For Garden Villa folks - yet another tipping question....yeah, I know...

[SuiteCruiser]

I subscribe to the $5/day/person for the Concierge and $10/day/person for the butler, but have gone over that amount for the butler in GV.

 

May I suggest, since the bedrooms are all separate, and the living area open that you have the butler bring in pastries and coffee early in the morning and leave them. It's a treat to wake up to them :) You shouldn't hear the butler as long as you tell him to come in and not ring the doorbell.

 

You can order in breakfast later or go to Cagney's, but it's nice especially if someone wakes up earlier than everyone else.

[cooncat_mom]

Quick update - we got back to reality yesterday. I was allowed to take the Bvlgari shampoo, conditioners and lotions home, but for some reason they wouldn't let me take the Butler or the Room Steward home...[emoji848] [emoji38]

 

It was an incredible experience being in a Garden Villa and I'm so thankful we could experience it. We tipped our Concierge, Roel, $250. he was attentive and was able to get my DS and DDIL a reservation for Cagney's for their romantic dinner. Henry, our very nice butler, served us breakfast and dinner almost every night plus dinner on the top sun deck for our last night. He always seemed vaguely disappointed when we went out to eat! We tipped him $700. Our Room Steward, Joemarie, was a delightful young man who kept our rooms neat as a pin but always made sure the girls' toys were undisturbed. We tipped him $200.

 

Again, it is a phenominal suite and with the little ones having that large outdoor space was wonderful. The inflatable pool was a big hit and we all truly enjoyed it. It was funny to see what the words "We're in the Garden Villa" did to people. I have some mobility issues and use a walker. At the Boston port, the lady directing traffic was absolutely insistent that I go into the Special Assistance line (which I don't need). As soon as I said "No, I need the suite area - we're in the Garden Villa." her demeanor totally changed and a port agent magically appeared to lead us around. Thanks for all the information and advice!

 

 

 

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[asubaru]

It was very nice of you to return and pass on your experiences! Glad to hear you had such good service. Did you leave the ship in Bermuda?:D

 

Questions:

 

On the upgrade charge, did they charge for two persons only?

 

What restaurants did you order from?

 

Did the hot tub have a view? I ask because looking at the pics post refurbishment, it appears that it might be somewhat secluded or at least not a clear view of the ocean.

 

Thanks!

 

 

 

 

Quick update - we got back to reality yesterday. I was allowed to take the Bvlgari shampoo, conditioners and lotions home, but for some reason they wouldn't let me take the Butler or the Room Steward home...[emoji848] [emoji38]

 

It was an incredible experience being in a Garden Villa and I'm so thankful we could experience it. We tipped our Concierge, Roel, $250. he was attentive and was able to get my DS and DDIL a reservation for Cagney's for their romantic dinner. Henry, our very nice butler, served us breakfast and dinner almost every night plus dinner on the top sun deck for our last night. He always seemed vaguely disappointed when we went out to eat! We tipped him $700. Our Room Steward, Joemarie, was a delightful young man who kept our rooms neat as a pin but always made sure the girls' toys were undisturbed. We tipped him $200.

 

Again, it is a phenominal suite and with the little ones having that large outdoor space was wonderful. The inflatable pool was a big hit and we all truly enjoyed it. It was funny to see what the words "We're in the Garden Villa" did to people. I have some mobility issues and use a walker. At the Boston port, the lady directing traffic was absolutely insistent that I go into the Special Assistance line (which I don't need). As soon as I said "No, I need the suite area - we're in the Garden Villa." her demeanor totally changed and a port agent magically appeared to lead us around. Thanks for all the information and advice!

 

 

 

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[cooncat_mom]

@asubaru - Hi! We did go to shows and wandered through the stores and did get off in Bermuda for a bit. But we did spend a lot of time in the suite. It's beautiful!

 

On the upbid, they charge for the first two people only so if you're willing to pay a total of $4000 you'd bid $2000 or half of your total cost.

 

As a Suite passenger you can order anything, so we ordered from the Suite menu, the Venetian, and Le Bistro (which you did have to pay or have a dining plan for). We also ordered breakfast which was anything we wanted. Our butler even served our last night's dinner on the sundeck.

 

The hot tub doesn't really have a view because the balcony has a sunscreen and railings. But nobody seemed to mind. If you want a view there's a two person jacuzzi in the master suite and a single one in the suite by the balcony!

 

Truly a wonderful time!

 

 

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[asubaru]

I appreciate the info!

 

I have done the Pearl's and loved it. We used the hot tub for hours a day and it overlooked the ocean which was particularly nice because it was an Alaskan cruise. I'm hoping the only ship that "screened" it, during refurbishment, was the Dawn.

 

I do agree that it's hard to leave the cabin; we blew off our last port so we could enjoy our last day in it.

 

Again, thanks.

 

@asubaru - Hi! We did go to shows and wandered through the stores and did get off in Bermuda for a bit. But we did spend a lot of time in the suite. It's beautiful!

 

On the upbid, they charge for the first two people only so if you're willing to pay a total of $4000 you'd bid $2000 or half of your total cost.

 

As a Suite passenger you can order anything, so we ordered from the Suite menu, the Venetian, and Le Bistro (which you did have to pay or have a dining plan for). We also ordered breakfast which was anything we wanted. Our butler even served our last night's dinner on the sundeck.

 

The hot tub doesn't really have a view because the balcony has a sunscreen and railings. But nobody seemed to mind. If you want a view there's a two person jacuzzi in the master suite and a single one in the suite by the balcony!

 

Truly a wonderful time!

 

 

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Edited September 18, 2017 by asubaru

[cooncat_mom]

I went back through my photos to see if I could show the hot tub. I can't attatch the video so at the moment a screenshot from the video is the best I can do. It might show you what the view is like. I can't get rid of the arrow either!

 

 

 

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[knitty nora]

Yet again an American view...they are doing a job...they are paid to do it...no tips necessary..call me mean but the rest of the world would agree.

[cooncat_mom]

Yet again an American view...they are doing a job...they are paid to do it...no tips necessary..call me mean but the rest of the world would agree.

 

 

 

Perhaps so, and there are many threads here about that, however, I am an American and our custom is to tip for certain service jobs. I don't think you're mean. I had planned to tip and had a ballpark figure in mind. In actuality, both Henry (the butler) and Joemarie (the room steward) were delightful and good at what they do, and were deserving of a thank you. (And no, I am not allowed to be tipped for doing my job. I'm ok with that [emoji846]).

 

 

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[CruiseGal999]

Are you mentioning these dollar amounts in ADDITION to pre-paid or automatically added to your onboard account gratuities? Or as the ONLY gratuities? That makes a difference.

[cooncat_mom]

For the butler it's my understanding that they, as well as the concierge, are not part of the tip pool, so yes this is in addition to the pre-paid gratuities. The room steward is included but quite frankly Joemarie was outstanding in his service. I wanted to take him home, but they'd only let me take the bathroom amenities and the slippers...[emoji853] (Henry, our butler, was excellent too)

 

 

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[asubaru]

Thanks for taking the time to find and post the pic.

 

I went back through my photos to see if I could show the hot tub. I can't attatch the video so at the moment a screenshot from the video is the best I can do. It might show you what the view is like. I can't get rid of the arrow either!

 

 

 

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[DominicAUS]

Yet again an American view...they are doing a job...they are paid to do it...no tips necessary..call me mean but the rest of the world would agree.

They don’t get paid much and most cruises cater to the American market. While being an Aussie we don’t tip here, but understand the customs of cruising which includes tipping. When sailing in suites the butler and consierge are not part of the daily service charge. Don’t want to tip, that’s up to you but feel if you’re visiting countries or cruises where it’s expected then you should reconsider