Gratuities Are Going Up Again, Effective 11.11.2023

[not-enough-cruising]

Just now, pretzlaff said:

I hate to take them off my bill entirely, but I might go to customer service and have them reduced back down to $16. 

You can't do that.  The auto gratuity is an all or nothing proposition.

You can pre pay before Nov 11 at the existing rate

[Wanna Be Retired]

I always prepay mine but these cruises stay booked so the pain point as far as Jason Liberty is concerned has not been reached yet.

[mickeygirl78]

I'm glad I had already called and prepaid them for my November and February cruises.  A $2 increase after the increase just a year ago seems steep.  I would never remove my tips, but it will make me think twice about tipping above the standard amount.

[iscruisingdunzo]

15 minutes ago, yogimax said:

No explanation given.  I fear they are taking us for granted.

What kind of explanation do you need? The company just made profits in the billions. 

 

They think their customers are idiots...we will see if they continue to be right. 

[loman]

Arrogance in my opinion . 

Didnt they increase gratuities last year ?

They think they can get away with anything now. 

When people start talking with their feet they will get what they deserve.

[tottenhamfc]

Just now, not-enough-cruising said:

You aren't subsidizing anyone.  Gratuities are going up because enough passive passengers just suck it up and go along.  You want it to change?  Do something about it, put your foot down and refuse to participate.

Not passive. We see value in the employees contribution to your cruise. Some obviously do not value tipping at all. I believe in a  model that rewards exceptional service but also recognize that some employees do contribute behind the scenes. 

[gmerick]

31 minutes ago, gavvy said:

Even more for less. Yay 

I will be removing mine and paying those who give me good service.

Ditto

[Nolefan95]

Just now, loman said:

Arrogance in my opinion . 

Didnt they increase gratuities last year ?

They think they can get away with anything now. 

When people start talking with their feet they will get what they deserve.

What gets me is they literally cut room service in half and now they are increasing gratuities. That is absurd. If anything they should be reducing gratuities for a lower level of service provided. 

[nelblu]

This sucks.  Is this going to be an annual event.

[ace1zoe2]

1 minute ago, nelblu said:

This sucks.  Is this going to be an annual event.

Last increase was Sept 2022, before long it will be a bi-annual event.

 

[tottenhamfc]

2 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

Because (many)  people will pay it.  I bet fewer accept this than did the last increase.

I agree with you. They are raising these rates because approx 10% are pulling grats. Coincidentally the increase is 10% so there is a correlation. The days if additional tips has now disappeared I think.

[UNCFanatik]

Thats ok, I will continue to remove them 

[loman]

Greed and arrogance to the highest degree .

Thats what i think of them , and i like them .

[doghog]

Been paying a lot more for a lot less since 2020. Doesn't matter what we are purchasing! Doesn't surprise me RC up their gratuities as Celebrity did last year. 

[tottenhamfc]

3 minutes ago, Wanna Be Retired said:

I always prepay mine but these cruises stay booked so the pain point as far as Jason Liberty is concerned has not been reached yet.

The focus is on short cruises, younger demographic, alcohol Packages, families and activities not necessarily in that order. Seasoned cruisers are a drain on revenue because we have benefits. It is a typical bean counter approach. 

[UNCFanatik]

16 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

All those that opted out before will continue to do so, plus more will do it now; Royal isn't accomplishing what they think they are.

Yup, I will continue to opt out. Decrease in service shouldnt equate to raise of gratuities. And a mandatory 18% gratuity on drinks is still ridiculous. 

 

Pay employees more, charge higher fares. You would think with all the fare increases as of late due to increased demands that they could give raises to the crew members. 

 

 

[loman]

I dont think i could not prepay my tips , as i value the service the employees provide.

But i do think RC is pushing the limits now. 

Maybe they have too many diamonds now and want to pee them off so they will switch providers and allow more room for new pax.🙂

[Husky1987]

Thank you!  I had the over on gratuity increase threads today at 2.5

 

Never underestimate CC folks rushing to create threads for a few hours after multiple threads already exist on the front page.

[UNCFanatik]

Family of 4, gratuities equal $504 for 7 night cruise in addition to the inflated cruise fares now due to higher demand. We will see when demand cools...

[Another_Critic]

14 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

You aren't subsidizing anyone.  Gratuities are going up because enough passive passengers just suck it up and go along.  You want it to change?  Do something about it, put your foot down and refuse to participate.

Do you purchase specialty dining, internet, drink package, any pre-purchases or onboard purchases?  If so, you are part of the problem.  😉😄

[cruiselvr04]

This is crazy especially since they went to once a day servicing the room.

In addition, they used to waive the increase if you booked before a certain date and prepaid. No mention of that in this email.  I still have cruises booked where my invoice says $14.50 a day.  
 

[cmich068]

1 minute ago, cruiselvr04 said:

In addition, they used to waive the increase if you booked before a certain date and prepaid. No mention of that in this email.  
 

 

That's exactly what the email says - "If you’d like to pre-pay your gratuities at the current rate before your sailing, we’re happy to extend this opportunity to you"

Edited October 31, 2023 by cmich068

[ace1zoe2]

2 minutes ago, cruiselvr04 said:

This is crazy especially since they went to once a day servicing the room.

In addition, they used to waive the increase if you booked before a certain date and prepaid. No mention of that in this email.  I still have cruises booked where my invoice says $14.50 a day.  
 

If you want to pre-pay at the current rate you can do so but it has to be before 11.11.2023. After that it will be at the new rate. We have always pre-paid but with the once a day service now, this second increase in 13 months is making me consider otherwise.

Edited October 31, 2023 by ace1zoe2

[tottenhamfc]

Just now, Another_Critic said:

Do you purchase specialty dining, internet, drink package, any pre-purchases or onboard purchases?  If so, you are part of the problem.  😉😄

I dont! In fact my bill was grats only. Didnt spend a penny. All I am saying is that employees should not suffer due to some paying and others not. It is hard enough to find employees let alone losing them.

[Another_Critic]

I gotta laugh at Royal suggesting to pre-pay gratuities.  Gratuities are supposed to be for exceptional service (not a salary supplement).  How do you rate service before boarding the ship??

 

Edited October 31, 2023 by Another_Critic