Gratuities for Sky Suite "Butler Team"

[Orator]

I have always doubled the recommended tips, but with the recently raise in tips I have reevaluated. my practice. I will reward those directly who have provided other than standard service and will not reward people who must pool tips. 

[RichYak]

5 minutes ago, Orator said:

will not reward people who must pool tips

That rules out just about everyone except your stateroom attendant.

[MamaFej]

On 8/2/2023 at 2:30 PM, phoenix_dream said:

I've gotten excellent service on every one of my 75+ Celebrity cruises without tipping ahead of time.  So I'm guessing you would have had the same without doing it. We do always tip extra at the end.

In other words, you do not insult their intelligence and sense of professionalism by assuming that they will not give you the service which they are hired and trained to give unless you bribe them? Then you reward them beyond their salaries and standard gratuity share when you are pleased and/or extra pleased with the excellent service they provide?

 

I imagine they appreciate when you and others (like me) who don't automatically disparage them do that. 

[Orator]

4 minutes ago, RichYak said:

That rules out just about everyone except your stateroom attendant.

So be it! They, not I write the rules.

[TeeRick]

17 hours ago, hcat said:

closing Luminae would lead to total rebellion!

It would be self-destructive for Celebrity to close Luminae or Blu.  The suite and aqua products would be ruined.  Why would they do this when they are going in the opposite direction with their new builds and emphasizing the Retreat experience at exorbitant prices?  

Edited August 5, 2023 by TeeRick

[zitsky]

50 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

It would be self-destructive for Celebrity to close Luminae or Blu.  The suite and aqua products would be ruined.  Why would they do this when they are going in the opposite direction with their new builds and emphasizing the Retreat experience at exorbitant prices?  

This is pure speculation.

 

Maybe they’re getting bad advice from their MBAs?  I didn’t go to Harvard but I think it’s mandatory to take a finance class about loading a company with debt and sucking out all the value. 
 

I admit it would be hard for Celebrity to sell assets but not impossible.  I am not suggesting anything is imminent, only that companies play games with debt fairly often.  

Imagine a scenario where they sell the company but to whom?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asset_stripping?wprov=sfti1
 

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/debt-loading.asp

Edited August 5, 2023 by zitsky

[binro01]

46 minutes ago, zitsky said:

loading a company with debt

The question during the pandemic for those MBAs was to load with debt or go out of business. Not a very good decision to make, but hands were tied based on inability to generate capital from operations for almost 2 full years. 

There will come a tipping point when the cost cutting in order to service debt quicker reverses the pace of cabin booking. It is at that time the cutting will stop because it becomes cannibalistic to the company at that point.

What we see now is the testing of where that tipping point is, and getting as close as possible to that point.

 

It stinks, it lowers the value we have been accustomed to but it is something that I expected. I know where my tipping point is, but I have yet to hit it.

Edited August 5, 2023 by binro01
clarity

[Oceangoer2]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

It would be self-destructive for Celebrity to close Luminae or Blu.  The suite and aqua products would be ruined.  Why would they do this when they are going in the opposite direction with their new builds and emphasizing the Retreat experience at exorbitant prices?  

Denying Luminae to SS class is all supposition...this thread is taking on a life of its own and away from original OP's topic.  😕 However, not unusual in CC land...😘

Edited August 5, 2023 by Oceangoer2

[TeeRick]

21 minutes ago, Oceangoer2 said:

Denying Luminae to SS class is all supposition...this thread is taking on a life of its own and away from original OP's topic.  😕 However, not unusual in CC land...😘

Yes strongly agree.  The reason it was brought up by others is that RCCL has a Junior Suite that is not guaranteed a dining spot in Coastal Kitchen (suite restaurant like Luminae).  On most ships with CK, it is dinner only and space availability.  People are comparing to the RCCL model and leaping to that.

[TeeRick]

1 hour ago, zitsky said:

This is pure speculation.

 

Maybe they’re getting bad advice from their MBAs?  I didn’t go to Harvard but I think it’s mandatory to take a finance class about loading a company with debt and sucking out all the value. 
 

I admit it would be hard for Celebrity to sell assets but not impossible.  I am not suggesting anything is imminent, only that companies play games with debt fairly often.  

Imagine a scenario where they sell the company but to whom?

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asset_stripping?wprov=sfti1
 

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/debt-loading.asp

Sell to Elon Musk since he already has the X signs ready to go.😀

[Tony UK]

Maybe restrict the things which we know are are requested / demanded but which push or break boundaries like having your butler to bring alcoholic drinks to suites, having the mini bar stocked when it isnt included in your suite class, having all the dining rooms menus available in Luminae, taking complimentary alcoholic drinks from the retreat lounge into Luminae / other parts of the ship when you dont have a drink package, bringing family and non suite guests into Luminae and the retreat sun deck.

I have seen all of these mentioned in posts and reviews and personally witnessed them.  Maybe just getting back to delivering what they promise well would be the way to go!

[Tony UK]

4 hours ago, Tony UK said:

Maybe restrict the things which we know are are requested / demanded but which push or break boundaries like having your butler to bring alcoholic drinks to suites, having the mini bar stocked when it isnt included in your suite class, having all the dining rooms menus available in Luminae, taking complimentary alcoholic drinks from the retreat lounge into Luminae / other parts of the ship when you dont have a drink package, bringing family and non suite guests into Luminae and the retreat sun deck.

I have seen all of these mentioned in posts and reviews and personally witnessed them.  Maybe just getting back to delivering what they promise well would be the way to go!

Or as I have just read...a butler said that guests in a higher suite with included laundry sent the laundry of non suite friends on board who didnt have laundry included! No wonder Celebrity are having to rein in this type of behaviour and the majority as usual tend to lose out!

[TeeRick]

On 8/1/2023 at 10:04 PM, Georgia_Peaches said:

I suspect that my daily gratuity should cover it just fine. It’s a wait and see until November but my knee jerk thought is that I will now have a little extra to pass along to my cabin steward or play in the casino. 

And speaking of the daily gratuity for sky suites.....

Celebrity has gone from 10+ butlers to now 2 on a Retreat Team (duet?). 

So if our daily gratuity partially goes to butlers, then where does that portion go now?  To the two butlers?  Or to the cabin stewards?  Maybe Celebrity should now lower the daily gratuity rate for sky suites?

[sixpackeddie]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

And speaking of the daily gratuity for sky suites.....

Celebrity has gone from 10+ butlers to now 2 on a Retreat Team (duet?). 

So if our daily gratuity partially goes to butlers, then where does that portion go now?  To the two butlers?  Or to the cabin stewards?  Maybe Celebrity should now lower the daily gratuity rate for sky suites?

Excellent point.

[swigso]

On 7/31/2023 at 2:42 PM, RichYak said:

There will now be fewer butlers sharing the same pool of auto gratuities (which recently increased). I doubt I would find the need to augment further. That said, my only foreseeable cruise in Retreat sails next week--supposedly the last Summit sailing prior to the reduction in service. I'll be prepared for either scenario.

It will be great if you can let us all know of your experience 👍

[hcat]

On 7/31/2023 at 9:42 AM, RichYak said:

There will now be fewer butlers sharing the same pool of auto gratuities (which recently increased). I doubt I would find the need to augment further. That said, my only foreseeable cruise in Retreat sails next week--supposedly the last Summit sailing prior to the reduction in service. I'll be prepared for either scenario.

Wonder if for future bookings   X will adjust the all included grat amount for sky suites versus, the amount for  those  whose suites  will have a specific  assigned butler? services rendered will NOT be equal!

Edited August 23, 2023 by hcat

[Lastdance]

Changes flow down from new CEO and confusion from clients flows up...you can’t play the game very well if you do not understand the rules, not to mention changing them continually...

[RichYak]

19 hours ago, swigso said:

It will be great if you can let us all know of your experience 👍

My cruise was the last sailing on Summit prior to the butler cutbacks, though it was hard to tell. We met our butler after embarkation who went through his speech about the mini bar and 2 evian water bottles. There was little contact otherwise. I asked him to make specialty dinner reservations, which he simply passed on to the Retreat Concierges. I sat with them while they made the reservations for me so I could have skipped the butler altogether. He delivered two room service breakfasts, the second of which arrived ice cold. Only one day (this was a 12 night cruise) did he bring any afternoon bites. Finally, there was one bag of laundry that took 2.5 days to return.

 

Needless to say, I was unimpressed. Overall, the level of service in The Retreat seemed a shade under what we're used to with the exception of the Retreat Concierges, who were phenomenal.

 

Celebrity has served us well over the years, but at the current price point, my wife and I will be moving on to other lines.

[Dolebludger]

The Luminae is the major reason for us to book in the Retreat also. We understand included suite mini-bar has been eliminated from the SS list of perks. The in-suite mini-bar is another major reason. We used to book in CS and RS, but I can’t see paying the price for these now. We can book a 100% lux line for less. So I guess Celebrity is off our list — at least for now.