Room Steward and First Time Cruisers

[AZjohn]

4 hours ago, Zeke Eak said:

 

This may be a weird (and maybe poorly phrased) question, but how does a steward introduce himself if multiple people are checking into their rooms at the same time?

I guess (having never cruised) I'm trying to compare the steward to a hotel maid. I rarely see a hotel maid, and don't really interact beyond "hello" if I do run into one in the hall or room. 

I got to say this is a good question (one I never thought about).

 

It usually happens casually, non rehearse or forced. Sometimes it’s a knock on the door to see if we need anything or when we are coming in or out of the cabin. If memory serves me right, they already know our name at first sight with a warm greeting explaining who they are and introduce their assistant (if they still have them anymore).

 

Basically it will just happen naturally and as as others mentioned after that you will likely only see them occasionally as they are taking care of all their other cabins or delivering something you need to your cabin.

 

Hope you enjoy your first cruise as much as we did 🙂

[SiliconCruiser]

6 hours ago, Zeke Eak said:

A lot of people on this site mention how appreciative they are of their Steward, and how wonderful he/she is. However, most of the people posting on this site seem to be "professional" cruisers with a lot more clout than a first timer. 

 

I'm wondering as a first time cruiser how often I will see (and potentially interact with my Room Steward). I'll be on the Majestic in September.

 

Thank you

They will introduce themselves and give you their contact information, which will also be on a card in your stateroom.  They will know your status as it is clearly displayed on your stateroom door or the screen by the door.  I doubt that it matters, we've been treated the same on most of our cruises as we were on the first.  There has only been one cruise were we were rudely mistreated throughout the ship (except for the senior staff.)  We received a 50% FCC for that cruise from corporate (we were advised to escalate it to corporate by one of the guest services supervisors.)

 

[Papa Yoda]

2 hours ago, billco said:

We had a really good steward. One night I got up to go to the bathroom and when I returned my wife was asleep in the bed and the bed was made.

 

His name was Joao, had the same steward...

[Twosailors1t]

5 hours ago, Potstech said:

We just tell the steward that we only need room refresh once a day.  We also ask for a paper Platter every evening and a full ice bucket. Other than that we rarely see them. Which is how we like i.

What is a paper Platter?

[HaveDogWillTravel]

8 hours ago, Zeke Eak said:

I don't know that I'll be needing turn down service. I would have liked the chocolate (just because), but I understand that does not happen anymore. 

 

This may be a weird (and maybe poorly phrased) question, but how does a steward introduce himself if multiple people are checking into their rooms at the same time?

I guess (having never cruised) I'm trying to compare the steward to a hotel maid. I rarely see a hotel maid, and don't really interact beyond "hello" if I do run into one in the hall or room. 

 

Welcome to CC and to cruising. I’m pretty new to cruising but I’ve got a couple of hundred days under my belt since 2015. Mostly Princess with a bit on other lines too. I think my value add is I’ve sailed 81 days since the restart… July 25 2021 thru June 9, 2022. Majestic, Discovery and Ruby. 
 

Room stewards appreciate passengers who are friendly, pleasant, smile (with their eyes), are basically tidy, state clearly any extra needs, and are understanding of any shortfalls due to supply chain issues and don’t complain about trivial problems.  These are some of the hardest working crew on the ship and should always be treated with the utmost respect.  I simply can not stress enough how important it is to be nice to the crew. 
 

It is important to let your steward know you will always push the “service my room now” button so they don’t come in to clean your room if you’ve just slipped out for a quick promenade, cup of coffee, or whatever……if you are the type to do such a thing. Please understand that even though it may take only 15 minutes or so to do your room that 15 minutes may or may not happen the second you push the service button.  I always give my steward at least an hour to get my room done and that seems to work. And if I want my private bathroom available after a short promenade I don’t want my steward in the room. So always using that button and letting them know you will is super useful for both of you. 
 

I also designate a particular place for things (glasses, plates etc.) that I want the steward to take. This way my half empty water bottle or glass of wine that I’d like to finish later doesn’t get “cleaned”. 

Every sailing and every ship will be different so expect some variation in your experiences from what anyone posts especially post Covid. 
 

I will only refer to my experiences post Covid.   
 

On all but one my sailings a request for evening service was met with an enthusiastic desire to please. On every sailing upon meeting my steward I ask for the same extras….. 6 hypoallergenic pillows, 6 washcloths, 4 cocktail glasses, an ice bucket replenished twice daily and extra boxes of tissues for the nightstands. I know when I began sailing I wondered what were these “special” requests I kept reading about. So just in case you were wondering too what an example looked like. 
 

On every last one of my sailings across all ships stewards are always out in the evenings from about 5pm to 9 pm in addition to their morning routine. I’ve never experienced an evening where stewards were not visible in the evening. 
 

You raised a great question about how does the steward meet all their new guests on embarkation. It is amazing that they do it and even more amazing that they do it with such joy. Once you’ve done a few back to backs and personally witnessed what they go through to get the ship turned you will have a new appreciation for the insane amount of hard work it takes to accomplish that task. In all my 200 plus days of sailing I’ve gone about my business of starting my vacation and my steward has always just shown up shortly after I land in my cabin. It’s vacation magic!  
 

Hope you enjoy your cruise!

[amajaa]

10 hours ago, LACruiser88 said:

In our experience, we interact with our Room Steward frequently.  We usually get to know them and they us pretty well.  A good Room Steward can really enhance your cruise experience.

 

Enjoy!

We have always had lovely Stewards. On our recent Emerald Cruise he always waved if he saw us up the corridor. He introduced himself and asked if we had received all our cases we told him we had 2 still to come and  showed him what they looked like, he went down to look and brought them to us 5 minutes later We asked him for soap for the shower as my husband doesn’t like shower gel , which arrived straight away, The second day my husband did his usual and asked to swop the duvet for a blanket as even with the the air conditioning at its lowest it is still too warm. When we came back to the cabin it was all sorted.

 

They were doing the evening turn down which we told him we didn’t need as long as we got the Patter for the next day. ( For new cruisers the Patter is the list of events for the next day) He still serviced the room for the first 2 days but after telling him each time we really didn’t need it he stopped doing it but if he saw us in the evening he asked if we needed anything.  👍👍👍

 

Always make sure if you are happy or even just thought they were okay with your cabin steward to give them an excellent report when you get the email straight after the cruise finishes asking for your thoughts. That is more important to them than the gratuities. Likewise for the waiters. It can make a difference as to whether they get re employed or not at the end of their contract. 

Edited July 6, 2022 by amajaa

[Tonsoffun44]

Last 6 cruises we took the person randomly knocked on the door as we were unpacking/getting ready for 1st dinner/returning from muster drill. Since we didn't need anything the entire interaction was 2min. They know our names per their cabin lists (knowing names, how many are in each cabin sometimes general age range).  First cruise we ever took never met the person but did see 3-4 people cleaning rooms guessed one of them to be our steward. We just left notes on the desk/table if we needed anything and whomever it was did as requested.

We're up for the sunrise almost daily, so we see them in the halls often getting ready for the day and a quick hello do you need anything special, anything wrong. 

[JF - retired RRT]

6 hours ago, Twosailors1t said:

What is a paper Platter?

That would be what is known as a typo. Happens to all of us.

Covfefe🤣

[arthistory]

We were on the Discovery in April - the steward came to our room only once a day.  Some days our used towels were not even picked up and replaced.  We are hopeful the next cruise in November is a bit better!

 

 

[antsp]

22 hours ago, wowzz said:

Unless things have changed in the last 6 weeks,  no turn down service any more. (Thank goodness)

Wowz, why

[antsp]

2 minutes ago, arthistory said:

We were on the Discovery in April - the steward came to our room only once a day.  Some days our used towels were not even picked up and replaced.  We are hopeful the next cruise in November is a bit better!

 

 

A strong word with the pursuers desk would be very swiftly carried out 

[wowzz]

40 minutes ago, antsp said:

Wowz, why

Because, when we go out for dinner, we don't have to tidy up the cabin before we go out !

It's not that we are messy, but we can leave a shirt or shorts or the bed, perhaps a glass on the desk, without worrying about our steward having to tidy them away.

Basically,  we think the stewards do a great job, and we try and make their life as easy as possible. 

Edited July 6, 2022 by wowzz

[cattywompus]

We were sometimes able to leave notes for our steward, too.  Simple requests only like "can we please have 2 more bath towels?" Left in an obvious place - like on the pillow.

I don't know how the stewards felt about it, but that seemed simpler than having to make calls - at least for things that we wanted, but didn't care when we got them.  

Since you're new, we've found that many cruise staff called us by our first names, but with Mr or Mrs in front of it (Mr. John and Mrs Jane), which seemed odd, but so many people did it that I just rolled with it.  

I also really enjoy seeing where the crew members are from - the cruises we've been on have had that on the name tags for the staff.  Something like:
Minna
Finland

 

[cr8tiv1]

16 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

That would be what is known as a typo. Happens to all of us.

Covfefe🤣

I remember the incident, but funny how I can not remember what “covfefe” meant!  Haha. 

On 7/5/2022 at 3:35 PM, Zeke Eak said:

I don't know that I'll be needing turn down service. I would have liked the chocolate (just because), but I understand that does not happen anymore. 

 

This may be a weird (and maybe poorly phrased) question, but how does a steward introduce himself if multiple people are checking into their rooms at the same time?

I guess (having never cruised) I'm trying to compare the steward to a hotel maid. I rarely see a hotel maid, and don't really interact beyond "hello" if I do run into one in the hall or room. 

Your steward’s device keeps track of you, your moments, and if you are in/out of the cabin.  A little scary to think about that.  (S)he knows when I usually go to breakfast and dinner.  That’s when s/he “sneaks” in.

 

I’ve been fortunate to have wonderful stewards.  

[AZjohn]

6 hours ago, cattywompus said:

Since you're new, we've found that many cruise staff called us by our first names, but with Mr or Mrs in front of it (Mr. John and Mrs Jane), which seemed odd, but so many people did it that I just rolled with it.  

Just assumed it's just easier for them to pronounce first names rather than accidentally butchering someone's last name (as I would likely do trying to say their last name). The Mr./Mrs. is just a sign of their respect (and likely trained that way).

Edited July 7, 2022 by AZjohn

[Adventures ahead]

On 7/5/2022 at 11:09 PM, Steelers36 said:

You can say that again.  One night I got up to go to the bathroom and, when I returned, my bed was made.

Old joke and still funny! 😂 Thx for the laugh.

[rj59]

I'd make sure to mention to your steward that it's your first cruise, which would encourage them to be extra-special and helpful to you. The 'privacy' and 'service please' buttons on the door are difficult to work precisely on the Majestic, and I ran into a couple on the Discovery last week who didn't even know how to get in their room using a Medallion, so a good steward will help you with anything. I even saw a video about an NCL steward who made towel animals for first-time cruisers, even though they stopped it in general, so hopefully yours will want to impress you. 

[pilot]

On 7/5/2022 at 9:04 PM, trbarton said:

The turn down service is only by request now. Should you request this make sure you compensate the steward for their service. I do ask the steward for the Patter for each day. 
 

Tom😀

I guess I don’t understand what you are saying?  I don’t think you mean that you should tip the steward more if he does a nighttime turndown service?  
 

I almost always leave a little extra, at the end of the cruise, for great service. My definition of great service is…steward is friendly, keeps ice bucket full, and services cabin morning and evening. 

[woostergirl]

Just got off the Ruby...First time cruiser...

 

Our room steward introduced himself when we first boarded and I let him know I needed distilled water for my CPAP machine.

 

We saw him many times a daily, most regularly in the morning. He told us that they know by our medallions whether a guest is in the room and check before entering as they cannot enter a cabin that is occupied.

 

Not exactly sure what "turn down service" is, but our rooms were tidied up (beds made, trash emptied, bathroom cleaned, towels refreshed, dishes removed) at least once a day. Our beds were made at least twice a day, morning and evening and some times three times a day. My 7 year old said that was one of his favorite part of the cruise! 😄

 

Our room steward also automatically put a paper Patter on the bed every night without us requesting.

 

One thing I found quite helpful as a first-time cruiser is "The Wake Show." It is on the tv in the room. The cruise director records a video for the next day that is available the afternoon prior. He goes over what to expect for the next day and any important instructions to look out for. It's 10-20 minutes, but the important part is in the first 5 minutes and then he interviews a crew member.