Grease the room steward

[CptSticky]

Isn't pre-paying your tips the same thing!!?:cool: :D

Actually, it's probably worse, but then what are you going to do?:rolleyes:

I think a lot of people forget to tip people who do things for them that are not on the "list" of tips.

[MrPete]

Isn't pre-paying your tips the same thing!!?:cool: :D

 

No. They don't get that till the end of the cruise.

[romnan]

Nope Have not done it,will not do it will not even think of it !!:(

 

I don't give money away without a reason. For someone to get some of my money they have to earn it. I am very generous when I tip,but I don't over tip

[iamkidc]

Pre-tipping is like wiping before you poop. It just doesn't make any sense.

 

:D

[bluegirlum]

A cruise we took in '07, I tried the same thing....and got the worst service from the room steward. Never again.

 

They already got the cash. Why bother doing any work? Like you're going to take it back?

[CptSticky]

They already got the cash. Why bother doing any work? Like you're going to take it back?

Well, I'd think, hmmm, this guy tips, if I do a really good job, he will really tip me.

[onyourtoes]

Pre-tipping is like wiping before you poop. It just doesn't make any sense.

 

:D

 

 

 

Ewwwww. :eek: LOL. I greased a cabin steward once and got great serv.... Oh, wrong "greasing" My bad. LOL

[Rancher Dave]

Usually get good service without having to cough up the green stuff ahead of time. I tend to think when the service is bad they are not going to improve any due to a bit of green stuff ahead of the week.

[MrPete]

Well, I'd think, hmmm, this guy tips, if I do a really good job, he will really tip me.

 

If your boss gave you your paycheck the week before you actually worked, would you really do a better job? :rolleyes:

[cruzincurt]

If you are high maintenance and a pest, then I guess you better prime the pump.

 

All we expect of the steward is to maintain the room. Many times we see the steward the first day then almost never again during the week. Sometimes we bump into the steward in the corridor as we are leaving the room for dinner. We come and go, the steward comes and goes. We never even use the ice. We are so low maintenance that they usually leave all the towel animals lined up on the sofa all week long. We tip at the end.

 

We are not there to develop a life long relationship or expect them to replace our mothers cleaning up after us.

[mmpadp]

You can take that same $20, put it in the ash tray and burn it, and you'll get the same service.

 

I agree with MrPete. I tip at the end of the cruise (auto tip). I get excellent service without slipping $20 to the cabin steward. He/she fills my ice twice a day, empties the fridge for me to store my goodies and gives me great service. Kind words, respect and being polite gives you the same services as a $20 dollar bill.

[Debde]

No. They don't get that till the end of the cruise.

 

Don't they know you have pre-paid? At least that's what I've read here and we all know what you read here is fact..................:cool:

[RadioRay]

I would guess being nice would get you further. A tip in advance could almost be insulting. Sort of like "I know you won't do a good job so I better bribe you now."

 

A better approach, IMHO, would be to just be friendly. Treat them like you're a guest on their ship. Smile. When you see them in the hall, say hi and their first name. If you like something special, ask it as if you're asking a favor, not issuing an order. Treat them like they're the expert and you need the advice or information.

 

Many years ago I was a cable TV technician. We didn't charge for anything. It was part of the monthly service. My personal policy was to politely decline a tip. If it appeared it was upsetting them, I would take it to avoid an ugly situation. But to be honest, 'here, buy yourself a six pack' was rather insulting. The tips I remember to this day were the simple things. Like a glass of water offered when they saw I was sweating. One of my regulars brought me a package of real English tea back from their holiday there. I had mentioned my grandmother was from London and the tea was for her. It's been 25 years and I still remember that tip. It IS the thought that counts.

[Langley Cruisers]

But the OP did ask for special service and a tip would be expected in that case.

 

Actually, OP did not request anything special, IMO. Both requests were resonable and not out of the ordinary that would require a passenger to tip for those services. Shouldn't the ice bucket always be full, anyway?

 

Wow, this is a tough crowd. I'm glad I never had to depend on tips for a living.:D

 

Not one person here said anyting about not tipping. No one said they would not tip. Most are saying they would not bribe a cabin steward.

[John Henry on CC]

Pre-tipping is like wiping before you poop. It just doesn't make any sense.

 

:D

 

Don't they know you have pre-paid? At least that's what I've read here and we all know what you read here is fact..................:cool:

 

They don't know in the beginning/before the cruise, but they find out before the end. I can't tell you on what day that list is available to the crew, but it is.

[GrumpaTom]

I have tipped the steward when we first arrived for one primary reason. My Mother-In-Law was travelling with us and is a diabetic. Since her medication has to be kept cold and the room did not have a fridge in it we brought a small soft sided cooler to keep her meds in and tipped the steward and let them know we needed ice in that bag. The steward not only added ice to it the twice the day that they normally tend to the room, they made extra trips to make sure the ice was good and emptied the old ice and water each time. I felt the $20 in advance and an additional $20 at the end with the regular tips was well worth making sure my Mother-In-Laws medication was kept cold.

[publicpersona]

Someone that used to post here, or perhaps in another cruise forum long ago, used to swear by his technique of giving a $2 coin (and it had to be exactly that) to the room steward at the beginning of the cruise.

 

I've not tipped at the beginning, and don't think it would make much difference.

 

As to the idea of bringing a gift from the Dollar Store. I know you mean well and the recipient no doubt express great gratitude, but I think the odds of picking out something that he or she would truly appreciate and be able to use (keeping in mind their living space is almost nil) would be very small.

[bluegirlum]

Someone that used to post here, or perhaps in another cruise forum long ago, used to swear by his technique of giving a $2 coin (and it had to be exactly that) to the room steward at the beginning of the cruise.

 

I've not tipped at the beginning, and don't think it would make much difference.

 

As to the idea of bringing a gift from the Dollar Store. I know you mean well and the recipient no doubt express great gratitude, but I think the odds of picking out something that he or she would truly appreciate and be able to use (keeping in mind their living space is almost nil) would be very small.

 

What good does a $2 coin do anyone? :confused:

 

And I agree about the gifts as well. I wouldn't bring my friends a gift from the Dollar Store--although I do love the place--so I think it's kind of insulting to bring a steward crap I wouldn't buy in my real life. I'm guessing they appreciate the cash and not stuff that's going to take up room in their tiny cabins.

[mjldvlks]

I would guess being nice would get you further.

Absolutely. We have never had a bad room attendant -- only good and great. Michael on Monarch and Hubert [if I recall correctly] on Mercury were the best. Interestingly, those cruises were lower class cabins [deck 2 outside on Monarch, inside on Mercury]. We always tip at least the minimum and typically pre-pay. I have always found a smile and a polite - friendly request works wonders. Of course this is no different than any personal interaction. I don't recall asking a room steward for anything that wasn't done promptly. I think the the attendants we have had appreciate our understanding that they know their jobs and that we trust them to do it.

 

Frankly, I cannot thinking of anything more demeaning than flipping the room attendant a 2 dollar coin on first meeting. I'm not sure a 20 is much better.

[Gonzo70]

I have never tipped my room steward up front and on six of seven cruises the service has been so great that I tipped extra (above the standard tip) at the end of the cruise. The one occasion I did not tip extra, but still gave the standard tip - the service wasn't bad, but just wasn't great like the other times. I personally do not quite understand the concept of tipping at the start of the cruise (unless making some significant extra request just prior to proffering the tip), but to each their own.

 

I also agree with the majority that tipping should be done in cash rather than gifts (as their living space is so small and unless they tell you exactly what they want it would be hard to pick something they truly need).

[aloha of the seas]

I have done this for many years for many cruises. It is not like I am throwing money away. Is there anyone out there who would not give a minimum tip at the end of the cruise of $20. So if your quote bribe does not work, you do not have to leave anything else. If the steward acts positivily to it, your cruise will be that much more enjoyable. Of course you will need to tip him more money, and maybe you do not want to do that in the first place.

 

I have had great success with this and will continue to do it. It is amazing how quickly my luggage shows up in my room after I invest that $20. And I do not even ask about my luggage, usually it is just an extension cord.

[cruzincurt]

 

I have had great success with this and will continue to do it. It is amazing how quickly my luggage shows up in my room after I invest that $20. And I do not even ask about my luggage, usually it is just an extension cord.

 

I really doubt your pre-tip has anything to do with your luggage showing up. The people I see delivering luggage are generally not room stewards unless they dump all the luggage off in the elevator lobby and the steward goes looking for yours in the pile. I can't imagine a steward making a special trip down to deck 2 that is packed with luggage bins and sorting through all the bins looking for your suitcases.

[MrPete]

Don't they know you have pre-paid? At least that's what I've read here and we all know what you read here is fact..................:cool:

 

They may at some point, but if you have pre paid, they don't get that money up front.

[MrPete]

Someone that used to post here, or perhaps in another cruise forum long ago, used to swear by his technique of giving a US$2 coin (and it had to be exactly that) to the room steward at the beginning of the cruise.

 

Except for one small detail. There's no such animal.

[cruiseguy1016]

I have done this for many years for many cruises. It is not like I am throwing money away. Is there anyone out there who would not give a minimum tip at the end of the cruise of $20. So if your quote bribe does not work, you do not have to leave anything else. If the steward acts positivily to it, your cruise will be that much more enjoyable. Of course you will need to tip him more money, and maybe you do not want to do that in the first place.

 

I have had great success with this and will continue to do it. It is amazing how quickly my luggage shows up in my room after I invest that $20. And I do not even ask about my luggage, usually it is just an extension cord.

 

How do you know that your steward is acting positively to the tip you gave them? You probably would get the same service without the pre-tip. Maybe, as others have mentioned, the steward finds a pre-tip insulting and you actually get worse service. How will you ever know?

 

We never pre-tip. We make it a point to be friendly with our steward. We do not treat them as servants, but as equals. Their choice of careers is no less important than mine. We have always gotten fantastic service and I firmly believe it is because of the way we treat them. With all that being said, we also always tip more than the recommended amount AT THE END of the cruise.