Butler & concierge tipping

[marsworth75]

Havenfan, I believe that your tip philosophy is perfect. All of the things that make a suite something worthwhile are included in the price paid. So therefore all amenities offered by a butler and concierge are included too. So the baseline for "over and above" service is clearly defined.

I am a person who will and does tip, but I do not like the idea of "having" to tip no matter what level of customer service is afforded me.

Look after me and I will look after you is where my philosophy lives.

[mjkacmom]

Havenfan, I believe that your tip philosophy is perfect. All of the things that make a suite something worthwhile are included in the price paid. So therefore all amenities offered by a butler and concierge are included too. So the baseline for "over and above" service is clearly defined.

I am a person who will and does tip, but I do not like the idea of "having" to tip no matter what level of customer service is afforded me.

Look after me and I will look after you is where my philosophy lives.

 

I disagree. There are tipped positions in the service industry who are tipped just for doing their jobs (valets, cab drivers, hair dressers, porters...). I think a butler and concierge fall under this category.

[sjbdtz]

I have a side-note relating to the discussion about offering a bottle of wine, or something as a thank-you.... many stewards are from the Phillipines. The largest monotheistic religion there is Islam, which doesn't permit alcohol.

 

So, when somebody declines your offer, saying that 'it's not allowed', they may be trying to decline for another reason - which they have chosen not to share with you.

 

 

.

[BuffetPantsPls]

I disagree. There are tipped positions in the service industry who are tipped just for doing their jobs (valets, cab drivers, hair dressers, porters...). I think a butler and concierge fall under this category.

 

valets job is to park my car, they dont have to open the door, put my stuff in a trunk. if he does he gets a tip, otherwise he gets nothing.

 

cab drivers is to drive me from point a to point b, but he can do it reallll slow, i'll tip him if he does it fast and gets me there in 1 piece.

 

i dont use hair dressers, but my barber throws in a shave after my haircuts so he gets a tip.

 

there really isn't any positions in the service industry that should be tipped for just doing their jobs.

[havenfan]

There are tipped positions in the service industry who are tipped just for doing their jobs (valets, cab drivers, hair dressers, porters...).

 

That is more true in the US, less true in Europe, and not at all true in Japan.

 

I think a butler and concierge fall under this category.

 

NCL are not making it easy for us to know. It is clear that cabin service (the cabin stewards) and table service (the waiters) belong in this category, as NCL are explicit that these positions are paid from the DSC (btw, kudos to NCL for labeling this a service charge, not a gratuity). However, NCL both explicitly include butler and concierge service in their cruise fare and explicitly exclude butlers and concierges from the DSC pool.

 

If you went to a restaurant in France, you'd be a little silly for leaving an extra 15% for merely adequate service when the bill clearly states "service compris." On what basis do you disagree when NCL clearly state that butler and concierge service is included in the cruise fare?

 

Personally, I believe that NCL pay butlers and concierges very low base wages so the model is more like in the US, where servers make most of their wages from "tips" which are really optional service charges. However, that is merely a belief for which I can find no documentation. For all I know, NCL's statement that butler and concierge service are included in the cruise fare means that they already pay their butlers and concierges a proper wage out of the cruise fare, in contrast to how they pay the stewards and waiters out of the DSC. Again, I don't really believe it, but I have no evidence one way or the other.

Edited October 29, 2014 by havenfan

[mjkacmom]

valets job is to park my car, they dont have to open the door, put my stuff in a trunk. if he does he gets a tip, otherwise he gets nothing.

 

cab drivers is to drive me from point a to point b, but he can do it reallll slow, i'll tip him if he does it fast and gets me there in 1 piece.

 

i dont use hair dressers, but my barber throws in a shave after my haircuts so he gets a tip.

 

there really isn't any positions in the service industry that should be tipped for just doing their jobs.

 

What planet to you live on?! Here you go:

 

Tipping when traveling. April Masini, a columnist who writes "Ask April" at AskApril.com, says despite her focus on relationship advice, she gets a lot of etiquette questions and, over time, has compiled a lengthy list of what's appropriate to tip.

 

So if you're on a vacation this summer, according to Masini, you could do worse than follow her cheat sheet:

 

• Airport or train porter: $1-2 per bag

 

• Airport wheelchair assistance: $3-5 upon arrival at the gate

 

• Cab drivers: 10-18 percent of the fare, depending on the speed of the cab, your comfort level and how safe you feel during the drive, Masini says.

 

• Courtesy shuttle drivers: $1-2 per bag

 

• Hotel bell staff: $1-2 per bag

 

• Hotel concierge: $10-20 depending on request, at departure

 

• Hotel doorman: no tip, Masini says, unless they handle luggage or call a cab

 

• Hotel maid: $2-3 per night

 

• Parking valet: $3-5 at pickup

 

• Restaurant host/hostess: Tipping isn't necessary, according to Masini, unless you're grateful because the host or hostess was able to secure a table for you that you otherwise wouldn't have been able to get.

 

More to consider: "As a frequent business traveler, I'm often faced with the dilemma of how to reward really great service," says Rich Teplitsky, a marketing communications consultant in Spring Branch, Texas. "Most companies I've worked for have a strict 15 percent – no more – tipping policy for work/travel-related tipping. In fact, I've had expense reports rejected when I tried to submit receipts with 17 percent or more tip."

 

Teplitsky's solution? If he feels the service is excellent, he'll tip the limit his company will allow and then contribute a few extra bucks out of his own pocket.

 

What to tip when you're trying to look better. Getting a haircut? Doing your nails? Masini has another cheat sheet:

 

• Barber or beautician: 15-20 percent of your total

 

• Beautician: 15-20 percent

 

• Manicurist/pedicurist: 15-20 percent

 

• Massage therapist: 20 percent

 

• Personal trainer: No tipping because you're paying a personal trainer, who is usually self-employed, for his or her expertise, but a gift at the holidays is a nice idea.

 

• Stylist or colorist: 15-20 percent

 

I think 99.9999% of the US populations gets it.

[fergusonvt]

Yeah this is going to be all over the board depending on type of service as well as quality. This will be our second time in a suite. For our first time we only tipped the butler $50.00 as all he did is bring us our daily treats that come with a suite (and not even what we asked for most of the time) and showed us how to use the coffee maker which we used just once. We didn't tip the Concierge because she was non-existent through our entire cruise and we never saw her until dis-embarkation. We made our own dinner reservations and never asked for anything else.

[havenfan]

valets job is to park my car, they dont have to open the door, put my stuff in a trunk. if he does he gets a tip, otherwise he gets nothing.

 

cab drivers is to drive me from point a to point b, but he can do it reallll slow, i'll tip him if he does it fast and gets me there in 1 piece.

 

i dont use hair dressers, but my barber throws in a shave after my haircuts so he gets a tip.

 

there really isn't any positions in the service industry that should be tipped for just doing their jobs.

 

Do you tip waiters when you eat at nice table-service restaurants?

[BuffetPantsPls]

Do you tip waiters when you eat at nice table-service restaurants?

 

i certainly pay a service charge.

 

i tip when they provide better then expected service if that's what you mean?

[havenfan]

i certainly pay a service charge.

 

i tip when they provide better then expected service if that's what you mean?

 

Do you only pay if the restaurant specifies a service charge? Do you leave nothing if they don't explicitly service on the bill?

 

You obviously do tip in restaurants. Why do you accept that there is a hidden service charge in the case of waiters when you disagree about the other cases?

 

For example, when you mentioned valet parking, do you voluntarily pay a "service charge" even if it's nominally provided "free" by the restaurant? What about porters at airports? Or bellhops at hotels? In none of these cases do they explicitly charge you if you use their services, and yet it is customary to tip them. Which you clearly do understand.

 

There are tipped positions in the service industry who are tipped just for doing their jobs (valets, cab drivers, hair dressers, porters...)

 

there really isn't any positions in the service industry that should be tipped for just doing their jobs.

 

mjkacmom: sucks for you doesnt it?

 

Do you not understand the colloquial American usage of the word "tip" or are you just trolling?

Edited October 29, 2014 by havenfan

[BuffetPantsPls]

I love american vernacular and colloquial turnabouts of various words, it's a fascinating subject. I'm also a stickler for terminologies and what i feel is a laziness in current times where words get comingled and made meaningless due to various reasons. There is a beauty in words, and it feels like we're simply moving towards a world of Newspeak.

 

As such, at a restaurant, i pay the standard 15-20% service charge and if the server was exceptional, I'll leave a gratuity on top of that.

 

I certainly do consider the service charge as a required portion of my meal, as such, i offer no complaints in paying such.

 

Porters at airports, bellhops at hotels, and any of the sort are services I have every right to decline. And I do. If I do utilize their service, there is the acceptable service charge which i will pay.

 

The world is certainly not binary. There are multitudes of opinions, thoughts and beliefs. I believe "this is the planet" we all share.

 

Do you only pay if the restaurant specifies a service charge? Do you leave nothing if they don't explicitly service on the bill?

 

You obviously do tip in restaurants. Why do you accept that there is a hidden service charge in the case of waiters when you disagree about the other cases?

 

For example, when you mentioned valet parking, do you voluntarily pay a "service charge" even if it's nominally provided "free" by the restaurant? What about porters at airports? Or bellhops at hotels? In none of these cases do they explicitly charge you if you use their services, and yet it is customary to tip them. Which you clearly do understand.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do you not understand the colloquial American usage of the word "tip" or are you just trolling?

Edited October 29, 2014 by BuffetPantsPls

[BuffetPantsPls]

 

For example, when you mentioned valet parking, do you voluntarily pay a "service charge" even if it's nominally provided "free" by the restaurant?

 

btw, do you tip the guy at home depot when he walks you to the aisle for the stuff you're looking for?

 

or do you tip when he goes beyond and actually carries your purchases and puts them in your car for you.

 

That is like valet. The carparker is doing his job and your meal acutally does include valet at restaurnats that do provide it. You tip the valet guy if he goes above just parking and retrieving your car.

 

We do know that restaurants do NOT pay a standard wage to waiters, and as restaurants in america go, the patron is the one subsidizing the wage. That woudl be a service charge and not a gratuity or a tip.

 

I'm not the only one with such thoughts, a few of the nicer restaurant in manhattan are talking about doing that. The service charge is automatic no matter what, and an extra gratuity line is there if the waiter went above and beyond.

 

It's a different point of view, but I can't see how you can fault me on it.

[havenfan]

I love american vernacular and colloquial turnabouts of various words, it's a fascinating subject. I'm also a stickler for terminologies and what i feel is a laziness in current times where words get comingled and made meaningless due to various reasons. There is a beauty in words, and it feels like we're simply moving towards a world of Newspeak.

 

As such, at a restaurant, i pay the standard 15-20% service charge and if the server was exceptional, I'll leave a gratuity on top of that.

 

I certainly do consider the service charge as a required portion of my meal, as such, i offer no complaints in paying such.

 

Porters at airports, bellhops at hotels, and any of the sort are services I have every right to decline. And I do. If I do utilize their service, there is the acceptable service charge which i will pay.

 

The world is certainly not binary. There are multitudes of opinions, thoughts and beliefs. I believe "this is the planet" we all share.

 

I apologize for insinuating that you were trolling. I myself highlighted the distinction between a service charge and a gratuity earlier in this thread. However, as this thread is being conducted primarily in the American vernacular, it might be useful for you to emphasize when you depart from colloquial usage.

 

So, getting back to the main point of this thread, do you consider there to be an implicit butler/concierge service charge for occupying a suite which is not already included in the cruise fair?

[triptolemus]

btw, do you tip the guy at home depot when he walks you to the aisle for the stuff you're looking for?

 

or do you tip when he goes beyond and actually carries your purchases and puts them in your car for you.

 

That is like valet. The carparker is doing his job and your meal acutally does include valet at restaurnats that do provide it. You tip the valet guy if he goes above just parking and retrieving your car.

 

It's a different point of view, but I can't see how you can fault me on it.

 

We're talking about services related to the hospitality industry. A hardware store is not in the hospitality industry.

Edited October 29, 2014 by triptolemus

[havenfan]

That is like valet. The carparker is doing his job and your meal acutally does include valet at restaurnats that do provide it. You tip the valet guy if he goes above just parking and retrieving your car.

 

Actually, there exist at least several restaurants and nightclubs around Los Angeles where the valet parking attendants are paid minimum wage and the restaurants or clubs expect their compensation to be topped up with "tips". For just parking and retrieving your car without damage. My nephew worked in them while he was in college. However, I accept that practices may vary in this area as I'm not sure there is a standard.

 

I'm not the only one with such thoughts, a few of the nicer restaurant in manhattan are talking about doing that. The service charge is automatic no matter what, and an extra gratuity line is there if the waiter went above and beyond.

 

That would only bring those restaurants into line with most of the rest of the world. I, for one, would welcome the clarity.

Edited October 29, 2014 by havenfan

[BuffetPantsPls]

I apologize for insinuating that you were trolling. I myself highlighted the distinction between a service charge and a gratuity earlier in this thread. However, as this thread is being conducted primarily in the American vernacular, it might be useful for you to emphasize when you depart from colloquial usage.

 

So, getting back to the main point of this thread, do you consider there to be an implicit butler/concierge service charge for occupying a suite which is not already included in the cruise fair?

 

I actually had this convo with the concierge over a glass of wine late at night. I specifically asked him if he felt like if his current roll did not pay him enough for what he feels like it does. I won't quote exact words, but let's say the gist is, that it's not that bad but it's always nice to get a little something extra. As such, he ensures that he takes care of everything for his customers completely.

 

He went out of his way to make sure i got the credit i got. He got me a discount when he asked how one of the excursions was and i mentioned to him that it felt like people were herded like cattle.

 

He didnt need to do those things, but he did and he made my life alot easier than it could have been.

 

That most certainly deserves my gratuity along with my gratitude!

 

Now, to your specific question, that is tougher because as you mention, NCL does not specifically state what the breakdown is. I personally do assume that such services are indeed part of the rate you pay. But would i feel guilty if the conciegre did none of what i mentioned and i simply walked off the ship leaving nothing extra? I must admit, i'm leaning towards a "probably not"

 

oh I will add, that our room maid was awesome. I dont even assume that it's part of someone's job to dispose of things like kid's soiled diapers. She gave us extra baggies, swung by an extra visit or two to ensure the trash was always empty, helped organize the kids related stuff. Again, my gratitude and my gratuity certainly reflected such, but my understand was that the staff and butlers shared the "extra" tip pool when i asked, so I just gave the butler a combined amount. (though, in case they didn't i gave our room maid extra cash directly in her hand)

Edited October 29, 2014 by BuffetPantsPls

[havenfan]

I actually had this convo with the concierge over a glass of wine late at night.

 

Now that is what I was hoping to find on this board!

 

I specifically asked him if he felt like if his current roll did not pay him enough for what he feels like it does. I won't quote exact words, but let's say the gist is, that it's not that bad but it's always nice to get a little something extra.

 

I will infer from this that his basic wage from the cruise fares is higher than the $50-100/month (before DSC share) I've often heard for cabin stewards and waiters. Or, perhaps, just that his guaranteed minimum, if he has one, is "not that bad".

 

would i feel guilty if the conciegre did none of what i mentioned and i simply walked off the ship leaving nothing extra? I must admit, i'm leaning towards a "probably not"

 

I'll weight your (weakly held) opinion in accordance with your having second-hand knowledge of the situation, which is at least one degree closer than anyone else I've heard from.

Edited October 29, 2014 by havenfan

[havenfan]

but my understand was that the staff and butlers shared the "extra" tip pool when i asked, so I just gave the butler a combined amount. (though, in case they didn't i gave our room maid extra cash directly in her hand)

 

I have no first or second-hand knowledge about these arrangements, but my understanding was that the butler shared some of his tips with the waiters and busboys who helped to bring meals up from the restaurants to the butler's serving station and clear the detritus away afterwards.

[BuffetPantsPls]

Perhaps we should ask Alice when she's ten feet tall.

 

you get enough shrooms in me and i'll believe anything anyone would say!

[BuffetPantsPls]

Here's one for you guys to ponder.

 

There's an automatic 15% surcharge added to all wine purchases.

the 40$ white zin to the 265$ Opus one.

 

Same bottle of wine, same service anyway. 15% no matter what.

 

I personally like taht, it leaves the question completely out of my hand. 15% is the service charge no matter what, and you can leave extra if you so choose.

 

You goto a restaurant though, there's no such thing. How many of you would tip 20% on say a 200$ / btl? What about a 800$/btl?

 

More importantly, what does money.usnews.com say about this situation!

[jackson bernard]

I have a side-note relating to the discussion about offering a bottle of wine, or something as a thank-you.... many stewards are from the Phillipines. The largest monotheistic religion there is Islam, which doesn't permit alcohol.

 

So, when somebody declines your offer, saying that 'it's not allowed', they may be trying to decline for another reason - which they have chosen not to share with you.

 

 

.

 

Stevie you are wrong. Most people from the phillipines are Christian. Look it up.

 

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Forums mobile app

[SteveH2508]

Re giving alcohol to staff:

 

On our last Behind the Scenes tour we were told by an officer that NCL has a zero tolerance policy for alcohol. No staff may drink alcohol whilst on board the ship; they are tested randomly. This is because they may be called upon for emergency duties at any time.

 

I would therefore suggest that left over bottles of wine (a puzzling concept I must say) are not appropriate gifts to staff.

Edited October 29, 2014 by SteveH2508

[pieshops]

http://www.ncl.com/about/careers/shipboard-employment/life-onboard

 

Not quite true, there is a crew bar, just no drinking while on duty

[SteveH2508]

http://www.ncl.com/about/careers/shipboard-employment/life-onboard

 

Not quite true, there is a crew bar, just no drinking while on duty

 

Just passing on what we were told - I thought it curious at the time but it did not seem appropriate to enquire further - e.g. Officers at social dinners do not drink wine?

From your link -

 

"Yes, you can drink when you are off duty and not scheduled to work. You must be over 21 years of age to be served a drink in the crew bar. Please remember that we have a very strict alcohol policy and we do conduct breathalyzers. You must be sober when on duty. Any crewmember abusing the alcohol policy will face termination."

Edited October 29, 2014 by SteveH2508
added quote

[havenfan]

Here's one for you guys to ponder.

 

There's an automatic 15% surcharge added to all wine purchases.

the 40$ white zin to the 265$ Opus one.

 

Same bottle of wine, same service anyway. 15% no matter what.

 

I personally like taht, it leaves the question completely out of my hand. 15% is the service charge no matter what, and you can leave extra if you so choose.

 

I don't see this as any different from a restaurant where you can order a $15 main course salad or a $75 surf-and-turf. The waiter has to do the same things in either case but I still give him 15% either way if I don't particularly like him and 20% if I do.

 

How many of you would tip 20% on say a 200$ / btl? What about a 800$/btl?

 

I personally have never ordered even a $100 bottle on my own dime. When I've had to entertain clients, however.... As long as the department head would sign off on 20%, I'd happily tip 20%.