Tipping and Service levels

[Crystalcat]

In my opinion, every service industry has: a) people who love their jobs and it shows to their clients/passengers, b) people who are there because it's a job, and c) people in between a and b.

 

My family recently cruised on AOS (March 5 to 12) and met staff members in each category. Our head waiter Cynthia was wonderful. Our cabin attendant was less than stellar. He took care of our requests, but twice during the week after making up our room, we were left short pool towels. (When the RCI policy is to charge $20 per missing towel, I was a little freaked that our cabin attendant would remove 4 used towels and leave only 2 clean ones.) On our last day, he removed all of the pools towels, and we had to go get guest services to page him to get towels so we could still use the hot tub on the last night.

 

Early on in the week, the staff doesn't know who will leave cash envelopes, or charge tips to their seapass cards at the end of the week, or who will follow the recommended tipping guidelines and who will give more. I've heard that some people give a tip early in the week - mostly but not all, with good results.

 

What have other's experiences been?

 

Cathy

 

We still had an excellent vacation - this problem with the towels in our room was actually less annoying than looking at 100 lounge chairs on deck with towels but no people in sight

[bobbie0253]

Cathy,

 

Do you have a picture of Cynthia? I am hoping she is the same Cynthia we had on the Jewel. She was our assistant and better than the waiter. I am hoping she got promoted.

 

I would have been mad to not have towels the last night too.

 

In all our cruises we have NEVER had a room steward remember to leave clean pool towels 100% of the time. We are used to the steward forgetting at least once.

 

We have never been charged for a towel.

 

We usually ask for a couple extra on the pool deck and the deck patrol always give them to us. Sometimes they take your room number, sometimes they don't.

 

About the towels saving chairs for the other towels. Maybe the towel return monster is hungry and needs to be fed :) :) I have fed him before. He apperciated being tipped in towels instead of cash.

 

We have been lucky to have pretty good service every time we sail. I guess that's why we continue to sail this line so often :)

 

Next time stock up on towels from the pool deck and put them under the bed. You won't have to chase the room steward down in the middle of the night if he forgets. I know....it is his job, but hey they are human. Hopefully that was the only things not up to par with your room. If he forgot things all the time, then I would reduce his tip. Luckily we have only had to do that once.

 

Happy sailing,

Bobbie

[MrsPete]

Early on in the week, the staff doesn't know who will leave cash envelopes, or charge tips to their seapass cards at the end of the week, or who will follow the recommended tipping guidelines and who will give more.

I bet they can predict pretty well who's going to tip well and who isn't. I know that when I was in college and was waiting tables, I knew with maybe 80% accuracy which table'd leave good tips and which ones would leave a handful of change.

[zotzer]

I bet they can predict pretty well who's going to tip well and who isn't.

 

Mrs. Pete,

I am glad you said that, as I agree with you. The staff may not even consciously realize it, but I bet they can tell rather quickly what *type* of person they are dealing with.

 

This meshes with the fact that some people always seem to get fabulous service wherever they go, and some people seem to have to beg to get just average treatment.

 

There is SOOOO much communication that goes on between humans, and 90% of it occurs subconsciously.

Tracy

[AlDubya]

I bet they can predict pretty well who's going to tip well and who isn't. I know that when I was in college and was waiting tables, I knew with maybe 80% accuracy which table'd leave good tips and which ones would leave a handful of change.

 

That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. I worked in the service industry as well and I can tell you there are no 'tell tale' signs that are 100% accurate (even to 80% accuracy) as to who will tip well and who won't.

 

What really happens is that you believe you 'know' who will tip well, you then provide service to them that is on par with that ill conceived assumption and they then tip you based upon your poor service. At that point, you feel vindicated that you were 'right'.. when, in reality, you were wrong and they just tipped bad because you made a poor assumption.

 

I've had this happen to me PLENTY of times... especially when I was younger. Most waiters/waitresses will assume that the younger the patron the worse the tip will be. Of course, I always look to leave at least 20% (sometimes more for exceedingly good service). Yet, the people waiting on me make the same ridiculous assumptions you have just espoused and end up getting tipped poorly.

 

The difference is... I leave a note telling them that I didn't forget the tip and that if they had shown even a minimal amount of effort they would have received at least 20%.

 

Waiters and waitresses who think they can spot who will tip well get the poor tips they deserve.

[Travelgrrl]

As a former bartender/cocktail waitress, I can assure you that when I waited on women alone or groups of women, I would not get a tip. Virtually never. When I waited on groups of men, or individual men, I did. (Both at a college bar and at an upscale country club.)

 

So for those that think that service people cannot generally predict who will tip well (based on demographics like the above) - I am guessing you didn't get your assumptions in the School of Hard Knocks.

 

I was always sunny, cheerful, and upbeat to all, tips or no tips, so it wasn't a self fulfilling prophecy. Some groups of people, due to age, sex, maturity, worldliness, etc, tip more and others less.

 

As a woman who often travels with kids or other women, I know that the preconceived notion that single women don't tip well is probably out there, so I tip early and often. And as a former service person, I try to do my part to challenge the notion that many women don't tip, by doing the opposite!

[AlDubya]

I was always sunny, cheerful, and upbeat to all, tips or no tips, so it wasn't a self fulfilling prophecy.

 

Sorry, while you may 'think' you waited on those people the same as you did the others, the likelihood is that, in fact, you did not.

 

I cannot, for one second, believe that you would wait on someone with the same vigor and enthusiasm when, in your mind, you're constantly saying, "I'm not getting tipped by them."

 

I highly doubt it. You may have tried to wait on them, but your assumptions about their tip, before they even left one, probably showed it self in ways you weren't concious of.

 

It's ridiculous to believe you can size up a tipper when they walk in or before they actually leave a tip.

 

Been there, done that, in regards to the service industry. There is no standard by which you can determine a good tipper from a bad tipper, other than what is left at the end.

[zotzer]

Sorry, while you may 'think' you waited on those people the same as you did the others, the likelihood is that, in fact, you did not.

 

Al,

We agree, in a way. It's hard to project in a realistic way something that you are not. This is why some actors are *great* while others may just look good. :)

 

When we think differently we *are* different, even if we try to fake it. (oh, and Travelgrl, I don't mean to imply for one second that you weren't a happy and outgoing server :p)

 

This is why I think that intuitive people probably *can* know with a fair degree of accuracy that some may tip while others may not...even if they don't do it consciously and knowingly.

 

I am not talking stereotypes (ie: certain demographics might be regarded as poor tippers), but meeting an individual person and receiving signals that indicate a generous appreciative spirit, versus the opposite.

 

Some people call this "intuition" or "instinct". It can be amazingly accurate. Anyone who doubts this should read a great book by Gavin DeBecker called "The Gift of Fear".

 

Sorry, didn't mean to get all philosophical. I love to give tips...in more ways than one! LOL

Tracy