How much extra to tip for really excellent service, at end of Princess cruise?

[FLAlaska]

8 hours ago, memoak said:

You obviously have never been a person who lived on tips especially in states where minimum wage is under $10 per hour. You really have no business talking about how someone tips. That is a private affair

To be fair, while I get your point, it was posted on an internet messageboard , inviting responses. Not so private...

 

But IMO, you are being super generous but we all make our own determinations. Follow what feels right

[Crown Cruiser]

@Mara4166 - thank you for mentioning the Suite breakfast.  I'm never sure if we should tip individually or give the head waiter an envelope for all.  

[Mara4166]

16 minutes ago, Crown Cruiser said:

@Mara4166 - thank you for mentioning the Suite breakfast.  I'm never sure if we should tip individually or give the head waiter an envelope for all.  

 

We have had so many different servers it was hard to keep track and we did not want to miss anyone.  We opted to give the head waiter an envelope on the last morning and ask him to split.  He appeared very comfortable with this approach.  If we had had the same person every day we might have tipped individually

[Cruise Raider]

We’ve seen that at the bars, we tend to always have one or two favorite bartenders that we’ve gotten to know.  We’ve noticed that tips always go into a communal tip jar.  They really work so well as a team.  
 

[ldubs]

14 hours ago, memoak said:

Again there is no right or wrong when it comes to tipping. As long as you pay the CA the extra is up to you. Every experience is different   How do you account for having bar space saved so you always have a place to sit, towel animals nightly, breakfast waiters who have your pot of tea ready when you walk etc. ?

 

Out of pure curiosity, do you request they hold your bar seats and do you show up at the bar the same time every day so they know you are coming?  I think it would be difficult for them to hold open empty bar seats for very long.  

[memoak]

18 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

Out of pure curiosity, do you request they hold your bar seats and do you show up at the bar the same time every day so they know you are coming?  I think it would be difficult for them to hold open empty bar seats for very long.  

Our pattern is to show up for pre dinner cocktails between 6:30 and 7:00. No we would never request that but when our usual bartender saw us looking for seats and then walking away the next day there were 2 empty glasses set up for us. That generates extra tips in my mind

[greenie082756]

Ahh the tipping discussion, again.

 

As someone who in her younger years worked in many positions in a restaurant, the one that was most challenging to me was as a waitress. The tips help subsidize the very minimal wage I was getting.

 

Adding extra tips:

With that being said, we usually only tip our room steward as they seem to do the most for us. Depending on the requests being filled we tip average of $5 a day up to $10 at the end of the cruise.

 

Room service in the morning always gets a $3 - 5 gratuity because well they are bringing us much needed coffee and such. 

 

Even though now gratuity is added to the specialty dining we will tip a bit more if our dinner was totally enjoyable and the service was exceptional as well.

 

Sometimes if someone has done exceptional service then they will also be acknowledged with a thankyou and small tip. 

 

But most importantly we fill out the card for acknowledgment of great service. I know that if they get enough "votes" that they get special treats such as having a day off in port. 

 

 

Edited Wednesday at 04:26 PM by greenie082756
misspelled word

[Esprit]

Seems odd to me that you feel the need to ask!

You would never ask fellow guests in other establishments so why on a ship?

Just tip what you feel is right.

[Boku]

13 hours ago, memoak said:

You obviously have never been a person who lived on tips especially in states where minimum wage is under $10 per hour. You really have no business talking about how someone tips. That is a private affair

You're talking about how someone tips so why can't he/she? 

[Boku]

5 hours ago, nbsjcruiser said:

Very generous. For us we obviously pay the gratuities up front  but if we feel the service has been quite good, we typically will tip an extra $20 to that person.

I wouldnt tip for "quite good service" as I expect good service, afterall I'm not paying for bad service when I part with my money for a cruise!

[rowingmachine]

18 hours ago, Jetswdo said:

On Princess, we have had unusually good service from our wait staff and our room steward--- really nice people, hard working, and great service.  Yes we have paid into the premier package, but we like to tip a bit  extra in cash at end of cruise----

Does this sound right for the two of us? :  $200 for room steward, $200 for main waiter, $100 for his assistant, $50 for manager, and $25 for the hostess?  This is a 10 night cruise which ends in a couple of days. I certainly don't want to over or under tip.  Any guidance on this would really be appreciated.  Thanks in advance,  Anita

As a % of overall expenditure it is higher than we would consider. Next 14 night cruise @ $5200 inc drinks, tips and mini suite. So if cruise exceeds expectations shall add $52 to overall pot. We take with us a stack of $1 bills for incidentals (sadly diminishing) but don't buy false smiles by tipping lavishly.  Total tipping will be $100 to $150, more if we use Euros or Sterling. 

[rowingmachine]

2 minutes ago, rowingmachine said:

As a % of overall expenditure it is higher than we would consider. Next 14 night cruise @ $5200 inc drinks, tips and mini suite. So if cruise exceeds expectations shall add $52 to overall pot. We take with us a stack of $1 bills for incidentals (sadly diminishing) but don't buy false smiles by tipping lavishly.  Total tipping will be $100 to $150, more if we use Euros or Sterling. 

PS.  I don't know what a hostess is.

[Cruise Raider]

2 hours ago, rowingmachine said:

PS.  I don't know what a hostess is.

She will be the one that seats you in the dining room for your meals.  I suppose it could be a man, but is in our experience, it’s always been a woman.

 

[memoak]

2 hours ago, rowingmachine said:

PS.  I don't know what a hostess is.

It could be a host or hostess. The person who show you to your table. We have only tipped one once and it was to keep the manager away from us and she did a great job of that 

[julia]

Can someone please post how the specialty dining gratuity works? We have a complimentary dinner with our suite, and it's been awhile since we've Princessed... thank you.

[memoak]

1 minute ago, julia said:

Can someone please post how the specialty dining gratuity works? We have a complimentary dinner with our suite, and it's been awhile since we've Princessed... thank you.

Your embarkation dinner will be complimentary if you want to tip that is on you. It is like the plus package drinks tips are included 

[Jetswdo]

Thanks for the replies---- I certainly do not have money to burn- I just want to be reasonable--  Maybe $100 for room steward then, $100 to the main waiter then $50 to each  wait staff person as we did eat outside of dining room---- will be reasonable.

[walkingsoon]

 "I just want to be reasonable". What you've described is reasonable.

 

For anyone reading this thread and scratching their head, let me suggest that simply maintaining the daily crew appreciation fees intact and not adding anything on top of that is also very reasonable. 

 

Be polite and respectful. Don't be a problem client. Express gratitude verbally. It's not that complicated.

 

Walkingsoon

Edited Wednesday at 11:52 PM by walkingsoon
...

[MacMadame]

On 9/25/2024 at 10:07 AM, Esprit said:

Seems odd to me that you feel the need to ask!

You would never ask fellow guests in other establishments so why on a ship?

It's because most of us know how tipping works in restaurants and other places and we know the norms. But we are less familiar with how it works on a cruise and what is normal.

 

And also there are way more people involved in serving us. When I get my hair cut, the only person serving me is the hairdresser. When I go out to eat, there are a handful of people serving me. On a ship? Too many to count! 😄 

I think asking how it works and what is normal is completely reasonable. I definitely appreciate these discussions. Well, until these threads go off the rails! 

[Mara4166]

On 9/25/2024 at 9:56 PM, julia said:

Can someone please post how the specialty dining gratuity works? We have a complimentary dinner with our suite, and it's been awhile since we've Princessed... thank you.

 

We probably should, but we do not tip in SD restaurants.  Generally we do not carry any cash around with us on board, everything is charged to the medallion and cash stays in the safe while we cruise.  If we did have cash, I would probably leave it on the table at the end of the meal like a land based restaurant.

[FLAlaska]

13 hours ago, MacMadame said:

13 hours ago, MacMadame said:

It's because most of us know how tipping works in restaurants and other places and we know the norms. But we are less familiar with how it works on a cruise and what is normal.

 

And also there are way more people involved in serving us. When I get my hair cut, the only person serving me is the hairdresser. When I go out to eat, there are a handful of people serving me. On a ship? Too many to count! 😄 

I think asking how it works and what is normal is completely reasonable. I definitely appreciate these discussions. Well, until these threads go off the rails! 

I think I might have to disagree a little here. The norm shoykd paying the amounts  that are either included in your package or the daily charged automatically and suggested by the cruise line . This is to cover all those people you encounter and those behind the scenes.  This thread is about extra which certainly is not the norm or a norm,  it’s purely an extra by choice. While many of us do it on our own volition, I don’t think it’s fair to suggest to anyone that it’s the norm. 
 

people should go with the suggested and then do what feels  right. I hope no one feels they are being unfair to workers or guilted into paying more by comparing themselves to others when it comes to a purely optional choice 

[chisoxfan]

1 hour ago, FLAlaska said:

I think I might have to disagree a little here. The norm shoykd paying the amounts  that are either included in your package or the daily charged automatically and suggested by the cruise line . This is to cover all those people you encounter and those behind the scenes.  This thread is about extra which certainly is not the norm or a norm,  it’s purely an extra by choice. While many of us do it on our own volition, I don’t think it’s fair to suggest to anyone that it’s the norm. 
 

people should go with the suggested and then do what feels  right. I hope no one feels they are being unfair to workers or guilted into paying more by comparing themselves to others when it comes to a purely optional choice 

Well said. We typically leave a tip for our room steward but do not feel it necessary nor should one hang their head in shame for not tipping above the required daily amount. 

Being thoughtful, respectful, making reasonable (if any) requests, keeping the room orderly (in the case of the room attendant), and mentioning great service in the all powerful survey should be adequate to make one feel like a solid passenger. 

 

[Boku]

15 hours ago, MacMadame said:

It's because most of us know how tipping works in restaurants and other places and we know the norms. But we are less familiar with how it works on a cruise and what is normal.

 

And also there are way more people involved in serving us. When I get my hair cut, the only person serving me is the hairdresser. When I go out to eat, there are a handful of people serving me. On a ship? Too many to count! 😄 

I think asking how it works and what is normal is completely reasonable. I definitely appreciate these discussions. Well, until these threads go off the rails! 

Normal on a cruise ship should be to either pay the daily gratuity or purchase a package that includes gratuities. There is no need to tip extra, even the cruise line states that there is no need to give extra tips. 

[Bgwest]

And then there are those who consider CA simply a crew salary supplement by another name and promptly remove it at the start of each cruise. 
Come on, you know who you are. 😉

Jump on in here and let us hear from you. 

[MacMadame]

10 hours ago, FLAlaska said:

I think I might have to disagree a little here.

Nowhere in my post did I say anything about what the norms are or should be. I said the discussion of tips is helpful to some of us.

 

So I'm not sure who you are disagreeing with here but it's not me...