After Reading Numerous Posts over the last Several Weeks, These are my thoughts

[cruisemom42]

I'm not sure one can rely on what crew might say to a passenger onboard a particular sailing as a "truth" -- I'm sure there is quite the incentive (if not directive) to tell passengers they prefer the type of cruise they are on at the moment (short, long, big ship, small ship). Everyone likes to think the crew is happy doing what they do, where they are.

 

Based on what I know of human behavior and what I read here, I suspect crew on shorter cruises receive higher discretionary tips. When you are on a 1-week vacation, it seems generous and adds little if you sprinkle $50-$100 extra tips around. But on longer cruises I seriously question whether the amount tipped per week on average wouldn't decrease...

 

I also suspect it's a toss-up between big and small ships regarding ease of service. I am going on the assumption that HAL isn't going to adjust the number of cabins serviced by stewards or tables served by waiters -- they would just adjust proportionately the number of servers. And while larger ships may mean more walking to/from the galley, I also suspect they are set up more ergonomically "behind the scenes" to make it easier to pick up orders.

 

And.....just a random thought:  Am I the only one who doesn't want things the same every meal?  I can't think of one single thing that a "fixed dining" waiter could provide me without my asking on a nightly basis and not have me be somewhat annoyed that they are making assumptions.

[ExpatBride]

9 hours ago, OlsSalt said:

 

Anyone know if the crew like these longer cruises on the smaller ships better? I would assume they would, but have heard the crews like the newer ships - the shorter cruise over and over cruises.

 

 

 

I can't comment on ship-size preferences, but I know someone (socially) who worked on Princess and he said that the crew preferred longer sailings because turnaround days are a lot of extra work for almost everyone onboard, and they dread them.

[Sea42]

4 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

And.....just a random thought:  Am I the only one who doesn't want things the same every meal?  I can't think of one single thing that a "fixed dining" waiter could provide me without my asking on a nightly basis and not have me be somewhat annoyed that they are making assumptions.

You're not alone. I try a different cocktail before dinner most nights and my wine selection with dinner is going to very with what I'm going to be eating. 

[Mary229]

2 hours ago, Sea42 said:

You're not alone. I try a different cocktail before dinner most nights and my wine selection with dinner is going to very with what I'm going to be eating. 

But there are peculiarities and specialty diets.  Even though the menu does follow me it is helpful that the server is aware of the needs.  Things that I request on table are Tabasco sauce and olive oil - it is there every night. 

Edited May 20, 2023 by Mary229

[Sea42]

18 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

But there are peculiarities and specialty diets.  Even though the menu does follow me it is helpful that the server is aware of the needs.  Things that I request on table are Tabasco sauce and olive oil - it is there every night. 

I can see  that with specialty diets it's much more important to have that continuity.

[PACD_JG]

7 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

Based on what I know of human behavior and what I read here, I suspect crew on shorter cruises receive higher discretionary tips. When you are on a 1-week vacation, it seems generous and adds little if you sprinkle $50-$100 extra tips around. But on longer cruises I seriously question whether the amount tipped per week on average wouldn't decrease...

Makes sense - in the restaurant biz - turnaround more tables, get more tips.  I would be very curious to see what folks tip on long cruises, because if folks tip $50-100 on a 7-day, I too can't believe that folks would tip $914-1828 on a 128-day Grand.  Who wants to confess?

[kazu]

6 minutes ago, PACD_JG said:

Makes sense - in the restaurant biz - turnaround more tables, get more tips.  I would be very curious to see what folks tip on long cruises, because if folks tip $50-100 on a 7-day, I too can't believe that folks would tip $914-1828 on a 128-day Grand.  Who wants to confess?

Extra tips?  I have my doubts how many tip extra on a 7 day cruise in the ranges of $50-$100.  I’m sure some do but….. I was on 3 shorter cruises B2B2B (5 day, 7 day and 9 day) and guest services was lined thick every day.  I strolled by and quickly gathered why a number were there - to remove the Crew Incentive aka HSC.

 

I usually do longer one segment or Collectors’ cruises and the numbers removing (from my observation) were few.

 

Not everyone tips extra.  I do and tip a certain amount per day (along with extras to those who give superb service) so yes, on a longer cruise, the tips are higher.  Crew life is easier too as they know the patterns, have fewer hectic turnaround days, etc.  JME - YMMV.

[POA1]

On 5/18/2023 at 7:44 PM, Laminator said:

Passport applications were up 30% last year and are up even higher so far this year. As you all know the delays for receiving your passports are extremely long. These people aren't applying to travel from New York to New Jersey. It's either international air travel, a cruise or a combination of both. Cruises will be at higher capacity and more expensive. 

You are definitely correct that travel is up, but much of the backlog is that the government doesn't scale well. When the lines get too long at the grocery store, they call all the register-trained employees to the front and open additional check out lines. The government holds a meeting, then issues a statement blaming "unprecedented demand" while never actually solving the problem. It's nice to have a monopoly.

[TiogaCruiser]

On 5/17/2023 at 6:13 AM, Mary229 said:

 

I also have trouble with people who write into their reviews their lack of preparedness for something going wrong then blaming a third party, like the cruise line,  because the third party didn’t pick up the pieces for them. 

This brings to mind a series of reviews on the Home Depot website for strings of outdoor lights. There were numerous low star reviews saying that after they got the lights hung they had to climb up on a ladder to figure out which lights was loose ( and causing the string to not light up.). Clearly they had not tested it before installing.

[washiotter]

8 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

I'm not sure one can rely on what crew might say to a passenger onboard a particular sailing as a "truth" -- I'm sure there is quite the incentive (if not directive) to tell passengers they prefer the type of cruise they are on at the moment (short, long, big ship, small ship). Everyone likes to think the crew is happy doing what they do, where they are.

…Or that the crew dislikes the same changes or policies that the passenger dislikes.

I often think of this when people cite, as evidence for their opinion, that “my cabin steward/waiter/bartender agrees with me!” Your tip-dependent customer service worker made you feel supported and validated? Get outta town!

Edited May 20, 2023 by washiotter

[POA1]

On 5/18/2023 at 6:46 PM, kazu said:

It’s like HAL calling the Vista category a “suite”.  All it is a verandah cabin.  It’s a nice room but it’s not a suite.

Excuse me young lady.

 

The Vista Suites are almost 6% larger* and give you suite day credits. Sure, there aren't multiple rooms - the honest to goodness definition of a suite.

 

I'd really rather that we don't cause the powers that be to address this and come up with a new term for these rooms. This is how we went from semi-formal to formal to gala to the current abomination, "dressy." Can we please agree to step away from the room nomenclature? We've seen this movie. It does not end well.

 

* - Some are a bit larger. Some are not.

[Ride-The-Waves]

40 minutes ago, POA1 said:

You are definitely correct that travel is up, but much of the backlog is that the government doesn't scale well. When the lines get too long at the grocery store, they call all the register-trained employees to the front and open additional check out lines. The government holds a meeting, then issues a statement blaming "unprecedented demand" while never actually solving the problem. It's nice to have a monopoly.

Presuming that a grocery store has a number of trained and qualified check out clerks "doing other jobs" may be a misconception, especially since these stores are focused on profit and not proving public services.  Government are usually very efficient and employees focused on customers up to the point of locals enabling services through revenue.  

[POA1]

8 minutes ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

Presuming that a grocery store has a number of trained and qualified check out clerks "doing other jobs" may be a misconception, especially since these stores are focused on profit and not proving public services.  Government are usually very efficient and employees focused on customers up to the point of locals enabling services through revenue.  

So.. Just for giggles... One can assume that you were in public service?

Do you have any actual info that would say that the passport offices are scaling up to meet demand? (Please no misdirects about profit. Thanks much.)

[POA1]

Just now, POA1 said:

So.. Just for giggles... One can assume that you were in public service?

Do you have any actual info that would say that the passport offices are scaling up to meet demand? (Please no misdirects about profit. Thanks much.)

And, if I may drone on, getting out of the grocery store quickly is for the public good. (As the public, my vote counts. 😉)

[Laminator]

7 minutes ago, POA1 said:

So.. Just for giggles... One can assume that you were in public service?

Do you have any actual info that would say that the passport offices are scaling up to meet demand? (Please no misdirects about profit. Thanks much.)

Actually there were quite a few news stories this week regarding the passport situation. The govt has claimed they have hired additional staff to assist with the backlog. Whether that is 2 additional people or hundreds I am not sure we will ever know.

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, kazu said:

Extra tips?  I have my doubts how many tip extra on a 7 day cruise in the ranges of $50-$100.

 

Many do. There are a very large percentage of people who can well afford a nice cruise vacation but cannot take a lengthy amount of time off from work. They take a week here or a week there and they are determined to fully enjoy it. They book suites onboard and don't count pennies. Hence alcohol sales, specialty dining sales, photo sales, spa sales etc. are all up on one-week cruises versus longer ones. And they also often have the werewithal to tip well, and they do. 

 

Someone recently posted that overall only about 5% of cruisers remove tips. I would suggest that, if accurate, that's not enough to have a significant impact either way. 

 

I am not doubting your observations, but I think one would have to spend a very long amount of time beside the service desk to figure out what people are in line for. Perhaps they are getting extra charges removed. 😉

 

 

 

[Florida_gal_50]

15 minutes ago, POA1 said:

So.. Just for giggles... One can assume that you were in public service?

Do you have any actual info that would say that the passport offices are scaling up to meet demand? (Please no misdirects about profit. Thanks much.)

I think that is a 100 percent certainty 😛🤪😉.

[kazu]

1 hour ago, POA1 said:

Excuse me young lady.

 

The Vista Suites are almost 6% larger* and give you suite day credits. Sure, there aren't multiple rooms - the honest to goodness definition of a suite.

 

I'd really rather that we don't cause the powers that be to address this and come up with a new term for these rooms. This is how we went from semi-formal to formal to gala to the current abomination, "dressy." Can we please agree to step away from the room nomenclature? We've seen this movie. It does not end well.

 

* - Some are a bit larger. Some are not.

 

Thanks for calling me young 😂 

 

 

[Red Haired Lady]

15 hours ago, OlsSalt said:

 

Anyone know if the crew like these longer cruises on the smaller ships better? I would assume they would, but have heard the crews like the newer ships - the shorter cruise over and over cruises.

 

Wonder also since there are more chances to get to know each other on the longer cruises, if the additional personal tipping is more dedicated and generous as well.

I just got off one segment of the world cruise. I discussed this with a crew member. He said they prefer short cruises because their income is higher. People on short cruises drink more which leads to higher gratuity totals to be shared by the crew. ( He was not a drink server) He also mentioned people on short cruises tend to be younger, still employed and in a mood to celebrate on their short cruise.

[rodndonna]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I am not doubting your observations, but I think one would have to spend a very long amount of time beside the service desk to figure out what people are in line for. Perhaps they are getting extra charges removed. 😉

 

That brings to mind one of my pet peeves - resulting in my fear of ever having to go to guest services because there always seems to be a presumption by many on CC that people at guest services are having gratuities removed. 

 

My only experience at guest services took quite awhile (resolving gift card issue), and while there of the guests that came and went, no one was removing or asking about autograts.  I do expect there are always people that do, but I like to think the majority of people at guest services are dealing with other issues or inquiries (even on the infamous last day of the cruise lineups)

[*Miss G*]

19 minutes ago, rodndonna said:

That brings to mind one of my pet peeves - resulting in my fear of ever having to go to guest services because there always seems to be a presumption by many on CC that people at guest services are having gratuities removed.

 

I feel the same regarding comments that people don’t dine in the MDR the last night in order to avoid paying tips.  First off, the tips are already taken care of by the Hotel Service Charge 😂.  Secondly, if we choose to pack instead of dine, we always make a point of dropping them off at some point that evening, or leaving the tip the night before.  Just because you’re not there, doesn’t mean you aren’t tipping.  Okay.  Off soapbox now.  lol

[rodndonna]

15 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

 

I feel the same regarding comments that people don’t dine in the MDR the last night in order to avoid paying tips.  First off, the tips are already taken care of by the Hotel Service Charge 😂.  Secondly, if we choose to pack instead of dine, we always make a point of dropping them off at some point that evening, or leaving the tip the night before.  Just because you’re not there, doesn’t mean you aren’t tipping.  Okay.  Off soapbox now.  lol

 

That was one that I read recently and had never actually occurred to me before that.  It is common for us to skip MDR on the last night since it is a busy night and we know we always have a long day flying back home, but like you with just deal with getting any extra gratuities for dining out before or just drop in quickly that night. We are also not ones to tip our room stewart in person even though they seem to linger the evening before and/or in the morning and that seems to be the expected norm. As much I guess he/she thinks we are avoiding tipping, we always the gratuity in the room with a thank you note with his name card.

 

Edit: ironically  enough one cruise where we unexpectedly did not go the MDR the final evening, we just went to Guest Services (yikes!) that final evening to ask for an envelop to leave our MDR servers their tip. In the end it was just a plain envelop and I was a bit dubious, but I expect it worked.

Edited May 20, 2023 by rodndonna
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[BermudaBound2014]

2 hours ago, Ride-The-Waves said:

Government are usually very efficient .....

 

[kazu]

1 hour ago, rodndonna said:

 

That brings to mind one of my pet peeves - resulting in my fear of ever having to go to guest services because there always seems to be a presumption by many on CC that people at guest services are having gratuities removed. 

 

My only experience at guest services took quite awhile (resolving gift card issue), and while there of the guests that came and went, no one was removing or asking about autograts.  I do expect there are always people that do, but I like to think the majority of people at guest services are dealing with other issues or inquiries (even on the infamous last day of the cruise lineups)

 

I don’t assume everyone at guest services is removing tips, believe me.  On the Koningsdam I went to guest services several times and once my sunglasses went missing, daily to see if they had been turned in.  While I had the CO line (thankfully), there were a number of very loud people chatting amongst themselves upset with their wait and their purpose was very easy to hear.  Their line was long and even at the elevators and Grand Dutch Cafe, you couldn’t ‘t help but hear some of them.  I was quite shocked.  I wouldn’t be announcing my purpose if that was why I was there.  Perhaps with it being “kids sail free” that had something to do with it - I don’t know.  But you couldn’t help but hear a number of them.

[SumoCitrus]

You can make a pizza so cheap, nobody will eat it.

 

-Gordon Bethune