NEW TIP POLICY - Automatic Charge & "Alternate Service" tip

[Drew B]

I hope that the alternate service tip goes to people like the librarian or the computer lab people. They're so nice and helpful, and I bet they don't make much.

[dkjretired]

The head housekeeper and assistant head housekeeper have never been part of the gratuities I hand out. However, fyi the cleaning staff I was referring to are the ones who clean the decks and other places. I don't tip them and quite frankly, never will.

 

tpkeller is a cruiser and while he has posted helpful information, I am not interested in what a fellow passenger has to say about tipping. The gratutities I hand out anywhere, be it land or sea, are determined by me.

 

Actually, you have paid the housekeepers tip but probably didn't know it. If you do not provide him/her with his tip then it is taken from the room stewards tip so he gets it anyway....I don't like it but that is the way it is and always has been.....

[Lynnees]

Actually, you have paid the housekeepers tip but probably didn't know it. If you do not provide him/her with his tip then it is taken from the room stewards tip so he gets it anyway....I don't like it but that is the way it is and always has been.....

 

I wasn't aware of that but it won't change my position. I don't ask the staff what they do with their money or who they share it with. It's none of my business anymore than it's anyone else's business what I do with my money.

 

I don't understand so many people who feel they need to know about the life and times of the crew. I have had crew who tried to tell me about the big family they have at home etc. etc. I do not want to know about how many people they have to support. They don't want to know how big my family is and rightly so.

 

Again, I give a gratuity to those that have given me good service. Excellent sevice will raise that amount but it's for service only.

[taschr]

But the brochure does allow for passengers to make changes at their discretion, which I intend to do. I think $1.25 for people unknown is ridiculous and is merely an attempt to boost those personnel's salaries without Celebrity incurring any costs.

[shay204]

This is just MY ramblings, but I have not seen anyone else address this. My cruise on Solstice in Februry is paid in full, I have my final documents as well as a Solstice class Brochure. On page 37 of the brochure AND on page 10 of my final documents (whiich by the way is a LEGAL and BINDING contract between Celebrity Cruise Lines and me), it lists the SUGGESTED tips for varius crew members. Therefor, I LEGALLY can not be charged more than I have agreed to pay. Now, will Celebrity sue me if I refuse to pay their new rate, or will I sue them if I am charged at the new rate? I hardly think so in either case.

 

In truth, I can see both sides of this coin. I like the idea of not having to worry about who is going to get what, on one hand. But on the other, I would really prefer to tip according to the services I've received, as others have said.

 

What I see as the real issue is when something is suggested and when something is imposed. That is the vast difference I see happening here.

 

How will I handle this once I'm onboard? I still haven't decided. Thank goodness I have several more weeks to think about it, and to wonder whether it's really worth my wasting my brain cells over.

[C 2 C]

I hope that the alternate service tip goes to people like the librarian or the computer lab people. They're so nice and helpful, and I bet they don't make much.

 

The librarian was declared "redundant" or a non essential service several years ago. The ever declining number of books in inventory on board is a result of this money saving policy. I have always found the computer people eager to help.

[TPKeller]

This is just MY ramblings, but I have not seen anyone else address this. My cruise on Solstice in Februry is paid in full, I have my final documents as well as a Solstice class Brochure. On page 37 of the brochure AND on page 10 of my final documents (whiich by the way is a LEGAL and BINDING contract between Celebrity Cruise Lines and me), it lists the SUGGESTED tips for varius crew members. Therefor, I LEGALLY can not be charged more than I have agreed to pay. Now, will Celebrity sue me if I refuse to pay their new rate, or will I sue them if I am charged at the new rate? I hardly think so in either case.

 

In truth, I can see both sides of this coin. I like the idea of not having to worry about who is going to get what, on one hand. But on the other, I would really prefer to tip according to the services I've received, as others have said.

 

What I see as the real issue is when something is suggested and when something is imposed. That is the vast difference I see happening here.

 

How will I handle this once I'm onboard? I still haven't decided. Thank goodness I have several more weeks to think about it, and to wonder whether it's really worth my wasting my brain cells over.

I believe that all previously pre-paid gratuities will remain the same. I don't think you will have an issue.

 

Theron

[spearmint]

the Cruise Tip Calculator is nothing more than a tool to help people budget, do math, and prepare tip envelopes.

 

Theron

Yes it is. And it's quite helpful.

 

I don't want to hijack the topic of the OP, but I wondered who had done this webpage. I heard of it from these boards a couple of years ago, and I use it for very cruise. I just want to take this opportunity to thank you very much for constructing it and making it available to everyone.

Bill

[Lsimon]

This is just MY ramblings, but I have not seen anyone else address this. My cruise on Solstice in Februry is paid in full, I have my final documents as well as a Solstice class Brochure. On page 37 of the brochure AND on page 10 of my final documents (which by the way is a LEGAL and BINDING contract between Celebrity Cruise Lines and me), it lists the SUGGESTED tips for various crew members. Therefor, I LEGALLY can not be charged more than I have agreed to pay. Now, will Celebrity sue me if I refuse to pay their new rate, or will I sue them if I am charged at the new rate? I hardly think so in either case....

 

... Thank goodness I have several more weeks to think about it, and to wonder whether it's really worth my wasting my brain cells over.

 

I wouldn't loose any sleep over this. Do whatever you choose. If you look at what is written in your own post the tip amounts in your documents are "suggested" not manditory. Likewise all indications are that the new tips can be adjusted up, down or eliminated if you want to tip in cash. So while they are doing more to encourage tipping through the automatic charge you can still get away from it.

 

As I indicated in my initial post I don't have an issue with either the tip amounts (we usually tip higher anyways as we've always had great service) nor the automatic charge - I like charging our tips to our on-board account. My only gripe about the new system is the $1.25 to some unknown person for unknown services. But even when it comes down to that it is only $25 for a 10 day cruise for 2 - not much to worry about especially if one can opt out of it with a small amount of effort.

 

 

TPKeller: Thaks for the tip calculator web site you've maintained over the years. We've used this tool often and do appreciate it.

[Napi's Mom]

Therefor, I LEGALLY can not be charged more than I have agreed to pay. Now, will Celebrity sue me if I refuse to pay their new rate, or will I sue them if I am charged at the new rate? I hardly think so in either case.

This is a tip they cannot LEGALLY charge you anything as far as I know ???

[lysolqn]

Six pages of thoughtful posts re the new category of "Other Service Personnel" to be tipped $1.25/ per day/per pax and as yet no one has been able to identify just who the "others" are.

[ChevyCruiser]

Since Celebrity will now level a daily service charge, can we do away with the resultant charade of passing out envelopes at the end of the cruise? It's no longer a gratuity if the cruise line is taking control and charging it to my SeaPass.

 

And, I don't want to waste my valuable cruising time chasing down the "other service personnel" person to hand him/her the envelope.

[BrendaJ]

I am quite certain this change was made for a couple of reasons. One, I do believe with the new class of ships and all the alternative dining venues, many passengers will feel they are paying for their dining gratuities with the surcharges, and don't consider the rest of the staff who serve their other meals when calculating their tips at the end of the cruise. I am also certain there are a large number of passengers who do stiff the staff, using whatever justification they can invent to do so. Let's face it, we've all had this happen: we're enjoying excellent food and service, and the person next to us is receiving the same food and service and complaining non-stop. Do you think that person would tip the recommended amount? I think we'd probably be shocked to know how many people currently under-tip or don't tip at all. We've certainly all seen empty seats in the dining room on the last night. I've always thought that tip night should be the last formal night, since fewer of the cheapskates would be willing to miss out on the dining room that night. I have truly never been on a cruise where I didn't think the staff deserved at least the recommended amount of tips. Although some people will certainly stand in line to get the gratuities removed (if that possibility still exists), some who would have stiffed the staff in the past when it was a rather anonymous process might be too embarrassed to do it now, or too lazy to stand in line and make it happen. When I think of some poor wait person who works their heart out for a two week cruise, giving their best service possible, and at the end of the cruise, four people at one of their tables does not show up in the dining room on the last night, I can just imagine the despair. I’m just happy to see a process that will reduce that possibility of that injustice a bit.

 

As for the mystery staff involved in the new charge, it seems the head housekeeper is no longer mentioned and I'm sure this is one place the "Alternative Service" amount is going. Judging from these boards, many people currently feel justified in not tipping the head housekeeper or dining room management if they don't feel they had personalized service from that person. However, you can bet that Celebrity's calculation of that person's wage is based on them getting the recommended tips from everyone. I have to admit, on our first couple of cruises, we did not tip the head housekeeper if we never saw them, but later, we realized that just because we personally did not see this person did not mean our excellent cabin service was not in part due to the work of this person. I really don't have a problem with the "Alternative Service" amount. With any luck, this amount goes to people like the staff at the spa cafe, or grill, or the people making omelettes or waffles.

 

I am also one who worried that Azamara's automatic tipping added to the account might affect the level of service we received, but I worried for nothing. Since the service was so stellar, we really wanted to recognize so many more people than usual. Luckily, you can always get extra envelopes from Guest Relations. I think in the case of Celebrity, staff is motivated to work hard for more than just tips. They can be rewarded with extra time off and promotion. Celebrity takes the comment cards very seriously. Staff who slack off due to knowing they will get their tips regardless will likely not last long and suffer unpleasant consequences.

 

In these troubled economic times, Celebrity would be cutting their throats by adding the tips to the cruise fare and making their rates look higher than the competition's. I think Celebrity is also trying to protect their staff from passengers who choose not to tip for whatever reason, especially now that ships may not be sailing full. The new builds may attract a lot of new cruisers who don't understand the traditional tipping etiquette and may under-tip or not tip at all due to ignorance more than any deliberate desire to stiff the staff. The luxury lines include tipping in their fares and I would be curious to know how staff wages compare on luxury lines compared to mainstream. I do know that the per diem rate on the luxury lines is certainly higher than we're willing to pay at this point. I think the service and food on Celebrity is great, and my biggest bar bill, speciality restaurant and gratuity costs on Celebrity could never come close to the price of a luxury line, so paying for those things separately on Celebrity is still much better value than a luxury line could provide for me.

 

I am actually glad that the tips are being added to the account. For those who worry that the cruise line takes a percentage of the tips that are charged to the account, I don’t think that happens. We have asked our cabin staff in the past whether they would prefer cash or having it charged to our account, and several times the staff member requested it be charged to the account (one said that that way, he could get large bills which were easier to send home).

 

In any case, in the grand scheme of things, a few extra dollars a day on a cruise is not going to change my life, but it may change the life of a hard working staff member quite a bit. If we go out for a nice dinner at home, the tip for that one meal is often more than an entire’s day’s worth of gratuities for two people on a cruise, and I don’t think anything beats the service on a cruise. For us, it’s worth it.

[Susan-M]

Since Celebrity will now level a daily service charge, can we do away with the resultant charade of passing out envelopes at the end of the cruise?

 

I don't think that they will provide envelopes unless you ask for them as we did not receive them on our Azamara cruise. I liked the convenience of auto tipping.

 

Brenda ... really enjoyed your post and agree with it all!:)

[Grandma Rambo]

We have no problem with the extra $1.25 and certainly no problem with the auto tip added to the bill at the end. Here's the thing. We don't eat in the dining room at all. We use the "casual" dining every night because it's earlier and faster. With diabetes and other health problems I can't eat that late, even the early seating takes forever. We tip those waiters well above the automatic charge of $2/person/day. We sit in the same section and have the same waiter, etc., so they get well taken care of. We don't feel we should tip main dining room staff if we aren't there. We tell them the first day that we won't be there so they can give our table to someone else, so it isn't a case of empty seats. We have always given everyone more than the "suggested amount" and fully understand the role of the head housekeeper making sure the rooms are at their best. I guess we would opt out of the automatic tipping and just make up our envelopes as we did in past years. We just don't want to "stiff" anyone, nor do we want to pay for services not rendered.

[jasm8449]

Brenda J has really covered almost all my thoughts on this matter, so I won't repeat them. I had originated a post a couple of months ago wondering if MDR staff would see a big drop in tips because of all the alternative restaurants...and it's possible that Celebrity's new policy is reflecting that this is the case.

 

However, I do have to admit that tipping over $30 for our B2B to the Asst. Maitre d' is the difficult one for us, because except on rare occasions, they have barely acknowledged our existence.

[kelmac]

Tips have been about the same level for the past several years -- it was time to bump them up!

Tips are essentually the entire pay for these service people and it provides them with a pretty good, tax free, income! I've noticed an increased number of people who skip the last evening in the main dining room. Not sure they are stiffing the workers, but perhaps it is becoming a problem?? I asked a waiter recently about a table next to ours that didn't show the last evening, and his response was "I hope the next cruise will be better".

I've cruised with other lines that have "automatic" tips added to the sea pass account and it works fine. We have always tipped above the recommended amounts for great service, which is about 90% of the time on Celebrity ships. On Holland America, for example, we usually bring envelopes along and add additional tips for our waiter, asst' waiter and cabin person if we feel their service was above and beyond, which of course is about 90% of the time.

In the cruising world, "tips" are really passengers paying contract workers their salary. It's not the norm in the US, or Europe, or most countries -- it's a different system, but it works very well.

Even if the cruise has to be discounted to $599 per passenger to fill the ship, the contract workers will make their money!

 

Enjoy!:)

Kel

[cruise47]

The people who load and off load the luggage are not employed by Celebrity, but are unionized dock workers. They don't get to share in ship crew tips.

 

Is the writer addressing the cruise staff who bring your luggage to your stateroom upon arriving on the ship and the cruise staff that take your luggage from outside side of your stateroom to the loading area when you depart the ship. The staff that bring your luggage to your stateroom and take it to staging area are employed by the cruise line.

 

On the new tipping policy subject, I feel that the MDR serving staff are losing tips to the new speciality restaurants.

[CathyCruises]

I recently was telling someone who had cruised before about our upcoming cruise, and mentioned that I had gotten "prepaid gratuities". He asked what that was--when I explained, he looked completely abashed. "You're supposed to TIP????? I never knew that!!!" I thought he was pulling my leg, but he was completely serious. Just goes to show ya'! Those people DO exist out there!

 

Cathy

[Lsimon]

....However, I do have to admit that tipping over $30 for our B2B to the Asst. Maitre d' is the difficult one for us, because except on rare occasions, they have barely acknowledged our existence.

 

Response from the Asst. Maitre D' has been the biggest variable for us in service from tipped employees. We've had Asst. Maitre D's ranging from fantastic people who made our experience special to those that we never saw and we've tipped accordingly from lots extra to nothing. Twice we've left nothing but a note of explanation why we were not tipping them only to find they didn't even come by to give them the envelope with the note (which we then left with the waiter for them).

 

As for other staff:

We've never ever seen or had any contact with the Asst. Chief Housekeeper on any of our cruises. At one point we didn't tip this position but since we've heard that the cabin steward pays them regardless we've either left extra for the steward or done the charge tips which have included this person.

 

As for waiters and cabin steward - we've always had great service that earned them something over and beyond the suggested tip amounts.

[firefly333]

Tips have been about the same level for the past several years -- it was time to bump them up!

Enjoy!:)

Kel

 

Can someone tell me what the tips used to be before this new policy? Just curious how much the tips went up... We are in a CC balcony which I see is $12, if that makes any difference.

[junglejane]

I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, we are used to auto-tipping with Princess and so in a way this seems like no big deal. On the other hand, we do feel that we have received better service on Celebrity. Service on Princess has been satisfactory but we've been more impressed by the service on our two Celebrity cruises. For one thing, it was a new experience for us when our dining room waiters sought us out in the buffet to help us with trays and check to see if we needed anything.

 

I agree with many of the comments made by others. (1) The new larger ships mean that Celebrity is attracting new cruisers who aren't familiar with traditional tipping etiquette, (2) the increased number of alternative dining venues mean people may short change the MDR personnel, and (3) we probably underestimate how many people cheap out on the tips.

 

I also have no problem with "tipping" the people behind the scenes. Maybe it's really a service charge but it's disclosed up front and so I count it as part of the cost of my cruise.

 

--Junglejane

[Sky Sweet]

It appears that one of the main objections to auto tipping is that there are a lot of passengers who rarely use the main dining room.

 

With that said, it is hard for me to understand why so many Celebrity Cruisers think that the cruise line would be ruined if it added the anytime dining option that Royal Caribbean introduced last year.

 

As someone who tried that option during our cruise on RCCL's Brilliance of the Seas in June, I think it is one of the best cruise innovations I have experienced in recent years and it offers the best of both worlds.

[jagoffee]

We have no problem with the extra $1.25 and certainly no problem with the auto tip added to the bill at the end. Here's the thing. We don't eat in the dining room at all. We use the "casual" dining every night because it's earlier and faster. With diabetes and other health problems I can't eat that late, even the early seating takes forever. We tip those waiters well above the automatic charge of $2/person/day. We sit in the same section and have the same waiter, etc., so they get well taken care of. We don't feel we should tip main dining room staff if we aren't there. We tell them the first day that we won't be there so they can give our table to someone else, so it isn't a case of empty seats. We have always given everyone more than the "suggested amount" and fully understand the role of the head housekeeper making sure the rooms are at their best. I guess we would opt out of the automatic tipping and just make up our envelopes as we did in past years. We just don't want to "stiff" anyone, nor do we want to pay for services not rendered.

 

Grandma Rainbow,

 

I am glad that you are enjoying your cruises and that you have found a way to adjust to your needs. You are free to do as you wish, but it does impact the staff.

 

This is a good example of the affect of individual choices on the staff. Although a particular table might have someone added, another table would have someone removed, so somewhere a staff person does not receive a tip for two people. It has always been my understanding that the tips are not only for the dinner service because the same staff work in the dining room and buffet area for breakfast and lunch. Therefore the tips is also for breakfast and lunch. A real bargain. The affected server cannot just reduce his schedule or work less because you are eating in the casual venue or speciality rest. They just work a little less at dinner because they are serving two less people and the same the rest of the day. It is hard to not feel sorry for the servers affected.

 

If the cruise company reduces the staff on the ship to compensate for the preceived reduction in service needed on any given night (so that every staff member is assured of full tables), then overall service would surely suffer especially if more people show up.

 

Just wanted to make sure you understood the impact of your choice. Of course, you have a the right to make the choice. I am sure that your example is a trend across the board requiring cruise line to seek ways to offset the impact.

[signman]

My TA had a special offer where they prepay the gratuities for my April cruise. How will something like that be handled...will I receive a credit to offset this daily charge?

 

I am sailing next month and had my gratuities prepaid by my TA. When my documents arrived, there was a summary of charges and one line with the description of Micellaneous Charges was in the exact amount of the prepaid gratuities. This apparently had been paid by my TA. In addition, right under that it was stated that gratuities were prepaid for signman and guest.

 

I will be checking my statement once onboard, and expect to receive a set of vouchers and envelopes to distrubute at the end of the cruise. If there is a problem, I will have my documents with me to show to Guest Relations.