Gratuities and MSC

[Grayz]

Hi all!  This is our first cruise on MSC and wonder about how gratuities work with MSC.  From what I read it looks like $14 per night per adult.  Is this added to my account or do I pay directly?  I also read that MSC doesn’t encourage tipping staff directly?  On RC, Carnival and Princess I paid gratuities on my acct and also tipped more at the end as I saw fit. How does it work on MSC? Sailing on the new Seascape Dec 11 from Miami.

[phissy]

Daily Service Charge is added to room account.
You may tip those who you felt provided you  above and beyond service.

We always tip directly, but , discreetly .

[perakcruiser]

12 hours ago, Grayz said:

 Is this added to my account or do I pay directly?

Depends on where you booked, you will read it on the MSC website of your market. Nowadays almost only the US pax get the DSC added to the room account, most others have to pay in advance with the booking. 

But I am not sure if MSC has a special website/procedures for Canada. 

[hamrag]

13 hours ago, Grayz said:

....On RC, Carnival and Princess I paid gratuities on my acct and also tipped more at the end as I saw fit. How does it work on MSC?...

Norms for additional tipping on MSC are:

Waiter $1000

Assistant Waiter $500

Hostess $250

Musician, excellent or otherwise $125

Butler $1000

Junior Butler $500

Maitre D £250

 

These are averages, but many give more than that! 😉

[morpheusofthesea]

"Many crew members working on cruise ships rely on receiving tips as part of their income.  Some cruise lines have required tipping policies, but others allow each cruiser to leave tips as he or she wishes. There is no correct or incorrect way to tip a crew member because there are different methods people like to use for tipping. The goal of this is to share basic information about tipping for cruises and to help give suggestions on how much you should tip crew members based on the level of service received. 
            Do not forget to add tips into the cost of your vacation or into your cruise budget. The overall cost of your vacation should include the base price of your vacation, extras, and tips.


Tipping Suggestions For Your Cruise Vacation:
     I have created this suggestion guide to give you a basic idea about which crew members you should tip and for how much you should tip based on the level of service you feel you have received.  Please note, the way this set up is the better service you receive from a crew member will earn him or her a higher tip. In some areas you may want to tip higher for exceptional and great service, but in others you may want to lower tips because you feel the crew member did not to their job well. 

I.  Baggage Handlers
         These are people who take your luggage at the cruise terminal and bring it to be loaded onto the ship.  Baggage handlers are often not employees of the cruise line or of the cruise terminal.  In some places they rely solely on tips to make their money. 

I recommend tipping these people based on the number and size of the suitcases/bags you give them:
Small Bag: $3          Suitcase:  $5           Important Baggage or Medical Equipment Bags:  $6 - $10

Note:  Baggage handlers are usually never included in a cruise line's auto gratuity. If you choose to use your cruise line's auto gratuity, you should still tip baggage handlers separately because they are probably not included. I recommend giving your baggage handler cash before he or she takes your luggage away. 

II.  Stateroom Stewards & Stewardess
        These are the people who clean your room during your cruise vacation. On many cruise ships tips are supposed to be shared between head & assistant stewards. I recommend on deciding a total amount you want to tip your steward or stewardess team for the entire cruise vacation and then splitting that total amount to include something for all members of the team. Be careful not to leave a stateroom steward or assistant out that cleaned your room.
Tip Amount:
High Level of Service (Above & Beyond)       -     $4.50 - $6.00 per person per day
Excellent Service (Performed Duties Well)    -    $4.25 - 4.50 per person per day 
Average Level of Service                             -    $3.75 -  $4.25 per person per day 
Poor Service                                                -   $3.25 -  $3.75 per person per day 
Awful Poor Service                                      -   Consider Removing Tip or Giving Little

III. Dining Room Team
          These are the people that serve you in the main dining room. On some cruise ships you are assigned to a specific table with specific servers, but on other cruise ships you have flexible options that don't give you the same service staff each night. If you do not think you will have the same service staff each night, leave auto-gratuity on. Most cruise lines will give you the option to increase (or decrease) the auto-gratuity for certain staff, teams, or departments. 
Tip Amount:
Above & Beyond Exceptional Service            -       $7.50 -  9.00 per person per day
Excellent Service  (Performed Duties Well)   -       $6.00 -   7.50  per person per day
Average Service, But Still Good                    -       $5.00 -   6.00 per person per day
Poor Service                                               -       $3.50 -   $5.00 per person per day
Terrible Poor Service                                  -       Consider Removing Tip or Giving Little
            
            On some cruise ships you may have an option to eat at a specialty restaurant. Don't forget to leave a tip for these crew members too! 

IV.  Shore Excursions and In Port
Tour Bus Driver -  $5 - $10
Tour Guide -   $5 - $10
If the tour bus driver is also your tour guide I would give $10 - $15, assuming this person have you a safe quality tour. Sometimes shore excursions require tipping, but if not the amount you tip is up to you."   

V. Other People To Consider Tipping
These people are sometimes included in auto-gratuities and work hard during cruises. Consider giving these people a tip to show your appreciation for their hard work: 

Dining Room Maitre D' -   $5 - $8  
Entertainment Staff Member  -   $2-$5 
Kitchen Staff  -   $3-$4  per cruise 

Bar Staff -   15-25% off bar tab (note: this is sometimes included in price with some cruise lines) 
Laundry  -   $1-$3 per bag of laundry 
Any Crew Member (Not Already Mentioned)  Who Provided You With Excellent Service   -  Your Choice ($ 2 - 10) 
SPA Treatment Crew Member - $4 - $7, depending on service and quality of treatment
Room Service -   $2-$8   depending on size of order. For small orders give less and for larger orders give more.

 Thank you for asking !
 

 

Edited September 26, 2022 by morpheusofthesea

[morpheusofthesea]

Gratuities charged to ones account ($98 pp for the week) go to paying the staff's wages. Those that remove the gratuity, for whatever lame reason, then the cruise line has to make up the difference. OBC used to tip a particular staff member may not go 100% to the designated person, and may be shared. Tip in cash directly to service provider.

I got permission from a FB poster to repost this: "Recently I saw a Tik Tok by Captain Kate. She was giving out envelopes to her staff that a passenger asked her to do for them. One staff member opened the envelope to find $5. He went crazy with joy, you would have thought it was a $100. She received so many comments on why the young man was overly excited and happy for such a small amount. A few days later she did another Tik Tok with him asking him why his reaction was so grand. He said that he would have reacted the same way if it was only $1 dollar. He said with those $5 dollars he can buy rice, bread and a lot more stuff for his family back home. That video opened my eyes on tipping anyone who serves me and our family. Please tip extra by cash. The included tips are the bare minimum that are divided between many.

[Tierun]

Tips don’t make or break you on an individual basis, but they add up to make things better financially.

[Hlitner]

North Americans suffer from "tipping guilt."  We are culturally programmed to tip and it is a difficult habit to break.  As frequent world travelers we have learned to follow the traditional local tipping culture be it 20% (common in the USA) or zero (normal in Japan), and a few coins (normal in parts of Europe).  

 

MSC includes a daily service charge (tips) as part of its pricing and makes it clear that further tipping is not required or necessary.   If folks choose to hand out thousands of extra dollars, I am sure it will be appreciated (although they will likely laugh at you behind your back).  

 

On ships that have auto-tips (like MSC) we only tip extra when somebody delivers service that is above and beyond what is expected (by us).   When that happens, we very discretely hand cash to the individual with a smile and "thank you."  With over fifty years of extensive travel, we also are able to NOT TIP without feeling any guilt.

 

Hank

[morpheusofthesea]

18 hours ago, Hlitner said:

although they will likely laugh at you behind your back)

All of us should want the world to be a little better off for our having lived in it. Tipping is just some small gesture we do to reduce the suffering of someone else. No one is laughing behind our backs. On the contrary, on our first cruise back in July 2021 when we tipped our host/butler $150 for the week's cruise, tears welled up in all our eyes as he said "I thank you and especially my family thanks you."

[morpheusofthesea]

18 hours ago, Hlitner said:

North Americans suffer from "tipping guilt.

Yes. We felt guilty having not tipped more.

Edited September 27, 2022 by morpheusofthesea

[Eglesbrech]

As someone from a country that does not have a prominent tipping culture I never know if what I am giving is mean/ middle of the road / generous.

 

We always pay the autograts and tip extra discretely in cash, depending on the level of service provided. I don’t however go anywhere near the excessive tips reported by some across these cruise boards (if indeed they actually do proffer quite so much).  I don’t feel guilty in any event.

I just wish all cruise lines would charge an appropriate amount to pay staff and end all this tipping angst. MSC are at least attempting to do so to an extent.

 

 

[Two Wheels Only]

7 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

As someone from a country that does not have a prominent tipping culture I never know if what I am giving is mean/ middle of the road / generous.

 

We always pay the autograts and tip extra discretely in cash, depending on the level of service provided.

 

Anything above the Hotel Service Charge (that $14 per day thing that is deducted from your account) is fine. You cannot get it wrong no matter the amount. 

 

10 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

I don’t however go anywhere near the excessive tips reported by some across these cruise boards (if indeed they actually do proffer quite so much).

 

They do what they want. 

You do what you want. 

Both are correct. 

 

11 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

I just wish all cruise lines would charge an appropriate amount to pay staff and end all this tipping angst.

 

The "one price for everything" would result in higher fares and the complaints about "gratuities" would change into complaints about high fares. There's no system that would make everyone happy. 

[Paphillyguy]

20 hours ago, Hlitner said:

 

MSC includes a daily service charge (tips) as part of its pricing and makes it clear that further tipping is not required or necessary.   If folks choose to hand out thousands of extra dollars, I am sure it will be appreciated (although they will likely laugh at you behind your back).  

 

 

I can assure you the hard working people are laughing at someone that choses to tip them.  More likely they are talking about those that demand yet don't tip and I am sure it isn't something nice they are saying. 

 

I wouldn't want to travel with you

[perakcruiser]

3 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

The "one price for everything" would result in higher fares and the complaints about "gratuities" would change into complaints about high fares. There's no system that would make everyone happy. 

Well, I lived in many coutries on this planet and do really believe that the European system of fixed prices is by far the best, where nothing can be added later, no tax, no (service) charge, no fee, no gratuity, no tips, no BS. Prices must be final. And good wages for the hard working people. 

[morpheusofthesea]

7 minutes ago, perakcruiser said:

fixed prices is by far the best, where nothing can be added later, no tax, no (service) charge, no fee, no gratuity, no tips, no BS. Prices must be final. And good wages for the hard working people. 

Until your dream world appears on the 'high seas' , "BS" and all it encompasses will be the 'coin of the realm'.

[Two Wheels Only]

4 minutes ago, perakcruiser said:

Well, I lived in many coutries on this planet and do really believe that the European system of fixed prices is by far the best, where nothing can be added later, no tax, no (service) charge, no fee, no gratuity, no tips, no BS. Prices must be final. And good wages for the hard working people. 

 

NCL tried that a few years ago in the UK and the "all inclusive" price was MORE than the price + DSC + service charges that other parts of the world were paying.

 

In other words, the corporation will inflate prices to cover the missing "add-ons" that are charged now. 

[perakcruiser]

2 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Until your dream world appears on the 'high seas' , "BS" and all it encompasses will be the 'coin of the realm'.

This "dream world" is reality in many countries and with many cruise companies. For example on MSC UK the first price you see is already "price is per adult and inclusive of port taxes and service charge/gratuities". Same in Germany and most other European countries. Sure it is higher than your US price but I highly prefer to see the real price and have all set and done instead of thinking about "government charges", "port taxes", "handling fees", "gratuities", "hotel service charges" and all that BS. In my eyes this is plain stupid and just a lack of consumer rights which sounds more like third world countries. 

[Paphillyguy]

51 minutes ago, Paphillyguy said:

I can assure you the hard working people are laughing at someone that choses to tip them.  More likely they are talking about those that demand yet don't tip and I am sure it isn't something nice they are saying. 

 

I wouldn't want to travel with you

I can assure you the hard working people are NOT laughing at someone that choses to tip them.

[Bobbiegentry]

57 minutes ago, Paphillyguy said:

I can assure you the hard working people are NOT laughing at someone that choses to tip them.

And you know this, how?

[morpheusofthesea]

3 hours ago, Bobbiegentry said:

And you know this, how?

Because it is empirical.

[les37b]

8 hours ago, Paphillyguy said:

I can assure you the hard working people are NOT laughing at someone that choses to tip them.

 

You've just responded to your own post?

 

Here's a tip. Answer posts by others, not your own. 🤣 (Sorry - couldn't resist. Just seemed odd to answer your own post!)

 

I genuinely never understand why it's difficult to comprehend that wages should be paid by the employer not the customer. Sure, that equates to maybe the price you pay increasing. So what? The end goal is paying the person's wages right? I've no issue tipping when I've received very good service and is to show my appreciation. 

 

Simple question. Why do you think it's ok not to pay "your" staff and expect them to rely on handouts that is a choice and may not be received? It's just wrong.

 

Personally I think it's much fairer to receive a proper salary from the person I work for no matter what job I do. Imagine working somewhere that customers stop visiting in numbers. Would you expect the few who do visit to make up the shortfall? Pretty much everywhere outside the US (in the western world), the employer pays the wages and has to by law and isn't reliant on customer hand outs.

 

I do tip for good service. The clue is gratuity... To show my gratitude. It's derived from French, but appears to be very lost in translation.

 

Fares from the UK generally (there are a couple of exceptions) come with "gratuities" pre paid. It's a shame this "culture" exists. It would have been better not to distinguish what's been added as it sends a message there is no need to show appreciation because you've already paid it.

 

Similarly, if I'm presented in the UK with a restaurant bill with a service charge added (which by law you can get removed if you wished), there is zero chance I would tip on top unless there was an exceptional reason to do so. 

 

I think it's something we'll never agree on and this age old "debate" will appear over and over again. I certainly agree with the suggestion of "guilt" is significant on the reason to tip, but the guilt really falls on the employers.

 

 

 

 

Edited September 28, 2022 by les37b

[iwtobek]

DW had a massage at the Aurea spa the other day. She said it was good, but not as good as DCL, for the same price. She notes she was not being asked for gratuities, it was somehow automatically added. Which lead her to think that might be why her masseur didn't went above — why would she care?

 

While I'm not coming from a country where tipping is the norm, as far as I am concerned, the MSC system that promises good wages for everyone simply doesn't work from a customer satisfaction perspective. 

[hamrag]

6 hours ago, les37b said:

 

You've just responded to your own post?...

 

You need to be more aware of why said poster did that. It seems obvious to me....in the original post the word 'not' was missing which resulted in the opposite meaning as that intended. The reply post was a correction, as it was too late to edit original post! 😉

[Hlitner]

"Tipping Guilt"  (google it) and folks trying to project their own culture cause all of this grief regarding the tipping subject.  We have seen it here on CC for years and my post was intended to generate some of the usual comments :).  Those of us who live in the USA/Canada have spent our lives in a tipping culture and, with the exception of those of us who are well traveled around the world, think it is the right thing, the only thing, and the norm.  Many here in North America cannot accept or deal with concept (very common around the world) of paying a living wage with no or little tipping.  In some cultures (Japan jumps quickly to mind) tipping is actually considered rude (patronizing) while in other cultures (many European countries) the normal accepted mores call for a relatively low tipping amount.   It is difficult for most Americans to accept that tossing around lots of cash/tips may be seen as insulting, patronizing, and a projection of the so-called "Ugly American" mind set.  

 

So, on MSC we get a clash of cultures since it is a Euro-centric cruise line that happens to have a small number of ships operating out of the USA ports.  Many of the European crew come from a non-tipping culture as do lots of the European passengers.  MSC has tried to work with that culture by playing the "auto tip" game and adopting a policy that actually discourages further tipping.  But we Americans always know better so many insist that American culture is always right and view anyone who disagrees as just wrong, cheap, etc.  We see that right here in some of the posts.  Tipping is even a problem for the crew.  What should they do with the money?  Put it in their pocket (and hope nobody else notices) or share it with other members of the crew?  If they put it in their pocket (trying to be very discrete) and it is noticed by some other crew members, will this later cause some resentment?  Are Yacht Club Butlers expected to share cash tips with the cabin cleaning staff?  If you slip some cash to a favorite bar waiter, are they expected to share it with the bar tender?  If not, will this cause them "difficulties" below deck?   The crew have their own culture and tipping as well as gift giving can cause issues.  

 

In terms of cruising, one of my favorite lines is Seabourn which is an American-based luxury line.  Seabourn goes out of their way to discourage tipping which makes many of us Americans a little uncomfortable.   The first time I cruised on that line I actually had a discrete cash tip refused by a crew member (the first time this has happened to me on over 45 years of cruising) who told me I was welcomed to go to Guest Relations and arrange to donate money to the crew welfare fund (used to fund crew parties and other crew-based activities).  

 

As a well-traveled American I have grown to see the absurdity of our tipping culture.  Consider the guys that handle your luggage at US Ports.  They are all members of the International Longshoreman Association which is a very powerful US union that has an iron grip on US Ports.  Most of us tip these guys ($5 - $10) when we turn over our luggage.  The irony is that these workers are very well paid (with overtime many will make 6 figures) and are not normally tipped as part of their work.  But if they manage to get on the "gang" that works at a passenger cruise port it is somewhat like hitting the lottery!  The tips we pay get distributed to many folks who have absolutely nothing to do with moving our luggage according to their internal union politics.  If those luggage handlers "hold out" from sharing they can find themselves in big trouble with some of their fellow union members.

 

Many years ago, Princess cruise lines moved their first ship (I think it was the old Sun Princess) to Australia where she was based year-round.  At the time, the norm on Princess was tipping since the line served primarily an American/Canadian market.  But Princess quickly realized that having a ship based in Australia, where tipping is generally discouraged, caused problems.  Most Aussies did not tip and, in fact, even resent folks who do tip (some have told us that tipping is ruining their culture).  So the Princess crew was not getting the kind of tips they learned to expect from Americans/Canadians.  Princess has to make "adjustments" to the financial arrangements (vis-a-vis tipping on that one ship to adapt to the Aussie-centric culture.

 

Those of us who have cruised for a long time (my first cruise was in the mid 70s) have seen the cruise lines try to wrestle with the tipping issue.  Consider that the cruise lines must be concerned about crew morale.  And passengers often have no clue what is expected.  Should you tip the cruise director, bus-boy in the Lido, etc.?   Tis a true mess and along with dress codes is always a hot button issue here on CC.

 

Hank

P.S,  How many folks tip the Flight Attendants on airlines?  Think about it.

 

 

[Paphillyguy]

10 hours ago, les37b said:

 

You've just responded to your own post?

 

Here's a tip. Answer posts by others, not your own. 🤣 (Sorry - couldn't resist. Just seemed odd to answer your own post!)

 

I genuinely never understand why it's difficult to comprehend that wages should be paid by the employer not the customer. Sure, that equates to maybe the price you pay increasing. So what? The end goal is paying the person's wages right? I've no issue tipping when I've received very good service and is to show my appreciation. 

 

Simple question. Why do you think it's ok not to pay "your" staff and expect them to rely on handouts that is a choice and may not be received? It's just wrong.

 

Personally I think it's much fairer to receive a proper salary from the person I work for no matter what job I do. Imagine working somewhere that customers stop visiting in numbers. Would you expect the few who do visit to make up the shortfall? Pretty much everywhere outside the US (in the western world), the employer pays the wages and has to by law and isn't reliant on customer hand outs.

 

I do tip for good service. The clue is gratuity... To show my gratitude. It's derived from French, but appears to be very lost in translation.

 

Fares from the UK generally (there are a couple of exceptions) come with "gratuities" pre paid. It's a shame this "culture" exists. It would have been better not to distinguish what's been added as it sends a message there is no need to show appreciation because you've already paid it.

 

Similarly, if I'm presented in the UK with a restaurant bill with a service charge added (which by law you can get removed if you wished), there is zero chance I would tip on top unless there was an exceptional reason to do so. 

 

I think it's something we'll never agree on and this age old "debate" will appear over and over again. I certainly agree with the suggestion of "guilt" is significant on the reason to tip, but the guilt really falls on the employers.

 

 

 

 

If you look I was actually correcting a typo.