% of guests who remove gratuities

[The Fun Researcher]

I think this thread has somehow, believe it or not, been more civil than others like it in the past, hence it has stayed around.

[not-enough-cruising]

8 hours ago, rolloman said:

Incorrect. There is no way the finance team onboard (working under the direction of Corporate) has been given zero input of how their system works. The reality is those jobs are trained by Corporate before they are placed onboard a ship. 

Finance officer on board have absolutely ZERO say on the way the auto-gratuities are dispersed

[not-enough-cruising]

8 hours ago, rolloman said:

Here is a better idea...how about Cruise Critic use their connections to create a tipping webinar featuring a Royal Caribbean spokesperson who can field some of these questions. I am confident it would be a highly attended event. 

This webinar would NEVER take place.  Royal Caribbean does not want you to have answers to any of these questions

[not-enough-cruising]

5 hours ago, Rusty_lock said:

They certainly don't have them making decisions but they surely know how the system works.  How would adjudicate payroll disputes without working knowledge of the system?

Payroll dispute would be handled by the corporate office, not by the ship finance department.

[HBE4]

11 hours ago, Ryder101 said:

11 hours ago, vacationlover_mn said:

11.657%

???

 

It's the answer to the question.   Which is obviously wrong as it's really 10.16545%, give or take .004%. I know this cause I spoke to a guy that knows a guy so just trust me on this! 😉

[HBE4]

22 hours ago, Eddie Wilson said:

OK, for the sake of the Cruise Critic Community I can settle this MAGICAL TIP DIVISION TRICK with one bold move.

 

I hereby will apply for a tipped position on a RCL ship.*   After the contract is completed I will report my findings.

 

Eddie

 

I was going to stand outside the ship & poll the passengers as they disembark.

 

[rolloman]

3 hours ago, not-enough-cruising said:

Finance officer on board have absolutely ZERO say on the way the auto-gratuities are dispersed

You missed the part where I said "under corporate direction" ...You seem to running around offering definitive responses to posters opinions...however at this point they are all unsubstantiated. If you are such an insider...why not back it up with some proof? Oh and Yes...Webinar(s) have taken place in the past and one could very easily take place again with the current hot gratuity topic. Especially if metrics start showing a major uptick of guests heading to Guest Services to remove them. 

[not-enough-cruising]

22 minutes ago, rolloman said:

You missed the part where I said "under corporate direction" ...You seem to running around offering definitive responses to posters opinions...however at this point they are all unsubstantiated. If you are such an insider...why not back it up with some proof? Oh and Yes...Webinar(s) have taken place in the past and one could very easily take place again with the current hot gratuity topic. Especially if metrics start showing a major uptick of guests heading to Guest Services to remove them. 

And you are still wrong, nothing about the auto gratuities or crew pay is handled within the ship

Edited March 3, 2023 by not-enough-cruising

[rolloman]

34 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

And you are still wrong, nothing about the auto gratuities or crew pay is handled within the ship

Unreal...I never said it was, corporate makes the rules...the ship follows those rules with employees who were trained by corporate ...that is what I said. Now with regards to your other definitive answers...Please substantiate those claims...it certainly would clear up a lot of confusion "if" you can. 

[Morecruisesplz]

9 minutes ago, rolloman said:

Unreal...I never said it was, corporate makes the rules...the ship follows those rules with employees who were trained by corporate ...that is what I said. Now with regards to your other definitive answers...Please substantiate those claims...it certainly would clear up a lot of confusion "if" you can. 

Corporate trains no one. All training takes place onboard. 

[tvo7]

I am just asking this in theory.  What if I don't want to pay 18% tip per day per person and I want to just do 10%.  Can I go to service desk at 11 pm before docking in am, to lower the tips without question?

[soxin2000]

On 2/28/2023 at 8:22 PM, Rusty_lock said:

Yeah I have big plans for that $14. I’m looking at buying Tesla stock. 

We are a family of 8. 8 x 14.00 = 112.00 x 7 = 784.00 . Maybe not Tesla, but RC?

[jean87510]

18 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

I’m surprised that this one still is going. They might be enjoying the back and forth here. 

I can easily get it locked by mentioning politics 😁

[not-enough-cruising]

6 hours ago, tvo7 said:

I am just asking this in theory.  What if I don't want to pay 18% tip per day per person and I want to just do 10%.  Can I go to service desk at 11 pm before docking in am, to lower the tips without question?

The 18% gratuity is on food and beverage, this is not your "daily automatic gratuity", food and beverage gratuity is not removable

[Ryder101]

6 hours ago, tvo7 said:

I am just asking this in theory.  What if I don't want to pay 18% tip per day per person and I want to just do 10%.  Can I go to service desk at 11 pm before docking in am, to lower the tips without question?

No. But you can go and get the automatic gratuities removed at guest services up until morning of departure. I wouldn't wait past last day at sea. It's easier to get a hold of someone.

[Rusty_lock]

9 hours ago, soxin2000 said:

We are a family of 8. 8 x 14.00 = 112.00 x 7 = 784.00 . Maybe not Tesla, but RC?

It's probably best not to comment on posts when you don't know what you are talking about.  There was context to my post you ignored. $14 was an amount that i just pulled out or the air. It represented the total of interest that you would receive by not prepaying your gratuities.  That number is actually wildly inaccurate so I did the math. 🙂 

 

The interest for one year on prepaid gratuities for a 7 day cruise is actually $2.24 if you can get 2% interest on the savings of that money.  Even that is wildly optimistic.  Bank of America's current savings acct. interest is 1/100th of that right now. Meaning, that in all probability the interest you are losing out on for that purchase 2/10th's of a cent per person per year.  

 

I think even you with your family of 8 can afford that.

 

[Ryder101]

28 minutes ago, Rusty_lock said:

It's probably best not to comment on posts when you don't know what you are talking about.  There was context to my post you ignored. $14 was an amount that i just pulled out or the air. It represented the total of interest that you would receive by not prepaying your gratuities.  That number is actually wildly inaccurate so I did the math. 🙂 

 

The interest for one year on prepaid gratuities for a 7 day cruise is actually $2.24 if you can get 2% interest on the savings of that money.  Even that is wildly optimistic.  Bank of America's current savings acct. interest is 1/100th of that right now. Meaning, that in all probability the interest you are losing out on for that purchase 2/10th's of a cent per person per year.  

 

I think even you with your family of 8 can afford that.

 

I was gonna go there but didn't.

[HBE4]

12 hours ago, tvo7 said:

I am just asking this in theory.  What if I don't want to pay 18% tip per day per person and I want to just do 10%.  Can I go to service desk at 11 pm before docking in am, to lower the tips without question?

 

6 hours ago, Ryder101 said:

No. But you can go and get the automatic gratuities removed at guest services up until morning of departure. I wouldn't wait past last day at sea. It's easier to get a hold of someone.

 

Actually, I think it is possible to lower the amount of automatic daily gratuities that part of the cruise fare (not the 18% F&B gratuity). 

 

Here's a question I never see asked: Is it possible to raise the amount you pay in auto-grats? I know you can tip extra in cash to the people you see. But say you just want to double everyone's portion, including the behind-the-scenes people as well as the Big Four  (stateroom attendant and dining staff) but maintain the current breakdown that they received. 

 

BTW, Royal used to publish the breakdown of the auto-grats but I can't find that breakdown anywhere.  Not that I looked all that hard but was curious.

 

[not-enough-cruising]

1 hour ago, HBE4 said:

 

 

Actually, I think it is possible to lower the amount of automatic daily gratuities that part of the cruise fare (not the 18% F&B gratuity). 

 

Here's a question I never see asked: Is it possible to raise the amount you pay in auto-grats? I know you can tip extra in cash to the people you see. But say you just want to double everyone's portion, including the behind-the-scenes people as well as the Big Four  (stateroom attendant and dining staff) but maintain the current breakdown that they received. 

 

BTW, Royal used to publish the breakdown of the auto-grats but I can't find that breakdown anywhere.  Not that I looked all that hard but was curious.

 

Auto Gratuity is an all or nothing, set amount kind of thing.  It is not customizable.

[grandgeezer]

2 hours ago, Rusty_lock said:

It's probably best not to comment on posts when you don't know what you are talking about.  There was context to my post you ignored. $14 was an amount that i just pulled out or the air. It represented the total of interest that you would receive by not prepaying your gratuities.  That number is actually wildly inaccurate so I did the math. 🙂 

 

The interest for one year on prepaid gratuities for a 7 day cruise is actually $2.24 if you can get 2% interest on the savings of that money.  Even that is wildly optimistic.  Bank of America's current savings acct. interest is 1/100th of that right now. Meaning, that in all probability the interest you are losing out on for that purchase 2/10th's of a cent per person per year.  

 

I think even you with your family of 8 can afford that.

 

Been awhile since you shopped around for interest rates? I can find dozens of money markets at 3% and higher. My two CDs I got since the first of the year are at 5% and 5.25% with one year terms. You can keep on doing business with B of A if it makes you feel safe and secure. I’ll stick my money in places that are FDIC insured and pay much higher interest rates. This are just rainy day funds, the majority is in the stock market. It’s had it’s ups and downs but over the long haul it’s afforded the lives we never thought we would.

[LobsterStalker]

On 2/25/2023 at 1:15 PM, taglovestocruise said:

How wrong you are. When auto grats are removed the waitstaff and room stewards turn that amount you give them into the ships tip pool. Curious as how you get your cash to all the behind the scenes works who share in the tip pool. 

Very curious how you know that the waitstaff and room stewards pass that money over to the ships tip pool... Seems human nature would tell me that some may and most would not..

Could you explain further please ?

 

And to the original poster ....

On 2/25/2023 at 12:06 PM, kruzerci said:

Please keep the debate and thoughts on why this should not be done out- that topic has been beat to death.

Did you truly believe starting this thread would not fall into this chasm ??

[Rusty_lock]

29 minutes ago, grandgeezer said:

Been awhile since you shopped around for interest rates? I can find dozens of money markets at 3% and higher. My two CDs I got since the first of the year are at 5% and 5.25% with one year terms. You can keep on doing business with B of A if it makes you feel safe and secure. I’ll stick my money in places that are FDIC insured and pay much higher interest rates. This are just rainy day funds, the majority is in the stock market. It’s had it’s ups and downs but over the long haul it’s afforded the lives we never thought we would.

My investments are with an investment broker. BOA is strictly used for daily However, when we’re talking about the small amount that be the total of the auto grats and the interest that would generate. Investing it in CD’s with the intent of removing it pay your grats seems kind of silly. 

 

[HBE4]

48 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

Auto Gratuity is an all or nothing, set amount kind of thing.  It is not customizable.

 

OK. Thank you for the correction. I certainly do not want to be the one to spread misinformation. I was going off of Royals FAQ page and they use the word "modify" in regards to the Auto Gratuity,  giving the impression the $$ amount was changeable, not an "all or nothing" deal.

 

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense 

 

"In the unlikely event that a guest onboard being charged the daily automatic gratuity does not receive satisfactory service, the guest may request to modify the daily amount at their discretion by visiting Guest Services onboard and will be able to do so until the morning of their departure."

 

No wonder there is so much confusion.

[Ryder101]

I thought modify was flexible amounts as well.

 

Just goes to show you, bring some cash.

[jetlag69]

Now that RCCL has increased the Auto Gratuity amount and just recently announced reduced Cabin Services with once a day service. Why did they not Reduce the Auto Gratuity? Should less service not equate to less gratuity?