New Gratuity Rate

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

25 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

We are talking about the crew here, not ourselves.

 

They have little or no room to store stuff, and their tastes are not always the same as ours, this is why I say that cash is always going to be more use and more appreciated than candy and souvenirs. 
 

Sorry if it seems harsh, but it is just the practicality of the situation. 

Exactly! Cash AND a mention by name on comment cards and/or a post-cruise email are much more appreciated and useful to the crew members!

[Mark_T]

15 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

Exactly! Cash AND a mention by name on comment cards and/or a post-cruise email are much more appreciated and useful to the crew members!

Glad you added that bit, I always take the time to mention by name those who have delivered exceptional service both at the halfway survey and also in the post cruise survey.

 

Happily, it was quite a list for this last cruise, as the crew were truly excellent. 

[ONT-CA]

We chose the itinerary, we chose the cruise line, we chose the level of accommodation we chose the airline and the seats and we will choose how much gratuity we will give and to whom.

[wpgcycler]

6 minutes ago, ONT-CA said:

We chose the itinerary, we chose the cruise line, we chose the level of accommodation we chose the airline and the seats and we will choose how much gratuity we will give and to whom.

Still SMH.

[mom says]

1 hour ago, wpgcycler said:

Still SMH.

Totally agree. If you don't like a cruise line's gratuity policy, choose one you do agree with. I don't know of any itineraries or accommodation types that are unique to Celebrity. The "it's my choice" argument isn't fooling anyone.

[keesar]

3 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

Exactly! Cash AND a mention by name on comment cards and/or a post-cruise email are much more appreciated and useful to the crew members!

 

Cash is king for the staff. Many have families in other countries.   I remember this couple that gave out framed photographs of them posing with staff.  The frames were really nice as were the photos.  They also gave candy from their home town.  Nice gesture.  I hope they gave some $$$.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

4 minutes ago, keesar said:

 

Cash is king for the staff. Many have families in other countries.   I remember this couple that gave out framed photographs of them posing with staff.  The frames were really nice as were the photos.  They also gave candy from their home town.  Nice gesture.  I hope they gave some $$$.

 

Yes, for sure cash. BUT the mentions by name can lead to promotions and raises which help more in the long-run as those higher pay rates are more sustainable for their families than hoping that/counting on people give extra cash every week. Hence why both are important.

[Banjo]

On 12/28/2019 at 5:30 PM, Jim_Iain said:

I initially looked in the same place and did not find it.   In order to pre-pay gratuities you have to have a reservation directly with Celebrity.   If not you have to call your agent and have them do it for you.

 

If you have a Celebrity booking -  Choose Manage Reservation -

 

Under Gratuities there will be a underlined link - Edit Gratuities

 

Just click it and you can choose to pre-pay.   It will give you a choice to Pay or Pay Later (I believe to be final payment).   As I said before if your reservation is with an Agent you will not have this option.

 

 

Thanks. I did not book through Celebrity. I'll give the TA a call this week.

[pilot]

I have a solution to the gratuity issue that bothers so many people. 

 

Call your TA or Celebrity and tell them you object to paying crew members salaries with your onboard gratuities and you would like them to add $108.50 per person for a 7 day cruise, to your cruise fare instead. 

 

😀👍

[Oville]

So when I told my husband to call our travel agent today his response “to save $18 on our 9 day cruise, how cheap can that be.”   Of course he is right, as $2 a day isn’t going to make a difference in our lives but a few cents to the staff could mean a lot.

 

 

Edited December 30, 2019 by Oville

[RealBatman]

24 minutes ago, Oville said:

So when I told my husband to call our travel agent today his response “to save $18 on our 9 day cruise, how cheap can that be.”   Of course he is right, as $2 a day isn’t going to make a difference in our lives but a few cents to the staff could mean a lot.

 

 

 

👏🏻 👏🏻 👏🏻   👍🏻

[LMaxwell]

I've entered a contract w Celebrity and paid them the full pricing on the invoice.  I see it as no choice at all selecting to part with money early before any services are received or paying a higher rate onboard.  True, I'll have OBC and the difference isn't massive, but it's a bit distasteful overall how it is handled.  It should simply be for new bookings made after the date of announcement; not applied retroactively to those who are already in penalty phase for cancellation. 

[loerie]

Agree totaly!

[omeinv]

3 hours ago, LMaxwell said:

I've entered a contract w Celebrity and paid them the full pricing on the invoice.  I see it as no choice at all selecting to part with money early before any services are received or paying a higher rate onboard.  True, I'll have OBC and the difference isn't massive, but it's a bit distasteful overall how it is handled.  It should simply be for new bookings made after the date of announcement; not applied retroactively to those who are already in penalty phase for cancellation. 

 

Again, if one does not pre-pay, the gratuity amount is charge AT THE TIME OF SERVICE.  This means that the price increase that is announced now is effective in the future.  If you had - as you claim - "paid them the full pricing on the invoice", then that would mean you pre-paid this (gratuity) charge, and the increase would not apply to you.  If, on the other hand, you would be (as you also claim) using OBC to pay your gratuities; they will be charged at the rate in effect on the date service was delivered.  It's no different than if they choose to increase the price of a drink, specialty dining, an item in the shop, or a shore excursion.  The fact that they are publicizing the increase, and allowing those who wish to pay the lower rate in advance is quite nice, but of course those concerned about the additional one dollar per day (of course claiming it's the principle not the money) don't see the opportunity as a favor done, but instead as further evidence of ill intent. 

 

Harris

Denver, CO

[grandgeezer]

When you go to a restaurant on land do you hand your waiter his tip when you are seated or wait until after you check out the food and service? Why should cruising be any different? What's you recourse if they suck?

[Bo1953]

1 minute ago, grandgeezer said:

When you go to a restaurant on land do you hand your waiter his tip when you are seated or wait until after you check out the food and service? Why should cruising be any different? What's you recourse if they suck?

Not return to the restaurant or cruise line, ever?

 

bon appetit and boy voyage

[Bo1953]

1 hour ago, omeinv said:

 

Again, if one does not pre-pay, the gratuity amount is charge AT THE TIME OF SERVICE.  This means that the price increase that is announced now is effective in the future.  If you had - as you claim - "paid them the full pricing on the invoice", then that would mean you pre-paid this (gratuity) charge, and the increase would not apply to you.  If, on the other hand, you would be (as you also claim) using OBC to pay your gratuities; they will be charged at the rate in effect on the date service was delivered.  It's no different than if they choose to increase the price of a drink, specialty dining, an item in the shop, or a shore excursion.  The fact that they are publicizing the increase, and allowing those who wish to pay the lower rate in advance is quite nice, but of course those concerned about the additional one dollar per day (of course claiming it's the principle not the money) don't see the opportunity as a favor done, but instead as further evidence of ill intent. 

 

Harris

Denver, CO

o - I do not understand (of course I do) how you, along with a few others, have the uncanny ability to understand the fundamentals of issues and explain and discuss it so succinctly?

 

Thank you very much for this.

 

bon voyage

[davekathy]

1 hour ago, grandgeezer said:

When you go to a restaurant on land do you hand your waiter his tip when you are seated or wait until after you check out the food and service? Why should cruising be any different? What's you recourse if they suck?

On your next MSC I mean Celebrity cruise go down to GS and remove the gratuities and tip according. 🙄

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, grandgeezer said:

When you go to a restaurant on land do you hand your waiter his tip when you are seated or wait until after you check out the food and service? Why should cruising be any different? What's you (sic) recourse if they suck?

When you go on a cruise, do you just show up, ask for a cabin and pay for everything at the end, as you would in a restaurant? Of course not, they operate on two very different business models. Trying to make comparisons of this nature is a silly exercise at best.

[Baron Barracuda]

I respect the hard work crew members put in, but have trouble with all the tears being shed here for the "poor crew".  They choose to work far from home in the cruise industry because they perceive it as a better economic opportunity than what is available in their own country.  They choose to work for X because they perceive Celebrity offers better pay and working conditions than competitors.  Several have commented on the low turnover rate at X.  This implies employees feel adequately treated and compensated.

 

As far as the gratuity increase goes, If other lines are raising salaries and X feels a need to do so as well in order to retain seasoned staff, so be it.

 

 

 

 

[ECCruise]

33 minutes ago, Baron Barracuda said:

I respect the hard work crew members put in, but have trouble with all the tears being shed here for the "poor crew".  They choose to work far from home in the cruise industry because they perceive it as a better economic opportunity than what is available in their own country.  They choose to work for X because they perceive Celebrity offers better pay and working conditions than competitors.  Several have commented on the low turnover rate at X.  This implies employees feel adequately treated and compensated.

 

As far as the gratuity increase goes, If other lines are raising salaries and X feels a need to do so as well in order to retain seasoned staff, so be it

 

Somehow I think it is possible to both sympathize with anyone working 70-80 hours a week in difficult conditions and by the same token understand that they do it--because the $$$ is better than what would be available in their own countries. 

Really have not noticed much if any difference between the turnover on Celebrity and that on other lines.  Many  hotel crew do 3 or 4  contracts, get very valuable experience, and then head back home (usually to work in the hospitality industry there). Sure, there are cases of those who have done 9 or 10 contracts, but also many cases of 1 and done.

[meechee341]

57 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

When you go on a cruise, do you just show up, ask for a cabin and pay for everything at the end, as you would in a restaurant? Of course not, they operate on two very different business models. Trying to make comparisons of this nature is a silly exercise at best.

 Excellent point!  

[meechee341]

1 hour ago, davekathy said:

On your next MSC I mean Celebrity cruise go down to GS and remove the gratuities and tip according. 🙄

You should check out the MSC boards.  There's a thread there where a cruiser was asking how hard is it to go to Customer Service and have the gratuities removed.  As the conversation progressed, someone noted how many Celebrity cruisers often hit up Customer Service to have their gratuities removed. My butler on my last X cruise told me that the ship's staff prefer sailing the US ports or with mostly Americans on board because (for the most part), Americans are more willing to tip (and often tip better than those from other countries).  As more and more people begin to complain about X's increasing prices, I wonder how many will begin refusing to tip as a way to save some money???...🤨

Edited December 30, 2019 by meechee341

[davekathy]

3 minutes ago, meechee341 said:

There's a thread there where a cruiser was asking how hard is it to go to Customer Service and have the gratuities removed.

The person I quoted was probably one of them. 🤣

[meechee341]

4 minutes ago, davekathy said:

The person I quoted was probably one of them. 🤣

LOL!  Lord knows cruise ships these days are full of them!