Tipping Cabin Steward/Single person in cabin?

[showdog]

Hi, my mom will be going on a cruise with us in May and getting a cabin by herself. Of course the cruise is going to cost her a lot more money because of the single supplement charge but I wanted to find out about tipping the cabin steward.

I've been on many cruises but I've never gotten a cabin by myself. Do you only tip 10 dollars per day if you are alone in the cabin for the entire staff? I wasn't sure how this worked because it seemed like the cabin steward might feel cheated since there is only 1 person staying in the room even though she's paid a lot more to be there by herself. I don't want her to get less service because she's by herself.

thank you.

[kryos]

I've been on many cruises but I've never gotten a cabin by myself. Do you only tip 10 dollars per day if you are alone in the cabin for the entire staff? I wasn't sure how this worked because it seemed like the cabin steward might feel cheated since there is only 1 person staying in the room even though she's paid a lot more to be there by herself. I don't want her to get less service because she's by herself.

If she gets less service because she's by herself, then she should remove the autotips for the cabin steward altogether. I wouldn't give the cabin steward crap in a case like that.

No, she is only one in the cabin and she pays the autotips for one ... $10 per day. Since she's in the cabin by herself, the cabin steward theoretically has only one-half the work to do because he/she is only picking up after one person.

If she wants to slide him something extra for extraordinary service at the end of the cruise, that's entirely up to her. But being in the cabin by herself shouldn't have anything to do with the level of service her cabin steward provides. It will just take him less time to provide it.

By the way, I travel solo myself and have never gotten a lower level of service from my cabin steward just because I was the only one in the cabin. Neither should she.

Blue skies ...

--rita

[showdog]

Thanks rita,
that's what I thought. I just wanted to make sure that we were doing the right thing and gave him the correct amount and I certainly didn't want to look cheap. I was thinking of giving him an extra 20 dollars in the beginning just so they will take care of her too. I want to make sure she has a good time.

My mom finally agreed to go on vacation with my husband and I want to make sure that she has a good time. She's never been in a cabin by herself before and I'm hoping that she'll like the privacy.

[kryos]

Thanks rita,
that's what I thought. I just wanted to make sure that we were doing the right thing and gave him the correct amount and I certainly didn't want to look cheap. I was thinking of giving him an extra 20 dollars in the beginning just so they will take care of her too. I want to make sure she has a good time.

My mom finally agreed to go on vacation with my husband and I want to make sure that she has a good time. She's never been in a cabin by herself before and I'm hoping that she'll like the privacy.
Your mom will love it and she will really appreciate that cabin to herself when she is tired and just wants a nice quiet retreat to which she can go when she wants to rest or be by herself.

I love having my own cabin. I love being able to get up in the middle of the night if I can't sleep, turn on the light and ... horrors ... even have a smoke if I so desire. :)

I've never had a cabin steward treat me any differently because I was alone in the cabin. I've always gotten good service and have usually "slid" the steward a bit extra at the end of the cruise. But, of course, tipping him upfront can be a good idea too. I've just not done it so far. Maybe I'll try it during my next cruise.

Blue skies ...

--rita

[Esme]

Thanks rita,
that's what I thought. I just wanted to make sure that we were doing the right thing and gave him the correct amount and I certainly didn't want to look cheap. I was thinking of giving him an extra 20 dollars in the beginning just so they will take care of her too. I want to make sure she has a good time.

My mom finally agreed to go on vacation with my husband and I want to make sure that she has a good time. She's never been in a cabin by herself before and I'm hoping that she'll like the privacy.

The $10.00 per day will be put on your Mom's shipboard account and paid at the end of the cruise. No need for her to give her cabin steward an extra $20.00 at the beginning of the cruise, as he will be happy to take care of her. If she wants to tip him a little extra, she can do so at the end of the cruise - same goes for the dining room steward/assistant.

You Mom will have a great time and I am sure enjoy the comforts of being in a cabin by herself. :) Sometimes I'd like a cabin by myself. :D

[Kami's pal]

I wasn't sure how this worked because it seemed like the cabin steward might feel cheated since there is only 1 person staying in the room even though she's paid a lot more to be there by herself. I don't want her to get less service because she's by herself.

thank you.

Your sensitivity to the feelings of the cabin steward is commendable. You seem to understand that these "tips" are the wages. HAL and the other cruise lines have set it up that way. So, yes, your cabin steward will be earning lower wages that week. Yes, the steward is doing 'less" when there is only one person in the room. But how much less? There's still a bed to be made, a bathroom to be cleaned, etc. I always cruise as a single. I do enjoy the freedom of a room of my own, so I pay the supplement to the cruise line for that luxury. I've never had less than excellent service because I'm alone, even though the steward must wish that there were 2 people contributing to the pool. However, I do tip more. I figure that if the cruise line can demand double from me because I won't agree to share my room, then I can afford to tip that bit extra.

I don't tip more in the dinning room, or add to the auto tip because I figure that the wait staff receives the same share of the auto tip even though I'm eating as a single.

[spcl4cs_gal]

On the average, salary and tips included, does anyone know how much a room steward would make over the course of a month?

[Joanne G.]

I cruise as part of threesome and have a cabin by myself. I have never felt that the steward was giving me less service because he/she expected less of a tip. However, like Kami's pal, I feel that the cabin steward has almost the same amount of work for one person as for two, so I tip more than the suggested per person amount. Not usually double the per person amount, but typically about half again as much.

[zil]

I do not know about the wages-However, I heard on last cruise that they must pay for their trips home- $2,000... Tips are big part of their$$$$...
be generous....Their service is great...

[cruzingqueen]

I don't know how much the room stewards make a month, but I think I remember the Cruise Director saying $4 per day of each $10 autotip goes to the room steward. However, for each person who asks for the $10 to be withdrawn from their accounts (and there are many unfortunately), then that amount is decreased. I've also heard, but have not verified, that HAL asks each of the stewards to put any "extra" tips received into a "pool" to be divided accordingly. I don't agree with that so i try to slip my steward's extra to him in private or leave it in an envelope in the room with his name. I am tipping him for his service....not to be distributed amongst the others.

I travel solo almost all the time and have never received anything less than perfect service. HAL room stewards are wonderful!

[Kami's pal]

over this. I will tell you that I was on HAL Noordam last May when the auto tip, pooled policy was implemented. Most passengers were very surprised to read about it in a leaflet titled "you need to know" which was placed in their cabins. The same leaflet had been included with their docs when they had paid the final payments, but not everybody reads every piece of paper in that package. I suspect that the crew knew this and had arranged on their own to put these extra leaflets in the rooms. I was seated at a table of 8 other long time HAL customers. It was a surprise to all of them. And as I talked over the next few days to other pax I heard more and more angry queries. I also sensed a tension among the crew that I hadn't ever felt before. Being alone, I can and do chat with crew members. Often on bus tours, the rep sent with the group will sit with me as there is an empty seat beside me. I will stop and chat with the person assigned to polish the handrails on the stairway I use, etc. So I started asking how the new policy was working for them. They were all uncertain that they would receive the same amount (salary from tips) as before, because the 30% of the pooled tips going to the behind the scenes people would essentially be taken from the tips they would have kept if the personal tipping had been left. Now, keep in mind, before this HAL had advertised that tipping on HAL was not ... ?(mandatory? necessary? expected? I'm not certain of the exact wording). I base my knowledge of their income on these first hand interviews as well as subsequent information, a lot of which I've gleaned right here on this board. There is also a PBS documentary where a CEO of a cruise line changes places with his employees on the ship. And I also got more information from the book CRISE SHIP BLUES by Ross Klein. So I'm confident that my information is accurate. Sadly confident because I think cruise lines exploit their crew's desperate poverty. I'm presently reading THE SHIP AND THE STORM by Jim Carrier and the same exploitation of the mainly West Indian crew is reported in his book. (page 28)

Anyway, I decided to reassure my steward and waiters that I would not "remove or reduce the amount charged to my onboard account". On day 5 (of a 12 day cruise) I gave the steward, waiter, and assistant waiter 5x $3.50 each with my card and a note saying "This is to thank you for making the beginning of my first Mediterranean cruise so comfortable, and by the way, you do not not have to turn in this tip as I will not be changing the auto tip. You can keep this card as proof if you need it." I noticed immediately a return to relaxed professional hospitality not only by "my crew" but from all the staff that served me in any venue. Obviously, my gesture had been talked about among the crew. Other passengers also commented that, " You sure do get good service!"

Now, to your question. At the end on the last sea day a meeting was held in a lounge to explain the new policy. The three men who attempted to placate the upset passengers were the cruise director, the second officer and an entertainer. But their refusal to answer the big questions of "How much does a ??? make?" only frustrated us more. The next day, the cruise director made a ship wide announcement that indicated $3.00 to waiter, $3.00 to cabin steward, $1.50 to assistant waiter and the rest ($3.00)to be divided among the "behind the scenes staff such as the chefs, the laundry, the night cleaners, the highly trained kitchen crew, and others."

So, figure it out. If 2 people in each of 15 cabins for 12 days that's $360 per cruise. In one month, 2.5 twelve day cruises would equal $900. Sounds OK because they get room and board and $50.00 a month. BUT, out of the pooled gratuities' revenue, cabin stewards generally hire a helper to do the bigger extra jobs such as vacuuming, window cleaning etc. Also, 1/12 of their fare home was being deducted, and they had to pay their agent at home who had helped them get the contract, and they paid for their own laundry, including the cleaning of their uniforms. So some months they would be in a deficit position.

Many argue that even so, they take home more pay than they ever could working at home. I don't understand that rationalization for paying less than what the minimum wage would be for the same job in Canada or the U.S. One could argue that if a Canadian or American had to do these jobs, they would receive hardship pay. Unless of course they are in the military where the "hardships" are what the service people knew they'd get by signing up. I find that insulting to the service people who are making great sacrifices to serve their fellow citizens.

Hope this essay answers your question. You could do a search using terms such as "salary", "tips" , "wages" "gratuities" and read what's already been posted on CC.

[heyabbott]

As far as tips are concerned, it relatively easy to figure out how much the minimum tips per week are. An average 0f $8/cabin/day. There are more 3 to a cabin than 1 to a cabin. If a steward is responsible for 10 cabins, it's $560.00 a week in tips, minimum. If the steward make $3.00/hr/10 hr shifts/6days a week $180.00 week in wages/plus room and board?
$740.00 week

$38,000+ year plus room and board?

I could be wrong.

BTW, my employer requires me to launder my suits, which are my uniforms, without reimbursement.

[Kami's pal]

As far as tips are concerned, it relatively easy to figure out how much the minimum tips per week are. An average 0f $8/cabin/day. There are more 3 to a cabin than 1 to a cabin. If a steward is responsible for 10 cabins, it's $560.00 a week in tips, minimum. If the steward make $3.00/hr/10 hr shifts/6days a week $180.00 week in wages/plus room and board?
$740.00 week

$38,000+ year plus room and board?

I could be wrong.

BTW, my employer requires me to launder my suits, which are my uniforms, without reimbursement.

Where are you getting the 10 hour day, the $3.00 an hour, and the 6 day week?
I've never heard of any of the stewards, or waiters getting a day off a week. They work every day.

Perhaps, on most days, they might be on duty only 10 hours, but don't forget the "extra jobs" they are required to do. They must do one intensive evacuation drill a week, and they "volunteer" to put on the entertainment which involves rehersals after pax are finished using the stage or dining rooms. And on the turn around days, they must say good bye, clean and restock, and settle in their new customers. One turn around every 7 days on some itineraries, others are one in 12 or one in 14. Plus, if there is an epidemic of sea sicknesss or Noro or influenza, the waiters do the extra room service as well as serve in their regular dining stations for 3 meals and several snack times a day. Oh, and there are the midnight buffets to set up, serve, and clean up after.

[kryos]

Many argue that even so, they take home more pay than they ever could working at home. I don't understand that rationalization for paying less than what the minimum wage would be for the same job in Canada or the U.S.
I agree that this is deplorable ... however, what we can do about it I have no idea. Simply put, the cruise lines should be forced to pay their staff a liveable wage. It should not be up to the passengers ... who are already paying top dollar for a cruise ... to have to assume this added responsibility. What's the solution? Boycott the cruise lines? Of course, if we really felt that strongly about how the crew members were being exploited, that is exactly what we would do. If enough people stopped booking cruises, and speaking freely about their reasons for so doing, I'll bet that the exploitation would stop and crew wages and benefits would quickly increase. But, of course, taking such drastic action as a boycott would mean that we don't cruise. Most of us wouldn't want to do that. We like to cruise. So, we continue to do so and the low pay and exploitation of the crew continues. Obviously, one could say that we care about the crew ... and their living conditions ... but probably not enough. So, we come back to the auto-tip.

I too try to tip for service rendered, and I have never yet removed the auto tip from my account. In fact, I usually "slide" my waiters and cabin steward a bit extra at the end of the cruise as a special thank you for good service rendered. While I have not yet done as you mention ... tip in advance or before the end of the cruise ... I do try to remember that they are not making very much and show special appreciation of their efforts on my behalf in the form of a bit something "extra."

That said, I also can't help but wonder if these individuals are really making out all that bad with the auto tips. It would seem to me that with HAL's previous policy of "No tipping required ... all that's expected is your smile" ... and their widespread publicizing of that policy ... many people probably "stiffed" these good people, either believing that tipping was not permitted or figuring that they chose HAL specifically because tipping was not required.

In fact, on my first HAL cruise ... before the new tipping policy went into effect ... I was sharing the cabin with another woman who was attending a writer's conference onboard (as I was). She was young and on a very tight budget. On the final night at dinner, she gave the waiter $20. She gave our cabin steward $10. That was her ENTIRE tip for the week ... not just "something extra." Of course, it was none of my business, but she took it upon herself to tell me that $10 was all she could afford. Maybe it was, I don't know. But at least now with the auto-tip, she would have to make a special trip down to the front desk to remove it, and would subject herself to the embarrassment of having to explain why she was so doing.

For this reason alone, I think in many cases these personnel are probably making out better with the auto-tip. Unless people have a good reason, they will often not remove it even if they don't supplement it at all. Sure, the stewards who service the larger suites, with passengers who generally enjoy a better standard of living, with more disposable income, might make out better with tips. The waiters who happen to draw tables populated by the more affluent passengers may make out better by being rewarded hansomely at the end of the cruise with a nicely stuffed envelope of extra cash. But, how about "Joe Average Cruiser" ... who spent his entire vacation budget to take his family on this cruise? He's on a budget, and it will probably be many years before he will cruise again. He's not likely to increase the auto tips. His family is not likely to "indulge" in any real expensive shore excursions either. They will not eat on shore because why spend the money when you can eat for "free" on the ship? They will watch their expenditures because they have to. Their shipboard account will likely not exceed a hundred bucks or so for a one-week cruise because they will keep the extras to a minimum.

There are a lot of these types of cruisers and the auto tip is a Godsend for the crew having to serve them. If it wasn't for auto tipping, these people would like tip a few dollars at the end of the week ... or very possibly nothing at all. Auto tipping kind of forces them to tip ... or embarrass themselves trying to worm out of it.

Like I said ... I'll bet that now that auto-tipping has taken hold and people are getting used to how it works, the crew probably isn't seeing that much of a reduction in their pre-auto tip levels. While the money they make on tips is probably not that great today, it's probably not too much different than it was on HAL before the auto-tip policy was put into effect. HAL was just always known as a line where tipping wasn't required, and I tend to think many people took that policy to heart and either didn't tip, or tipped very little.

The solution is not in the tip a passenger gives, but rather in the cruise lines' developing some sense of a conscious in how they treat their hard-working staff in terms of both monetary compensation and living conditions while onboard their ships.

Blue skies ...

--rita

[cruzingqueen]

I don't care for the "auto tip" really but I understand sort of what HAL was trying to do. As Rita notes, this takes care of those who took advantage of the "no tipping required" previously on HAL. I would be embarassed and felt badly for the waiters in the dining room on the last night of the cruises prior to the "auto tip". It would be half empty. Maybe people were busy packing, but I honestly believe they were avoiding their waiters so they wouldn't have to face that awkward moment of walking away from their waiters without a tip. To me, a tip is something deserved for a little something "extra" or a little something "special" so when HAL tries to tell me that the auto tip goes to the people behind the scenes like the dishwasher, I wonder what he is doing "extra" that wasn't done before. I would like to think the dishes were as clean as could be prior to "auto-tip" as well.

I'm true to HAL and don't see myself changing cruise lines, plus I don't have the answer to this problem, but I don't think every job on the ship should be entitled to tips.

[Kami's pal]

We wish that the people who work on cruise lines in the "service" departments were able to count on equitable, just wages. We are not so greedy that we want to enjoy a luxury holiday by causing someone else to suffer an injustice. Yet, the resources on this world have not been distributed equally. Many people could live well in their homelands on what we who buy the cheapest inside cabin, economize by researching and doing our own self guided tours and resist the temptations of the casinos, BINGO, art auctions, spas and bars so that we can travel on a nice clean safe ship to another country. In our 20s we were back packers, bunking in hostels. In our 30s were were tenting with small children. Now we have managed to afford these cruises, but we feel for those who are working their way up. So we try to be as generous and ethical as we can because we know that the corporations are exploiting the poverty of the Indian, Philippine, Honduran and other third world citizens.

The question that the original poster asked was "Should my mother tip as if there were two people in that cabin, since otherwise, the steward, for that cruise would have her share decreased." I say this indicates understanding and care on her part. In my situation, I chose to reassure the crew that I was not going to remove the auto tip, and that I understood their apprehension about the new policy. I did tip after the 5th day because there was so much anxiety. I hope that by now, the bugs have been worked out of the system and the crew are feeling secure again.

I applaud them. My father, born in 1923, was barely able to read and compute in his second language. He had to work out of town all of the years I was home. He was once gone for 2 years, leaving my mother at 24 with three children under 4 years old! My parents sacrificed in order that their family could have a home and schooling. They were grateful for the chance to grab the work. My mother worked as a school cleaner after the youngest were in school. I'm certain that a lot of the people my age or older come from similar backgrounds.
We who live in Canada or the U.S. know that our countries are built on the premise that hard work will be justly rewarded. We insist that condition remain. We abhor those who cheat their way into powerful positions by abusing the trust of others. In Canada we have the sponsorship scandal. In the U.S. it's the Martha Stewards who are being prosecuted. And when we suspect that the corporations with which we do business are perhaps leading us into collusion with unethical practices, we speak out. We may even boycott those businesses.

However, we have to be careful. If we stop being cruisers or tourists, we take away employment. We could take away the chance to a better life through sacrifice. I think we have to each continue to wrestle with these matters of conscience. We have to keep discussing it on these forums and on the ships we use. And we have to be grateful for the blessings we enjoy. I was fortunate to be born in Canada to a family that grabbed an opportunity. I too worked as a waitress from age 16 to 20 while attending school. So did my daughter. My son was a gas jockey, a hen picker, a garbage collector. We made it. We can now afford to vacation and if that means we pay part of someone's salary through an auto tip, I am happy to do it.

Am I right? Aren't most of us in the less expensive cabins and in the suites ready to pay our way justly? Aren't we prepared to hold HAL and other corporations to ethical behaviour by questioning their business practices? We are not being stingy. We are being vigilant.

[dakrewser]

A tip is an "extra" reward for exceptional service. That's all it is, and that's all you should consider it to be. The crew is working on the ship because they chose to, not because they are forced to. If they could make more money doing something else, or gain greater statisfaction doing something else then I'm sure they would.

Go with the autotip, consider it a service charge. If someone gives service "above and beyond" then reward them suitably. No one, no matter what they do, should ever expect a tip, however "customary" it might be.

[kryos]

I would be embarassed and felt badly for the waiters in the dining room on the last night of the cruises prior to the "auto tip". It would be half empty. Maybe people were busy packing, but I honestly believe they were avoiding their waiters so they wouldn't have to face that awkward moment of walking away from their waiters without a tip.
Remember how HAL used to shut down the LIDO for dinner on the last night of the cruise ... I guess in an effort to force people to eat in the dining room (and perhaps shame them into giving their waiter a tip?)

Don't know where those people all ate on the last night of the cruise, but you're right ... the dining room was sure empty.

Like I said ... I think most of the service personnel probably make out better with the auto tips. Kinda forces people to consider the tip as a part of the cost of the cruise ... and maybe that's the way it has to be.

Blue skies ...

--rita