Have P&O finally lost the plot

[cruisebore]

There are many new to cruising who may find the concept of tipping and particularly at the rate suggested, a tad challenging and therefore opt out, some completely. Accordingly should there now be a deficit in the tips pool, P&O could be making the increase in order to cover this shortfall.

 

Cb

[bee-ess]

There are many new to cruising who may find the concept of tipping and particularly at the rate suggested, a tad challenging and therefore opt out, some completely. Accordingly should there now be a deficit in the tips pool, P&O could be making the increase in order to cover this shortfall.

 

Cb

 

Exactly, those who pay are subsiding the pool to cover those who don't pay - which I object to, most unfair - INCLUDE IT IN THE FARE

[Cruise Puss]

There are many new to cruising who may find the concept of tipping and particularly at the rate suggested, a tad challenging and therefore opt out, some completely. Accordingly should there now be a deficit in the tips pool, P&O could be making the increase in order to cover this shortfall.

 

Cb

 

I do agree. Having cruised on lines that include tipping within the fare it is easier, and fairer, to have it included.

[annieuk]

We would never leave the cabin in a mess. We don't make the bed but we do tidy up - for example if we have used glasses for water at night we would put those glasses where the tea/coffee making things are. We would put any clothes away from the evening before. I too have had the experience of a Cabin Steward thanking us for leaving the cabin so tidy, said it really helped. We leave the auto tips on and, on occasion, if we have received really good service from a wine steward we would tip him/her. If we order from Room Service I usually give the waiter who delivers the order a pound - assuming I have got the change. I too would rather the tips were included in the fare but tipping has been the norm for so long on P&O that I wonder if it will ever be introduced. If it is I can see that some people will still tip - the same as when auto tips were first introduced. Many passengers were so used to giving money in envelopes at the end of the cruise that it felt odd the final evening in the restaurant not to be handing the envelopes over - so some people did both.

[AchileLauro]

Over the years we have had some absolutely first rate cabin stewards and waiting staff but I can't say that about the cabin steward that we had on our last cruise because we hardly saw him. Apparently he went sick two days into a 17 night cruise and we didn't see him until the last day of the cruise. One of the other stewards had to cover for him in addition to doing his own job.

[Cruise Puss]

Over the years we have had some absolutely first rate cabin stewards and waiting staff but I can't say that about the cabin steward that we had on our last cruise because we hardly saw him. Apparently he went sick two days into a 17 night cruise and we didn't see him until the last day of the cruise. One of the other stewards had to cover for him in addition to doing his own job.

 

Being sick does happen. Our Steward was off sick only 2 days in to our two week cruise once.

[Joy R]

Ours broke his hand about halfway through our cruise. Before that we had seen him regularly, and he was superb, so when suddenly he wasn't there we asked one of the other stewards - and later we met him in one of the ports. We did want to give him an extra tip, so we handed an envelope in at the desk on our last day, and were promised that it would be passed to housekeeping for him. I hope he received it, as he had told us that he wouldn't be able to work for several weeks.

[CoupleUK]

It wasnt that long ago that you tipped the cabin steward, head waiter, asst waiter and the maitre d.

 

Those were the days when you got REAL service as these staff knew you were in control of the cash envelope.

 

Today, we are fobbed off with paying unknown amounts to any number of people we may never see; just one auto payment.

 

Since that change, service has nosedived on every cruiseline we've been on.

 

The staff need an incentive to provide the service instead of relying on a pretty much set wage every week.

 

We tended to give more in those envelopes too (though we didnt give the maitre d anything at all)

[insanemagnet]

Today, we are fobbed off with paying unknown amounts to any number of people we may never see; just one auto payment.

 

Since that change, service has nosedived on every cruiseline we've been on.

 

It is as if the optional gratuities are not tips, but are just a service charge added to the bill as a way of keeping the headline price down and used to subside the wages bill.

 

Well I never.

 

No wonder some people choose not to pay this optional charge.

[judge62]

Has anyone done the math, if everyone paid the recommended £6, it would be £19200 per day, nearly £350'000 for the whole cruise.!!!

That does not take into account any additional tips paid.

It is little wonder that P&O "push" auto tipping

 

 

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[CCFC]

Has P&O always had tipping, even when they were British owned back in the 70s/80s/90s etc? Just curious if its been since they became US owned or forever.

[daiB]

Has P&O always had tipping, even when they were British owned back in the 70s/80s/90s etc? Just curious if its been since they became US owned or forever.

 

 

Yes they have. We tipped in 2001 and at that time you got a little booklet with suggested tips. Clearly been around for years.

 

 

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[Florry]

Has anyone done the math, if everyone paid the recommended £6, it would be £19200 per day, nearly £350'000 for the whole cruise.!!!

That does not take into account any additional tips paid.

It is little wonder that P&O "push" auto tipping

 

 

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The math you present assumes everyone pays [emoji854]

 

 

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[judge62]

I DO say, If everyone

 

 

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[insanemagnet]

Has anyone done the math, if everyone paid the recommended £6, it would be £19200 per day, nearly £350'000 for the whole cruise.!!!

That does not take into account any additional tips paid.

It is little wonder that P&O "push" auto tipping

 

 

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And the £350,000 is an £120,000 increase from what it would have been three years ago.

 

Does anyone actually think the staff have benefited from the full increase without a matching drop in base salary.

 

This is just P&O being sneaky and shifting more of the wage bill off the headline price.

[davecttr]

I will remind everyone that as the value of the pound falls against the dollar the amount of money Carnival earn from their P&O ships falls as Carnival work in dollars. Maybe increasing the daily charge is another way of making up the shortfall.

[cruisebore]

I will remind everyone that as the value of the pound falls against the dollar the amount of money Carnival earn from their P&O ships falls as Carnival work in dollars. Maybe increasing the daily charge is another way of making up the shortfall.

 

 

When in the past I have inquired of the crew " is it ok if I tip in dollars" they say they proffered GBP's

[groovechick]

Yes they have. We tipped in 2001 and at that time you got a little booklet with suggested tips. Clearly been around for years.

 

Even before that Dai. I'm sure I remember the booklet you mention, and tipping, on our first cruise, circa 1992.

[Alan Flett]

Has anyone done the math, if everyone paid the recommended £6, it would be £19200 per day, nearly £350'000 for the whole cruise.!!!

That does not take into account any additional tips paid.

It is little wonder that P&O "push" auto tipping

 

 

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That's also assuming all passengers are over the age of 12.

 

 

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[judge62]

My opening statement wasn't meant to be taken so literally, just an example of " what if" could go the other way and everyone opts out and the grand title of auto tips is £0, but highly unlikely. I was just a little surprised at what the total amount could be.

I for one would never dream of tipping £198 for service whether good or bad.

I like to tip for good service.

 

 

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[terrierjohn]

I will remind everyone that as the value of the pound falls against the dollar the amount of money Carnival earn from their P&O ships falls as Carnival work in dollars. Maybe increasing the daily charge is another way of making up the shortfall.

I imagine Carnival will make far more money by increasing the cruise fare, rather than just 50p on the gratuities.

[insanemagnet]

I imagine Carnival will make far more money by increasing the cruise fare, rather than just 50p on the gratuities.

Increasing the price may lead to lower profits.

 

Higher prices could lead to lower occupancy. Reducing the price would probably increase it.

 

As many costs are fixed no matter how many are on board, a higher occupancy means higher profits. Exactly the model the low cost airlines use.

 

To make up for those lower fares, P&O are employing the same tricks that Michael O'Leary became famous for - advertise something cheap and add on the hidden extras.

 

MOL did it with baggage, seat and ticket charges, P&O does it with hidden optional service charge, and over the last three years dramatically increasing it.

 

The problem comes when people get wise to the trick. With Ryanair people just take hand luggage to avoid the charge. On P&O people just opt out of the optional charge.

[Cruise Puss]

I've been following this thread since the beginning and as an exercise (I had nothing better to do!:D) I have looked up 12 cruise lines to see their tipping costs.

 

The result of this is that P&O are the second cheapest of the ones I looked up. Fred come in cheaper at £4, and, funnily enough, Cunard are only just above P&O at between £8-10. The most expensive was Oceania - between £13 and £18 pppd depending on the category of cabin. Most were around £10-£13; Costa are slightly different in that they charge in Euros and Dollars depending on where their cruises go, but their costs are around £8-£14. Some lines (Azamara, Carnival, Thomson) include it in the price of the cruise and, in the brief time I was looking, I couldn't find a breakdown of what that was.

 

These prices are based on the current exchange rate, and are all pppd.

 

There is, however, one huge difference between P&O and nearly every other cruise line I looked at.

 

They do not charge a 'service charge' of 15% on drinks, spa services, etc. This would, over a two week cruise, be extremely pricey, and makes P&O extremely good value compared to the rest of them.

 

My husband and I don't think that £6 pppd is an extortionate tip when compared to others!

[davecttr]

I've been following this thread since the beginning and as an exercise (I had nothing better to do!:D) I have looked up 12 cruise lines to see their tipping costs.

 

The result of this is that P&O are the second cheapest of the ones I looked up. Fred come in cheaper at £4, and, funnily enough, Cunard are only just above P&O at between £8-10. The most expensive was Oceania - between £13 and £18 pppd depending on the category of cabin. Most were around £10-£13; Costa are slightly different in that they charge in Euros and Dollars depending on where their cruises go, but their costs are around £8-£14. Some lines (Azamara, Carnival, Thomson) include it in the price of the cruise and, in the brief time I was looking, I couldn't find a breakdown of what that was.

These prices are based on the current exchange rate, and are all pppd.

 

There is, however, one huge difference between P&O and nearly every other cruise line I looked at.

 

They do not charge a 'service charge' of 15% on drinks, spa services, etc. This would, over a two week cruise, be extremely pricey, and makes P&O extremely good value compared to the rest of them.

 

My husband and I don't think that £6 pppd is an extortionate tip when compared to others!

You are unlikely to find that breakdown as it is confidential in the same way Carnival won't publish the %age profit on turnover for each of their cruiselines.

 

I thought P&O did include a service charge on drinks but it is rolled into the price of the drink and not itemised. Is this why bar waiters are not one of the crew categories that benefit form the daily charge. Their 'tips' come from the number of drinks sold.

[Port out]

Has P&O always had tipping, even when they were British owned back in the 70s/80s/90s etc? Just curious if its been since they became US owned or forever.

 

Yes, even in the early '80s while not compulsory, tips were expected by the crew that looked after you. I just had a look at one of my P&O brochures from 1983 and in the conditions it says that a gratuities leaflet would be provided with your tickets stating the amount of gratuity you should pass on. If I recall it would have been about £40 to the cabin steward for the two of us, that's £130 in todays money. Also 10% was expected by the bar stewards and of course this was in cash as were all bar transactions. I vividly recall a poor steward on deck when the wind caught his cash pile and much of it was blown over the side!

Compare to todays £6 a day, it's hardly much more than we used to just pay the cabin steward, let alone the rest of the service crew. Seems cheap to me!!

Left out

 

Ships cruised on: Orontes, Himalaya, Sea Princess, ‘Old’ Oriana, Canberra, Pacific Princess, Island Princess, Star Princess, Regal Princess, Crown Princess, Royal Princess, Victoria, ‘Old’ Arcadia, Aurora, Oceana, ‘Old’ Adonia, Arcadia, Oriana, Adonia, Ventura, Azura.

Been on: RMS Queen Mary, RMS Queen Elizabeth, QE11, Caronia, Mauretania, Andes, Begona, Montserrat, Fairsky, Fairsea, Fairstar, Johan Van Oldenbarnevelt, Orangie, Astor 11, Chusan, Iberia, New Amsterdam, Southern Cross, Northern Star, Orsova, Strathnaver, Reina del Mar, Rotterdam, Ryndam, Saxonia, Crystal Sympathy.

 

123 P&O cruises, 20 in the pipeline.