Ocean Boy Posted November 8, 2023 #851 Share Posted November 8, 2023 1 minute ago, Biker19 said: Biker, who wonders how many would remove them if the option was added to the app. Maybe you could make the suggestion to RCI for the next update. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare iscruisingdunzo Posted November 8, 2023 #852 Share Posted November 8, 2023 4 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said: Maybe you could make the suggestion to RCI for the next update. Not going to ever happen since this would be major player in their profit margin and would severely impact them negatively from their bottom line in the BILLIONS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 8, 2023 #853 Share Posted November 8, 2023 18 minutes ago, iscruisingdunzo said: Clearly I am missing something. Please tell me how I can put my optional choice into action during the planning and booking process because I do not want to pre pay my "gratuities" because I have yet to receive the great service the ship staff can provide and would like to pay them cash to express my gratitude. I want to pay no gratuities and I do not want them to be automatic when I am sailing since I will be handing out cash tips for great service. Just go to guest services upon boarding and tell them not to bill your account for the daily charges. Easy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Husky1987 Posted November 8, 2023 #854 Share Posted November 8, 2023 21 minutes ago, iscruisingdunzo said: Please tell me how I can put my optional choice into action during the planning and booking process because I do not want to pre pay my "gratuities" because I have yet to receive the great service the ship staff can provide and would like to pay them cash to express my gratitude. It's actually pretty easy during the planning and booking process to not prepay...just don't click on the "pre pay gratuities" box online when you're booking your cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bucfan2 Posted November 8, 2023 #855 Share Posted November 8, 2023 15 minutes ago, iscruisingdunzo said: Not going to ever happen since this would be major player in their profit margin and would severely impact them negatively from their bottom line in the BILLIONS. Yep. And you didn't subsidize them during the shutdown...don't expect them to subsidize you if they're in the black. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare iscruisingdunzo Posted November 8, 2023 #856 Share Posted November 8, 2023 (edited) 29 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said: Just go to guest services upon boarding and tell them not to bill your account for the daily charges. Easy 24 minutes ago, Husky1987 said: It's actually pretty easy during the planning and booking process to not prepay...just don't click on the "pre pay gratuities" box online when you're booking your cruise. As always, thank you for again proving my point. Gratuities are not OPTIONAL. No matter what, Royal Caribbean will have charged or will charge gratuities to EVERY SINGLE PASSENGER by day one of the sailing. Gratuities are not OPTIONAL! Nor does Royal Caribbean communicate they are optional. Nor does Royal Caribbean give you the option to NOT be billed for gratuities! Edited November 8, 2023 by iscruisingdunzo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UNCFanatik Posted November 8, 2023 #857 Share Posted November 8, 2023 12 hours ago, PhillyFan33579 said: So crew members who tell me the vast majority of passengers don’t remove gratuities are lying? Or does that fact bother you because you are a one of the cheap passengers who removes gratuities? Keep in mind this is specifically about cruises out of Florida ports. I have no knowledge or experience about cruises outside the state of Florida and obviously outside the US. Yup, I remove auto gratuities and its funny that someone paying todays cruise fares would be considered cheap. And does it bother you that you are one of the gullible people that fall for Royal decreasing service while increasing gratuities? They saw you coming. 8 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grandgeezer Posted November 8, 2023 #858 Share Posted November 8, 2023 4 hours ago, A&L_Ont said: If they are cleaning double the cabins are they now being paid double? I doubt it for some reason, as they only clean them once a day. Bring back the staff. They are getting the extra money for each additional cabin they clean over and above the original number they had. Their pay was not cut when they went to once a day versus two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 8, 2023 #859 Share Posted November 8, 2023 20 minutes ago, iscruisingdunzo said: As always, thank you for again proving my point. Gratuities are not OPTIONAL. No matter what, Royal Caribbean will have charged or will charge gratuities to EVERY SINGLE PASSENGER by day one of the sailing. Gratuities are not OPTIONAL! Nor does Royal Caribbean communicate they are optional. Nor does Royal Caribbean give you the option to NOT be billed for gratuities! I don’t think you understand what optional means. 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhillyFan33579 Posted November 8, 2023 #860 Share Posted November 8, 2023 20 minutes ago, UNCFanatik said: Yup, I remove auto gratuities and its funny that someone paying todays cruise fares would be considered cheap. And does it bother you that you are one of the gullible people that fall for Royal decreasing service while increasing gratuities? They saw you coming. Why am I gullible because I enjoy cruising on RCI? I realize everyone’s financial situation is different, but I wouldn’t be cruising 1-2 times every month if I thought cruising was expensive. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UNCFanatik Posted November 8, 2023 #861 Share Posted November 8, 2023 Just now, PhillyFan33579 said: Why am I gullible because I enjoy cruising on RCI? I realize everyone’s financial situation is different, but I wouldn’t be cruising 1-2 times every month if I thought cruising was expensive. Anyone that would pay more for less is gullible. Who pays more for less? 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyank Posted November 8, 2023 #862 Share Posted November 8, 2023 2 hours ago, Ocean Boy said: The point being that no matter how they bundle those "gratuity" charges there will always be the clamoring from the self righteous that we should give more to the exploited hard workers and those envelopes that RCI supplies for our "convenience" will never disappear. Totally agree, especially with the self righteous part 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare iscruisingdunzo Posted November 8, 2023 #863 Share Posted November 8, 2023 Literally, what this comes down to Is education. First, people need to be educated on the definition of optional. Next, we, the educated consumers, need to educate all the others on the ship on gratuities. The mandatory, automatic charges (https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense) placed by Royal Caribbean can be removed if the consumer demands so once on the ship, but not until you are on the ship. Please educate your fellow cruisers on both moving forward 🙂 optional [ op-shuh-nl ]SHOW IPA See synonyms for: optionaloptionally on Thesaurus.com adjective left to one's choice; not required or mandatory: Formal dress is optional. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare broberts Posted November 8, 2023 #864 Share Posted November 8, 2023 2 hours ago, not-enough-cruising said: The crew signed a contract for a guaranteed minimum. If they weren’t happy with that sum, they should not have signed the contract. No one should sign a contract “hoping” for discretionary income. I am sorry, but no one is screwing anyone Because never in American history have large corporations unfairly exploited those that needed work. 🙄 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhillyFan33579 Posted November 8, 2023 #865 Share Posted November 8, 2023 15 minutes ago, UNCFanatik said: Anyone that would pay more for less is gullible. Who pays more for less? So what cruise line(s) are you sailing on these days? I agree with you that RCI has made cutbacks while fares continue to increase, but they have not made any cuts that bother me. In my book that doesn’t make me gullible. But I wouldn’t disagree with your position that you (or anyone else) who isn’t happy with the cuts would be foolish to continue cruising on RCI. The difference between you and me is the cuts don’t bother me while they bother you. That doesn’t mean I am right and you are wrong (or vice versa). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 8, 2023 #866 Share Posted November 8, 2023 (edited) 27 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said: Why am I gullible because I enjoy cruising on RCI? I realize everyone’s financial situation is different, but I wouldn’t be cruising 1-2 times every month if I thought cruising was expensive. This discussion has absolutely nothing to do with one can or can not afford. Edited November 8, 2023 by not-enough-cruising Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 8, 2023 #867 Share Posted November 8, 2023 3 minutes ago, broberts said: Because never in American history have large corporations unfairly exploited those that needed work. 🙄 Generally not when there is an international labor rights board overseeing the books. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 8, 2023 #868 Share Posted November 8, 2023 6 minutes ago, iscruisingdunzo said: Literally, what this comes down to Is education. First, people need to be educated on the definition of optional. Next, we, the educated consumers, need to educate all the others on the ship on gratuities. The mandatory, automatic charges (https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense) placed by Royal Caribbean can be removed if the consumer demands so once on the ship, but not until you are on the ship. Please educate your fellow cruisers on both moving forward 🙂 optional [ op-shuh-nl ]SHOW IPA See synonyms for: optionaloptionally on Thesaurus.com adjective left to one's choice; not required or mandatory: Formal dress is optional. Excellent definition, which proves gratuities are optional 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ocean Boy Posted November 8, 2023 #869 Share Posted November 8, 2023 1 hour ago, iscruisingdunzo said: Not going to ever happen since this would be major player in their profit margin and would severely impact them negatively from their bottom line in the BILLIONS. I was joking.. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhillyFan33579 Posted November 8, 2023 #870 Share Posted November 8, 2023 28 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said: This discussion has absolutely nothing to do with one can or can not afford. It has everything to do with what someone can afford. People who can easily afford the auto gratuities will not think twice about them. Look at the comments in this thread that say the cruise is already expensive enough without the gratuities. There are people who can only afford to cruise on RCI by cutting corners when possible to include removing gratuities. Unfortunately this ends up penalizing hard working crew members who make cruising a great experience. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
not-enough-cruising Posted November 8, 2023 #871 Share Posted November 8, 2023 (edited) 2 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said: It has everything to do with what someone can afford. People who can easily afford the auto gratuities will not think twice about them. Look at the comments in this thread that say the cruise is already expensive enough without the gratuities. There are people who can only afford to cruise on RCI by cutting corners when possible to include removing gratuities. Unfortunately this ends up penalizing hard working crew members who make cruising a great experience. Trust me, I can EASILY afford the auto gratuity; but there is no chance I’ll pay them. I can afford them because, in addition to other reasons, I don’t allow someone to dictate to me how I spend my money, and I am very particular about my wallet Edited November 8, 2023 by not-enough-cruising 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
time4u2go Posted November 8, 2023 #872 Share Posted November 8, 2023 (edited) 6 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said: People who can easily afford the auto gratuities will not think twice about them. I can't speak for others, but this is most definitely not true for me. I can easily afford the auto gratuities and I definitely think twice about them, especially since they've cut service and raised the gratuities. Edited November 8, 2023 by time4u2go 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swoopy2110 Posted November 8, 2023 #873 Share Posted November 8, 2023 3 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said: It has everything to do with what someone can afford. People who can easily afford the auto gratuities will not think twice about them. Look at the comments in this thread that say the cruise is already expensive enough without the gratuities. There are people who can only afford to cruise on RCI by cutting corners when possible to include removing gratuities. Unfortunately this ends up penalizing hard working crew members who make cruising a great experience. It doesn't. They get paid a guaranteed wage by RCI regardless. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhillyFan33579 Posted November 8, 2023 #874 Share Posted November 8, 2023 36 minutes ago, iscruisingdunzo said: Literally, what this comes down to Is education. First, people need to be educated on the definition of optional. Next, we, the educated consumers, need to educate all the others on the ship on gratuities. The mandatory, automatic charges (https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-service-gratuity-expense) placed by Royal Caribbean can be removed if the consumer demands so once on the ship, but not until you are on the ship. Please educate your fellow cruisers on both moving forward 🙂 optional [ op-shuh-nl ]SHOW IPA See synonyms for: optionaloptionally on Thesaurus.com adjective left to one's choice; not required or mandatory: Formal dress is optional. I don’t think anyone doesn’t understand that gratuities are optional. That is a fact. What is also a fact is removing gratuities penalizes crew members. I don’t think anyone disputes the fact that the current system allows passengers to remove gratuities without penalty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare iscruisingdunzo Posted November 8, 2023 #875 Share Posted November 8, 2023 11 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said: It has everything to do with what someone can afford. People who can easily afford the auto gratuities will not think twice about them. Look at the comments in this thread that say the cruise is already expensive enough without the gratuities. There are people who can only afford to cruise on RCI by cutting corners when possible to include removing gratuities. Unfortunately this ends up penalizing hard working crew members who make cruising a great experience. LOL. More like those that can easily afford them and have an OZ of common business sense understand that gratuities are tips, and tips are rendered AFTER A SERVICE IS PERFORMED! 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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