Extra gratuities in specialty restaurants

[jean87510]

Just give $2 bills.  Seems to be the thing.

[Blur]

37 minutes ago, Scoobydobe7 said:

Doesn't the auto-grats cover the 4/5 non sea day lunches and snacks plus the dinners you are not eating in the dining room???

Auto grats go to your room steward and other hotel staff you don't see as well.  Just saying your not paying much in tips for the UDP.  Feel free not to tip extra, just mentioning you're getting a great deal already if you're feeling generous.  Shrug.

[7680]

Thanks All. Perhaps $50 for 6 of us at the more upscale dinners. $25 at lunches. I don’t have any $2 bills! 😁

[SpainAlien]

19 hours ago, taglovestocruise said:

Most of that 18% goes into the tip pool, server only gets a few dollars.

Isn't that the same in most restaurants? I have never separately tipped the guy who's washing the dishes

[allie3490]

$0

[Ocean Boy]

Just now, SpainAlien said:

Isn't that the same in most restaurants? I have never separately tipped the guy who's washing the dishes

I also don't tip and then hand the server more and tell them that it is just for them to pocket.

[jean87510]

3 minutes ago, SpainAlien said:

Isn't that the same in most restaurants? I have never separately tipped the guy who's washing the dishes

No one does.  They just say they do for that pat on the back.

[Blur]

1 hour ago, 7680 said:

Thanks All. Perhaps $50 for 6 of us at the more upscale dinners. $25 at lunches. I don’t have any $2 bills! 😁

Personally I wouldn't tip extra if the service was slow and mediocre since tip is already included. 

 

From experience though we've always gotten really good service from specialty dining. Remember this is extra tip so only do so if you feel generous and had a good time.

[taglovestocruise]

42 minutes ago, SpainAlien said:

Isn't that the same in most restaurants? I have never separately tipped the guy who's washing the dishes

Not in California.

The Department of Labor implemented a rule in 2011 prohibiting employees who don't usually receive tips, such as cooks and dishwashers, from being included in tip pools.Dec 14, 2020

Edited March 15, 2023 by taglovestocruise

[steveru621]

21 hours ago, fredmdcruisers said:

That 18% is not all for waiter.

 

It's not all for the waiter at most land-based restaurants.  Some of their gratuities are shared with the bar staff and busboys.

[sandc4e]

18% is added to UDP, but depending on if you get it on sale it may not cover the tip for all the meals you have.  I have no problem leaving a bit extra and on top of what these folks get.  They work hard and try to give you the best vacation.  To each their own though.

[Sigyn]

We haven't sailed on RCCL before, but when my family of three was on the Norwegian Prima in December and dined in a specialty restaurant, we added $30 or so to each bill as an extra gratuity to the servers. We figured it was the least we could do since we were lucky enough to be on such a beautiful cruise over the holidays. We wanted to make their evening a little nicer, too. 

Edited March 15, 2023 by njsmom

[Ocean Boy]

36 minutes ago, sandc4e said:

18% is added to UDP, but depending on if you get it on sale it may not cover the tip for all the meals you have.  I have no problem leaving a bit extra and on top of what these folks get.  They work hard and try to give you the best vacation.  To each their own though.

So if you pay less for the dining package you should tip more? If you go to a restaurant with a friend and you get an expensive steak while your friend gets a cheap burger, should your friend tip more to make up the difference? 

[Blur]

18 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

So if you pay less for the dining package you should tip more? If you go to a restaurant with a friend and you get an expensive steak while your friend gets a cheap burger, should your friend tip more to make up the difference? 

I think it's more like if you get a 1/2 off coupon at a nice local restaurant you may tip more than the 20% since you got such a good deal.

 

Comparing to your friend who got something different is not a good comparison.

 

Eg.  You both get same steaks but you got yours for 1/2 price so if you both only paid 20% technically you pay way less.

Edited March 15, 2023 by Blur

[Ocean Boy]

13 minutes ago, Blur said:

 

Comparing to your friend who got something different is not a good comparison.

 

You are entitled to your opinion. I stand by my post. 

 

This how a system that is based off how much someone spends instead of how hard someone works operates.

[Blur]

Just now, Ocean Boy said:

You are entitled to your opinion. I stand by my post. 

Understood just sharing info.

 

UDP is a discounted way of getting lots of specialty dining.

 

If you bought each specialty dining separately it costs way more which is of course what royal prefers which is why they get priority on reservations/time slots.

 

I am not suggesting anyone who can't afford to tip extra to tip extra... Royal set the recommended tip amount so def don't pay extra if you can't and prefer not to.... But if service is outstanding and you like your server and want to see them again during the cruise more times doesn't hurt to be generous.

[Ocean Boy]

5 minutes ago, Blur said:

Understood just sharing info.

 

UDP is a discounted way of getting lots of specialty dining.

 

If you bought each specialty dining separately it costs way more which is of course what royal prefers which is why they get priority on reservations/time slots.

 

I am not suggesting anyone who can't afford to tip extra to tip extra... Royal set the recommended tip amount so def don't pay extra if you can't and prefer not to.... But if service is outstanding and you like your server and want to see them again during the cruise more times doesn't hurt to be generous.

And I agree with you. I would also point out that by discounting one could argue that it brings in more business which can actually produce more money for the staff. The whole tipping system is just so obscure that many points of view end up being correct.

[QueSeraSera]

Kind of a shame that 

On 3/15/2023 at 4:45 PM, Ocean Boy said:

The whole tipping system is just so obscure that many points of view end up being correct.

But we are looking forward to our first RCL cruise!  Caribbean beckons with its warm weather & no pollen. Going to bring enough cash to tip every meal, but won't if service isn't good.

[Morecruisesplz]

2 hours ago, QueSeraSera said:

Kind of a shame that 

But we are looking forward to our first RCL cruise!  Caribbean beckons with its warm weather & no pollen. Going to bring enough cash to tip every meal, but won't if service isn't good.

Enjoy!

[CFLRetired]

We always leave at least $10 pp.  It seems to go a long ways.  We also usually eat in Chops for breakfast and get great service. 

[gavvy]

I left $10 for the 2 of us and the waiter seemed v happy with it. I charged it to the room rather than cash so had no idea if the tip went to him or into that murky pool where nobody really knows what's going on.

Either way he seemed happy.

[whyrlygig]

We typically leave $10 per person at dinner. Sometimes more if the service is really exceptional.  Quick lunches and casual places might be more like $5 per person. 

[RobInMN]

Likely a stupid question.

We've honestly always been perfectly fine with the free food options on the ships, but this fall we got a killer deal on a star class suite on Allure. Obviously this includes the UDP. We also don't carry cash at all on the ship, as you can always add a tip to a drink receipt, even when using the vouchers. So the question, everyone keeps saying they "leave" x in tips, which to me reads that they plop down cash. Are you presented with a receipt that you can add a tip to? 

[billslowsky]

On 3/15/2023 at 4:13 PM, Ocean Boy said:

So if you pay less for the dining package you should tip more? If you go to a restaurant with a friend and you get an expensive steak while your friend gets a cheap burger, should your friend tip more to make up the difference? 

This is the goofiness of these tipping threads.  There was one a while back where someone essentially questioned the "morality" of locking in the existing DSC shortly before an increase was implemented...

[SV1432]

9 minutes ago, RobInMN said:

Likely a stupid question.

We've honestly always been perfectly fine with the free food options on the ships, but this fall we got a killer deal on a star class suite on Allure. Obviously this includes the UDP. We also don't carry cash at all on the ship, as you can always add a tip to a drink receipt, even when using the vouchers. So the question, everyone keeps saying they "leave" x in tips, which to me reads that they plop down cash. Are you presented with a receipt that you can add a tip to? 

Congrats on the deal! You don’t need to tip cash, there is a receipt you can add a tip to which uses your CC on file. Either way works just fine, your preference. Have a great cruise!!