YC Tipping (sorry)

[CoupleUK]

We have done many cruises and thought we had mastered the tipping.

 

Daily charge automatically taken and we then tip extra where service has been extra special.

 

BUT we are now in YC for two weeks and have a dilema.

 

The auto tips are a measly 10 euro per person per day.

 

We can tip our Butler extra as we know who he is and what he does for us.

 

Likewise with our usual waiter in L'Olivo.

 

BUT there are several butlers/waiters in the private lounge, and then there are extra staff whove served us in the restauarant.

 

It would cost a fortune to give extra to them all - even if we could find them....but it doesnt "feel right" not giving something.

 

Do we just accept that the YC staff are simply providing the YC level of service?

 

Confused

[mafig]

We just tipped our butler extra, not the other butlers.

 

We also tipped our waiter and his assistant extra. We had a couple of different waiters, but we just tipped the one we had the most. We also tipped the hostess at the restaurant.

 

We didn't tip the Concierge extra because we didn't use them at all. Every once in a while we would tip the bartender in the YC.

 

We just take a set amount and at the end of the cruise we split it up ..... sometimes we go over, but not by much.

 

I don't know about MSC, but on Celebrity some people who are in Blu and have different wait staff during the week, give an amount to the matre'd and ask him to split it among the staff. You could do that (maybe to the Concierge for the YC staff).

[Haworth]

I would and do accept that the daily charge meets the requirements of paying an additional/optional service charge, we do not know how and how much the staff are paid but MSC have set a level that the staff are presumably happy with.

 

We tend to give an extra "tip" to our butler/room steward and leave it at that.

 

Each to their own, but I do not feel obliged to give extra, you are already paying Euro 280 or around £250 at today's exchange rate.

[MAGSMFC]

What is the cost of tips per day per person on MSC and can you opt out and pay your own to the staff who want to give to.

[JPMoore]

Do we just accept that the YC staff are simply providing the YC level of service?

 

On this point alone I’d say accept it, as that service is part of what you are paying a higher fare for in the first place. That is of course not to say that you can’t tip an individual staff member should you want, but rather that you shouldn’t feel guilty that the daily service charge doesn’t seem to reflect the service provided.

[mafig]

What is the cost of tips per day per person on MSC and can you opt out and pay your own to the staff who want to give to.

 

 

You're going to be in the Yacht Club and want to "opt out" of the tips? :loudcry::mad:

[riclop]

You can tip as much as you want , it's your choice.

[CGTNORMANDIE]

The 10 Euro per day covers the entire crew...all the folks who work behind the scene. Special service from excellent butlers, waiters, etc. who have impressed you with their attention and expertise deserve to be rewarded for their efforts. You don’t have to give large amounts to make them happy. You would be amazed at the great amount of good will you can create with an envelope, some money and a short hand written note of thanks to that particular person. I believe in rewarding excellence along with a few words of praise for those who have served me so well. On our last cruise in the YC I gave envelopes (tips) to the maitre d’, the hostess, our waiter, his assistant, our butler and the cabin steward. Of course the waiter, his assistant, our butler and the cabin steward got more money than the others. I can’t begin to tell you how thankful and appreciative these people were. When we gave them the envelope we explained that it is our tradition to give a gift at the end of a voyage to those who have given us so much attention. You don’t have to give a fortune...it’s the thought that counts.

[Capricruiser]

I've always given extra tips to the people who served us directly - the butler, steward, restaurant waiter and assistant, and smaller amounts to certain individuals who served us well in the lounge or pool deck.

[Nimloth]

We only tipped our butler at the end of our cruise, no one else.

[Beamafar]

I've been thinking about this very subject with regards to our upcoming cruise on Splendida in YC. We're stretching our budget to its very limit and the daily service charge will add another €560 to the cruise price. We almost always tip extra, but that's usually for a 7 night cruise. There is no way we can afford to multiply the (extra) tip amounts by 4 - which is the number of weeks we're sailing. Plus, I expect that, being on for that length of time, chances are, we'll encounter many more of the crew so it'll be more difficult to choose which ones to tip. Believe it or not, this is exercising me as I try to work out my spending budget for the trip.

 

Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app

[Vicki'sMom]

What is the easiest way to tip extra? We are booked on Seaside in April. We are NCL Platinum and use the Voucher system to "extra" tip -- so simple! Is that available on MSC or what would you suggest? Thanks!

[Beamafar]

What is the easiest way to tip extra? We are booked on Seaside in April. We are NCL Platinum and use the Voucher system to "extra" tip -- so simple! Is that available on MSC or what would you suggest? Thanks!

MSC don't have a voucher system. You can ask for envelopes at Guest Services to put cash in. I sometimes bring my own' date=' smaller ones, as they're more discreet. Often I just hand cash - again, discreetly; usually while shaking hands.

 

Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app

[CGTNORMANDIE]

I've been thinking about this very subject with regards to our upcoming cruise on Splendida in YC. We're stretching our budget to its very limit and the daily service charge will add another €560 to the cruise price. We almost always tip extra, but that's usually for a 7 night cruise. There is no way we can afford to multiply the (extra) tip amounts by 4 - which is the number of weeks we're sailing. Plus, I expect that, being on for that length of time, chances are, we'll encounter many more of the crew so it'll be more difficult to choose which ones to tip. Believe it or not, this is exercising me as I try to work out my spending budget for the trip.

 

Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app

 

Tipping beyond the daily service charge is at your discretion. The staff in the YC encounter many pax who never tip. Remember the word tip stands for the phrase To Insure Promptness...you are rewarding excellence. Pick out one crew member each week who has impressed you and stop stressing.

 

Hi Bea...I just realized this was you...LOL!!

[Beamafar]

Tipping beyond the daily service charge is at your discretion. The staff in the YC encounter many pax who never tip. Remember the word tip stands for the phrase To Insure Promptness...you are rewarding excellence. Pick out one crew member each week who has impressed you and stop stressing.

 

Hi Bea...I just realized this was you...LOL!!

Yep .. it's me, alright!

 

I'd just come onto the thread to acknowledge your post when I saw your last line; it made me laugh, CGT!

 

Anyway, you're quite right - I shouldn't be stressing!

[Vicki'sMom]

MSC don't have a voucher system. You can ask for envelopes at Guest Services to put cash in. I sometimes bring my own, smaller ones, as they're more discreet. Often I just hand cash - again, discreetly; usually while shaking hands.

 

Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app

 

Thanks! We don't normally carry cash, but will figure something out! ;)

[Beamafar]

Thanks! We don't normally carry cash' date=' but will figure something out! ;)[/quote']

 

You could get it through the slots in the casino. Just register your cruisecard in one of the machines, request an amount to be charged to your onboard account; when the machine shows the amount has been transferred to it, press the payout button. The machine will issue a ticket in the amount which you can then take to the cashier for payment in cash.

[Askmelanie]

You could get it through the slots in the casino. Just register your cruisecard in one of the machines, request an amount to be charged to your onboard account; when the machine shows the amount has been transferred to it, press the payout button. The machine will issue a ticket in the amount which you can then take to the cashier for payment in cash.

 

My downfall! :cool:

 

I tipped extra our butler, room steward, wine steward, main waitress, concierge desk, and casino waitstaff (per drink), and pool servers. We never waited for anything, always greeted by a smile, and they all knew my name and drink.

[Vicki'sMom]

You could get it through the slots in the casino. Just register your cruisecard in one of the machines, request an amount to be charged to your onboard account; when the machine shows the amount has been transferred to it, press the payout button. The machine will issue a ticket in the amount which you can then take to the cashier for payment in cash.

 

Thanks! That's good to know! ;)

[Beamafar]

Thanks! That's good to know! ;)

 

I've just read the following from MisterBill99 on another thread who had a different experience to mine. Post #42:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=55143500#post55143500

 

"So I just did this today at the casino. I guess I should have been more subtle because when I tried to cash out $200 right after I added it to my card and printed the voucher, the cashier refused to do it, telling me that they are not an ATM. He was going to void the transaction so I took the voucher back and a few hours went back and put it in a slot machine. I lost $5 on that one but then tried another machine and won $13 and printed a voucher for $205. Had no problem getting that in cash."

[Haworth]

We are on board now, the welcome daily has a section on service charge.

 

It includes this statement

 

To reward all staff for their service MSC will automatically add a daily hotel service charge to your shipboard account. We do recommend tipping individual members of staff.

[lcpagejr]

We are on board now, the welcome daily has a section on service charge.

 

It includes this statement

 

To reward all staff for their service MSC will automatically add a daily hotel service charge to your shipboard account. We do recommend tipping individual members of staff.

 

Seems a bit bold.... but tipping in the US is different from over seas (In US gratuity is in addition to your bill unless you have a large party and its added in).... I think Americans , on the US cruiselines, have a tendency to tip extra, quite often, to those individuals who serve them well (in addition to daily gratuity). I do not recall ever reading a "subtle" reminder like that on the other lines I have cruised. Before auto gratuity started I recall the CD making a brief announcement reminding passengers to take care of the staff who made their cruise enjoyable. Those were the days where we gave out envelopes on last night of cruises. This is still done of course, but on a limited basis...usually just for some extra gratuity's for above and beyond service

[Beamafar]

We are on board now, the welcome daily has a section on service charge.

 

It includes this statement

 

To reward all staff for their service MSC will automatically add a daily hotel service charge to your shipboard account. We do recommend tipping individual members of staff.

 

Are you sure it said "We do recommend ... "? If so, that's strange, as MSC states the opposite on their website and in their brochure: "Please note that we do not recommend tipping ...".

[Haworth]

Dear all

 

My sincere apologies, I have just re read my post, it does state

 

DO NOT RECOMEND

 

Again apologies for a typo

[Beamafar]

Not a problem - it's easily done! ... I doubt that there's even one person on here that hasn't made a typo or two before. I just felt it needed clarifying.

 

Sent from my SM-G935F using Forums mobile app