Do You Tip The Maitre D?

Just curious if this is something that is ok.

When on the Regal last October we saw some people tip for preferential seat location.

We did the same for a couple evenings and got great tables (2) by the rear and window section of Concerto.

I've never seen anyone in a tipped position on any cruise line refuse cash. It is not required or expected though, and should certainly not be needed for prompt and decent seating.

I have seen people in "non-tip" positions refuse cash tips when that was the policy of their line. It isn't worth loss of a job for them to violate the policy of their line.

Many on these boards confuse Maitre d's and Head Waiters as one in the same, so that is a delicate question. To confuse things even more, there is also an assistant Maitre d'. Most of us encounter the HWs on a nightly basis as they are in charge of a section of a dining room where we sit. If that is who we encounter on a daily basis and they do something above and beyond the norm, then by all means we tip them at the end of the cruise. Same can be said of the MD and AMD as we encounter them for special requests, etc. I think it really all depends on the level of service you expect, what you have requested, and how the service was as a result of your request. Kind of a vague answer, but that is how we judge it.

No.

Nope.

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Never tipped him and always have had my requests for a window table honored. It's his job to accommodate you and he is in the tipping pool.

We tip if they actually interact with us most nights or perform a special service - like the one who tracked down all our previous wine purchases and issued us a new wine package card after we lost ours. If they only show up at our table the last night, then no tip.

Maitre'd Yes sometimes.Headwaiter ,Waiter, Assistant Waiter,Cabin Steward.Above my gratuities. always:D

Six cruises so far for us and we have never even met a maître de. We do traditional dining. We have met each of our head waiters.

Don

If we are doing traditional dining, we tip the waiter and his assistant at the end of the voyage. When we do anytime dining, we don't tip the wait staff but might tip the Maitre'd if they are arranging something special like on a formal night.

Tip him only if you feel guilty.

I never have. :D

Yes, always!

We order a freshly baked Challah for our table each evening. On a recent cruise on the Regal with our three grandchildren not only did we receive the Challah each evening but a platter of lox, cream cheese, sliced onion, and sliced tomatoes which the kids devoured while waiting for their multiple shrimp cocktail every evening until the main courses arrived. (keeps them quiet and happy)

Dinner Table

Shrimp for our table

Challah

Howard

Observant - yet shrimp??????? How does that work?

I can only remember one time back in the 90’s when I tipped the MD. For the opposite, I always tip the head waiter. There is only one time early on in my Princess cruising history where I did not because I never saw home once during the entire voyage.....:):):)

Bob

I can only remember one time back in the 90’s when I tipped the MD. For the opposite, I always tip the head waiter. There is only one time early on in my Princess cruising history where I did not because I never saw home once during the entire voyage.....:):):)

 

Bob

I hardly ever see home during a cruise but I don't hold against the MaitreD'. You're tough on them.

But then I never tipped one anyway

Observant - yet shrimp??????? How does that work?

 

 

 

 

 

“Whatever in the water does not have fins and scales is abhorrent to you,” Leviticus

I find your response offensive. We are not discussing religion here or its practices.

This thread is about whether or not to tip in the dining room.

Whether or not you approve of my family's eating habits should not concern you.

Perhaps you do not belong on a cruise ship at all with your attitude?

And a NJ salute to you.

Howard

It all depends. On our most recent cruise we had an excellent dining staff. In fact, they were better than any I had ever experienced on a cruise prior. Our family, 8 of us in total, all chipped in to leave the Head Waiter, Assistant Waiter, and Maitre D an additional tip. We also all made sure to fill out a comment card for each of them. According to many crew members I have spoken to, the comment cards are actually used when they are up for promotions and it really helps. Overall, I would say that I do not leave an additional gratuity unless it is for someone not included in the automatic gratuity such as in the spa or casino.

The Maitre D is a Staff position and should not be tipped. He is in command of all dining venues. He is not personally providing services, but is responsible for the service you receive.

I may be wrong, but I thought the Maitre'd was the restaurant manager and was paid a salary considerably higher than the waiters; thus there was no need to tip him. If someone felt they had to tip him to be assigned a better table, that sounds more like a bribe than a tip.

I may be wrong, but I thought the Maitre'd was the restaurant manager and was paid a salary considerably higher than the waiters; thus there was no need to tip him. If someone felt they had to tip him to be assigned a better table, that sounds more like a bribe than a tip.

For special service, I tip at the end of the cruise. So, it depends.

We only tip the Maitre'd if he/she delivers special personal service. Years ago we used to routinely tip Maitre' d's...but this ended when cruise lines implemented Auto Tipping schemes. The cruise line's have created this auto tip monster....we play by their rules...(their ship...their rules) so we see no need to routinely extend extra tips unless we get extra service :).

Hank

We only tip the Maitre'd if he/she delivers special personal service. Years ago we used to routinely tip Maitre' d's...but this ended when cruise lines implemented Auto Tipping schemes. The cruise line's have created this auto tip monster....we play by their rules...(their ship...their rules) so we see no need to routinely extend extra tips unless we get extra service :).

 

Hank

Agreed. Princess encourages the auto gratuity so guests don't have to worry about tipping the many service providers. So we play by that rule; I tip the porters who handle bags I don't want to lug to/from the ship. Other than that, I refuse to tip any on-board service providers, other than room service runners. People say they tip for service above/beyond, but I've yet to see an example of that. After all, I expect excellent service - that what I paid for.

In all our years of cruising we've never asked any of them to do one thing special except give us a TD table for 2 for the entire trip.

On that particular cruise only the people who gracelessly tipped him prior were given that luxury, the rest of us had to stand in line each night.

For years we tipped the Maitre'd, Head Waiter, Waiter, Assistant in the Traditional dining room. We did so because we generally ordered off the menu in advance each night since we prefer fish and would find out what "quality" fish they had on board. We would find something we like and eat often. More recently we have opted to skip the MDR, instead, we prefer the Crown Grill (love the sea bass on the menu there), do the buffet and room service, as seniors we do not eat more than 2 meals a day. We also like the Pub lunch fish and chips. Sometimes the Maitre'd remembers us from past cruises even though we are not in the MDR. We have always tipped for the service received over and above the auto tip.