Tip for not eating in the dining room?

[Honey's Gal]

I am curious as to why you would not be eating in the dining room even one night. You know that already? Do you just not like the food, are you afraid of tablemates you may not know? As I said, just curious????????

[banderboo]

HoneyGal..

In my case, my parents feel uncomfortable in the dining room and asked if we minded eating in the windjammer. Being the good daughter that I am:D I honor their wishes. When DH and I cruise alone we eat in the dining room.

[curly4dana]

oh how silly! i have never seen people attacking each other over such silly stuff in my life!!!

i'll stick with jeff and cindy and i could care less if you don't like my grammar, or if i spell a word incorrectly!!!

if i do not eat in the dining room for an entire cruise, i would not tip IN the dining room! i would tip where ever i chose to eat. and yes!, if i don't go to the spa or the champagne bar, i would not tip there either!!!

i'd love to know where you read that the waiters in the dining rooms on cruise ships work for tips!!! that is totally absurd and i'm certain if you called your favorite cruise line they'd tell you the wiaters are paid by the month. i will also tell you that i was on a ship that had the worst wait staff i have ever experienced in my life and i REFUSED to tip them! i spent a week, and a ton of money, pratically begging to be served! heck! i couldn't even get a freakin' menu!!!!!!!!! sorry...no tip for service as abominable as that!

ask your t/a what he/she thinks about tipping...you'll get a honest answer without being attacked!!!

[Ericknow32]

I can make my own bed. Why should I tip my room steward?

Thats how pathetic you all sound.

Tip the dinning staff its not their fault your cheap or lazy.

[DrTeddy]

If you can't afford to tip or worry about the tip amount, you shouldn't go on a cruise.

 

At the end of cruise, I bet your bar tap will be much higher than your tip amount.

[dumper]

Looks like we will probably get breakfast from room service, and eat dinner at alternative restaurants.

 

For those so concerned with the servers, I assume $20.00 is enough each day for breakfast, and $40.00 or so each night for dinner??????????????

 

It's funny how asking such a simple question makes people think you are cheap or looking to stiff a server, which never entered my mind. None of you no me, my financial status, or anything else, yet your first thought was that I was cheap.

 

Some of you need to get a life!

 

Again, thanks to those with reasonable opinions, not attacks.

[curly4dana]

dumper...sunny skies and smooth seas!!! and forget about those annoying attackers!! what gives them the right to attack like that, i have no idea! whatever...they should probably get a life...LOL

 

whatever you do, have a great time!!!!!

[stbmom]

I think you should tip where you eat personally. I also think you should tip according to your level of service. Great service, great tip; lesser service, lesser tip.

I don't drink alcohol, but I see in my cruise documents (going on Dec. 12th) that the tip is already included for drinks - are you then suppose to tip them again?

I don't think you can tell someone they shouldn't go on a cruise if they can't afford to do what you expect them to do. People can do whatever they want with their money. If I work hard everyday, I can spend my money like I please. Most crusies, I have had excellent service in the dining room. One cruise, my waitstaff was horrible, downright rude!!! Guess what, no extra special tip. Actually, not even the recommended. Why? Because I work hard and no one has the right to treat me with disrespect. Asked to move to another table so maybe another waitstaff person could get a great tip - no such luck. So, I tipped accordingly.

However, since this was an innocent question by a poster - I would say do what you feel is right. If you do not want to tip someone that never served you, then don't. However, you should tip people that do serve you. And, they better they serve you the better the tip.

[Harlow2]

Here is my 2 cents worth on this subject since I recently experienced this exact situation. DH & I recently sailed on the Mariner a couple of weeks ago. We did not eat in the dining room one time during our cruise. We asked for a table for two and since they are very few tables for two on the Mariner, we decided to "give" it to another couple that would use the dining room more that us instead of taking it and only using it a couple of nights. We made RC aware of our dining intentions and they gave us a table assignment anyway. Ok, you may ask why we do not eat in the dining room.....well, we cruise on our anniversary each year, so it is more of a "romantic" time for us as opposed to a "social" situation. We also enjoy fine dining and prefer it over "banquet" style. In other words, we would rather be totally formal eating at Chops or Portifino's or we would rather be totally casual eating at Jade, Windjammer or getting pizza. We also like to eat when we are ready to and do not care for being told to eat at a specific time.

 

Ok, now to the tipping part....First of all , let me state that we are "over tippers" and would never even consider tipping less than 20% in any situation. We generously tipped the people that supplied us with service during our cruise. We did not tip the people in the dining room that we never even met and never serviced us in any way during our cruise. If we did, we would then end up "double tipping". We ate at Chops and Portifino's 4 different nights and tipped generously for the 5 star service. We also tipped in every situation where someone serviced us, afterall isn't that the entire purpose of a tip??? Again, why should we be pentalized by having to tip twice each night just because we take advantage of the alternative restaurants. Do the waiters of the alternative restaurants also need their tips?? And why would RCCL provide these other restaurants if they did not want you to go to them? Are they therefore expecting you to tip twice for the same "meal" ? That would be ludicrious.

 

In closing, A tip should be a monetary award for one providing you with good service . A tip should not be the only form of salary for these individuals and if it is, then that should be an issue for RCCL . I do not see where it should be my responsibility to pay the employees salary by tipping people I never encountered. I have paid for my cruise and my only other responsibilty should be to the people who take care of us (example: we tipped our steward $100 for the week!!! ) not to take tips away from people who supplied us with service so that we can tip people that we never even saw or met.

[ruttie]

well said! I second that!!!

[curly4dana]

harlow...beautifully said and i can't imagine anyone arguing with the points you've made!!! although, i'm sure someone will...

the wait staff on cruise ships, rcci included, does NOT get paid only by our tips! that would be totally inappropriate and would cause some insane waiters! could you imagine? it would be like having your dinner served by a commissioned salesperson!

they are paid in monthly increments and work for whatever the time period is on their contract. plus...they also have the tips they received from the cruise before you. they DO NOT starve! geez! you'd think they were working in a sweatshop! there are usually 3-4 sailings per ship per month and they usually sign on for 6 months at a time...add to that the amount of people at the 2-3 tables they serve...do the math!

thanks for being honest harlow and stating what should really be the totally obvious! :)

[mergle55]

When we cruise my teenage son never dines with us, he prefers grabbing a bite or hanging out at the teen club. However we always tip the wait staff jsut as he was with us, mainly because they still set a place for him and have to plan even if he choices not to join us.

[stbmom]

I have a question - not to be mean or anything. However, so many people tip for the dining room, even if they don't eat there - how do the people in the Windjammer make money? Do they also get paid with tips or so they get a salary the dining room staff don't? They have families with needs too - right?

[michigancruisers]

Ahh, tips.

 

I have always enjoyed this topic when it has come up.

 

There are 2 basic types of people that always become obvious.

1. There are a lot of people who set their self worth on how much they tip. Lets call them group “A”. “A” people know exactly to what what degree they are wonderful people, they know by the degree they overtip. They are happy to accept the burden of the underprivileged by augmenting the poor unfortunate’s paychecks. This makes everyone (themselves and the unfortunates) feel so much better. You will often hear them say things like “I am just so damn wonderful that even though I have never set eye on this person I went out of my way to make this grandiose presentation of my very large tip in person” or words to that effect. “A” people also set others self worth on how much those people tip. These people know how to distinguish the scum of the earth (lets call them “B” people) by how little, if at all, the B people tip.

2. Most “B” people are just cheap. Everyone knows that there is an expected amount of tipping in our society. We all know when and where we are expected to tip. We all know the general guidelines for tipping amounts. Some “B” people just like to think they are beating the system. Some “B” people are just mean. “B” people think “A” people are as dumb as a sack of nails. The “B” people are as stupid as the self-righteous “A” people are self-loving..

 

Then comes cruise ships.

 

The “A” people get to run amok getting all sorts of chances to assure themselves of just how important they are, how much better they are and how (relatively) financially well off they are. (one of my favorites is when “A” people deny they are well off and get all whiny about how they had to save for such and such a period of time to be able to take this cruise and they still find it in their hearts to overtip, just as if to fulfill their social contract as “the great people”) If you are on a cruise, you are wealthy. Look at the rest of the world, stupid! Look at the average person that is living in those ports you get to visit. The poor people in those ports all know you are rich because you really are. Time to admit it buddy, you’re swimming in dough! So much so that you are pi**ing it away on a damn boat ride!

 

The “B” people get to practice their craft (shortcoming) on a group of people that are unable to protect themselves. For them it’s the best of times. They get to stiff people and not have to worry about the consequences. If the “B” people want to be honest about it, announce to all involved persons involved BEFOR service is rendered, that you plan on stiffing ‘em, that way its fair and they (the stiffies) get a chance to have some input.

 

Of the two groups I guess I find the “B” people more repulsive but it’s a close call.

 

Another point on this topic that is generally missed is that the cruise lines put everyone into this situation. They underpay the staff and then expect the customers to make up the difference. This is also a time honored tradition in the food service industry (not that that makes it right) The cruise lines do such a good job of this that they are even able to make people (admittedly “A” people, who are an easy mark) tip when there isn’t even contact between the two. If you don’t believe this then why would someone feel responsible to tip the staff at a table because they were assigned to a table? As if it is their fault that the cruise line will not honor their request NOT to be assigned to a table.

 

Where am I in this debate? As someone who worked his way though school in the “food service industry” I think I have a solid appreciation of what level of work is involved. I tip for the quality of service rendered (starts at 15% and goes up or down accordingly) and if service given. If you don’t serve me I feel absolutely no obligation to tip you. I am not, and no other passenger on the ship is, responsible for the working arrangement/contract between the cruise line and its employees. I am not about to attempt to divine the finer points of employment at RCCL. I am sure that no one here knows it either. The concept that somehow I am also responsible to also tip in the main room when I ate in the specialty dining room is just silly. Take your bleeding heart and stuff it somewhere because it’s not working on me. Next I expect someone to be showing me a picture of starving members of the crew family back home. On the other hand, if you eat on the ship in any location that does not have tipping or that you did not tip at, I feel that the mechanism for tipping for that service is tipping in the main dining room. Even if you don’t eat there.

 

So, if you tipped where you ate, every time you ate and never dined in the dining room, then you are covered. No tip needed in the dining room.

 

But, let me throw in a curve ball at this point. Were you aware that all tips are shared just like the tips in a casino in Vegas are all shared? Now, I don’t know if this is honest to God fact but it’s what I have been told by crew members (Celebrity). If so, and it would be logical if it were, then all this running up and down, from this venue to that, to tip is really silly. By tip sharing, the cruise line would be addressing those inequities that occur when no one sits at a specific table. If I were one of the people working in that dining room, I would see the logic of sharing tips after getting stiffed by either “B” people or just not having a full table. And I would love those “A” people. They would just buy my love with their wealth. After they walked away, I would be looking for the next easy mark.

 

Frank

[DrD]

I stand by my early assertations. You must tip your waiters wether you dine there or not. They are depending on your tips. I could not locate specific information on salaries etc. but I read once that they get paid almost nothing. If anyone can find out how much they get paid exactly I'd be very interested and might change my opinion if it's alot more than I thought. Again, what the above posters do not seem to understand and have not addressed is the simple fact that you are taking up a "slot." If you choose to dine everyday in the Windjammer, you still have a "slot" in the dining room. It is simply not fair to deprive the waiter of that portion of their tips. Don't any of you at least have some compassion? How can you sleep at night knowing some poor schlebb from a country where the per capita income is 1 tenth of ours is missing out on his tip from you because you "chose" to eat elsewhere? On my last cruise my 2 year old spent a total of about 10 minutes in the dining room but of course my waiter received the full tip for a table of 4. I just couldn't nickel and dime someone the way you guys can.

 

And to answer a quetion above, the waiters in the windjammer are regular dinner waiters. They rotate through, usually 3 weeks in the dining room and 1 week in windjammer. They expect to make no tips on their windjammer week but make full tips the other 3 weeks.

 

I agree though that tips should just be included in the price. The way it is now, people with hearts wind up paying for all you cheapskates. If it wasn't for people like me and some of the other posters above, we'd all have to pay more for our cruises. So call it a subsidy.

 

I do also agree that tip amount should vary by level of service. I've never had bad service but if I did I wouldn't tip the full amount. On the other hand I will tip more for good service.

[stbmom]

[quote name='DrD']I stand by my early assertations. You must tip your waiters wether you dine there or not. They are depending on your tips. I could not locate specific information on salaries etc. but I read once that they get paid almost nothing. If anyone can find out how much they get paid exactly I'd be very interested and might change my opinion if it's alot more than I thought. Again, what the above posters do not seem to understand and have not addressed is the simple fact that you are taking up a "slot." If you choose to dine everyday in the Windjammer, you still have a "slot" in the dining room. It is simply not fair to deprive the waiter of that portion of their tips. Don't any of you at least have some compassion? How can you sleep at night knowing some poor schlebb from a country where the per capita income is 1 tenth of ours is missing out on his tip from you because you "chose" to eat elsewhere? On my last cruise my 2 year old spent a total of about 10 minutes in the dining room but of course my waiter received the full tip for a table of 4. I just couldn't nickel and dime someone the way you guys can.

And to answer a quetion above, the waiters in the windjammer are regular dinner waiters. They rotate through, usually 3 weeks in the dining room and 1 week in windjammer. They expect to make no tips on their windjammer week but make full tips the other 3 weeks.

I agree though that tips should just be included in the price. The way it is now, people with hearts wind up paying for all you cheapskates. If it wasn't for people like me and some of the other posters above, we'd all have to pay more for our cruises. So call it a subsidy.

I do also agree that tip amount should vary by level of service. I've never had bad service but if I did I wouldn't tip the full amount. On the other hand I will tip more for good service.[/QUOTE]
I think you should boycott the cruise industry. The reason I say that is because it seems your issue is that these people are not being paid a fair salary. Most times when people feel like individuals are not being paid fair, they boycott. Giving RC or any other cruise line more business just makes them treat people that much worse (the build more and more ships to employ more and more people that you feel they underpay).
I mean really, if you tip "your" waiter, you are only helping one person. These crews are made up of hundreds of people. Obviously you feel these people are being taken advantage of. What about the person who didn't wait on your table. Do you tip them too. For instance, if I never went to the dining room and I didn't tip my waiter, would you feel obligated to tip them on my behalf. If not, then you really don't about people as a whole, just the ones who were supposed to serve you. The only way to make the situation right is to either boycott the cruise industry until they pay a fair salary (by the way, that salary would be fair by whose standards - yours or that person's country - if not by yours, then you will be surprised at what others think a fair salary is). The other solution is for you to tip everyone on the ship - only then is everyone truely taken care of. By the way, would you tip the people in the beauty shop even though you didn't get a hair cut? They could have had a spot for you. If you signed up for a shore excursion and couldn't take it - would you send a tip to the tour guide? Just checking - because that would be the fair thing to do - they were counting on that money.

[bUU]

[quote name='curly4dana']the wait staff on cruise ships, rcci included, does NOT get paid only by our tips! ... they are paid in monthly increments and work for whatever the time period is on their contract.[/QUOTE]That is correct. They receive a stipend of about $300.00 for a six-month contract.

[DrD]

[quote name='stbmom']I think you should boycott the cruise industry. The reason I say that is because it seems your issue is that these people are not being paid a fair salary. Most times when people feel like individuals are not being paid fair, they boycott. Giving RC or any other cruise line more business just makes them treat people that much worse (the build more and more ships to employ more and more people that you feel they underpay).
I mean really, if you tip "your" waiter, you are only helping one person. These crews are made up of hundreds of people. Obviously you feel these people are being taken advantage of. What about the person who didn't wait on your table. Do you tip them too. For instance, if I never went to the dining room and I didn't tip my waiter, would you feel obligated to tip them on my behalf. If not, then you really don't about people as a whole, just the ones who were supposed to serve you. The only way to make the situation right is to either boycott the cruise industry until they pay a fair salary (by the way, that salary would be fair by whose standards - yours or that person's country - if not by yours, then you will be surprised at what others think a fair salary is). The other solution is for you to tip everyone on the ship - only then is everyone truely taken care of. By the way, would you tip the people in the beauty shop even though you didn't get a hair cut? They could have had a spot for you. If you signed up for a shore excursion and couldn't take it - would you send a tip to the tour guide? Just checking - because that would be the fair thing to do - they were counting on that money.[/QUOTE]

Or there is a third solution: for everyone to tip what they're supposed to! I don't feel any obligation to tip other people's servers, I just feel that I should live up to my end of the bargain with my servers. I feel bad for other people's servers that are stiffed but I'm not about to pay their tips. In the real world, Virginia, things aren't so black and white. Most of us have a threshold for kindness. I'll tip my own server generously but I'm not going to go tip everyone else's. I also give only a certain amount to charity, not half my salary. Shades of grey.

I've never not taken a shore excursion that I have signed up for so I don't know what I would do. If it was sold out and I took a slot that could have been filled by someone else and that couldn't be filled at the last minute then I suppose yes, I would. In fact, I'd probably pay for the whole thing. If it wasn't sold out then I wouldn't. And that is what I'm trying to explain, it's about the fact that you are taking a limited slot.

[Shanafan]

[quote name='bicker']That is correct. They receive a stipend of about $300.00 for a six-month contract.[/QUOTE]
Where do I sign up?? :rolleyes: This is a losing battle, especially the "if I don't use the spa should I tip them???" Give me a break. The fact is, it is in the documents, and in all the brochures, even the "cruise" books I have bought--a suggested amount to tip, per staff member, and how much to tip each.

I think this horse has been beat to death, and if people can't figure out by now that the wait staff rotate in the Windjammer, Jade, ect---either they don't want to, or they never will.

[bUU]

What's really remarkable is that the horse being dead has little impact on how often and hard people wish to beat it.

[screagan]

Being new to the whole cruise life, what is the tipping scenario at the little cafes (Windjammer, etc)?

I understand that tipping is essential at the main dining hall, but is it also expected for occasional trips to the cafes?

[melissa76]

From what I understand, the same people work in the main dining room and the other venues, so by tipping your dining room waiter, you're covering your bases. I think that's the whole point.

Plus, with a salary of about $50 a month, our "tip" is hardly "extra" or "special". It IS their salary.

Maybe it shouldn't be that way. Maybe they should be paid much more. Maybe the "tip" shouldn't be called a tip and should just be added to the cruise. But until it's not, I'm going to give all recommended tips.

Melissa :)

[beachchick]

[quote name='DrD']Or there is a third solution: for everyone to tip what they're supposed to! ... And that is what I'm trying to explain, it's about the fact that you are taking a limited slot.[/QUOTE]


(Yeah, I know this has been beaten to death, but here I am anyway.)

Two things. First, a tip by it's very nature cannot be a "supposed to" item. It is by definition a choice; if it's mandatory, it's not a tip. Second, this is not like making a reservation at a restaurant. This whole idea of "taking a limited slot" bothers me. I am on a cruise as a passenger. I will make the choice of where I eat. The cruiseline can "assign" me a place in the dining room, but I am not obligated to use it.

I realize that this is a subject where there will never be agreement. The only thing you can do is what you think is right.

beachchick

[98Charlie]

[QUOTE][U]Originally Posted by Beachchick:[/U]
The only thing you can do is what you think is right.[/QUOTE]

Absolutely correct! Use your own good judgement.

IMHO all of the mass market cruise lines call it a tip but it is in reality part of the base pay of certain crew members. It is part of the service that you contract for when you cruise.

You are in effect their employer. There is no minimum wage so pay as much or little as you see fit.

I doubt that any of the mass market lines will add the tip to the base price of the cruise. A 7 day cruise would not go up just $70 per person. Commision would be paid to the TA. Taxes would be added. There are probably other costs involved that would increase the base cost of a cruise.

When a prospective passenger compares two similar cruises there could be a difference of $200-300 per double cabin. I guess that Cruise Critic members make up a small percentage of passengers. We may be able to see the difference but many (or most) others would not.

Just some thoughts,
Charlie

(Are you sure this horse is dead? I swear I saw him move. Hand me another whip :rolleyes: )

[bUU]

Understood, however, given the facts of the situation and your perspective:

(1) It isn't a tip, even though it is called a gratuity by the cruise line.

(2) Whether it is bothersome or not, cruise ships, especially with respect to mainstream cruise lines, operate as captive-markets. That cuts both ways: Passengers are a captive-market for the cruise ship's vending, AND the cruise ship's vending (including dining service) are a captive-supplier for the passengers. The passengers cannot buy stuff on-board from non-cruise-ship-aligned vendors, AND the cruise ship's vending cannot secure customers other than the passengers. I fully grant that some folks could find this troubling, including the obligations that stem from these facts, but that is a rationale only for not purchasing the cruise.