Is tipping mandatory

[shandryl]

On 12/18/2023 at 7:39 AM, dunrobbin said:

As an Aussie living in Canada, I believe the "Tipping" culture in North America is off the wall!  All companies are expecting us to pay their employees for them,  with our tips. Pay your staff a living wage and drop the whole painful tipping nightmare!

You buy a sub, and the machine asks for a 15% tip.   It's beyond crazy!

I know exactly what you mean "machine asks for a 15% tip" << I have started caring cash. lol you should see the look on the servers faces! Its so automatic to carry the "machine" with them. By paying cash. I save the restaurants money! They are charged a % for every transaction. it a Win Win! 😄👍

[tvo7]

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

What would happen if I do not autopsy gratuity but just give the MDR guy a 20 and the stateroom guy a 20 qt the end of the cruise.  

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

[livingonthebeach]

10 minutes ago, tvo7 said:

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

What would happen if I do not autopsy gratuity but just give the MDR guy a 20 and the stateroom guy a 20 qt the end of the cruise.  

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

They would either send you to the brig or make you walk the plank. 

[yogimax]

14 minutes ago, tvo7 said:

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

What would happen if I do not autopsy gratuity but just give the MDR guy a 20 and the stateroom guy a 20 qt the end of the cruise.  

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

Despite denials, thanks for sharing what many people do.  

[tvo7]

When you say many, do you mean 10%, 50 percent?

[time4u2go]

53 minutes ago, tvo7 said:

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

What would happen if I do not autopsy gratuity but just give the MDR guy a 20 and the stateroom guy a 20 qt the end of the cruise.  

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

I know we're not supposed to point out spelling errors, but I got a laugh out of this.  Tipping really has gotten out of hand! 😉

 

[Morecruisesplz]

On 12/17/2023 at 9:31 PM, PhillyFan33579 said:

You are screwing over crew members who depend on tips, but who work behind the scenes and never interact with passengers.

So at home you make a point to tip the guy running the movie projector, the dish washers in restaurants and the guy at the car wash who never touched your car? "Behind the scenes" should be paid out of your cruise fare, not tips.

[A&L_Ont]

57 minutes ago, tvo7 said:

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

What would happen if I do not autopsy gratuity but just give the MDR guy a 20 and the stateroom guy a 20 qt the end of the cruise.  

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

Would you give one $20 for each person in the cabin for the MDR guy and the same amount for the cabin guy?

[d9704011]

1 hour ago, tvo7 said:

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

Nothing would happen.

[Morecruisesplz]

1 hour ago, tvo7 said:

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

What would happen if I do not autopsy gratuity but just give the MDR guy a 20 and the stateroom guy a 20 qt the end of the cruise.  

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

Yes, might be flagged. For $725 I would take the chance. Tip cabin attendant and waiters and catch the rest next time you cruise with out all the family. We just did a Virgin Voyage last week with family. Best parts were NO tipping, no extra charge specialty dining and amazingly friendly and helpful staff. $400 bar tab and $600 obc were nice too. 👌 

 

[Morecruisesplz]

11 minutes ago, d9704011 said:

Nothing would happen.

Not true. Staff has a list. But just hand cash to those you want to tip.

[time4u2go]

6 minutes ago, Morecruisesplz said:

Not true. Staff has a list. But just hand cash to those you want to tip.

The staff has a list of people that removed auto gratuities on their previous cruise?

[tvo7]

1 hour ago, A&amp;L_Ont said:

Would you give one $20 for each person in the cabin for the MDR guy and the same amount for the cabin guy?

 

I would just give a 20 dollar tip for all 3 of us for the stateroom,   I would give a 20 dollar tip to head waiter for all 6 of us in the dining room.

 

Would I be put on some, "watch out for this guy list?"

[glentally]

3 hours ago, tvo7 said:

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

 

WOW TVO !  I was the OP and started this organised chaos.  I'm sitting here doing a solo NEVER thinking about families with 3 or more!!

[not-enough-cruising]

3 hours ago, tvo7 said:

Just got off Harmony of the Seas and for 6 people interior, total around 725 in gratuities.  To me that sounds ridiculous.  

 

What would happen if I do not autopsy gratuity but just give the MDR guy a 20 and the stateroom guy a 20 qt the end of the cruise.  

Would I be flagged in their computer for the next trip?

I have no idea if you would be flagged or even what that would constitute.  Real world experience, however, I can say having not ever paid auto-gratuity, Royal gladly accepts my cruise bookings time and time again.

[PhillyFan33579]

2 hours ago, Morecruisesplz said:

So at home you make a point to tip the guy running the movie projector, the dish washers in restaurants and the guy at the car wash who never touched your car? "Behind the scenes" should be paid out of your cruise fare, not tips.

Most experienced cruisers know a lot of crew members behind the scenes rely heavily on tips. You may not like the way these crew members depend on tips, which I wouldn’t disagree with, but as long as these crew members depend on tips I personally will never remove auto gratuities. 

[tvo7]

Wow, are you saying you declined auto pay gratuity and pay zero tip?  I want to do what you do.  Do the staff ever treat you differently?

[Morecruisesplz]

1 hour ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

Most experienced cruisers know a lot of crew members behind the scenes rely heavily on tips. You may not like the way these crew members depend on tips, which I wouldn’t disagree with, but as long as these crew members depend on tips I personally will never remove auto gratuities. 

You do you. After 55 cruises I would count us as experienced. But you comments still make no sense. (I noticed that you didn't answer my question about on land.) 

[time4u2go]

1 hour ago, tvo7 said:

Wow, are you saying you declined auto pay gratuity and pay zero tip?  I want to do what you do.  Do the staff ever treat you differently?

Not sure which poster you are responding to with this post, but I don't think anyone has suggested declining auto pay gratuity and paying zero tip.

 

Edited December 25, 2023 by time4u2go

[Another_Critic]

3 hours ago, tvo7 said:

 

I would just give a 20 dollar tip for all 3 of us for the stateroom,   I would give a 20 dollar tip to head waiter for all 6 of us in the dining room.

 

Would I be put on some, "watch out for this guy list?"

So $40 total instead of $725 (auto grats)?  And nothing to the assistant waiter?

[d9704011]

5 hours ago, Morecruisesplz said:

Not true. Staff has a list. But just hand cash to those you want to tip.

What is going to happen to the poster?  A pre-disembarkation shakedown?

[tvo7]

My debate is this.  Lets say I eat in buffet all 7 days and not once go to main dining room.  Should should be in the hook for tipping the mdr crew?

 

Maybe give the assistant waiter a 10.

I am sure many on here would be glad to tip 20 plus 20 plus 10 for total of 50 rather than 725 dollars.  

Three of my family were .kids 10 8 8.  Why am I having to tip .RCi 18 dollars a day for each one?

Edited December 25, 2023 by tvo7

[S.A.M.J.R.]

On 12/20/2023 at 7:00 AM, livingonthebeach said:

 It is not customary in the U.S. to give tips to a multi-billion foreign corporation for them to distribute as they see fit.

Every time I go to a sit down restaurant, I pay with CC.  When I'm signing the bill, there's a line for "tip".  That amount is added to the total for the meal and is charged tot he card.  And yes, sometimes I go to chain restaurants.  So, yes, my tips go to multi-billion (don't know if foreign or not) corporations for them to distribute as they see fit.  

 

I see many people paying with cards in these restaurants.  So I'd say "yes, it is customary".  I have no idea how they distribute the tips.  I have no idea what they're paying their servers.  I've never asked anyone how much they make.  I know what the minimum wage is for servers in SOME states, but not all, even the ones I'm travelling to.  For all I know, they're making the same as everyone else and I'm still tipping 20%.  

 

While I agree the number of jobs that expect or request tips is way out of control, I don't think cruise stewards and wait staff are unrealistic.  

 

IMO, it's all in how you perceive what that cost is.  Is it just an included part of the cruise? That's the easy way  to look at it (again, IMO). 

 

You want to judge the job others do and then pay extra accordingly?  Seems like a lot of work, but you do you. 

 

You want to "stick it to the cruise line" and remove the auto grats and tip in cash?  Doesn't really make a lot of difference, unless you KNOW those you give cash to don't share it with others.  RCI doesn't care and won't change their policy because they still have workers doing the jobs.

 

You want to make point and remove auto grats AND not give anything (because they agreed to their base pay)? Seems stingy and cheap to me, but again, you do you.  RCI probably won't care because there's not enough of you to make an impact in the ability to recruit workers.  

[PhillyFan33579]

1 hour ago, Morecruisesplz said:

You do you. After 55 cruises I would count us as experienced. But you comments still make no sense. (I noticed that you didn't answer my question about on land.) 

How do my comments not make sense? Most main line cruise lines have established a system where a significant number of their employees depend on tips. I don’t know any land based business that has a similar compensation structure, so your question about land businesses is irrelevant. You may not like the way cruise lines use tips to pay crew members, but the fact remains passengers who remove gratuities screw over crew members. It’s been a long time since I only had 55 cruises, so you are definitely a novice in my book, although I realize people with less cruises than one would likely think otherwise.  

[gmerick]

First and foremost, removing prepaid gratuities does not significantly affect the contracted salary of anyone.  Until we arrive at the point where a thousand or more passengers do this on every ship, nothing significant happens.  The cabin attendants, waiters, and back-of-the-house staff gets paid anyway.  

Prepaid and automatically charged gratuities are an accounting gimmick.  If the line item reads gratuities, and the charge to the guest is not mandatory, the cruise line doesn't have to count that part of the crew's salary as income.  There is a relatively small portion of a crew paycheck that comes out the cruise line's taxed revenue.  The gratuities line is already, and always "crew" money.  The cruise line merely passes it along and avoids paying taxes on it, or counting it as revenue.

My reasoning for not doing prepaid or auto grats is that I want my portion of this money to go directly to the people who directly affect my vacation.  I still tip that entire $16 pp/pd (now 18), plus the extra that in the past I handed out in person.  I now distribute it as pleases me, not the cruise line accountants.

I do realize that my method does create a disparity in the relative income of direct guest service positions vs. back-of-the-house.  Because the direct service crew members so directly influence the quality and enjoyment of my vacation, I think the disparity is proper.  

Edited December 25, 2023 by gmerick