.

On thomson/tui ships the staff work for the management company who have got the contract to run the ships, the staffs salary/contract are managed by that company.

About the only thomson employees onboard are the thomson manager and i presume destination services staff.

 

So in each case TUI Thomson will have agreed a contract for services. That means they have accepted the staff costs, which includes pay, and that is then fed into the algorithm for calculating fares. So indirectly the staff are paid by Thomson.

 

Thomson make no secret that tips are part of the package, I noticed it was even printed on my cruise card, so my thoughts are that the staff are happy with their remuneration as they also know tips are included and they don't appear to be disgruntled because of it, and they don't 'play' for tips as sometimes happens on other lines. If they do a good job however many people will tip them.

 

I think this is a much better system than on other lines where the gratuities can be eye watering, but where there may be a question as to how much the staff actually receive.

[merciaman]

A cre member once told me that only a handful,literally 4-5,of staff on the whole ship are directly employed by thomson

[jake 26]

A cre member once told me that only a handful,literally 4-5,of staff on the whole ship are directly employed by thomson

 

Sadly, in many ways, over the last 15 years or so, contracting out various elements of large companies has become the norm, as it gives a much closer control of costs for the bean counters, who look after the shareholders.

[davecttr]

Sadly, in many ways, over the last 15 years or so, contracting out various elements of large companies has become the norm, as it gives a much closer control of costs for the bean counters, who look after the shareholders.

Thanks for the clear explanation of how staff costs work. Obviously the passengers pay the staff salaries and those salaries are set out in the staffs employment contracts.

 

What I find difficult to understand is why staff on Thomson ships would be consistently paid less than the industry norms especially as I believe there are agreed international minimum rates of pay. They look to be happy with their lot and seem efficient.

 

Over on the P&O forum there are frequent argu....discussions about tipping and their £5.50 per day auto tip. Many there believe as I do that rolling the 'tips' into the fare would be farer for the crew and the passengers. I know that passengers on P&O get their auto tips removed and think that many don't tip at all. Stiffing the crew in the process and getting the passengers who do pay to subsidise their holiday.

[okavango]

So in each case TUI Thomson will have agreed a contract for services. That means they have accepted the staff costs, which includes pay, and that is then fed into the algorithm for calculating fares. So indirectly the staff are paid by Thomson.

 

Thomson make no secret that tips are part of the package, I noticed it was even printed on my cruise card, so my thoughts are that the staff are happy with their remuneration as they also know tips are included and they don't appear to be disgruntled because of it, and they don't 'play' for tips as sometimes happens on other lines. If they do a good job however many people will tip them.

 

I think this is a much better system than on other lines where the gratuities can be eye watering, but where there may be a question as to how much the staff actually receive.

 

If these so called included tips actually exist how much are they ??? i suppose 0.01p pp would cover the claim of included tips, who gets them and how much ?????, certainly nobody i know onboard has a clue.

Edited January 18, 2017 by okavango