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Cabin Stewards Gifts

*Fudge*

By *Fudge*,
in Celebrity Cruises

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islabahia

islabahia

Posted
Posted
5 hours ago, Cruzinforpeace*** said:

I don’t worry about offending anyone with something positive.  I handed them to my Hindu waiters and they were very touched.  We  had very mature discussions about each other’s faiths and the “meaning of life”.  No one was offended.  We’re all humans.

 

The crew are way too polite to appear offended when gifted by a pax.  I honor your opinions and hope you honor mine.  I do not engage in religious discussions with anyone…I just say excuse me and leave.

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ldubs

ldubs

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 I am not sure I get it.  If a note of any kind is given if the receiver does not like it or takes offense they can simply throw it away.  

 

 

I don't think disposing of the item is the issue. It is the misplaced belief of some that the trinket, be it a plastic bracelet with a religious quote or a fridge magnet, is cherished by the recipients who have no choice but to pretend delight.  (That is one long sentence - sorry about that).  

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jean87510 Great Review Rare

jean87510

Posted
Posted
6 hours ago, Pinboy said:

Agree---However, for some folks the " pain in the ass " part is toooooo difficult !

When you have 16 hrs , read the many posts on CC re:

" In 1972 Celebrity used to etc,etc, and now, the bums don't etc, etc. "

" My Butler was late to "draw" the bath "------- that's a " dandy " !!

" Why should I have to pay for room service delivery if I feel like a shrimp cocktail, club sandwich and 6 chocolate cookies at 3 am , when I already paid for it in my cruise charge and besides, Celebrity didn't notify me of it prior to the cruise"?

" I'm paying more $$ than the folks in XYZ category and am " entitled " to, etc etc ".

and, I almost forgot

" the size of the @%$^&*% lobster tails " !!!!

LOL-- If ya ever see Pinboy working on a cruise ship--- the only scripture he want to read is $$$$ bills.

 

 

I usually don't pay attention to anyone else on a cruise ship but we had a couple a few doors down on our recent Voyager cruise just berating the poor attendant for not filling their ice bucket to the brim.  I also heard the same couple complaining about others dishes in front of doors in the hallway and how this was ruining their experience.  THESE are the types of people I'm talking about.  Just shut up, get your towel animal, and boo hoo if your ice bucket is at 2/3.  

Once on a TA in 2018 from Rome, I unfortunately had the Flu and was quarantined for 3 sea days and really weak once out of quarantine.  My cabin attendant was so nice and thoughtful.  I was so sick and miserable and this guy really went out of his way to make up the bed, get me iced water, extra towels, more blankets without being asked.  He went down and got me the soup from Chops with saltines as I had no appetite.  I called the guest services and also spoke to the head person hotel manager and told them how this young man really made my cruise so much better and went above and beyond.  He was tipped well and I wrote to corporate about him and my husband found paper so I could compose a nice thank you letter.  I wouldn't dream of giving this man a hat, t-shirt, skittles.  I think back and hope he got the recognition he deserved.

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mpdog42

mpdog42

Posted
Posted
14 hours ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

All I'm saying is there are plenty of positive and encouraging sayings out there without foisting your religion on other people. Being inclusive is actually much more "on point" with the true gospel message than being exclusive and using coded language (scriptures).

I think you have made your Point!! Can we move on??

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mpdog42

mpdog42

Posted
Posted
13 hours ago, Cruzinforpeace*** said:

I don’t force anything on anyone.  In fact I don’t even have a conversation about anything Christian with them for that matter unless they identify themselves as Christian or start a conversation about religion.  If it is a conversation I respectfully engage in that conversation and respect their personal viewpoints.  That is more than I can say for this particular thread where I see numerous posts attacking my beliefs.  Not very tolerant of another viewpoint or lifestyle.  I simply shared what I do when I go on cruises in reference to gift giving as was the request of the original poster.  There are MANY Christians working on cruise ships by the way.  You might want to take the time to have a conversation with some of the people who “serve”  you and get to know a little bit about their lives.  In fact, I became a Christian while I was working on a cruise ship.  One of the dancers in the production show I was in as a singer kept sharing her faith with me.  At first I was offended like many of you but after a while I realized she was trying to share something that was special to her.  I was “empty” and she saw it. I had everything but absolutely nothing.  She invited me to a Christian worship service in the bottom of the ship in the laundry room. It was there that I came to know Jesus.  That room was FILLED with other crew members, from waiters, cabin stewards to entertainers.  It was the path that I chose to follow. Im not saying I’m better than you.  Quite the opposite.  I am in very bad shape as a human being trying to be like Christ.  I just know that when God leads I want to share what was given to me if anyone wants to talk about it.  

But if this would be about any of the things popular in the world today...You wouldn't be attacked!!

Do what you feel led to do...You know what's right!!!

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NutsAboutGolf Holiday Sharing Rare

NutsAboutGolf

Posted
Posted

I will take the liberty to summarize these 5 pages with 3 bullet points, perhaps it'll help get this thread get back on track...No need to thank me

 

-GIFTS, give cash because if you give a trinket/souvenir there's a 99% chance it'll end up in the incinerator

-BRAG, if you don't tip or have positive interactions with others, brag about it

-ATTACK, if someone disagrees with your bragging, call them jealous, etc

 

BONUS!!!  -GOLF, Golf is awesome!!!

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Cruzinforpeace*** Great Review Rare

Cruzinforpeace***

Posted
Posted
51 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

I will take the liberty to summarize these 5 pages with 3 bullet points, perhaps it'll help get this thread get back on track...No need to thank me

 

-GIFTS, give cash because if you give a trinket/souvenir there's a 99% chance it'll end up in the incinerator

-BRAG, if you don't tip or have positive interactions with others, brag about it

-ATTACK, if someone disagrees with your bragging, call them jealous, etc

 

BONUS!!!  -GOLF, Golf is awesome!!!

At least we’re laughing now.  Laughter is the best medicine!

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SLOTheta "Live from...." Rare

SLOTheta

Posted
Posted

We left the Solstice today and during the last night, a couple who had dined in the Blu every night, gave little bags of chocolates to the staff. They had packed them in a cooler bag. We sat next to them almost every night. Nice gesture, but they never left a tip each of the nights they were there. Of course, the staff was all polite. But, I’m sure they would have preferred the cash. 

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hrhdhd

hrhdhd

Posted
Posted
17 minutes ago, SLOTheta said:

  . . . <snip> they never left a tip each of the nights they were there. Of course, the staff was all polite. But, I’m sure they would have preferred the cash. 

I don't leave a tip each night no matter where I dine. 🤔 How do you know they didn't have auto-tips in place?

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SLOTheta "Live from...." Rare

SLOTheta

Posted
Posted
Just now, hrhdhd said:

I don't leave a tip each night no matter where I dine. 🤔 How do you know they didn't have auto-tips in place?

Auto tips to me, is the bare minimum. For a full service meal, leaving a few dollars in appreciation is how I show my gratitude. 

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Wineaux007

Wineaux007

Posted
Posted
14 minutes ago, SLOTheta said:

Auto tips to me, is the bare minimum. For a full service meal, leaving a few dollars in appreciation is how I show my gratitude. 

We do the auto tips, but don't leave a dollar or two after each meal.  We use tip envelopes at the end of the cruise on the last night to show our appreciation, especially if they went above and beyond. 

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prmssk "Live from...." Rare

prmssk

Posted
Posted
32 minutes ago, SLOTheta said:

Auto tips to me, is the bare minimum. For a full service meal, leaving a few dollars in appreciation is how I show my gratitude. 

 

If you book an AI fare, this is Celebrity's wording about tips:  "We’ve got you covered."  (Aqua Class is usually an AI fare.). I would argue the same is true once someone pays the auto-gratuities without an AI fare.  IMHO any tipping beyond that should be completely a personal decision.  

 

Also, we have commonly added additional tips by using a form at Guest Services to have them added to our account and in those cases we don't hand an envelope or cash to crew.  So you really can't know whether or how much someone else may be tipping.

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Cruzinforpeace*** Great Review Rare

Cruzinforpeace***

Posted
Posted
13 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:


All that is saying is that there is now a policy excluding some gifts like homemade cookies.

 

The article clearly states and I quote:

 

“The Best Gifts You Can Give

The quickest, easiest gift to give any crew member who goes above-and-beyond with excellent service is an additional gratuity, a bit of extra cash they can spend on whatever they like.“

The article ALSO stated:

 

“While crew cabins onboard are small and space is limited, many crew members also enjoy small tokens to remember guests by.

“The crew love to remember you so if you want to bring them something like a baseball cap, a key ring, or something that will remind them of you and the kindness you showed them then that would be marvelous,”

 

Cash AND Trinkets are appreciated!

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NutsAboutGolf Holiday Sharing Rare

NutsAboutGolf

Posted
Posted
24 minutes ago, Cdncruisecpl said:

If Carnival Corporate said that the people miles below them appreciate these things, it MUST be right.  The corporate office is always completely in tune with what the little people like.

 

24 minutes ago, Cruzinforpeace*** said:

The article ALSO stated:

 

 

“While crew cabins onboard are small and space is limited, many crew members also enjoy small tokens to remember guests by.

“The crew love to remember you so if you want to bring them something like a baseball cap, a key ring, or something that will remind them of you and the kindness you showed them then that would be marvelous,”

 

Cash AND Trinkets are appreciated!


He’s the carnival brand ambassador.  They simply cannot say “if you didn’t know, 99% of the things you gift them go into the incinerator, so give them cash” it would heartbreak many.  One of the worst feelings is trying to be helpful yet cause more harm than good.  This would include giving someone a gift than only to overhear that person immediately threw out your gift

 

I do fully understand your viewpoint based on the article but think corporate is saying this to not bring negative vibes to the passengers.  If they banned all gifts there would be a flood of angry customers

 

To put it another way, if one were approach a crew member, hold a hat and a $10 bill in one hand and just a $20 in the other, tell them to pick only one, which do you think they would take (rhetorical)?

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Cruzinforpeace*** Great Review Rare

Cruzinforpeace***

Posted
Posted
4 minutes ago, gold1953 said:

I would assume thar the crew ger far too many baseball caps and key rings. I tried giving a bag of cookies that we have not opened and the cabin attendant said "no thank you" He also refuse a bottle of wine.

I think what the CEO of Carnival was saying was that some crew members appreciate small gifts that they cannot get onshore. For instance,  a key ring from your hometown is sentimental and not something they can buy in port.  This is NOT a replacement for the cash gratuities;  just an “extra” display of appreciation and love.  When I worked on cruise ships I would have been really touched if someone gave me a small gift.  I wasn’t tipped as an entertainer.  Our “tip” was the good comment on the guest comment card.  However, I can honestly say I would have been genuinely moved by a personal gift as well.  As crew members on the Entertainment Staff we used to make little gifts for one another on board like cards, or crocheted bookmarks and scarves.  In fact I still have a crocheted bookmark one of my fellow cast mates made me.  There are memories attached to every object.  Costa Cruises used to give us chocolate eggs with toys inside (like a giant Kinder Egg) for Easter and chocolate for Christmas.  We looked forward to the little

gifts and we really appreciated that they went the extra mile to try to make our holidays away from family special.

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