Are pre-paid gratuities even worth it any more?

[CuseJeff44]

Last cruise I was on, there seemed to be an expectation for a gratuity even despite the fact we pre-paid. I'm wondering if it just makes sense to give them the gratuity at the end, like we used to back in the day before pre-paid gratuities were a thing. My favorite part of pre-paying is I don't need to worry about carrying envelopes and cash, I can just be done with it and enjoy my cruise. But now, I think based on the interactions I was getting many of the workers on board would prefer to have it in cash and handed to them? I'd prefer to pre-pay, but the worst possible scenario is having to do it twice and can tip at the end if they would rather.

Edited March 7, 2023 by CuseJeff44

[mailmama]

We had wonderful service on the Equinox last October. We had pre-paid but handed out cash to many employees due to their friendly and efficient service! In times like this, we appreciate anyone willing to work and work hard!!

[Alakegirl]

Gratuities over and above are appreciated but not expected or demanded. If you ran into a steward or waiter who seemed to be pressuring you to give extra, they should be reported to management

[CuseJeff44]

3 minutes ago, mailmama said:

We had wonderful service on the Equinox last October. We had pre-paid but handed out cash to many employees due to their friendly and efficient service! In times like this, we appreciate anyone willing to work and work hard!!

 

Is the expectation at this point to hand them cash at the end? Do most people do that? I can make that work I just ideally would prefer to only to one or the other. 

[Wakepatrol]

You can prepay the gratuities or they are charged to your shipboard account daily 

What is the difference?

[CuseJeff44]

4 minutes ago, Wakepatrol said:

You can prepay the gratuities or they are charged to your shipboard account daily 

What is the difference?

 

I'm saying that I got the impression on my last cruise that whether or not you prepaid there was an expectation of cash at the end. May as well give it all at the end, by hand, if this is the expectation. But again, this was on my last cruise which was RCCL. Not sure if this is the norm, or the expectation everywhere, thus the ask

[Arizona Wildcat]

6 minutes ago, Wakepatrol said:

You can prepay the gratuities or they are charged to your shipboard account daily 

What is the difference?

When we had prepaid gratuities like as part of AI, the gratuities were posted daily to our cruise account and the reversed on our billing.

We had no sense of any expectations from crew about gratuities, but always hand some $$ to where I will be getting my drinks and $$ to those that gave special services.

We also took time to name those who went beyond in our review and a note to guest relations.

Edited March 7, 2023 by Arizona Wildcat

[CuseJeff44]

3 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

When we had prepaid gratuities like as part of AI, the gratuities were posted daily to our cruise account and the reversed on our billing.

We had no sense of any expectations from crew about gratuities, but always hand some $$ to where I will be getting my drinks and $$ to those that gave special services.

We also took time to name those who went beyond in our review and a note to guest relations.

 Bear Down. 

[prmssk]

2 minutes ago, CuseJeff44 said:

 

I'm saying that I got the impression on my last cruise that whether or not you prepaid there was an expectation of cash at the end. May as well give it all at the end, by hand, if this is the expectation. But again, this was on my last cruise which was RCCL. Not sure if this is the norm, or the expectation everywhere, thus the ask

I did not experience pressure on my last RCCL cruise either. This is not the norm. 
 

If you don’t prepay, they will be automatically added to your on board account. To pay in cash, you would have to stand in line at Guest Services to have them removed and then pay in cash. But then you would be shorting a lot of behind the scenes crew that share in the general tipping pool. 

[AmberCascades]

This doesn't sound like anything I've ever experienced on a Celebrity cruise.  We do tip extra, and provide positive comment cards, to those individuals who've made our trip extra special.  We've never been made to feel that anyone was expecting it, or that we would get crappy service if we didn't.  

 

[jelayne]

If you removed the daily gratuity then your cabin attendant is required to turn in any cash given so it can be pooled.

Same for waiter and assistant.  
 

To hand cash in lieu of the daily gratuity would be tough.  You would need to be tacking down the housekeeping and dining services staff that you don’t necessarily see but who get a share of the daily gratuity(laundry, common area cleaners, etc).

[cruisestitch]

18 minutes ago, CuseJeff44 said:

 

I'm saying that I got the impression on my last cruise that whether or not you prepaid there was an expectation of cash at the end. May as well give it all at the end, by hand, if this is the expectation. But again, this was on my last cruise which was RCCL. Not sure if this is the norm, or the expectation everywhere, thus the ask

You are not likely to find that on Celebrity

[39august]

Why is this posted on Celebrity instead of RCI? There is no choice to give gratuities in cash at the end of a cruise. If you do not pre-pay, your account will be charged daily for gratuities. The only way around that is to go the Guest Services and request they be removed from your account. I have never felt any attitude from Celebrity staff for extra gratuities. Tho' we always do tip in cash extra, as many have said, for outstanding service. 

[CuseJeff44]

Just now, 39august said:

Why is this posted on Celebrity instead of RCI? There is no choice to give gratuities in cash at the end of a cruise. If you do not pre-pay, your account will be charged daily for gratuities. The only way around that is to go the Guest Services and request they be removed from your account. I have never felt any attitude from Celebrity staff for extra gratuities. Tho' we always do tip in cash extra, as many have said, for outstanding service. 

 

I just booked a Celebrity Cruise. I am asking about the process on Celebrity and how it varies from my experience on RCCL. I want to be prepared for my upcoming cruise and make the best choice possible. 

[RichYak]

41 minutes ago, CuseJeff44 said:

I think based on the interactions I was getting many of the workers on board would prefer to have it in cash and handed to them?

You misread the interaction. The minimum expectation is that you keep your automatic gratuities intact. The hope is that you pay them additional in cash. Whoever you spoke with, their preference is not one or the other, it's both.

[CuseJeff44]

2 minutes ago, RichYak said:

You misread the interaction. The minimum expectation is that you keep your automatic gratuities intact. The hope is that you pay them additional in cash. Whoever you spoke with, their preference is not one or the other, it's both.

 

Which thus lends me to wonder what the point of pre-paying is at all if I still need to ensure I have cash on hand for tips. Eh...I think that the process was so much easier when you just handed everyone an envelope at the end. 

Edited March 7, 2023 by CuseJeff44

[Wakepatrol]

Don’t prepay just leave them as they are. They will be charged to your account and you won’t have to look for envelopes easy peasy 

Edited March 7, 2023 by Wakepatrol

[RichYak]

1 minute ago, CuseJeff44 said:

 

Which thus lends me to wonder what the point of pre-paying is at all if I still need to ensure I have cash on hand for tips. Eh...I think that the process was so much easier when you just handed everyone an envelope at the end. 

You're referring to a time when you had one waiter and assistant waiter for an entire cruise which is no longer the case. If you pre-pay, as you call it, you don't need to ensure you "have cash on hand for tips." I don't know why you say that you do.

[CuseJeff44]

Just now, Wakepatrol said:

Don’t prepay just leave them as they are they will be charged to your account and you won’t have to look for envelopes easy peasy 

But that doesn't solve for the fact there still seems to be an expectation of a cash tip. The pre-pay vs charge to room isn't the dilemma, I am fine with either. It's that it appears there is an expectation for 2 sets of gratuities which seems to make things more complicated than ever

[CuseJeff44]

1 minute ago, RichYak said:

You're referring to a time when you had one waiter and assistant waiter for an entire cruise which is no longer the case. If you pre-pay, as you call it, you don't need to ensure you "have cash on hand for tips." I don't know why you say that you do.

That's actually a fair point regarding the waitstaff. 

[HskrCrsr]

Note that there are different gratuities for different workers. The pre-paid gratuities only cover a subset of workers. Per the Celebrity FAQ, "Gratuities for stateroom and restaurant services are shared by dining, bar and culinary services staff, stateroom attendants, and other hotel services teams." Beverages from most bars are not included in this, so drinks from the bar would have a different gratuity associated with them (and the beverage packages build that in). Spa workers do not get a share. So even if gratuities are pre-paid, there are a significant number of workers that do not get a share of that and would benefit from a separate gratuity.

[jelayne]

1 minute ago, CuseJeff44 said:

 

Which thus lends me to wonder what the point of pre-paying is at all if I still need to ensure I have cash on hand for tips. Eh...I think that the process was so much easier when you just handed everyone an envelope at the end. 

We have done 38 cruises on Celebrity and have never feel like any staff member expected a cash tip at the end of the cruise and most of the time we don’t see the cabin attendant on the last evening or before getting off the next morning.

[CuseJeff44]

3 minutes ago, HskrCrsr said:

Note that there are different gratuities for different workers. The pre-paid gratuities only cover a subset of workers. Per the Celebrity FAQ, "Gratuities for stateroom and restaurant services are shared by dining, bar and culinary services staff, stateroom attendants, and other hotel services teams." Beverages from most bars are not included in this, so drinks from the bar would have a different gratuity associated with them (and the beverage packages build that in). Spa workers do not get a share. So even if gratuities are pre-paid, there are a significant number of workers that do not get a share of that and would benefit from a separate gratuity.

I usually tip a small supplemental amount at bars and spas....couple bucks per drink, etc. ...the micro transactions. I am mostly referring to waitstaff and room attendants who I have always assumed were covered by the pre-pay/auto tip.

Edited March 7, 2023 by CuseJeff44

[RichYak]

Just now, CuseJeff44 said:

That's actually a fair point regarding the waitstaff. 

There are 3 ways to pay your standard gratuities on Celebrity: purchase a cruise fare that includes AI (all inclusive) or pre-pay them before you cruise. If you do neither of those, the 3rd method kicks in automatically: they are charged to your account daily (like a hotel resort fee). You'll only need cash for additional tips if you desire, though it isn't necessary.

[AmberCascades]

10 minutes ago, CuseJeff44 said:

But that doesn't solve for the fact there still seems to be an expectation of a cash tip. The pre-pay vs charge to room isn't the dilemma, I am fine with either. It's that it appears there is an expectation for 2 sets of gratuities which seems to make things more complicated than ever

 

Who is expecting this??  As I and others have said, no Celebrity crew member will ever say that or make you feel like that.  Keep the auto grats in place.  You don't have to tip extra for anything you don't want to.  That is the purpose of the daily auto gratuities.   Don't remove the auto grats as it is the crew that suffers for it.  Don't tip extra if you don't want to.  You will still receive the same great service as everyone else. 

 

You seem to be looking for a complication where there is none.