SUNSHINE from NYC-St. John & Halifax

So we took our first cruise last week from NYC to St. John & Halifax. I used another Sunshine thread on this board when planning our trip, it was a HUGE help.

We enjoyed our Sunshine cruise with our three kids (17-13-9) and my 80 year old mother in law with her sister. Since we had such a wide age range, we all had different agendas. Some of us were up early and eating at the buffet while others slept late and preferred to eat in the dining room. Without texting it was a little difficult to keep track of everyone, luckily the ship isn't so big that you can't take a lap or two around to check the usual spots. My 9 year old daughter was comfortable going from the pool down to the room on deck 2 to change by herself.

I wasn't expecting luxury as we usually travel on a budget...ok we're cheap...so some of the things that bothered others did not bother us. I told the kids what was 'free' and what wasn't and just let them do what they wanted. We ate almost exclusively at the Lido buffet. No the food isn't spectacular, but it wasn't bad either. Your best bet is to get there when they open and everything is relatively fresh. We ate a LOT of Guy's burgers, but not many burritos...there was just something about them we didn't like. The pizza was excellent, though the line could get long. The omelette station was a good alternative to the powdered eggs at the buffet. We ate a ton of ice cream too. Our one night in the dining room was underwhelming. I didn't find it that much better than the buffet food. I guess we're just not dining room people. Keep an eye on what they have at the Taste Bar on any given day. One night they usually have sushi so you can have some without paying for it at Bonsai. Lemonade, water, coffee, hot chocolate are all free and plentiful.

Being cheap we objected to the across the board tipping for ALL services. I have zero issue tipping the stewards and other staff, but don't like being charged for the dining room if we never eat there (we tipped cash the one night we went). Go to guest services and they will alter the tipping schedule however you wish.

The kids never spent any money in the arcade, though we told them they could.

I'm not much of a shopper and even my wife who is, didn't find much to buy onboard. The kids did buy some candy.

Pool temperature was so hot that my daughter had to come out to cool off. Water slides were her favorite thing to do. The boys watched several movies from the hot tubs. I had scoffed at spending cruise time to watch movies I could see elsewhere, but we watched a total of five. The weather was chilly and windy so we got blankets with our sail and sign cards and bundled up. Just be sure to bring them back or they charge you. We were getting up to 8 at a time and had a hard time keeping track of where they all went.

Our room was small with two twin beds and a cot on the floor, but again, no big deal to us as we were only in the room to sleep.

Did I mention we're cheap? In St. John we passed up the shore excursions and just walked around on our own. If you head left off the ship there's a shoreline boardwalk that starts outside Market Square. It will eventually take you to Reversing Falls in about two miles, but there's not much to see on the way, it's very industrial. It's worth noting that local tours will tell you that you HAVE to see it. The trouble is, you may not be there when the tide is coming in...so if they take you over there you might not see anything spectacular. We walked uphill to visit a record store I had researched and then just wandered. The St. John City Market is worth seeing at 47 Charlotte St. They have local crafts and food. I wasn't as impressed with the highly touted Market Square. We hit some food trucks for Poutine then walked the other direction and visited a few monuments, one of which is a lamp called Three Sisters. You'll find historical plaques all over the city in English and French. If you have kids or just like candy, be sure to visit Freak Lunchbox at 18 King St.

We walked about 9 miles total while in St. John.

One thing you need to be aware of, the MDR staff you chose not to tip was also the one cleaning up after you in the buffet, making those burgers and burritos and pizzas, cleaning the ice cream area, staffing the taste bar, etc. They are all part of the pool and many do double duty (we saw one of our dinner servers working the Comfort Kitchen area of the buffet at lunch the next day.

It is your discretion not to tip, but do understand the tips are for all free dining venues, not just the MDR.

One thing you need to be aware of, the MDR staff you chose not to tip was also the one cleaning up after you in the buffet, making those burgers and burritos and pizzas, cleaning the ice cream area, staffing the taste bar, etc. They are all part of the pool and many do double duty (we saw one of our dinner servers working the Comfort Kitchen area of the buffet at lunch the next day.

 

It is your discretion not to tip, but do understand the tips are for all free dining venues, not just the MDR.

Yep - those wait staff tips you appear to have removed took away from the same staff that was working the Lido deck.

I didn't used to be one for just making the tips a service fee and charging it to every cruiser as not optional. But after several cruises hearing people say things like "I drank to much - I need to go remove my tips so I can afford the bill" I'm done. I have no issue with people being frugal - but that means being mindful of how you spend your money - not stiffing service personnel to keep money in your pockets.

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Well now I feel bad. That's not how it was explained to me by my sister and parents who had been on the Sunshine before. My wife handled the transaction so I will ask her if they explained it in more detail. We would not have done it if we had understood.

I just spoke to my wife and she says that guest services assured her that they were ONLY taking off the MDR tips. She even double checked that nothing was being taken away from any other food service and they said no. She also asked if she could reallocate the MDR tips to other areas and was told no, but that you could raise the tip percentages for them as a separate transaction.

Sounds like this may be a confusing issue. I will contact Carnival directly and ask.

Just for future knowledge this is straight from CCL FAQ:

SERVICE GRATUITIES (TIPS)

It is customary to extend gratuities (tips) to the shipboard staff for their services. How much to tip is a personal matter and completely up to our guests.

Our recommended guideline to what is appropriate is $12.95 USD per person, per day for guests in standard stateroom accommodations and $13.95 USD per person, per day for guests booked in suites. The majority of the tipping amount goes to employees such as stateroom stewards, assistant stewards, dining room waiters and assistant waiters. A small portion goes to a mix of other personnel who are in guest-facing customer service positions within areas such as culinary and hotel services, along with certain key positions in entertainment and guest services.

Here is the breakdown, per day:

Housekeeping Team: $4.05 ($5.05 for suites)

Dining Team: $6.40

Alternative Services: $2.50

To see the total recommended gratuities for your cruise, click here.

For your information, tipping applies regardless of the dining options selected, such as eating at the casual dining restaurant or open seating dining.

For beverage purchases, an automatic 15% gratuity will be added to the bill and the charges will be applied directly to the guest's Sail & Sign account. An automatic 15% gratuity will be added to the cover charge of the Chef’s Table and the charges will be applied directly to the guest’s Sail & Sign account. Room Service staff may be tipped as service is rendered.

There are two ways of extending gratuities to the shipboard staff :

Automatic Gratuities on Shipboard Account

For our guest's convenience, we automatically add the recommended gratuities to the guest's Sail & Sign account toward the end of the cruise.

Guests less than two years of age are not required to extend gratuities.

For cruises that begin in Barbados, all gratuities are pre-paid and automatically added during the booking process.

Should a guest not be satisfied with the service they receive, they can contact the Guest Services desk while onboard. This will allow us to address their concerns in a timely and appropriate fashion. At the discretion of the guest, they may adjust the gratuities at any time while onboard. Gratuities will be deemed undisputed unless a request to modify is received prior to disembarking the ship.

Prepaid Gratuities

Gratuities are pre-arranged and can be added at the time of booking or anytime up to the sail date. If already booked, guests can contact their Travel Professional to add prepaid gratuities; if booked directly with Carnival, contact us at 800 764-7419.

All guests on each booking must prepay the gratuities with the exception of children less than two years of age.

For cruises that begin in Barbados, all gratuities are pre-paid and automatically added during the booking process.

The dollar amount for gratuities will appear in the 'Miscellaneous Charge' field on the confirmation. E-Documents will indicate if gratuities have been prepaid.

Should a guest not be satisfied with the service they receive, they can contact the Guest Services desk while onboard. This will allow us to address their concerns in a timely and appropriate fashion. At the discretion of the guest, they may adjust the gratuities at any time while onboard. Gratuities will be deemed undisputed unless a request to modify is received prior to disembarking the ship.

Please note the total gratuities per cruise duration.

Cruise

Duration

Standard Staterooms

Suites

Days

$12.95 USD

per person, per day

$13.95 USD

per person, per day

2

$25.90

$27.90

3

$38.85

$41.85

4

$51.80

$55.80

5

$64.75

$69.75

6

$77.70

$83.70

7

$90.65

$97.65

8

$103.60

$111.60

9

$116.55

$125.55

10

$129.50

$139.50

11

$142.45

$153.45

12

$155.40

$167.40

13

$168.35

$181.35

14

$181.30

$195.30

15

$194.25

$209.25

16

$207.20

$223.20

17

$220.15

$237.15

18

$233.10

$251.10

19

$246.05

$265.05

20

$259.00

$279.00

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Well now I feel bad. That's not how it was explained to me by my sister and parents who had been on the Sunshine before. My wife handled the transaction so I will ask her if they explained it in more detail. We would not have done it if we had understood.

It's possible that they didn't know this either. I don't think Carnival does a very thorough job of explaining just how the gratuity system works. I know, and many others know because we read a lot of threads here, or posts on other sites, or have taken the Behind the Fun Tour, but many don't, so they think they can isolate services that they don't use, but you really can't because the workers really do wear a lot of hats!

Well now I feel bad. That's not how it was explained to me by my sister and parents who had been on the Sunshine before. My wife handled the transaction so I will ask her if they explained it in more detail. We would not have done it if we had understood.

Doesn't matter the ship, the tips are important to the staff no matter how it's designated or who it goes to. To not do so, because you are cheap is at least totally honest. If that's the case, then I don't know why you feel bad. You made a conscious decision not to tip for an exact reason. Very few positions when it comes to serving food onboard are stand alone jobs. The waitstaff works the buffet and other areas. They clean, etc.

Your choice what you do with your money. I consider myself very budge conscious. Tips are never the area I would choose to skimp on. But plenty of people do. Just look at guest services the day they hit people's accounts. Glad you enjoyed your cruise. I would love to take this one if Carnival ever offers it again. It's not on the 2018 schedule.

Definitely sounds like that their onboard staff needs to get on the same page as their corporate website. I'll take a look at the receipt and see if it specifies MDR staff.

Doesn't matter the ship, the tips are important to the staff no matter how it's designated or who it goes to. To not do so, because you are cheap is at least totally honest. If that's the case, then I don't know why you feel bad. You made a conscious decision not to tip for an exact reason. Very few positions when it comes to serving food onboard are stand alone jobs. The waitstaff works the buffet and other areas. They clean, etc.

 

Your choice what you do with your money. I consider myself very budge conscious. Tips are never the area I would choose to skimp on. But plenty of people do. Just look at guest services the day they hit people's accounts. Glad you enjoyed your cruise. I would love to take this one if Carnival ever offers it again. It's not on the 2018 schedule.

I wouldn't skip on tips for services I was using either. But the way it was explained to me was like I was being charged for hitting the mini bar every day without ever opening it.

Sorry to hear they are not offering this cruise in 2018. I'd much rather go North than South.

I am sure OP has "learned his lesson"about tipping and it was an innocent mistake. We will be doing this cruise on 9/23, so I am enjoying reading this and looking forward to more. HIGHJACK to Kath: BON VOYAGE!!!!

I am sure OP has "learned his lesson"about tipping and it was an innocent mistake. We will be doing this cruise on 9/23, so I am enjoying reading this and looking forward to more. HIGHJACK to Kath: BON VOYAGE!!!!

HIGHJACK BACK - thanks one of these days we will meet up on a cruise!

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BTW I am in the camp with the "it should be a non-removable service charge" folks. The crew all work so hard, the majority of them deserve every penny whether you use that service or not. We often eat in the specialty restaurants, but I still leave the gratuities for the general dining staff. I may eat breakfast or brunch in the MDR - I never know until I decide. Services we do use generally get extra and we ALWAYS take car of the bar staff [emoji12]

Anyway, I do believe the OP made an innocent mistake. I do believe that Carnival doesn't explain it properly and should share the blame for removed gratuities.

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I wish Carnival would just make gratuities a mandatory add on, I'm getting sick and tired of supplementing other peoples cheapness. I think that cruiselines should reduce gratuities fees to $10pp per day, no exceptions, that would offset the avoiders enough to allow the rest of us the financial hit of covering for them. Tip extra where you please.

HIGHJACK BACK - thanks one of these days we will meet up on a cruise!

 

 

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(y) We will be on Sunshine 9/23. All you have to do is hide somewhere on the ship for a week! :eek:

I wish Carnival would just make gratuities a mandatory add on.

I wish that they (and the industry) would stop using automatic "for your convenience" tips to supplement the wages they pay. Just pay fairly and price the cruise according....and let people tip extra "for good service" at their own discretion.

I have no problem with the workers getting their tips, I just find it offensive that carnival (and the industry) actually uses the auto-gratuities as a way to keep their advertised costs low and their wages low.

I wish that they (and the industry) would stop using automatic "for your convenience" tips to supplement the wages they pay. Just pay fairly and price the cruise according....and let people tip extra "for good service" at their own discretion.

 

I have no problem with the workers getting their tips, I just find it offensive that carnival (and the industry) actually uses the auto-gratuities as a way to keep their advertised costs low and their wages low.

How the heck does advertising costs come into the equation? The industry lives by a standard and recommendation to its clients. It has zero to do with your "perception" of "what pricing is and what wages they pay". People can tip extra, so nothing new there. There are always reasons people can justify for removing tips, the op has their "reason" but in the end it almost always comes down to reality. Those people work in a system where their expectation is that clients will follow what is commonly accepted. It's a shame when those clients cheat their way out of honoring the trust the workers put into their side of the equation.

How the heck does advertising costs come into the equation? The industry lives by a standard and recommendation to its clients. It has zero to do with your "perception" of "what pricing is and what wages they pay". People can tip extra, so nothing new there. There are always reasons people can justify for removing tips, the op has their "reason" but in the end it almost always comes down to reality. Those people work in a system where their expectation is that clients will follow what is commonly accepted. It's a shame when those clients cheat their way out of honoring the trust the workers put into their side of the equation.

Perhaps you should read what I wrote. I said nothing about "advertising costs." :rolleyes:

Perhaps you should read what I wrote. I said nothing about "advertising costs." :rolleyes:

LOL true enough, I should have said advertised costs.....

I wish that they (and the industry) would stop using automatic "for your convenience" tips to supplement the wages they pay. Just pay fairly and price the cruise according....and let people tip extra "for good service" at their own discretion.

 

I have no problem with the workers getting their tips, I just find it offensive that carnival (and the industry) actually uses the auto-gratuities as a way to keep their advertised costs low and their wages low.

If this is how you feel, do you get offended every time you eat at a restaurant on land where staff get pay minimum wage and rely on tips to supplement their income? What's the difference?

Okay, I have been on CC for a very long time. I treasure all the advice I have gotten here. I swear, you are all the experts. If I have a question or concern about ANYTHING I know who I'm gonna call! My friend is a TA and I have learned stuff on here even SHE doesn't know! OP has been good enough to take time to sit at his computer and give us a review of his cruise. He and/or his DW and/or CCL made a mistake about tipping. I am sure it was an innocent mistake and one he will never make again. With all the time I have spent on this forum I have kept my mouth shut and stayed away from "controversy" but everyone's point has been made, OP "learned his lesson" and now it's time to move on. If anyone wants to discuss tipping, start another thread. I respect everyone's opinions and normally tip "over" for good service and have ALWAYS been extra courteous to all the crew. Now I'm anxious to read about OP's cruise. PEACE. ;)

Jk666. All food services are considered MDR staff since they rotate all food venues, perhaps your wife misunderstood but I find it quite uncommon she would be told otherwise. Descriptions are quite clear on Carnival site in fact all mainline cruise sites how this is done. Lesson learned and hope others will also follow suit. Thank you for sharing your review and glad your family enjoyed your holiday. Safe journeys.

Okay, I have been on CC for a very long time. I treasure all the advice I have gotten here. I swear, you are all the experts. If I have a question or concern about ANYTHING I know who I'm gonna call! My friend is a TA and I have learned stuff on here even SHE doesn't know! OP has been good enough to take time to sit at his computer and give us a review of his cruise. He and/or his DW and/or CCL made a mistake about tipping. I am sure it was an innocent mistake and one he will never make again. With all the time I have spent on this forum I have kept my mouth shut and stayed away from "controversy" but everyone's point has been made, OP "learned his lesson" and now it's time to move on. If anyone wants to discuss tipping, start another thread. I respect everyone's opinions and normally tip "over" for good service and have ALWAYS been extra courteous to all the crew. Now I'm anxious to read about OP's cruise. PEACE. ;)

You think it derailed the thread? Wow, it is probably the blandest tip related thread I have seen in a while. I did not get that vibe, but your point is well taken.

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You think it derailed the thread? Wow, it is probably the blandest tip related thread I have seen in a while. I did not get that vibe, but your point is well taken.

 

 

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Jimbo, no, but it is starting to snowball and I'm really enjoying the review and maybe it's time to get back to it! This isn't a thread about tipping, it's a thread about a Sunshine cruise review. Time to move on! PEACE! :ship:(y)