Clarification

[1of4]

We will be a family of 4 sailing to Alaska in August. My question (this time) has to deal with the automatic tipping. Will our shipboard account be charged auto tips for the children (aged 7 and 10) as well as my husband and I? If so, will they be charged at the same rate as adults? Or are we expected to tip extra cash at the end of the cruise to those that staff that the kids interacted with?

Gail

http://clocks.cruisecritic.com/countdown.pl?image=alaska&name=1of4&date=8-24-2011&text=Heading to Alaska!&ship=Volendam (http://www.cruisecritic.com)

[bepsf]

Will our shipboard account be charged auto tips for the children (aged 7 and 10) as well as my husband and I? If so, will they be charged at the same rate as adults?

Yes - Your account will be charged $11/day for every person in our stateroom, regardless of age.

[maxout]

And unless you remove your children's ability to charge to your account, the $60 pp hold on your Credit Card will also apply to them. If you opt of them charging on your account HAL will only place the $11 pp/per day hold for them.

[Krazy Kruizers]

The Hotel Service Charge is $11 for each and every person in a cabin no matter the age.

If your children do utilize Club HAL -- most people tend to tip the workers there at the end of the cruise. That choice is up to you.

[1of4]

And unless you remove your children's ability to charge to your account, the $60 pp hold on your Credit Card will also apply to them. If you opt of them charging on your account HAL will only place the $11 pp/per day hold for them.

What is this? $60 / day? or per trip? Irregardless, a 7 year old is not charging anything to his father's cc! Do I need to go see the TA about this to ensure the kids are not able to charge to the account?

Thanks...we are learning the ropes...slowly! Good job we don't leave until August!

Gail

[maxout]

What is this? $60 / day? or per trip? Irregardless, a 7 year old is not charging anything to his father's cc! Do I need to go see the TA about this to ensure the kids are not able to charge to the account?

Thanks...we are learning the ropes...slowly! Good job we don't leave until August!

Gail

You give HAL either a CC on which they will place a hold for $60 pp/per day or Cash deposit. When you fill out your e-docs just don't authorize them to allow you children to purchase on board and they won't apply the entire hold amount to them. (only the $11 pp/per day Hotel service charge)

[4realrod]

What is this? $60 / day? or per trip? Irregardless, a 7 year old is not charging anything to his father's cc! Do I need to go see the TA about this to ensure the kids are not able to charge to the account?

Thanks...we are learning the ropes...slowly! Good job we don't leave until August!

Gail
Here is the scoop from a TA. Each person if they are able to charge to the shipyard account will have a $420 hold placed on the cc for each person. For 4 people that is $1680 hold on the CC. Check with your TA and let them know who you want to have access. The tips will be charged to each guest.

[maxout]

Here is the scoop from a TA. Each person if they are able to charge to the shipyard account will have a $420 hold placed on the cc for each person. For 4 people that is $1680 hold on the CC. Check with your TA and let them know who you want to have access. The tips will be charged to each guest.

Exactly! That would be true for a 7 day cruise, if your trip is longer they will add $60 more dollars per person / per day.

[bcd2010]

I mean this as a clarification:

The Hotel Service Charge (referred to as auto-tipping by some) is $11/day/pp regardless of age or # in the cabin. This is divided between the cabin stewards, dining stewards and other crew members who "wait" on you, visible and behind the scenes. Since your children have beds that need making and use towels, etc. in the cabin, and are served in the various dining venues and lounges, etc., and use many of the same facilities you will use, it is reasonable that they share in the HSC. Additional tips may be paid to (and kept by) anyone who goes above and beyond in your estimation, BUT if you remove the HSC from even one person in your cabin, crew members who recieve cash from you put it into the pool for all crew.

The $60/day/pp is a hold placed on your credit card if you provide the info online before you go, when you board or shortly thereafter for onboard purchases - shore excursions, beverages, Pinacle Grill, photos, shop purchases, etc. Whether it is truly the average for all passengers (and since many book and pay for their excursions, PG dinners, etc. online before the cruise, it will seem to be too high - OTOH, some people drink a lot of "adult concoctions", wine, etc. and don't purchase anything in advance so it will seem low), it is the amount HAL has settled on. Unfortunately, without this hold, HAL might not get what people charge - i.e., before they started doing this, some people would be nearly at their CC limit before they boarded and/or exceed their CC limit while sailing and end up not paying. That is not, of course, fair to HAL or to the rest of the pax who do pay and end up having to cover the costs of those who don't pay through higher prices. Alternatively to the CC hold, you can pay cash to your onboard account, against which all onboard purchases would be charged - if/when it gets low, they will call you to the front desk to add cash to your account.

Your children might not use $60 for the whole trip since they would only be getting sodas (anything else? I don't have young kids so I don't know - maybe some others can help out here). I don't know if this is allowed, but maybe you could allow the CC hold for the adults and pay cash (e.g., $100) for the kids. Again, let's ask others to provide more info.

[maxout]

<Snip>

Your children would probably not use $60 for the whole trip since they would only be getting sodas (anything else? I don't have young kids so I don't know - maybe some others can help out here). Maybe you could allow the CC hold for the adults and pay cash for the kids. Again, let's ask others to provide more info.

All you have to do is not authorize them to charge on the ship and ONLY the $11 pp/day Hotel Service Charge will be applied to the hold the other $49 dollars will not be held for each child. (I have done this many times)

[1of4]

Thanks to all. This would be a very nasty surprise, although I am sure it is in the small print somewhere. My fault for not being aware. Either way, it would have ruined our trip had I not known and planned for it in advance. $71pp/day seems a bit steep but I don't cruise very much (this is my second time). For us that amount works out to $284 a day which is a blast of Alaskan air! We will surely not allow the children to charge to any account as they will either be in Club Hal or with us. The point of a family vacation is to be together as a family, something that is hard to do at home with me out of the house for 12 hours a day.

[maxout]

Thanks to all. This would be a very nasty surprise, although I am sure it is in the small print somewhere. My fault for not being aware. Either way, it would have ruined our trip had I not known and planned for it in advance. $71pp/day seems a bit steep but I don't cruise very much (this is my second time). For us that amount works out to $284 a day which is a blast of Alaskan air! We will surely not allow the children to charge to any account as they will either be in Club Hal or with us. The point of a family vacation is to be together as a family, something that is hard to do at home with me out of the house for 12 hours a day.

It is NOT $71 per day the $11 per day is included in the $60 hold.

[sapper1]

Thanks to all. This would be a very nasty surprise, although I am sure it is in the small print somewhere. My fault for not being aware. Either way, it would have ruined our trip had I not known and planned for it in advance. $71pp/day seems a bit steep but I don't cruise very much (this is my second time). For us that amount works out to $284 a day which is a blast of Alaskan air! We will surely not allow the children to charge to any account as they will either be in Club Hal or with us. The point of a family vacation is to be together as a family, something that is hard to do at home with me out of the house for 12 hours a day.
It is not a hold of $71 pp per day. It is a hold of $60 pp per day, $11 of which goes toward the auto-tips.
For the children the hold would only be the $11 pp per day for the auto tips if you remove their ability to charge to a shipboard account.

[sapper1]

I guess I was typing at the same time as the previous poster.

[Boytjie]

All you have to do is not authorize them to charge on the ship and ONLY the $11 pp/day Hotel Service Charge will be applied to the hold the other $49 dollars will not be held for each child. (I have done this many times)

If there is no authorization to charge there surely is not a hold - the kids' service charges are part of the parents charges and most likely covered under their $60 hold.

[maxout]

If there is no authorization to charge there surely is not a hold - the kids' service charges are part of the parents charges and most likely covered under their $60 hold.

Nope, not so. As another poster noted above they still need to have their beds made, meals prepared, messes cleaned up, etc. The $11 pp/day still applies to them regardless of whether they can charge to a shipboard account or not.

[catl331]

For us that amount works out to $284 a day which is a blast of Alaskan air!For two adults and two kids without charging privileges the total hold amount will be $60x2 + $11x2 = $142/day.

[Cbears]

To summarize for the OP:
If she removes charge privliges for the two children-Their credit card will have a $994 hold put on it for the 7 day criuse. ($60 per adult per day and $11 per child per day)
Hotel service charge (or auto tips) would be $308 guaranteed expense. (unless she opts to tip more, but I wouldn't suggest less)
That leaves $686 dollars for other charges made to their room during the 7 days.(Drinks, photos, shore excursions, etc.)
Any amount not spent is refunded.
Hope this alleviates some stress.
Just make sure your credit card has enough available limit to cover the $994 hold.

(yes I work in accounting :rolleyes:)

[Texas Tillie]

Also, OP, you do realize that this is just a "hold" on your credit card? Your balance available will be reduced by this amount, but nothing will charged until the end of the cruise...and the charge will be the amount actually spent. It is possible that your only actual charge at the end of the cruise is $308..the $11/pp/pd...it does happen that people go on cruises and don't spend an extra dollar on anything!

[trvlcrzy]

Just keep in mind that the 'hold' is HAL reserving available funds on your credit card account. If you have a $1500 available limit, and HAL is holding $994, then consider how this will impact your ability to use the same card while shopping in port.

[1of4]

I appreciate all the information and it has alleviated some stress. As always, money needs to be accounted for ahead of time and now we know to ensure the funds are available. I am sure we will spend some of the extra funds, but not that much. We will purchase a drink card for dh but I don't drink alcohol and only one of the kids drinks pop so there you go. Cheap dates the lot of us!:p

Gail