Tipping

[Tree_skier]

Traditionally we have always tried to tip a little better than average.  We keep autograts on our account.  To me that is the baseline standard for acceptable tipping.  After that, we add cash to our cabin steward before and at the end of the cruise, we tip our waiter and asst. waiter at the end of the cruise and I tip the bartender a buck or two with each drink.  I'll usually tip a bit at the end of the cruise to a favorite bartender or two who went above and beyond.  While I'm sure that there are many who tip more generously than we do I think we have been more than fair with staff we interact with.  

 

When cruising restarts and you get back on board the ship will you tip more to help staff who have lost a significant portion of income by not being able to be employed? Will you tip less because your own personal finances have been impacted and you just can't afford to tip as much as you used to? Or will you tip about the same?

 

I'm hoping to up my tip game.  What about you?

[TYMAN]

I’ve been collecting ones and fives since our Feb cruise. I plan on making it rain! Although we’re great tippers (my opinion), we’re going to bump it up even more! 

[goneclear]

We always pre-pay our gratuities.  After that additional cash tipping

is based on service that we think deserves such.

Never been on a cruise where we have not tipped additional cash

to at least two people. 

We will continue with this method when we resume cruising.

 

 

[Sunshine3601]

Ahh I have missed the tipping posts!!    I will most likely up my tips as long as the service deserves it (which I am sure they will all go above and beyond to make service awesome).

[goldfish65]

I plan to tip the same as I would have before, which is exactly the way you describe.

[Milwaukee Eight]

Always prepay grats and buy drink package. Tip at least a $1 per drink. Great service gets more. Depending on the bar, we may tip well the first couple of nights. In our mind, it helps going forward. 

[karena1]

34 minutes ago, Tree_skier said:

Traditionally we have always tried to tip a little better than average.  We keep autograts on our account.  To me that is the baseline standard for acceptable tipping.  After that, we add cash to our cabin steward before and at the end of the cruise, we tip our waiter and asst. waiter at the end of the cruise and I tip the bartender a buck or two with each drink.  I'll usually tip a bit at the end of the cruise to a favorite bartender or two who went above and beyond.  While I'm sure that there are many who tip more generously than we do I think we have been more than fair with staff we interact with.  

 

When cruising restarts and you get back on board the ship will you tip more to help staff who have lost a significant portion of income by not being able to be employed? Will you tip less because your own personal finances have been impacted and you just can't afford to tip as much as you used to? Or will you tip about the same?

 

I'm hoping to up my tip game.  What about you?

We always leave our prepay grats on, and then we always tip more, but when we can go again, we  will tip more than normal, we know so many of the staff and will try to help a little extra to many of them.

 

Edited May 27, 2020 by karena1

[karena1]

26 minutes ago, TYMAN said:

I’ve been collecting ones and fives since our Feb cruise. I plan on making it rain! Although we’re great tippers (my opinion), we’re going to bump it up even more! 

I have the same - money I had set aside for our cruises that got cancelled plus our Punta Cana trip that got cancelled.  Won't go insane about it, but just like restaurant servers here at home, we are leaving more than the normal amount to help all of these people out a bit.

 

[Seville2Cabo]

We will tip about the same.  Leave auto grats on and $1 per drink, $3 to $5 a day (paid at end) to room steward.  We don’t eat much in the MDR, so no extra there, but our biggest tip expense is speciality dinning. $15 to $25 a night based on service.  Add in room service for breakfast and specialty for lunch and it add up,  

[Milwaukee Eight]

1 minute ago, Seville2Cabo said:

We will tip about the same.  Leave auto grats on and $1 per drink, $3 to $5 a day (paid at end) to room steward.  We don’t eat much in the MDR, so no extra there, but our biggest tip expense is speciality dinning. $15 to $25 a night based on service.  Add in room service for breakfast and specialty for lunch and it add up,  

Thanks. 
 

Always interesting to learn from others. 
 

Like I said, $1 at minimum per drink with package prepaid too. Might tip more per drink for great service. 
 

7 night cruise, Cabin Steward gets $100-200, depending on the service. We have had some really good ones. 
 

We mostly eat in the CK. Dinner  $10 a night and breakfast/lunch $5. 
 

In the SL, for the most part, we may donate $20 the first or second night to the SL bar crew tip pool and keep it full during the week as needed/appropriate. 
 

Concierge(s) in SL, typically $100 each. Also tip during the week for services, if needed. 

CK Maitre D probably $50. On Allure, there was a CK/SL manager. He got a tip too. I haven’t noticed an obvious CK/SL manager on other ships. 
 

The last evening, we have been known  to tip all the servers ($10 extra each) in the CK for week long extraordinary service. They work as a team. 

 

[Erik101]

Same.  But, I tend to be a generous tipper when it comes to our cabin steward since I see them on a daily basis. On the last night, I’ll hand our steward an envelope with cash and thank them for their hard work.  I would do the same for the wait staff but for the last couple of cruises, my preference for specialty dining has increased where I don’t go to the MDR anymore. 

[taglovestocruise]

Sounds like things will be back to normal... thank god the NEW NORMAL is already seeing it's demise.  Last week Bayley said the buffets will be back, just a little different UNTIL things are back to NORMAL.

[Seville2Cabo]

1 minute ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

Thanks. 
 

Always interesting to learn from others. 
 

Like I said, $1 at minimum per drink with package prepaid too. Might tip more per drink for great service. 
 

7 night cruise, Cabin Steward gets $100-200, depending on the service. We have had some really good ones. 
 

We mostly eat in the CK. Dinner  $10 a night and breakfast/lunch $5. 
 

In the SL, for the most part, we may donate $20 the first or second night to the SL bar crew tip pool and keep it full during the week as needed/appropriate. 
 

Concierge(s) in SL, typically $100 each. Also tip during the week for services, if needed. 

CK Maitre D probably $50. On Allure, there was a CK/SL manager. He got a tip too. I haven’t noticed an obvious CK/SL manager on other ships. 
 

The last evening, we have been known  to tip all the servers ($10 extra each) in the CK for week long extraordinary service. They work as a team. 

 

Me too - learning.

 

Usually don’t do 7 nights, but we would be at about $30 average extra for steward.  (Maybe a little light)

Have not been on a CK ship yet (Odyssey next September we hope), but we do go to a specialty restaurant as soon as we get on the ship and make all our UDP reservations - usually $25.    The last cruise we gave the Concierge in the SL $20 for getting my wife a new sea pass she thought she lost and another $25 at the end.  We really do not ask for any concierge help and don’t use the reserved seats.

[JoeFan]

I plan to tip the same.

How would you handle this?

Last cruise we didn't even enter the MDR or Windjamer. We had the UDP and ate at specialty lunch & dinner.

Between the auto grat and UDP would you tip extra at the specialty?

[flamingos]

1 hour ago, TYMAN said:

I’ve been collecting ones and fives since our Feb cruise. I plan on making it rain! Although we’re great tippers (my opinion), we’re going to bump it up even more! 

 

 

Yeah, funny story. For Christmas, many years ago, hubs gifted me an envelope overstuffed with dollar bills.  I thought he was taking me to a strip club.................   🙂

 

 

[firefly333]

2 hours ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

Always prepay grats and buy drink package. Tip at least a $1 per drink. Great service gets more. Depending on the bar, we may tip well the first couple of nights. In our mind, it helps going forward. 

I had tip money ready for april 26th that got canc. I might have to recheck it and get more 1s etc.

 

But that sounds right. If you give the bar tender a tip he is more apt to want to serve you again. 

 

For my canc cruise lol. I just assumed everyone brought tip money...the shuttle from parking, to take your luggage, drinks, .. starts as soon as you park

[lenquixote66]

I believe that I tip well.

[soremekun]

Just putting up the Bat Signal

@Thorben-Hendrik

@not-enough-cruising

 

You're welcome

[TYMAN]

23 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

I had tip money ready for april 26th that got canc. I might have to recheck it and get more 1s etc.

 

But that sounds right. If you give the bar tender a tip he is more apt to want to serve you again. 

 

For my canc cruise lol. I just assumed everyone brought tip money...the shuttle from parking, to take your luggage, drinks, .. starts as soon as you park

 

Loving the money pics!! Love giving it away too!!! My son, the real Tyman, works at the Golf Course here and gets dollar tips all day. I exchange with him for bigger bills so I don't have to go anywhere to get change! 

[firefly333]

Some day I will be robbed, it looks like I have a whole bunch of money. 

[firefly333]

1 hour ago, flamingos said:

 

 

Yeah, funny story. For Christmas, many years ago, hubs gifted me an envelope overstuffed with dollar bills.  I thought he was taking me to a strip club.................   🙂

 

 

Lol I might have thought he wanted me to strip for him for tips. Your reaction is better lol

 

I always say I'm always ready to cruise. Only need a hour or less to .leave. hoping for last minute rates. ... I'd be so there is they have some good rates this august last minute.

Edited May 27, 2020 by firefly333

[katiel53]

We will tip the same as we normally do.  We do the auto gratuities and tip our steward extra at the end of the cruise.  The amount depends upon how much service we receive and how well our steward interacts with us.

 

We tip a minimum of $1 a drink in the DL and at the end of the week, tip extra to the waiter who has served us the few nights we have gone to the lounge.

 

I tip an extra $1 or $2 per drink when I have the drink package.  The amount depends upon what I order.  I don't tip extra though for a bottle of water.  I tip the person doing the specialty coffee too.

 

We do the UDP and tip $5 per person for lunch and $10 per person for dinner.  We don't eat breakfast most of the week.  I feel the amount we tip is fine for us and unless someone else goes beyond what we have had, it will stay the same.

[not-enough-cruising]

28 minutes ago, soremekun said:

Just putting up the Bat Signal

@Thorben-Hendrik

@not-enough-cruising

 

You're welcome

My “pandemic resolution” is to avoid comment in tipping threads 

 

My new windmill is the refund process, but I do appreciate the thought!🤪💰🤪

[Lady Chew]

We leave the auto-tips on and pay extra at the end of the cruise.  We take longer cruises, so we have more contact with workers on the ship.  We'll usually give our room steward $100 per week.  If it's a really long cruise (50+days) we'll give it out at intervals during the cruise.  

 

If we have fixed dining, we'll tip appropriately.  If we are eating My Time (or whatever it's called on whichever line we're on) we only tip for outstanding repeated service.  We don't always have the same waiters every night.

 

We may or may not tip the headwaiter; depends on what s/he may have done for us during the cruise.  And yes, we know that we can't see everything they do, but sometimes you can just tell ...

 

I save my $1 & $5 bills all year long to have appropriate bills for tipping, bartenders/bar wait staff, porters, etc etc

 

On the longer cruises, we also tip the young woman who is always cleaning the public bathrooms, and at least one of the crew members who are always cleaning the handrails & other surfaces.  They are kinda at the bottom of the heap and have the least appealing jobs.  We also send tips to the laundry for outstanding service.

Edited May 27, 2020 by Lady Chew

[parrotfeathers]

2 hours ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

Thanks. 
 

Always interesting to learn from others. 
 

Like I said, $1 at minimum per drink with package prepaid too. Might tip more per drink for great service. 
 

7 night cruise, Cabin Steward gets $100-200, depending on the service. We have had some really good ones. 
 

We mostly eat in the CK. Dinner  $10 a night and breakfast/lunch $5. 
 

In the SL, for the most part, we may donate $20 the first or second night to the SL bar crew tip pool and keep it full during the week as needed/appropriate. 
 

Concierge(s) in SL, typically $100 each. Also tip during the week for services, if needed. 

CK Maitre D probably $50. On Allure, there was a CK/SL manager. He got a tip too. I haven’t noticed an obvious CK/SL manager on other ships. 
 

The last evening, we have been known  to tip all the servers ($10 extra each) in the CK for week long extraordinary service. They work as a team. 

 

 

I guess I need to take more cash next cruise.    Have never tipped for breakfast.  Lunch not always.