Housekeeping moving to once a day?

[John&LaLa]

45 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

The number of people in the room may not change the work load much but the "type" of people certainly does.

 

Entirely different conversation😉

 

Maybe inline with 'Why does my toddler have to pay full gratuities'

[John&LaLa]

20 minutes ago, sgmn said:

And an ice machine on every floor

 

Already there, you just need to know which Do Not Enter sign to violate.😉

[S.A.M.J.R.]

21 minutes ago, sgmn said:

Just because it works for you doesn't mean it OK for others. You're happy to pay a lot of money for a cruise and pay for gratuities but don't want or need any service. OK that's you, but I would expect to have a different experience on an expensive cruise  than I would in a self catering cottage 

That's good that you have expectations.  I'll tell you right now those expectations won't be met in the future.  So, now what are you going to do?  Unless the answer is "we won't cruise again", Royal doesn't care (they'll claim they do, but they really don't). 

[nelblu]

16 minutes ago, Donsyb said:

Actually this is increasingly common even in some mid-high end hotels. Some offer additional loyalty points if you opt out, others just inform you that’s what they’re doing. It’s a hangover from covid.

If it's in their amenities description, then it's on me.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

2 minutes ago, nelblu said:

If it's in their amenities description, then it's on me.

You still won't have a leg to stand on unless the amenities list daily house keeping.  If you assume that and show up to find out it's done on the 4th or 5th day, guess what?  You still aren't getting it daily.  

[nelblu]

22 minutes ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

You still won't have a leg to stand on unless the amenities list daily house keeping.  If you assume that and show up to find out it's done on the 4th or 5th day, guess what?  You still aren't getting it daily.  

I don't have to worry about it as my Entertaiment/Vacation $ is spent mostly on cruising and Atlantic City.

[Georgia_Peaches]

2 hours ago, not-enough-cruising said:

I only use a bath towel once at home and it goes to the laundry, I expect the same on vacation 

Whatever works for you.  No judgement here.

[Fouremco]

1 hour ago, not-enough-cruising said:

No way around the fact that half the service does not equal the same amount of gratuity; basic economics. 

I think that depends on what yardstick you use to measure the service.

 

Person 1 walks into a nice restaurant and orders a lobster dinner. No starters, no dessert, no drinks, just the single course. The bill comes to $50 and he tips the waiter 20% of the bill ($10).

 

Person 2 enters the same restaurant and sits at a table served by the same waiter. He orders a small salad, fish and chips, and a small bowl of ice cream. He also orders a soft drink with his main course and a coffee after dessert. His bill also comes to $50, and he too tips $10.

 

In a restaurant setting, the yardstick used to measure the tip is usually the price of the meal, not the amount of time and effort put in by the wait staff.

 

If my cabin is kept neat and tidy and the towels replaced daily, I really don't mind if the work is done in one visit or two. Towel animals and bed turn downs to me are like an amuse-bouche served at better restaurants, a nice extra but not factored into my tip.

 

In my experience, the amount of time and effort put in by cabin stewards during first and second visits is quite different. While the new system may result in half the number of visits, I doubt that it will result in half the time and effort on the part of the stewards, and I would never consider reducing their tip by 50%.

 

Of course, I've not sailed under the new conditions, and like most other commenting here, I'm making assumptions as to the impact of the one-visit-daily approach. After our next cruise, I may well have a different perspective. Heck, if the steward can provide anything close to the level of cleanliness in just one daily visit, I might well consider increasing the tip!

[John&LaLa]

11 minutes ago, Fouremco said:

I think that depends on what yardstick you use to measure the service.

 

Person 1 walks into a nice restaurant and orders a lobster dinner. No starters, no dessert, no drinks, just the single course. The bill comes to $50 and he tips the waiter 20% of the bill ($10).

 

Person 2 enters the same restaurant and sits at a table served by the same waiter. He orders a small salad, fish and chips, and a small bowl of ice cream. He also orders a soft drink with his main course and a coffee after dessert. His bill also comes to $50, and he too tips $10.

 

In a restaurant setting, the yardstick used to measure the tip is usually the price of the meal, not the amount of time and effort put in by the wait staff.

 

If my cabin is kept neat and tidy and the towels replaced daily, I really don't mind if the work is done in one visit or two. Towel animals and bed turn downs to me are like an amuse-bouche served at better restaurants, a nice extra but not factored into my tip.

 

In my experience, the amount of time and effort put in by cabin stewards during first and second visits is quite different. While the new system may result in half the number of visits, I doubt that it will result in half the time and effort on the part of the stewards, and I would never consider reducing their tip by 50%.

 

Of course, I've not sailed under the new conditions, and like most other commenting here, I'm making assumptions as to the impact of the one-visit-daily approach. After our next cruise, I may well have a different perspective. Heck, if the steward can provide anything close to the level of cleanliness in just one daily visit, I might well consider increasing the tip!

 

We've been requesting once a day for some time now, always evening. We, like others, don't want to be tied down by waiting for steward to finish the room in the moning

[slyster]

Just now, John&LaLa said:

 

We've been requesting once a day for some time now, always evening. We, like others, don't want to be tied down by waiting for steward to finish the room in the moning

 

This is us too!  We always go have dinner together so having them come in while we are out to eat is always convenient. I eat breakfast early, my wife eats later and we don't have the same schedules in the morning either.  It can be a hassle to find reasons to be out of the cabin so they can get in there.  

[sushitex]

2 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Marriott, Hilton, and Disney (this article is from a year ago)...

 

Marriott's policies vary by property, but housekeeping is usually offered only upon request, with all rooms cleaned automatically every sixth night. Hilton's default is no more daily cleanings at most properties unless requested. Walt Disney World reduced service to light housekeeping every other day. That entails towel replacement and trash removal but doesn't necessarily include services you might expect, like getting your bed made.

Other hotels have schedules, like the Hotel Solares in Santa Cruz, California: Three-night stays or fewer, no service, while six-night stays or fewer are cleaned once. The hotel recommends you leave trash outside your door.

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hotels-end-basic-amenities-no-more-housekeeping-skimpflation/

 

Marriott is currently the largest hospitality company in the world (with 30 brands) followed by Hilton. Recently, I did some research while looking up hotels for an upcoming cruise out of Miami, and most of the chain hotels that I considered now have a similar policy. Disney World is now so ridiculously expensive that I highly doubt we will be returning there anytime soon. 

Edited February 20, 2023 by sushitex

[sushitex]

42 minutes ago, slyster said:

 

This is us too!  We always go have dinner together so having them come in while we are out to eat is always convenient. I eat breakfast early, my wife eats later and we don't have the same schedules in the morning either.  It can be a hassle to find reasons to be out of the cabin so they can get in there.  

Last August, we experienced 1-cleaning-a-day for the first time, on a Carnival ship. I didn’t notice any difference in our room as for it being less clean. The room steward gave us a choice between morning and evening cleanings, and because of our breakfast, daily walk and shower schedules, and the fact that I wanted a bucket of ice at night, we chose evenings. The only thing that didn’t work well was that I noticed that, as the week went on, the ice was already melting by the time we returned to the room after dinner or a show. So I think he decided to clean our room sometime in the afternoon. 😒
 

I am still going to ask for evening service and ice as well on the Royal ships; I just hope that their stewards pay more attention to my requests.

Edited February 20, 2023 by sushitex

[sgmn]

1 hour ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

That's good that you have expectations.  I'll tell you right now those expectations won't be met in the future.  So, now what are you going to do?  Unless the answer is "we won't cruise again", Royal doesn't care (they'll claim they do, but they really don't). 

Until I experience the change in service/new menus etc etc etc I can't answer that. 

My expectations, as opposed to the person I was quoting,  is to have have my cabin tidied, rubbish emptied and bed made each day. Once a day is OK for me. I would like clean towels at a minimum of at least every other day.  

 

[Ocean Boy]

2 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Or people just accept they were business decisions made during covid, and since people didn't stop booking, they didn't need to go back to the previous levels.   Maybe if people stop booking, hotels and cruises will start bringing back the "perks". 

I think of a perk as something given to me by a company as a thank you, as in thank you for being a long time customer. I hardly consider something that I've been paying for....cabin service, food, etc. to be a perk.

[S.A.M.J.R.]

7 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

I think of a perk as something given to me by a company as a thank you, as in thank you for being a long time customer. I hardly consider something that I've been paying for....cabin service, food, etc. to be a perk.

eh, I just wanted a different word than "service".  My point still stands. 

[resetjet]

2 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Nice, but these other folks are considered 'other hotel' on Royal

 

Royal did a press release on that several years ago

So are you saying he gets to keep all the tips?  That would be great to make $1500 a week.  I wonder why they have a hard time finding employees and hire from poor countries.  They make 3500 a month Thier salary is $1360.  Which leaves $2140 a month in tips or $535 dollars in tips a week?  Where does the other $1000 go.  
 

 

[John&LaLa]

10 minutes ago, resetjet said:

So are you saying he gets to keep all the tips?  That would be great to make $1500 a week.  I wonder why they have a hard time finding employees and hire from poor countries.  They make 3500 a month Thier salary is $1360.  Which leaves $2140 a month in tips or $535 dollars in tips a week?  Where does the other $1000 go.  

 

What $1000 are you referring to🤔

 

I have no idea how much they make, I just shared how Royal says they distribute it.

 

Now back in the day, before auto grats, the ship shared a recommended daily tip amount. It was broken down into 4 pots. Steward, assistant Steward, Waiter and Assistant waiter. 

 

Now there are no longer official assistant Stewards, but they do get help, especially on turn around day. A portion of that amount may go to them. I have no idea. Don't care.

 

Plus you aren't counting the additional cash tips we give on top of the auto grats.

 

That could total $500 to $700 easily, especially with more cabins now.

 

Of course there will always be folks who stiff them. Once again, don't care.

 

[Georgia_Peaches]

27 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

That could total $500 to $700 easily, especially with more cabins now.

That's pretty good money, I must say.  Many people act as if the stewards and wait staff are working in conditions akin to sweat shops on cruise ships while us westerners lounge about on vacations across the world.  I don't think they are getting rich by any means but I think there is a pretty good wage to me earned.  I have no doubt that its hard work and money well earned.

[John&LaLa]

22 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

That's pretty good money, I must say.  Many people act as if the stewards and wait staff are working in conditions akin to sweat shops on cruise ships while us westerners lounge about on vacations across the world.  I don't think they are getting rich by any means but I think there is a pretty good wage to me earned.  I have no doubt that its hard work and money well earned.

 

By shear numbers alone, the head waiters, even with miniscule tip envelopes, can really rake it in. On Serenade last week our headwaiter was in charge of around 8 wait teams. Each of those teams had around 25 guests. And there are two seatings.

 

We gave him $10

[Longford]

Cruise lines, like restaurant owners, shame customers into leaving large tips so that the owners can skimp on wages paid to the staff.  I've always believed a tip/gratuity is left for service over and above what the typical job description calls for.  I paid and assume I'll continue to pay the ship gratuities in advance.  However, if I believe the service I receive ... at a shipboard bar, restaurant or from the room steward isn't up to my expectations ... any cash tip I may leave will be less or not at all.  For a 7 night solo trip in November 2022 I gave room steward $50 cash the day preceding arriving back in Tampa ... for which there was no "thank you."  Gratuities aren't charity, they're given for services rendered.  Less service, less gratuity.

[resetjet]

1 hour ago, John&LaLa said:

 

What $1000 are you referring to🤔

 

I have no idea how much they make, I just shared how Royal says they distribute it.

 

Now back in the day, before auto grats, the ship shared a recommended daily tip amount. It was broken down into 4 pots. Steward, assistant Steward, Waiter and Assistant waiter. 

 

Now there are no longer official assistant Stewards, but they do get help, especially on turn around day. A portion of that amount may go to them. I have no idea. Don't care.

 

Plus you aren't counting the additional cash tips we give on top of the auto grats.

 

That could total $500 to $700 easily, especially with more cabins now.

 

Of course there will always be folks who stiff them. Once again, don't care.

 

Well i assume you are saying the steward gets all the steward tips. Is this correct?  If so just multiply 25 rooms x whatever you think they get by 2 per room and you will see how much there is to distribute.  Btw there is also a separate line for the other hotel services,  but those are not housekeeping positions.  They go to a separate set of people.  Its amazing when you start looking into it,  how many positions there actually are on a ship.

[John&LaLa]

3 minutes ago, resetjet said:

Well i assume you are saying the steward gets all the steward tips. Is this correct?  If so just multiply 25 rooms x whatever you think they get by 2 per room and you will see how much there is to distribute.  Btw there is also a separate line for the other hotel services,  but those are not housekeeping positions.  They go to a separate set of people.  Its amazing when you start looking into it,  how many positions there actually are on a ship.

 

That doesn't explain the $1000 you mentioned earlier.  Very aware of the magnitude

 

And, as I said, the steward tip may be shared with someone behind the scenes that helps him on occasion. 

[resetjet]

11 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

That doesn't explain the $1000 you mentioned earlier.  Very aware of the magnitude

 

And, as I said, the steward tip may be shared with someone behind the scenes that helps him on occasion. 

Yes it does.  You are not doing the math.
their salary is posted on shiplife.org.  Its $1360 a month.  They have 25 rooms x $8 a room x 30 days is $6000  As you said they get alot of extra tips too and alot of rooms have 3 or 4 people but lets forget that.  So $6000 plus $1360 is $7360.  The real number is much higher. Near a couple thousand a week to clean rooms.  Do you actually believe that?  The answer is they share those tips with the whole housekeeping staff.  They get the lions share but they all get tips.  The food and beverage also share as does the other hotel staff.  Pretty much and forward facing crewmember who you interact with that is not staff.  Staff is photo,  entertainment,  guest services,  medical,  etc.

[John&LaLa]

1 hour ago, Longford said:

Cruise lines, like restaurant owners, shame customers into leaving large tips so that the owners can skimp on wages paid to the staff.  I've always believed a tip/gratuity is left for service over and above what the typical job description calls for.  I paid and assume I'll continue to pay the ship gratuities in advance.  However, if I believe the service I receive ... at a shipboard bar, restaurant or from the room steward isn't up to my expectations ... any cash tip I may leave will be less or not at all.  For a 7 night solo trip in November 2022 I gave room steward $50 cash the day preceding arriving back in Tampa ... for which there was no "thank you."  Gratuities aren't charity, they're given for services rendered.  Less service, less gratuity.

 

Glory be to the gifter. 

 

Honestly don't give tips to get a 'thank you'

[Ocean Boy]

11 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Glory be to the gifter. 

 

Honestly don't give tips to get a 'thank you'

So you think it is OK to not acknowledge the gifter with a thank you? Yet I feel the need to thank someone for providing a service to me even if they are being paid to provide that service.