Gratuities Are Going Up Again, Effective 11.11.2023

[not-enough-cruising]

2 hours ago, firefly333 said:

So you get FREE drink vouchers and claim somehow magically they get 18% tip on a free drink. .. so you tip only at the very end for the diamond drink service. Lol. 

 

And yes I know people who tip in cash every meal in Mdr. It takes me very little to add a few $1 bills in my purse to tip for a drink .. or I dont drink. I don't stiff them.  Still dont understand how you think free vouchers give tips to the server if you dont tip? Post of the day! 

It states at the bottom of your Diamond drink receipt that gratuity is included. 

[exm]

I am really getting to a point where I need to permanently switch to MSC. Sure, might not be “as nice” but it’s 50% cheaper.

[bretts173]

I tip $1 per drink, I am in Australia, we have no choice.

[Tree_skier]

My 7 night cruise just went up $28 dollars. I typically tip extra at the end of the cruise.  Tips go to waiter, A. waiter and cabin steward.  I see each one of these getting $10 less than usual.  

[Ocean Boy]

4 hours ago, tottenhamfc said:

And you are arguing with me and I agree with you however I also know that if you remove grats they will raise fares. So is it all about optics?

They are raising fares as well as gratuities... just in case you haven't noticed.

[Ocean Boy]

3 hours ago, bretts173 said:

Rubbish, the cost of the service is still going up no matter how good it is. Gas is 100% more expensive than it was not that long ago. Still the same gas, no better.

The price of gas may go up but they didn't cut the octane buy 50% like they did with my cabin service.

[Jetdriver787]

Sorry, but this is the final straw!!

Tomorrow I am making an appointment to rewrite my will.

 

So far I have paid the “gratuities” in much the same way as I pay my tax! On top of that, we have hours of fun on the last 3 days of every cruise arguing about how much we should also seal into the conveniently left white envelope on the bed. They used to leave a multitude of individually titled envelopes, but these days a sort of housekeeping power gradient seems to have crept in, and the subtle suggestion is that your spontaneous largesse should be confined to the envelope messenger only! The others can dance in procession around your dining table or whatever it is they do, to guilt you into making financial amends for that piece of gristle you thought you had surreptitiously deposited in your napkin without anyone noticing! 
 

So in recognition of neatly folding in the corners of my bedsheets and emptying my waste bin of the detritus I have carefully deposited within it. In further recognition of swirling my napkin (oops! Poor fellow! That was gristle night,) in some sort of North Korean mass audience appreciation of my waiters dancing around the room to make my vacation the best it’s ever been. I am going to have my will rewritten to leave them all of my worldly goods and 4 outrageously heavy crystal blocks!

 

I was going to leave all of this to my kids, but God knows they have never made any of my vacations unforgettable. At least not in a good way! They have never made up my bed. For crying out loud they have never made up their own beds! Emptying a bin would only have been in pursuit of a plate or cutlery when there was none left in the kitchen drawer or dishwasher!

 

 So, that’s it! The days of nickel & diming the staff are over! No longer will they have to subtly stick the hose of their Henry (sounds rather euphemistic?) into my pocket in order to extract every last dollar. I am going to leave them everything!

 

To my kids……Make space for a crystal block! 🤷‍♂️

 

[joeyancho]

5 hours ago, njkruzer said:

Yes and we did that on our 2 recent cruises where the gratuities went up.  Just not sure why another increase so close to the last one.

To service their massive debt.  The billion dollar profit was not enough.  

[bgoff60]

How does one "officially" remove the prepaid gratuity from their tab so that we can pay in cash later to those we feel have earned it?  Is there a timing issue once we board?

[Jetdriver787]

I’m surprised they haven’t added an 18% to the gratuity charge yet? 🤷‍♂️

[tottenhamfc]

31 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

They are raising fares as well as gratuities... just in case you haven't noticed.

I have noticed. I was talking as a general strategy. 

[Mapleleafforever]

4 hours ago, tottenhamfc said:

And you are arguing with me and I agree with you however I also know that if you remove grats they will raise fares. So is it all about optics?

I would much rather they raise fares and do away with gratuities altogether. 

[jenncren]

Yes, I might be one to finally remove the auto gratuity as well. In the past I’ve thought it was petty to remove them but enough is enough. I eat in specialty restaurants only and am already charged gratuity for it. I have a deluxe drink package and am already charged gratuity. I tip extra for their services. I tip cash to the room stew on top of whatever percentage they were getting on automatically and now they service my room 50% less. I don’t eat breakfast so no one in WJ or the main dining room ever touches me. I don’t believe this adds to the staff’s pay at all, at this point I think it all goes to corporate and cash is the only tips staff receive.

[tottenhamfc]

Just now, Mapleleafforever said:

I would much rather they raise fares and do away with gratuities altogether. 

They may do this if people rebel against grats. It is a useless model.

[Mapleleafforever]

3 hours ago, UNCFanatik said:

 

Yes, raise cruise fares. Drop gratuities totally. I am all for cruise lines to pay fair wages to the crew members. But stop asking consumers to supplement employee wages in the form of gratuities. 

 

Raise the fares and let the market sort it out. 

Absolutely agree!!

[ARandomTraveler]

Didn't they JUST do this a couple months ago?

[joeyancho]

47 minutes ago, exm said:

I am really getting to a point where I need to permanently switch to MSC. Sure, might not be “as nice” but it’s 50% cheaper.

MSC is run differently than other cruise lines.   It is privately owned.  MSC is a massive commercial shipping company with over 760 ships worldwide.   Those ships did not stop sailing during the pandemic. They had an income stream.  They were positioned much better to deal with the shut down of cruising.   Being privately owned means they are not obligated to stock holders. There is no pressure to pay dividends.  They don't answer to anyone.  They mainly operate in the European market.  Only recently have they ventured in to the US market.  So their product is a bit different than Americans are used.  I would not say they are not "as nice".  I would say they are different.  They have 5 different drink packages.  Much more reasonable than Royal. Their drinks are cheaper than Royal if you are paying out of pocket.   There are not as many places to get free food,  but the buffet stays open from 6 am to late at night.  Their pizza is crazy good.  Rooms are serviced twice per day.   I have taken one MSC cruise and was impressed.  I am booked to go again in December.   This time in the Yacht Club experience,  the most elevated experience of any of the major cruise lines.  Even though I am diamond + on Royal,  I am not Royal loyal.  I am always ready to venture beyond my comfort zone.  I am not upset if everything is not the same as what I am used to.  So if you are fed up with rising costs and fees, why not try something different?   After all you will still be on a cruise.  Bon Voyage. 

[pilot]

At least you are going to get twice a day cabin service!

 

Opps my bad. No you’re not. 

[Mapleleafforever]

All gratuity increase threads matter. 

[Mikew0805]

6 minutes ago, ARandomTraveler said:

Didn't they JUST do this a couple months ago?

I think it was closer to a year ago. I wanted to say January, but I think that is wrong... it may have been October of last year. 

[exm]

7 minutes ago, joeyancho said:

MSC is run differently than other cruise lines.   It is privately owned.  MSC is a massive commercial shipping company with over 760 ships worldwide.   Those ships did not stop sailing during the pandemic. They had an income stream.  They were positioned much better to deal with the shut down of cruising.   Being privately owned means they are not obligated to stock holders. There is no pressure to pay dividends.  They don't answer to anyone.  They mainly operate in the European market.  Only recently have they ventured in to the US market.  So their product is a bit different than Americans are used.  I would not say they are not "as nice".  I would say they are different.  They have 5 different drink packages.  Much more reasonable than Royal. Their drinks are cheaper than Royal if you are paying out of pocket.   There are not as many places to get free food,  but the buffet stays open from 6 am to late at night.  Their pizza is crazy good.  Rooms are serviced twice per day.   I have taken one MSC cruise and was impressed.  I am booked to go again in December.   This time in the Yacht Club experience,  the most elevated experience of any of the major cruise lines.  Even though I am diamond + on Royal,  I am not Royal loyal.  I am always ready to venture beyond my comfort zone.  I am not upset if everything is not the same as what I am used to.  So if you are fed up with rising costs and fees, why not try something different?   After all you will still be on a cruise.  Bon Voyage. 

 

Absolutely agree. Did MSC (Seaside) once. Great experience. Next year going on RC Wonder (first time Oasis class, and I'm Diamond with young kids!) and MSC Meraviglia also: I'm sure the Wonder is much nicer, everything is "better" but for a family of 5 I am looking at 5k MSC vs 12k Wonder (including drink packages and internet). At that point I rather cruise twice on MSC over once on Royal.

Edited November 1, 2023 by exm

[Mikew0805]

8 minutes ago, ARandomTraveler said:

Didn't they JUST do this a couple months ago?

Ok just looked at an onboard statement from Indy Oct 28 last year.. it was the $16 rate so it must have been at least a year ago. 

[ARandomTraveler]

Just now, Mikew0805 said:

I think it was closer to a year ago. I wanted to say January, but I think that is wrong... it may have been October of last year. 

Maybe so 🤔. Time flies for me. I know that it was at least between my cruise last November and my cruise this July. Or maybe it happened before my November cruise. Wait, how old am I again? 😂

[ARandomTraveler]

1 minute ago, Mikew0805 said:

Ok just looked at an onboard statement from Indy Oct 28 last year.. it was the $16 rate so it must have been at least a year ago. 

Ok that makes sense. I knew it happened around one of my last 2 cruises so I guess it was right before my November cruise last year. Feels like that just happened. 

[Jetdriver787]

Perhaps the gratuities could be raised by $4 for Diamonds, $5 for Diamond plus and $6 for Pinnacles! Obviously $7 for the top 30 pinnacles on board? On top of this I would offer a “Premium Teenager package” whereby your gratuities are halved provided the staff can scowl at you. Housekeeping can promise to make up your bed and clean up your room, even though it won’t be touched for at least 4 days! Waitstaff will simply scatter 12 pizza boxes around your cabin and eat everything in the ships refrigerators leaving an easier choice for ultimate menu selection!