Re: Tipping Protocol

[RTLS]

I've been told that there is no tipping on Oceania except, of course, for the $11.50 per day gratuities which we either pre-pay or pay at the end of the cruise.

Certainly, we would expect to give something extra to our room steward (perhaps on a daily basis) and to whoever brings any room service we may order.

So I'd really like comments on this and I'd like to know what others do.

Thanks

[spindrift]

We have always tipped extra to our butler. If the room steward/stewardesses are above and beyond, we give them extra. The first trip, we did an exceptional tip to these folks as they were fantastic--this last trip--not so. Very disappointed. I like the option of rewarding for a job well done. They received the "auto" amount. We have always tipped a bit of extra to the Maitre 'de of the Polo and the Toscana plus a couple of extra bucks to some of those throughout the ship that have gone above and beyond. (I do have to say that the majority of crew and staff on Oceania are fantastic.)

I must say that we have been cruising for 40 plus years, and we are used to taking care of the crew and staff, but I know that there are many who have not done so in the modern generation, so that is what has brought about the "auto" tipping. Sad--but true.

[RTLS]

Thanks for the response. I also meant to ask whether we would tip in US Dollars or Euros as we are travelling in the Med?

[Jancruz]

We tip in USD unless we have euros left over..then we use them or a combination..they appreciate anything..
Jan
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[Jane110]

I must say that we have been cruising for 40 plus years, and we are used to taking care of the crew and staff, but I know that there are many who have not done so in the modern generation, so that is what has brought about the "auto" tipping. Sad--but true.

I think I have to disagree with you there. I've seen plenty of the older generation not tip, especially on our one HAL cruise where tipping was "not required". It was pitiful how justified people felt about stiffing the staff.

I believe that the automatic tips is more a result of the opening dining system that's become popular on so many ships where pax have different waiters for every meal.

To the OP, we always leave on the auto tips and then usually end up tipping our room steward more as well as a favorite waiter.

[brian_uk]

I think I agree with Jane that auto-tipping works well and at least the staff get something.
We were on a Celebrity Cruise and an "older couple" took great joy in telling us that they stuffed newspaper in the envelopes and then proceeded to make a big deal of handing over the tips to the Maitre d' and wait staff.

It takes all sorts.......

Generally when we board, we give the Butler or Steward $25 as an advance bonus, tell him/her what we like and give an additional sum at the end of the cruise depending on how well they carried out our requests.....simple things like making sure there were always Diet Cokes in the regrigerator, fresh fruit etc. We were happy to add extra at the end.....above the ship added tips.

Brian

[daquri]

I found a very informative article I'd like to share with you on the subject of tipping. Please see www.crewoffice.blogspot.com. Click on the Archives for 2006-05-07. Scroll down to the May 9th entry, entitled "Onboard currency trading........"

[cruisin'cats]

we tipped extra to our wine stewards, Ramona and Sasa, on Nautica because they were both terrific. Our maid and her assistant were OK, not above and beyond. As for favorite waiters, well, honestly we didn't spend enough time with just one or two since we ate all over the ship for the 12 days, and that's when we weren't on land (we ate lunches, minimum, on shore). The shared tip program worked well in this situation with the open seating and the various places one can eat. I'm not so sure I appreciate it in the set seating/set waiter situation because we've ended up making adjustments up (since we couldn't do down without opting out of the whole program) on the mass market cruises we've taken before. There is no upcharge for the specialty restaurants on Nautica but the waiters there are sometimes special but most times not better or worse than the ones in the main dining room so I don't feel a special tip is necessary unless there is that above and beyond thing going on.

We tipped a room steward in advance once and it didn't guarantee better service for us. I'd heard from others that they believed it did. If that were the case with this situation, one can only wonder how bad the service would have been without that pre-paid incentive.

People who make jokes with newspaper pieces in envelopes are worse than those who don't give out envelopes at all, IMO. Who are they kidding?

There was one difference that we felt on this trip, it being our first prepaid tipping with no assigned wait staff--we didn't feel like we were no longer special to the staff on the last day. It's an odd thing but true.

[Saga Ruby]

What an astounding story. As you say, it takes all kinds. Once upon a time, on an upscale cruise, my waiter was telling stories about bad tippers. At the end of a 6-week Circle Pacific tour, a couple handed this waiter a $25 tip for the entire voyage. I asked him what his response was. He said he smiled and handed back the money, saying obviously the couple needed the money more than he did!

Ruby

[Jancruz]

I think you would be surprised at how many people take off the tips on their bill..and tip nothing..it is very unfair to the crew!!
Jan
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[Druke I]

I agree with Jan - terribly unfair to not tip.

I personally like the auto-tip system - it gives a good base point, to which I can supplement where I think appropriate.

The crew works very hard - I don't begrudge the tips.

[Saga Ruby]

I have chatted with my cabin attendants about how they can work 7 days a week, 12-14 hour days, for months at a time. It's simple - it's all about their families, sending money home.

A recent conversation revealed that my excellent hard-working attendant had been a hair dresser in Rumania. She wanted to give her 14 yr.-old daughter a better life and, in doing so, left the daughter with relatives and signed on with the cruise line. What a Sophie's choice - leave the daughter to make enough money to give the child a better life.

Because I know the truth behind the curtain of the stage play we call a cruise, I always overtip. How the crew and staff hold up under the hours and demands of their jobs, is a mystery to me.

When I read about stuffing an envelope with newspaper, it makes me sad that those who can afford to tip consider it an evil joke to stiff the crew. I have a picture in my mind of the cheapskates s******ing in their cabin about how they stiffed their waiters and stewards.

I truly hope that "what goes around, comes around."

Ruby

[boom_boom]

I agree that under the current system it is very unfair not to tip the staff who do so much for all of us onboard. I do resent the auto 15% on drinks however. I would also like to see the cruise industry increase the wages to their staff so there is less reliance on tipping. I wouldn't change our travel plans if the fare were $200-300 a person more and there was no tipping because the staff was paid better.

[hondorner]

I'm uncomfortable with the entire concept and subject of tipping. Not because I resent it; on the contrary, I'm considered by most to be very generous. My discomfort arises from the disparity among different participants. Based on the number of questions and different answers about tipping, I don't think I'm alone in my discomfort.

The new system of automatically charging my account for tips actually increases my confusion. In the past, I knew that tipping was expected, could find a guideline somewhere which indicated typical amounts, and could prepare my envelopes with those amounts (or a little more if the service was exceptional), and go home feeling entirely comfortable that I held up my end of the bargain.

Conversely, if the salaries were high enough that no tipping is expected, or if the automatic retention of gratuities on my account were sufficient unto the deed, I would again feel no discomfort.

It's this hybrid system that so many are recommending that causes me discomfort. If the retained amount is sufficient, why should I leave anything extra? "For exceptional service," many reply. But, what is exceptional service? What is the base line? At what point is a person doing the job that is expected, and at what point is that service above and beyond?

If a cruise line, like Oceania for example, is considered to be at a premium level, then I should expect "normal" service to also be at a premium level. In other words, I should expect more from a waiter or a steward on a premium level that I do from a mass-market level. If this level of service also indicates a higher level of gratuity, then I expect the cruise line to recognize this and set the retained amount at a higher level. In other words, I expect to pay more for premium service, and I also expect the base line to be higher.

Now, having said all that, I think it's reasonable to assume that the cruise line also thinks the same way, and will have set the retained amount high enough to meet the expectation of service. I don't think it's reasonable to assume that the cruise line, or the staff, expects me to yet tip above and beyond the system. Otherwise, what is the point of the system? If I'm expected to carry cash against the possibility that service might be extraordinary at an alternative restaurant, for example, then why not just expect me to always leave the tip in cash at every meal? The ship is either cashless, or it's not.

I think I'm making a muddle of my thoughts; basically it was all just a long-winded way to say that if the cruise line is retaining gratuities on my behalf, I expect that they know the level they are retaining will be sufficient, and I do not expect to tip anyone above and beyond that amount, unless the service is truly extraordinary beyond the expected level, and frankly, I can't think of what that might be.

Keeping the mini-bar stocked? That's their job. Room usually in great condition? That's they job. Attentive at the table? That's their job.

As an aside, I have never again seen service to equal that on my very first cruise, 25 years ago. In fact, I've used it as a simple test of service ever since. Whenever I unwrapped a pat of butter, the wrapping paper disappeared almost before I finished putting it down. Even if there was no waiter or busboy nearby, somehow an arm would snake in between us and snatch the offending butter paper away before anyone caught sight of it. Frankly, that has never happened to me since then, on land or on sea. If it ever does, I might consider a special tip. :)

So, my bottom line is that in 90% of the cases, I believe that the automatically retained amount is sufficient to adequately reward the staff and that if it isn't enough, it's not my fault.

I hope that doesn't make me as bad as those folks who stuff newspaper in their envelopes...

[spindrift]

Hondoner - may I commend you. You took the time to say it properly. What more can I say.

[mike35]

Exceptionally well put, Don. You put into words what many of us feel and practice. Only if a staff member truly performs "above and beyond" do we reward appropriately (and what might be above and beyond for us might be par for the course for someone else).

Mike

[Jane110]

In the past, I knew that tipping was expected, could find a guideline somewhere which indicated typical amounts, and could prepare my envelopes with those amounts (or a little more if the service was exceptional),

It's this hybrid system that so many are recommending that causes me discomfort. If the retained amount is sufficient, why should I leave anything extra? "For exceptional service," many reply. But, what is exceptional service? What is the base line? At what point is a person doing the job that is expected, and at what point is that service above and beyond?

...

Hmmm.....I'm a little confused by your post.

In scenerio one - a traditional cruise....You tipped what was expected and then gave extra if service was exceptional.

In scenerio two - pre-paid tips.....You tipped what was expected (because it was added to your shipboard account) and now are confused if you should tip extra for exceptional service, beacuse you're now unsure what constitues exceptional service.

Tipping extra for exceptional service is personal and we all have our own guidelines. Why would your guidelines for giving extra change because of how the base tips are handled?

I'm not mocking or flaming you and I appreciate your desire to "do the right thing", but why does the concept of "exceptional service" seem different to you from scenerio one to scenerio two?

Maybe I'm not reading you correctly?

For us, it's really the same equation. If we're handing out little envelopes individually or whether it's done for us automatically, 95% of the time, we end up giving our room steward and a favorite waitperson more than the recommended amount.

[hondorner]

No, you didn't mis-read me, and you certainly aren't flaming me. It's simple. I started off by saying I was confused, and I stayed that way!

Seriously, when I re-read what I had written, I saw the same anomaly. Rather than add to an already long-winded post, I hoped no one would notice. But, since you did, a confession is in order. When I tipped on a personal basis, before the retained gratuities, I pretty much followed the guidelines. I didn't see any more basis for an additional tip back then than I do now. I guess I just added the qualifiers, ("or a little more..." or "90% of the cases") because there always was an outside possibility that I would have -- or still might -- experience such unconditional service that I felt -- or would feel -- compelled to add something.

Put it down to a willingness to come very, very close to my deepest feelings, but a reluctance to state it as an absolute.

[hgatsawgrs]

Dear Hondorner, I have seen many posts on "Tipping" and appreciate the time you put in expressing your feelings. My wife and I have many discussions on the topic, in part because I tip much more than I "should" and we never quite come to grips with the issue.
Part of it for me is the overall economics of the pay for the people we tip. The stark reality of Cruise ship economics is the if the Cruise Line was a U.S. flag carrier( and thereby subject to Federal wage and labor law) and had to pay with the minimum per hour rules in the U.S. and the hours worked/overtime rules along with the maximum work restrictions, the business just might fail. I don't know what the impact would be on costs, but it might not even work on the amount of labor required on each ship because of hours worked. The space required for the extra help needed might even effect design of the ships.
The Cruise lines are able to exist in part for what certainly may be called the exploitation of their labor force.
Now, before people respond negatively, I understand that the people they hire want the job they have and no gun is held to their head. But, I also know that because they are so underpaid , by any standard one can compare to in my normal life( like the worker at Mac Donalds) , is the reason I tip so much.
Interestingly, not many of us have negative feelings toward the cruise line for this "exploitation". Rather, we understand it. Getting their customers to accept an extra charge on our bill to pay for labor costs is acceptable to us for some types of labor. If we got a charge for the Captain, I think we would reject that "Tip".
I understand my feelings expressed here are also conficted, like the one that triggered it. I do tip quite alot "extra" even though the overall concept of cruise tipping and pay practises is an interesting one.

[william m holiday]

:) regarding tipping on the cruises they added 11.50 per day per person. ours was a ten day cruise so it came out tO $ 230.00 added to our bill for dinning and stateroom service.