Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Tips - A bit of advice please

dual

By dual,
in Royal Caribbean International

Recommended Posts

amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
So if you have done this on every cruise.....how would you know if the service would be any different if you didn't tip extra?

 

lol. Good point. I very rarely tip over what's already there. I don't order very difficult or time-consuming drinks. Often not much more than a Bud or glass of wine. And I get GREAT service by SUPER-friendly bartenders. One bartender made me the world's strongest LI Iced Tea with all top shelf liquor and like a DROP of mix and soda. Got me pretty drunk pretty quickly. And he was REALLY nice. But he had NO idea whether or not he'd be getting a few extra dollars.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
jtwisconsin

jtwisconsin

Posted
Posted
They will actually remember the people that order more then anyone else........

 

Well, they ALWAYS remembered my wife and I on our Indy cruise. We would walk up and be greeted by a very friendly "Mr. John and Miss Angela! Would you like the usual?".

 

Maybe that is a bad sign. :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
Well, they ALWAYS remembered my wife and I on our Indy cruise. We would walk up and be greeted by a very friendly "Mr. John and Miss Angela! Would you like the usual?".

 

Maybe that is a bad sign. :D

 

Note to self: Miss Amy Beth must book her next cruise with Mr. John and Miss Angela...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
I also tip an extra dollar or two when ordering from our favorite bartenders, and that has always resulted in extremely good service and a free drink now and then. Maybe it isn't necessary, but I will continue to do so.

 

Free drink? Hmmm...maybe I WILL start throwing those dollar bills around more. (Ten drinks and ten dollar bills later I realize it's not free...but if it goes into his pocket, why not?) :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybear912

amybear912

Posted
Posted
So every cruise you have taken.......you never tried not doing it:confused:

 

Yeah... literally every cruise we have taken... we've never tried NOT doing it... why would we????

 

We work in the restaurant industry so we respect the business model of tipping... and understand how it works...

 

I'm not saying we tip extra on every single order we make... but yes, we have found that the occassional extra tip results in a reward to us in some fashion... it's Pavlovian...

 

Do servers and bartenders remember us? Absolutely... they call us by name when they see us throughout the ship... and know what we drink without having to ask - usually after only a day or two onboard...

 

We've been given drinks that we weren't charged for...

 

We've been given extra booze in our drinks when we asked (after having tipped a server extra earlier)...

 

Can I prove that our tipping extra is the reason we've received these rewards??? Not conclusively...

 

But both DH and I have been known to reward our own customers with free apps and drinks when they have been regular customers or tipped us extra...

 

This is pretty standard behavior in the restaurant and bar industry...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybear912

amybear912

Posted
Posted
Well, they ALWAYS remembered my wife and I on our Indy cruise. We would walk up and be greeted by a very friendly "Mr. John and Miss Angela! Would you like the usual?".

 

Maybe that is a bad sign. :D

 

Yep... that's our experience also...

 

Not a bad sign... a good vacation...:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
:D

 

Navigator 12/14/09 5-Night Western Caribbean. Feel free to join us.

 

What's so special about 12/14? I priced the 12/10 one and with my residency discount (which isn't offerent on 12/14 but is offered on every week around it) is $299 for a PROMENADE room!!

 

12/14 starts at $449 for a low-level interior. What gives with that week?

 

If you move to 12/10 simply to suit ME, a complete stranger, I'll meet you. Heck I'll even pay the extra $2 tip for your first drink.

 

:D

 

Edit: I'm an idiot. 12/10 is a 4-nighter

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Kurbanfan

Kurbanfan

Posted
Posted
Yeah... literally every cruise we have taken... we've never tried NOT doing it... why would we????

 

We work in the restaurant industry so we respect the business model of tipping... and understand how it works...

 

I'm not saying we tip extra on every single order we make... but yes, we have found that the occassional extra tip results in a reward to us in some fashion... it's Pavlovian...

 

Do servers and bartenders remember us? Absolutely... they call us by name when they see us throughout the ship... and know what we drink without having to ask - usually after only a day or two onboard...

 

We've been given drinks that we weren't charged for...

 

We've been given extra booze in our drinks when we asked (after having tipped a server extra earlier)...

 

Can I prove that our tipping extra is the reason we've received these rewards??? Not conclusively...

 

But both DH and I have been known to reward our own customers with free apps and drinks when they have been regular customers or tipped us extra...

 

This is pretty standard behavior in the restaurant and bar industry...

 

I'll will remember that.... it might come in handy if they ever stop calling me by my first name, stop serving me strong drinks and stop the excellent service I have received in the past 12 years I have been cruising:D

But since I have not double tipped for my drinks on any cruise....why would we????:p:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
I'll will remember that.... it might come in handy if they ever stop calling me by my first name, stop serving me strong drinks and stop the excellent service I have received in the past 12 years I have been cruising:D

But since I have not double tipped for my drinks on any cruise....why would we????:p:D

 

Touche! And now I look to the left side of the court and await Amybear's lob back.

 

:D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Kurbanfan

Kurbanfan

Posted
Posted
Touche! And now I look to the left side of the court and await Amybear's lob back.

 

:D

 

LOL! Seriously, if they truly believe they get better service by double tipping.......then more power to them......

Do what you think is best......

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
LOL! Seriously, if they truly believe they get better service by double tipping.......then more power to them......

Do what you think is best......

 

I agree. Do what you want. She DOES work in the service industry so I'm sure she knows of what she speaks. I definitely tip when I'm sitting at a land-baesd bar for a while and have then been given "free" drinks...and it makes them more likely to accidentally spill a little extra alcohol into your drink.

 

Then again I got a margarita at a mexican restaurant bar and the bartender then decided I needed a second one, about 30 minutes later, with no extra tipping from me (I hadn't paid anything yet). So in reverse, of course, he was fishing for tips!

 

I'd probably tip extra on a cruise, too, if I sat for a while at a bar...but usually I'm in a deck chair and just going back and forth to the bar and talking to different bartenders so in that case I really don't feel it's necessary to tip over the 15%.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
And all that booze isn't? There was probably more calories in that one drink than the lunch you had that day!

 

Hey you didn't see me go to town at the WJ that day!

 

But seriously folks, by getting a super strong Iced Tea, I'm pretty set for a couple of hours. Unlike if I got a 700-calorie pina colada and then had to order one or two more...cuz they taste soooooooo good. THOSE I stay away from!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
amybeth4

amybeth4

Posted
Posted
Looks like a Long Island has enough calories of its own. :eek:

 

http://www.socialcider.com/?p=520

 

I agree 870 calories is beyond ridiculous, but some of those calories come from the mix and the regular Coke. I use less mix and Diet Coke.

 

That said, I realize that each shot has about 100 calories so we're still talking about 550 calories. But i still justify that by saying I'll only drink one of those vs. two weaker, "frou-frou" drinks.

 

After that one tea, I didn't really care about calories anymore.

 

AND I was on vacation and REALLY REALLY watching my food intake. Like lunch every day consisted of raw veggies and breakfast was oatmeal and fruit. And dinner was always chicken or fish with no sauce.

 

So I was able to enjoy the one Tea. And the never-ending LIGHT beer and wine. Gotta save where you can. I wouldn't drink like that at home.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • ANNOUNCEMENT: Set Sail on Sun Princess®
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...