Gratuities Going Up $1 Per Day Effective May 21, 2019

[habita]

I booked my Alaska cruise when they had the prepaid tip sale. Will they cover the price increase?

[GUT2407]

20 minutes ago, habita said:

I booked my Alaska cruise when they had the prepaid tip sale. Will they cover the price increase?

Yep

[bemis12]

6 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

You could be right. Maybe I misinterpreted what bemis12 said. Maybe bemis 12 meant that some other people are cheap. If so, I apologise to him/her.🙂

 

No, it was directed at people that are actually cheap.  I have no reason to believe that Elorac is one of those people.  Sorry for the confusion!

[ashhill]

12 hours ago, NavyVeteran said:

I just received the same email from Princess. It appears Princess is finally making the announcement.

 

I received the email for a cruise booked through a travel agent, so it looks as if Princess is notifying everyone directly.

We have 2 cruises booked,one at the end of June and October and have never been notified from Princess.

Maybe being sent by snailmail!

[pablo222]

On 4/28/2019 at 11:26 PM, richmke said:

For everyone complaining about how little cruise line employees make for their 6-8 month contracts:

 

People in the Military (Navy in particular) are away for 6-8 months from their family, work long shifts, and don't make the high wages compared to the average worker in the USA.

 

Are you suggesting that we tip them, too?

 

 

[bemis12]

6 minutes ago, pablo222 said:

 

Are you suggesting that we tip them, too?

 

 

 

You should absolutely give them a tip of the hat when they pass by.

[susancruzs]

I received a notification yesterday for my Oct. cruise.  I'm not reading through the many comments because I have absolutely no problem with it.  I don't want to get snarky with those that think it is bad or outrageous.

[chamima]

18 hours ago, pthjudy said:

It made sense that free equals free but one never knows.....Remember the coffee cards that had no expiration date until they didn’t.  And yes it is June 1.

 

13 hours ago, capriccio said:

Just received the email from Princess:

Dear Princess Guest: To ensure our guest service on board remains among the best in the cruise industry, Princess Cruises has increased the daily gratuity charge for all voyages departing on or after May 21, 2019. The new daily gratuity amounts are $14.50 per guest for interior, oceanview and balcony staterooms; $15.50 per guest for mini-suites and Club Class, and $16.50 per guest for suites. This encompasses all guests in a stateroom, including children. The gratuity rate increase is comparable to cruise industry standards and underlines our commitment toward our crew for the excellent service they provide our guests. You have the opportunity to prepay your daily gratuities at the current rate through May 14, 2019 at 11:59 PM PT. You may prepay through your Cruise Personalizer or contact us at 1.800.774.6237 (North America), 0344 338 8663 (UK), 132 488 (Australia), or 0800 780 717 (New Zealand). Guests booked with promotions that include paid gratuities will not be affected by this rate increase. Thank you and we look forward to welcoming you aboard.

Sincerely, Princess Cruises

 

 

Just in case you missed this part of Princess' announcement.

We have 5 cruises booked and received the email for only one of them.

Still, I think it was very aboveboard of Princess to send this out 2 weeks in advance of the deadline to prepay at the old rate!

[pthjudy]

28 minutes ago, chamima said:

 

 

 

Just in case you missed this part of Princess' announcement.

We have 5 cruises booked and received the email for only one of them.

Still, I think it was very aboveboard of Princess to send this out 2 weeks in advance of the deadline to prepay at the old rate!

It was clearly stated, but I must have missed it. Thank you. 

[c-boy]

10 hours ago, SinbadThePorter said:

 

So can Carnival Corp, but they prefer to dip into passengers pockets.

 

The staff work hard and deserve a decent wage not charity. If Carnival needs to maintain its profits, increase the up front price of cruises instead of hiding the true cost with this inefficient, unfair, archaic and arbitrary system of tips.

they will more than likely make more on the gratuity end of the deal rather than the hourly end

[elliair]

14 hours ago, RMMariner said:

I agree with you ColoCruiser.

 

I have already made my opinion known. This argument just goes in circles anyways.

 

Plus, all my best replies just get removed.

Yours and others, not just you.  DH and I only have 1 day service and that's in the morning.  We are low maintenance people, and don't demand much.  Give us clean towels, make our bed, ice and wine glasses, and we're good to go.  We don't have laundry even though it's a perk.  When we stay at a hotel, this is the service we receive on a daily basis.  An envelope is left for a tip IF we choose to do so.  I can see why Princess does not tie the gratuities in with the full price of the cruise.  They use it as a bargaining chip to get you to book a cruise.  So, whatever an individual wants to do with their money and reasons for it, is really no ones business.  It's like having a bad meal at a pricey restaurant.  It's not the waiters fault, but you're tipping the waiter.  We do have a choice, don't go back to the restaurant.  Shaming me has never worked,  I reward where reward is due.

[elliair]

3 hours ago, chamima said:

 

 

 

Just in case you missed this part of Princess' announcement.

We have 5 cruises booked and received the email for only one of them.

Still, I think it was very aboveboard of Princess to send this out 2 weeks in advance of the deadline to prepay at the old rate!

Very smart of Princess to do this as it prompted me to pay the gratuities upfront.  It's something that I have never done in the past.  More revenue generating to pay the upcoming legal fees for their environmental screw up.  Follow the money.....

[Globehoppers]

This is really a crock!  Not that crew deserve better pay - they all deserve that.  The problem is Princess management and mistreatment of Princess employees.  Instead of adjusting the base cost of a cruise up by one dollar a day, they adjust "gratuities."  The crock part is that Princess management then wants customers to believe that the price of the cruise did  to increase.  Bah!  Same old bait and switch from corporate management.  First, pay the crew a living wage.  Second, include that in the base fare per cabin category.  Don't play games with both the crew and with customers.  Really unseemly.  FYI - we always provide significant gratuities over and above the "recommended" amount.  The crew works very hard for what they earn, and deserve everything customers can provide.  Management - not so much!

[majortom10]

Never understood the policy on many cruise lines of paying gratuities upfront before the cruise. I was always of the belief that a gratuity was a tip for good service received. How do you know you are going to get good service months in advance prior to your cruise.

[majortom10]

7 hours ago, susancruzs said:

I received a notification yesterday for my Oct. cruise.  I'm not reading through the many comments because I have absolutely no problem with it.  I don't want to get snarky with those that think it is bad or outrageous.

Lucky you I have a cruise booked on Princess in August and have had no communication whatsoever from Princess about the increase in gratuities. Having said that I am not surprised at Princess and the way they treat UK cruisers.

[kywildcatfanone]

6 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

Never understood the policy on many cruise lines of paying gratuities upfront before the cruise. I was always of the belief that a gratuity was a tip for good service received.

It is outside of the cruise industry.

 

7 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

How do you know you are going to get good service months in advance prior to your cruise.

You don't, but it doesn't really matter cause it's on by default.

 

For those asking why they don't add it to the cruise fare, it's simply marketing.  A $500 cruise fare with $100 in gratuities only requires advertising a $500 cruise fare, not a $600 cruise fare. 

[caribill]

4 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

For those asking why they don't add it to the cruise fare, it's simply marketing.  A $500 cruise fare with $100 in gratuities only requires advertising a $500 cruise fare, not a $600 cruise fare. 

 

That $500 cruise fare also does not include some fees and taxes.

 

A few years ago Princess starting including those fees and taxes in the advertised price and said "What you see is what you pay."

 

That only lasted a couple of months. Obviously they were losing sales to their competition that did not include the fees and taxes in the advertised price.

[PrincessLuver]

54 minutes ago, Globehoppers said:

This is really a crock!  Not that crew deserve better pay - they all deserve that.  The problem is Princess management and mistreatment of Princess employees.  Instead of adjusting the base cost of a cruise up by one dollar a day, they adjust "gratuities."  The crock part is that Princess management then wants customers to believe that the price of the cruise did  to increase.  Bah!  Same old bait and switch from corporate management.  First, pay the crew a living wage.  Second, include that in the base fare per cabin category.  Don't play games with both the crew and with customers.  Really unseemly.  FYI - we always provide significant gratuities over and above the "recommended" amount.  The crew works very hard for what they earn, and deserve everything customers can provide.  Management - not so much!

 

It may be easier for Princess and Carnival to do it this way because it may not show up us as taxable corporate income if they tie it in with the cruise price.....Princess is definitely not doing this for the crew or our benefit IMHO!!!

Edited April 30, 2019 by PrincessLuver

[bemis12]

21 minutes ago, PrincessLuver said:

 

It may be easier for Princess and Carnival to do it this way because it may not show up us as taxable corporate income if they tie it in with the cruise price.....Princess is definitely not doing this for the crew or our benefit IMHO!!!

 

How does that work tax-wise?  Explain please.

[pamwigs]

I can't imagine, (if because of the increase), so many want to opt out of gratuities up front.   I look at it like this. So many (myself included) have experienced great service with Princess. I think most would agree with the crew knowing guests prepay gratuities is the reason we get the great service. If even 1/2 that prepay decided not to because of the increase the service will suffer. The crew work their ass off. If you can't afford the gratuities, stay home.

Edited April 30, 2019 by pamwigs

[capriccio]

I am finding some of the righteous indignation confusing, especially from those with lots of cruises and/or across multiple mainstream lines.  Almost all mainstream lines do this!  And on all those cruise critic forums you read the same range of comments.  The all inclusive options (from P&O and Princess Australia to the premium and luxury lines) are out there for cruisers to compare with the more a la carte pricing structure of Princess and other similar lines. 

 

Do what is best for your budget and your conscience.  It is a business decision between the cruise line offering a product for a specific price (which in the case of the gratuities they are honoring since they offer pre-payment of gratuities at the current rate) and the individual passenger who decides to book it or not.

[pamwigs]

On 4/28/2019 at 4:07 AM, joe d said:

I don't see how Princess should be able to increase the price after we have booked the cruise.  The increase should only apply to new bookings.

The gratuities is the only thing increased. If you have paid off your cruise (with gratuities) you will not pay any more. 

[capriccio]

Just now, pamwigs said:

The gratuities is the only thing increased. If you have paid off your cruise (with gratuities) you will not pay any more. 

Joe -d:  And it you haven't pre-paid your gratuities yet, do it before mid-May at the original rate.  That way you avoid the increase.

[pamwigs]

On 4/26/2019 at 9:12 AM, RMMariner said:

 

Agreed. Just make them a hotel charge. Do not know what percentage actually pull their tips, but just make it a mandatory charge. Tired of subsidizing the people who sneak down and pull their tips on the last day.

I can't agree more. They are likely the ones that cruise all the time and spend the gratuitie $$ on a bar bill. 

[Kingofcool1947]

Like others have suggested, Princess should change it  to a “ resort fee” rather than gratuities.  Make it part of the upfront cost of a cruise, mandatory,  and non-removable by PAXs.    Just like if you stay at a top tier hotel/resort land based resort you pay a resort fee.   Isn’t that what these ships are?  Resorts at sea?    As always, extra grats  at your own discretion, as it is now.

That way, customers (PAXs)  have a choice of which cruise line fits their budget.   

Edited April 30, 2019 by Kingofcool1947