Tipping or not with prepaid gratuities?

[Vidakatten]

Hi all!

Here´s a question from a "first time cruiser"! I have searched the threads here but Im still confused.:confused:

Since we have the "My time dining"- option we have the gratuities prepaid. Are we supposed to tip anyone anyway? If yes, to whom and how much? Need some help because we are from Sweden, where we don't have the tipping system at all! Have been traveling to/in US about six times and are familiar with tipping at hotels and restaurants.

Just want to do "the right thing" on our cruise on Navigator in June!:)

[LMaxwell]

A couple of bucks for room service delivery.

[uksimonusa]

Hi all!

Here´s a question from a "first time cruiser"! I have searched the threads here but Im still confused.:confused:

Since we have the "My time dining"- option we have the gratuities prepaid. Are we supposed to tip anyone anyway? If yes, to whom and how much? Need some help because we are from Sweden, where we don't have the tipping system at all! Have been traveling to/in US about six times and are familiar with tipping at hotels and restaurants.

Just want to do "the right thing" on our cruise on Navigator in June!:)

 

The PrePaid gratuities cover the tips of the people who are normally tipped, if you feel that a room attendant, waiter, bar server etc, give exceptional service there is nothing to stop you from tipping them extra

[NorbertsNiece]

You absolutely do not have to tip further. Nor are you expected to.

 

You may choose to tip someone who has given you exceptional service (where that person is already included in the pre-paid arrangement) but that is totally your choice.

 

Linda

[gerif]

If you order room service, those who deliver your food are not included in the prepaid gratuities. Other than that, you are not required to tip further. You may if you wish give additional too staff who you might feel have gone over and above in providing service but it is not necessary.

[cb at sea]

If your tips are pre-paid...you're done! Those tips cover your cabin attendant, waiter, ass't waiter and head waiter.

 

If you buy a drink, a tip is added to the cost...so you don't need to tip additionally there.

 

Room service is about the only thing that isn't covered...$1-2 per order is about standard.

[kontraxed]

I agree with Norbertsniece above. Your pre-paid gratuities cover all normal tipping. If someone (a particular waiter or room steward for instance) goes out of their way to provide me particularly good and friendly service, I will give them an extra $20 at the end of the cruise. This amount may be too little or too much for others, it is just the figure I pay and, frankly, not often.

[Vidakatten]

Thank you so much for helping me! Now I can fel comfortable knowing what to do!:)

[impatientlywaiting]

We do the same with our cabin attendant. If they go over and beyond, I will give them an additional $20 at the end of the cruise. If I end up getting drinks at the same bar all cruise long and get exceptional service, I will give that bar tender an additional $20 at the end of the cruise as well. :)

[Desert Cruizers]

We normally do Main dining and have always tipped our room steward, waiter & asst waiter a $20. We have MTD this cruise but will still give extra if we feel their service was excellant. There is no set amount, only what you feel is best.

[SpainAlien]

Thank you for asking the question, I was wondering too. I was on NCL Epic last year and we prepaid the tips, I did not know we should have tipped room service on top of that but I do now.

 

Thanks again

[scottie99]

You absolutely do not have to tip further. Nor are you expected to.

 

You may choose to tip someone who has given you exceptional service (where that person is already included in the pre-paid arrangement) but that is totally your choice.

 

Linda

 

I am not sure if this is totally true. We always prepay our tips but because envelopes are left in your cabin on the second last day, we have felt pressured to tip extra.

 

On most of our recent cruises, almost all American passengers on MTD gave their waiters an envelope on the last night. I realise you do not have to give extra, but I felt waitstaff were looking for it!

[bkrickles1]

Has anybody heard of stopping the automatic gratuities?

Is it possible to stop that and also not pre-pay?

I like to tip and have no problem tipping the amount that would be deducted automatically, or even more, but I like to do it personally.

It's the way I've done it for many years and it allows me to not only take care of the people who've done the most for me and my family, but it adds a personal touch that is missing with the auto gratuities.

Just wondering

[Paul65]

I am not sure if this is totally true. We always prepay our tips but because envelopes are left in your cabin on the second last day, we have felt pressured to tip extra.

 

On most of our recent cruises, almost all American passengers on MTD gave their waiters an envelope on the last night. I realise you do not have to give extra, but I felt waitstaff were looking for it!

 

I have not had envelopes left in my cabin on my last couple cruises, nor have I seen most passengers giving out envelopes on the last night. Now, everyone either prepays or has gratuities automatically added to their account each day (though some insist on removing the auto-gratuities). With that system, you should feel no obligation to tip extra. Your service staff is taken care of. I do think it's nice to give a little extra to those who may have given you exceptional service, but it should not be an obligation or expectation.

[Clarea]

Has anybody heard of stopping the automatic gratuities?

Is it possible to stop that and also not pre-pay?

I like to tip and have no problem tipping the amount that would be deducted automatically, or even more, but I like to do it personally.

It's the way I've done it for many years and it allows me to not only take care of the people who've done the most for me and my family, but it adds a personal touch that is missing with the auto gratuities.

Just wondering

If you have not prepaid gratuities, then you can go to Guest Services and request they discontinue automatic gratuities.

[cariad1000]

We always prepay grats but still give extra to those who make the cruise extra special. Somehow the list of those gets longer with each cruise. :confused:

 

We had just one envelope left in our suite on the last night, marked clearly "Stateroom Atttendant". This did pip me off, as, although he was a lovely, polite and cheerful young man, the room was not particularly clean, (dusty countertops, dirty mirrors and food crumbs on the floor when we arrived were still there when we left!) and the bedding was changed just twice on a 14 night cruise.

 

I didn't complain, as I know the pressure these attendants are under, and didn't want to make trouble for him, I just wasn't impressed considering what we had paid for the cruise, moreso with RCI than with the attendant.

 

Did I put anything in the envelope? Yes, although I probably shouldn't have, but I liked him and didn't want to end our holiday on a sour note.

[spookwife]

Hi all!

Here´s a question from a "first time cruiser"! I have searched the threads here but Im still confused.:confused:

Since we have the "My time dining"- option we have the gratuities prepaid. Are we supposed to tip anyone anyway? If yes, to whom and how much? Need some help because we are from Sweden, where we don't have the tipping system at all! Have been traveling to/in US about six times and are familiar with tipping at hotels and restaurants.

Just want to do "the right thing" on our cruise on Navigator in June!:)

 

the only additional you may have to do that is not automatically applied is room service and specialty dining. everything else is either included in the prepaid or is charged at point of sale( alcohol, spa services, ice cream on Promenade)

 

room service is dependent on what you order. Typically $1-5 is more than enough . a pot of coffee and some pastry synth morning merits a dollar. full meals for everyone at dinner, $5.

 

for dinner in a specialty, just use your best judgement. some people calculate what the meal would cost on land and tip 20% accordingly. other just do a flat X number of dollars on top of the fee.

 

any individuals you feel are warranted extra, by all means tip if you are so inclined. the daily charge covers all meals in included dining venues and your cabin attendant

[spookwife]

Has anybody heard of stopping the automatic gratuities?

Is it possible to stop that and also not pre-pay?

I like to tip and have no problem tipping the amount that would be deducted automatically, or even more, but I like to do it personally.

It's the way I've done it for many years and it allows me to not only take care of the people who've done the most for me and my family, but it adds a personal touch that is missing with the auto gratuities.

Just wondering

 

the general consensus is is that anyone who claims to do it this way are just looking to make themselves look good in front of others and/or are really going to stiff the staff by tipping below standard or not at all. Furthermore there is HUGE debate about what happens to these funds.. are they really pooled and must be shared with everyone else, or not? does cash given directly a person stay with that person?! also factor in that when you do so remove them the crew must justify to their bosses as to why it was removed in the first place. as in they get into trouble and it il not matter what lousy when you go down to GS to remove them.

 

to be the most fair to everyone while STILL rewarding those who do you special service, leave the auto tips in place and tip extra as you see fit. if envelopes are not provided, you can get some at Guest services or do what I do and provide my own cards( i happen to make mine, but a packet of small thank you notes might run you $5 at your local Hallmark store.)

[Mim Lloyd]

for dinner in a specialty, just use your best judgement. some people calculate what the meal would cost on land and tip 20% accordingly. other just do a flat X number of dollars on top of the fee.

 

The additional cost for each of the speciality restaurants INCLUDES the gratuity, so no extra is needed. We don't tip any extra at these restaurants or any bar as we've already been charged automatically. And at 18% tip now per drink, I certainly won't tip any extra.

[Paul65]

the only additional you may have to do that is not automatically applied is room service and specialty dining. everything else is either included in the prepaid or is charged at point of sale( alcohol, spa services, ice cream on Promenade)

 

You don't even "have to" tip room service, but a small tip is appropriate and appreciated by the staff. The fees for specialty dining include a tip, so just like most everything else on the ship, not extra tip is required. You can, if you feel like you got great service and want to show appreciation, but you should not feel obligated to tip above the extra fee you've already paid.

[spookwife]

The additional cost for each of the speciality restaurants INCLUDES the gratuity, so no extra is needed. We don't tip any extra at these restaurants or any bar as we've already been charged automatically. And at 18% tip now per drink, I certainly won't tip any extra.

 

 

for drinks I agree.

 

for specialties, we often feel that the extra attention from the waitstaff deserves more than the small percentage of the fee set aside for gratuity. from the recomendations of what to eat( and what to avoid) to bringing out an extra dish to try, they many tiems earn a few extra dollars per meal.

[cincicruisers]

We always bring about 100 in singles and some 5's. From the Room Service guy daily, room attendant if you have exceptional service, to the awesome bartender that takes great care of you. Specialty restaurants servers. (cash is better, on sea pass they have to share. Can't confirm that, read on CC)

 

that does not include excursions tips.

 

One thing I learned years ago is pack less cloths and bring more money.

[TexasR&H]

We always tip our cabin attendants extra if they do a good job. They make so little money relative to the hours they work to take care of us. They are always up before everyone and work well into the evening. We also tend to tip our wait staff if they do a good job. Last cruise, our primary waitperson was awesome and we tipped extra, but the assistant was awful, so no extra money for him.

[GUT2407]

It s totally up to you.

 

What I think is this, lets say the bar where your pre-paids don't apply but there is an auto 18%. My drink was $10, so the auto is $1.80, would I normally tip more than that, if so top it up, if not walkaway with my drink. Same with my waiter, say he's getting $3.50 a day out of mt Autos was the service worth more, then top it up, if not let t ride. Though usually I do Trad dinning so do any top up at the end of the cruise.

 

And I should ad that to me service is the whole experience, you can have impeccable service from someone who barely looks at you [that person is unlikely to get my tip] or even average service from someone who amke the whole experience a bit of fun, and more enjoyable, he or she will get my tip.

[scottie99]

I have not had envelopes left in my cabin on my last couple cruises, nor have I seen most passengers giving out envelopes on the last night. Now, everyone either prepays or has gratuities automatically added to their account each day (though some insist on removing the auto-gratuities). With that system, you should feel no obligation to tip extra. Your service staff is taken care of. I do think it's nice to give a little extra to those who may have given you exceptional service, but it should not be an obligation or expectation.

 

On the Anthem maiden voyage last week, yet again envelopes for extra gratuities were left in cabin on last night.