Paid Gratuities

[Kate-AHF]

53 minutes ago, ORV said:

Kate, do you know what source the PPG are coming from? Oceania, or your TA? 

No clue.  I suspect it's an Ensemble thing, but I haven't seen the invoice yet.  I'm having issues getting the on-board booking credit perks applied, which we are entitled to as we are 24 days out of sailing.

Edited October 9, 2021 by Kate-AHF

[Guppy99]

On 1/1/2021 at 4:51 PM, zteamtwo said:

Thanks Pinotlover.  We do what you do on our past cruises.  However, I still would like to know--does the cruise line distribute ALL of the daily gratuities it collects?  OR, can it keep some of those daily gratuities for themselves?  Thanks for answer about,  ability for crew members to keep cash you give them.

This is my second post on the Oceania board, as I am just booking my first cruise on this line.  Most of my posts on the Celebrity line, because that's the line 've been cruising for the past 30 years.  What I find very funny is that this board has all the same arguments and questions regarding gratuities. And... people are just as acerbic here.

[cbb]

Guppy99

After you have read these boards for a while, you learn who is acerbic and you just ignore them.

 

Welcome to Oceania cruises!  The food is wonderful, the staff/crew is amazing, and most of the passengers are lovely people and easy to sail with.    Safe travels

 

 

[PhD-iva]

19 minutes ago, cbb said:

 

After you have read these boards for a while, you learn who is acerbic and you just ignore them.

 

 

So true! And in my opinion, there are FAR FEWER posters who are rude and condescending here than on Celebrity’s boards. Even, of those few, many have excellent info and knowledge they pass along, if you can ignore the “tone”. 

Edited October 24, 2021 by PhD-iva
Typo

[Flatbush Flyer]

On 10/9/2021 at 2:27 PM, Kate-AHF said:

No clue.  I suspect it's an Ensemble thing, but I haven't seen the invoice yet.  I'm having issues getting the on-board booking credit perks applied, which we are entitled to as we are 24 days out of sailing.

Unless a TA outright purchased them as a “gift” (though perhaps at a discount [I really don’t know this level of detail]?), you will not see their gratuities listed on an O invoice. If, however, the TA gave you an allotment of pass through incentive funds from O and/or a TA consortium/O agreement, you will see the gratuities on the O invoice with the notation “OCAPP” (Oceania Cruises Amenities Partnership Program). It is my understanding that O provides this for certain itineraries.

 

If you are one who tries to negotiate a reasonable sharing of TA commissions,  it is good to know what is/not a TA amenity. And remember that the best “cash in your pocket” is not always the “best deal.” Some TAs may be able to work wonders in problem solving upon which you cannot place a price tag. So, IMO, a reasonable combo of commission sharing and “connections”/incentives is a good consumer target.

[Flatbush Flyer]

On 1/4/2021 at 2:52 PM, zteamtwo said:

I don't mean to "beat this dead horse", but, ---How does a $5 cash tip to a bartender get handled?  Does he have to save every transaction slip and show to the purser so the purser can check to see if you removed gratuities?  That seems like a lot of work for the dozen or so bartenders aboard. Bartender would have to "set aside" his cash tips and the transaction slips that produced the tip  for his entire shift and keep track of how much tip money went with each slip.  Lots of work.

Individual booze purchase bar bills include an 18% gratuity unless you’ve purchased a booze package or corkage on personal wine (where tip is included. 
If you want to reward extraordinary service, the norm on O is cash at the end of a cruise (perhaps with a note and, even better, a mention on the end-of-cruise evaluation [now done online via O intranet]).

Note as well: Upfront “bribes” are rare and quite “low rent” IMO. Just a bit too Las Vegas.

[Kate-AHF]

43 minutes ago, Flatbush Flyer said:

Unless a TA outright purchased them as a “gift” (though perhaps at a discount [I really don’t know this level of detail]?), you will not see their gratuities listed on an O invoice. If, however, the TA gave you an allotment of pass through incentive funds from O and/or a TA consortium/O agreement, you will see the gratuities on the O invoice with the notation “OCAPP” (Oceania Cruises Amenities Partnership Program). It is my understanding that O provides this for certain itineraries.

 

If you are one who tries to negotiate a reasonable sharing of TA commissions,  it is good to know what is/not a TA amenity. And remember that the best “cash in your pocket” is not always the “best deal.” Some TAs may be able to work wonders in problem solving upon which you cannot place a price tag. So, IMO, a reasonable combo of commission sharing and “connections”/incentives is a good consumer target.

 

I still haven't seen the invoice.  And it's an O invoice, it's one from the TA.  I'll get it eventually.

 

And no, I've already stated on this board more than once that discounts are not the reason for our using a TA.  Problem solving is.  Though the problem solving worked much better when we were Seabourn clients and not O clients.

[Flatbush Flyer]

Just now, Kate-AHF said:

 

I still haven't seen the invoice.  And it's an O invoice, it's one from the TA.  I'll get it eventually.

 

And no, I've already stated on this board more than once that discounts are not the reason for our using a TA.  Problem solving is.  Though the problem solving worked much better when we were Seabourn clients and not O clients.

The O invoice is important. Having it (and copies of pre-purchased item receipts) in hand once onboard is always helpful if there’s any discrepancies on the docs you find in your cabin upon your arrival. 

[Kate-AHF]

Just now, Flatbush Flyer said:

The O invoice is important. Having it (and copies of pre-purchased item receipts) in hand once onboard is always helpful if there’s any discrepancies on the docs you find in your cabin upon your arrival. 

 

I thought that was why the O Trip Summary was for.  And I keep every email documenting pre-purchased items.

[Flatbush Flyer]

1 hour ago, Kate-AHF said:

 

I thought that was why the O Trip Summary was for.  And I keep every email documenting pre-purchased items.

Yes- the emailed “final docs” Summary should have everything. But, having the O invoice(s) -I keep each iteration - is important since there can be occasional errors along the way (e.g., mixup on which O perk was selected).

[Guppy99]

Regarding gratuities. If they are not included in the cost of the fare as an amenity, will they automatically add them to your on board bill?

[basor]

9 minutes ago, Guppy99 said:

Regarding gratuities. If they are not included in the cost of the fare as an amenity, will they automatically add them to your on board bill?

yes

 

[Flatbush Flyer]

3 minutes ago, basor said:

yes

 

Even if they’re covered, they’ll appear on your bill but will a corresponding credit.