Cabin steward tipping

[bkrickles1]

53 minutes ago, seemoreroyals said:

 

Good for you.  

 

In the words of the philosopher Sheryl Crow "If it makes you happy it can't be that bad."

 

For a 7 day cruise for two people you are already paying close to $700 in tips assuming you have drink and specialty dinner package so another $20 not going to break you. 

 

To me that $20 you chose to throw away up front would be best left in pocket to be divvied out to someone else along the way that provides something exceptional in regards to service during your cruise.  Otherwise keep the $20 and buy yourself a trinklet at one of the ports you visit.

Hysterical!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

You choose to insult rather than add value!

You don't know me or how I divvy up my $$$!! Lol 🤣🤑

 

Telling me that I'm throwing away money or what I should be doing with it doesn't add anything to the thread started by the OP. 

And making $20 sound like it's nothing is, not only insulting to me but it's insulting to the cabin steward that truly values that $20 plus any additional money I "tip" him/her throughout the sailing.

 

You are obviously more thrifty/frugal than I and, apparently, it works for you.

Good luck with that!!!

[zqvol]

1 hour ago, RocketMan275 said:

Call it whatever you want.  Doesn't change a thing.

A bribe by any other name is still a bribe

[bkrickles1]

3 minutes ago, zqvol said:

A bribe by any other name is still a bribe

Again, so what?

What's wrong with a "bribe", as described in these instances? It's not illegal. These aren't cops we're dealing with.

I know in my case, when I "bribe" my cabin steward on the first day, I'm not asking him/her to do anything not within their scope of duties.

So, what's the issue with the big, bad "bribe"?

[dmwnc1959]

23 minutes ago, cruiser2015 said:

Let's put it this way. If some of these workers did not get a piece of the DSC, NCL probably would have to pay them higher salaries to attract staff. To pay these additional wages, they would raise the cruise fare.

I believe the fare plus the DSC & other mandated fees or gratuities (yes, for optional buys) are part of the package delivered to you for your total payment. View it as reasonable - or not and don't buy in.

Ask yourself if the value is there or not and act in your own best interests.

If NCL decides to raise the DSC instead of the cruise fare, what's the diff (other than you could drop the DSC - I'll assume most passengers will not). Adding fees is also a marketing ploy, so that they can advertise a lower cruise price.

If the cruise lines want to raise cruise prices or the DSC to increase crew wages that’s their call, and that’s fine by me, but they are still walking a very fine line (despite reported record bookings) post-COVID shutdown to drive customers away.
 

Cruise lines have always touted that cruises are the best value for the money. I’m not going to dispute that, since the appearance of an ‘all-in-one-package’ can be deceptively convenient. And at this point in time I’m more than fine with only pre-paying the DSC. No more. That’s what NCL has said is fine with them too. 
 

If I wasn’t before already, and thanks to a lot of posts here, I am firmly on the viewpoint - misguided or not - that my:

 

1) prepaid Daily Service Charges (in addition to my steward is apparently also used for all of the ‘behind the scenes staff’); 

 

2) along with the 20% gratuities already added for the bar staff on the drinks package;

 

3) plus the 20% gratuities already added on my Specialty Dining Package for that waitstaff;

 

4) PLUS that of 2000+ other people (some who are just throwing out gobs of cash left and right) on one cruise is IMHO more than enough.

 

That may change later when I’m two weeks into a 25-night cruise, but I’ll make that decision only then. 
 

There will be more sailings on that ship after I disembark, and a LOT more passengers coming week, after week, after week paying into their ‘added monthly salary pots’ for their employment contracts long after I’m gone. I’m quite sure that these folks are wonderful, and that they’ll make my cruise memorable, exciting, and amazing, but they do that week-in and week-out for everyone. And that’s their job. 😎

[PATRLR]

14 hours ago, Two Wheels Only said:

 

I'll ask again since nobody was willing to answer before.....

 

If the forum response of a "ballpark figure" was $250 per person per day would you tip that much just to fit in?

 

Would you ignore that amount and tip an amount that you feel is appropriate?

 

If the OP's "gathered facts" was an amount that high, would the OP tip based on those "facts"?

 

If you believe that the answer is "yes", then you see the problem with tipping based on what others tip.

If you believe that the answer is "no", then you see that people can decide on their own what to tip without asking what others tip. 

 

 

Seeing as the question you are asking is different from the OP's question, perhaps you should start a new, separate topic for your question.

[RocketMan275]

1 hour ago, zqvol said:

A bribe by any other name is still a bribe

Are  you worried that I'll get better service?

[TrumpyNor]

3 hours ago, seemoreroyals said:

 

You could have accomplished the same thing without the $20.  We do the same thing without forking over the $20 and still maintain friendly interactions with cabin stewards when we see them. 

Of course I know that - after all, with more than 30 cruises with NCL I am not a "newbie". But to me it was a "no-brainer" to pay an additional $2 per day - we got lots of "extra service" as well, that I didn't mention as that was not my point.... And the extra $20 was highly appreciated - even though I "didn't have to pay that".... 

[complawyer]

dmwnc1959.

 

sorry buddy, im to old to get distressed over something as minor as exchanging of posts on  this sight,

with others who disagree. i kind of chuckle that  you seem so self-righteous about your position

 

i was just commenting, that it appeared to me that your posts seemed to be overly hostile, and unnecessarily  so  i also apologized if i misinterpreted.

 

some people tip, others choose not to do so. you have made your position abundantly clear.

 

OK, dont tip. I get your point!  With a few 1000 of your closest friends on board with  you, I'm positive not one of them will care that you dont tip.. one of my favorite quotes goes as follows " the likelihood of someone being right, increases in direct proportion to the intensity with which someone is trying to prove them wrong.  

if the shoe fits .. et al!

[cruiser2015]

1 hour ago, dmwnc1959 said:

If the cruise lines want to raise cruise prices or the DSC to increase crew wages that’s their call, and that’s fine by me, but they are still walking a very fine line (despite reported record bookings) post-COVID shutdown to drive customers away.
 

Cruise lines have always touted that cruises are the best value for the money. I’m not going to dispute that, since the appearance of an ‘all-in-one-package’ can be deceptively convenient. And at this point in time I’m more than fine with only pre-paying the DSC. No more. That’s what NCL has said is fine with them too. 
 

If I wasn’t before already, and thanks to a lot of posts here, I am firmly on the viewpoint - misguided or not - that my:

 

1) prepaid Daily Service Charges (in addition to my steward is apparently also used for all of the ‘behind the scenes staff’); 

 

2) along with the 20% gratuities already added for the bar staff on the drinks package;

 

3) plus the 20% gratuities already added on my Specialty Dining Package for that waitstaff;

 

4) PLUS that of 2000+ other people (some who are just throwing out gobs of cash left and right) on one cruise is IMHO more than enough.

 

That may change later when I’m two weeks into a 25-night cruise, but I’ll make that decision only then. 
 

There will be more sailings on that ship after I disembark, and a LOT more passengers coming week, after week, after week paying into their ‘added monthly salary pots’ for their employment contracts long after I’m gone. I’m quite sure that these folks are wonderful, and that they’ll make my cruise memorable, exciting, and amazing, but they do that week-in and week-out for everyone. And that’s their job. 😎

I think you are doing fine with your approach.

Tipping has been reasonably dealt with by NCL with all of those add-ons.

If you were struck with the idea that someone on board was worthy of more than the typical compensation, you could consider tossing some extra cash their way.

But you should not feel compelled to do so by anyone else's opinion on the subject.

I wish I could get "lost" for 25 days aboard - except for the possible weight gain.

Have a great cruise(s)!

[dmwnc1959]

39 minutes ago, complawyer said:

dmwnc1959.

 

sorry buddy, im to old to get distressed over something as minor as exchanging of posts on  this sight,

with others who disagree. i kind of chuckle that  you seem so self-righteous about your position

 

i was just commenting, that it appeared to me that your posts seemed to be overly hostile, and unnecessarily  so  i also apologized if i misinterpreted.

 

some people tip, others choose not to do so. you have made your position abundantly clear.

 

OK, dont tip. I get your point!  With a few 1000 of your closest friends on board with  you, I'm positive not one of them will care that you dont tip.. one of my favorite quotes goes as follows " the likelihood of someone being right, increases in direct proportion to the intensity with which someone is trying to prove them wrong.  

if the shoe fits .. et al!

Me, self-righteous? 😇 If you knew me like my friends know me they’d laugh so hard at that label until beer poured out of their nostrils. 🍺🤣

 

But, as someone mentioned earlier on in this thread, there is no right or wrong when it comes to extra tipping (above and beyond what the Daily Service Charge and all of the mandatory added gratuities to packages already cover), there are just opinions. Strong as they may be. And those opinions as well as our real-world practices are as different as we (collectively, the members of Cruise Critic) are. Our cultures, behaviors, upbringing, social backgrounds, jobs, and all of the various factors that impact our daily lives play a part in how, and with whom, we spend our money. 
 

It’s been refreshing and stimulating reading all of these posts, and it’s time to get back to my planning for this grand adventure. I’ve got the maps, spreadsheets, screen-grabs, check-off lists, and cruise calendar over on the computer table and hanging on the walls. Even watched Norwegian Jade leaving out of Tampa yesterday on the Live Cams to determine cruising time between the dock and the Sunshine Skyway Bridge (its two hours). 😉

 

And to end with one of my favorite quotes…

 

”Live Long and Prosper” 🖖

[seemoreroyals]

3 hours ago, bkrickles1 said:

Hysterical!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

You choose to insult rather than add value!

You don't know me or how I divvy up my $$$!! Lol 🤣🤑

 

Telling me that I'm throwing away money or what I should be doing with it doesn't add anything to the thread started by the OP. 

And making $20 sound like it's nothing is, not only insulting to me but it's insulting to the cabin steward that truly values that $20 plus any additional money I "tip" him/her throughout the sailing.

 

You are obviously more thrifty/frugal than I and, apparently, it works for you.

Good luck with that!!!

 

Probably more frugal and thrifty than you but was not meant as insult.  Sorry you took it that way.  To each his or her own.  It is a personal choice how you want to spend your money.  

 

The DSC when transformed from giving individual envelopes on the last day to cabin stewards, waiters and others years ago was a genius move on NCL's part.  Now they are collecting on average about $700 in tips up front for a cabin for two on a seven day cruise.  That assuming that cabin gets the drink package and the SDP.   

 

Nothing else is required or expected in tipping.  I have never went down to customer service and had the DSC (cabin steward et al tips) removed and probably never will.  But it takes something above and beyond to get me to tip extra which I do occasionally.  

 

Let's leave it at that.

 

[seemoreroyals]

2 hours ago, complawyer said:

 

 

some people tip, others choose not to do so. you have made your position abundantly clear.

 

 

 

Everybody tips.  The cabin steward, free diner staff etal get their tips from the DSC.  It is up to NCL to distribute accordingly.

 

The bar staff and the specialty dinner staff get their tips from the 20% that is added on .  

 

It adds up to about $700 in tips for a cabin for two on a seven day cruise.  Seems like more than enough to me.  Just in the last few years the DSC has been raised from $12 to $20 per person per cabin.  

 

The only way to avoid tips is to go to guest services and have them removed.  

Edited February 26 by seemoreroyals

[Two Wheels Only]

2 minutes ago, seemoreroyals said:

The bar staff and the specialty dinner staff get their tips from the 20% that is added on.

 

The only way to avoid tips is to go to guest services and have them removed.  

 

Just for clarification, the DSC can be adjusted/removed but the 20% gratuity/service charge on packages or individual meals/drinks cannot be removed as far as I know.

[Grammymongi]

We usually find him as soon as we get to our room and give him $20 the first day and $10 every  day after included disembarkation day. 

[cruiser2015]

2 hours ago, dmwnc1959 said:

Me, self-righteous? 😇 If you knew me like my friends know me they’d laugh so hard at that label until beer poured out of their nostrils. 🍺🤣

 

But, as someone mentioned earlier on in this thread, there is no right or wrong when it comes to extra tipping (above and beyond what the Daily Service Charge and all of the mandatory added gratuities to packages already cover), there are just opinions. Strong as they may be. And those opinions as well as our real-world practices are as different as we (collectively, the members of Cruise Critic) are. Our cultures, behaviors, upbringing, social backgrounds, jobs, and all of the various factors that impact our daily lives play a part in how, and with whom, we spend our money. 
 

It’s been refreshing and stimulating reading all of these posts, and it’s time to get back to my planning for this grand adventure. I’ve got the maps, spreadsheets, screen-grabs, check-off lists, and cruise calendar over on the computer table and hanging on the walls. Even watched Norwegian Jade leaving out of Tampa yesterday on the Live Cams to determine cruising time between the dock and the Sunshine Skyway Bridge (its two hours). 😉

 

And to end with one of my favorite quotes…

 

”Live Long and Prosper” 🖖

Why does that sign-off NOT surprise me...😉

[dlh015]

I tip for services rendered...after they are rendered. 🙂

(except for pre-paid grats)

 

And I don't care who or when or how or how much others tip...or don't. It's none of my business and they ain't using my money. 

Edited February 26 by dlh015

[complawyer]

seemoreroyals, unless i have totally misunderstood your post, the issue under discussion is not the DSC, which everyone pays unless you elect to have it removed, but whether or not the DSC preludes people from tipping individually for service rendered.

 

since the DSC is allegedly distributed to all the crew working behind the scenes, we never know who gets what amount. how much of my DSC goes to the baker. making the missing cookies. how much to the person who id laundering my shorts. i give tips to people that  provide person to person service on a daily basis throughout my cruise 

[graphicguy]

This whole "bribe" thing.  A bribe is a form of extortion.  That has nothing to do with a tip, which is a reward for a job well done.

 

 

Some of y'all are really stretching things towards the ridiculous.

[complawyer]

dmwnc1959.  i am offering the following (1) a white dove of peace (2) an olive branch (3) an apology.

 

while personally, on a cruise we tip people that provide us with person to person service on a daily basis, i acknowledge and concede, if i were on a 25 day cruise, and being charged an additional $20 service fee that i'm told goes in the general kitty for workers no one either sees, or interacts with, i too would be hesitant to offer any more money out of pocket. 

 

so in the end, neither of our positions is right or wrong.  enjoy your 25 days of sailing ( while i envy you the days), i think my wife and i would be ready to slit each other throats if we were confined together for that long  LOL.

 

Bon Voyage!

[graphicguy]

2 hours ago, seemoreroyals said:

 

Probably more frugal and thrifty than you but was not meant as insult.  Sorry you took it that way.  To each his or her own.  It is a personal choice how you want to spend your money.  

 

The DSC when transformed from giving individual envelopes on the last day to cabin stewards, waiters and others years ago was a genius move on NCL's part.  Now they are collecting on average about $700 in tips up front for a cabin for two on a seven day cruise.  That assuming that cabin gets the drink package and the SDP.   

 

Nothing else is required or expected in tipping.  I have never went down to customer service and had the DSC (cabin steward et al tips) removed and probably never will.  But it takes something above and beyond to get me to tip extra which I do occasionally.  

 

Let's leave it at that.

 

Holy Moly.....$700 in tips up front?  How long are you sailing?  A month?  In the Haven?

 

I've never paid more than $175 for the DSC/tip, and that's for staying in the Haven.  Admittedly, I'll add another couple hundred for additional tips for the Cabin attendant, Butler and Concierge, but that's still nowhere near $700.

 

WOW....you're a really good tipper.

[d9704011]

4 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

A bribe is a form of extortion

You're right.... ridiculous.

[complawyer]

graphic guy.  remember if you offer someone money, and consider it a bribe, they have the option not to accept. someone offering the maitre 'd at cagneys to get you a seat might be called a bribe, but he has the option of refusing and advising there is nothing he can do .

 

id like to think that it's money offered for a special  request. if there wasnt a vegas handshake, the entire underground economy of las vegas would crumble  lol

[PATRLR]

14 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Some of y'all are really stretching things towards the ridiculous.

Here?  On CC?  Nahhhh....

[complawyer]

graphic guy, 1 final thought ( i hope) to me a bribe is an offer of money or anything of value asking someone to do a specific thing or things. i cant bribe a waiter to bring me food, that's what he's there for. a tip is a monetary acknowledgement thanking for the service provided 

[ready2cruzagain]

11 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Holy Moly.....$700 in tips up front?  How long are you sailing?  A month?  In the Haven?

 

I've never paid more than $175 for the DSC/tip, and that's for staying in the Haven.  Admittedly, I'll add another couple hundred for additional tips for the Cabin attendant, Butler and Concierge, but that's still nowhere near $700.

 

WOW....you're a really good tipper.

 

Actually he is not that far off. $20pp for 2 for a 7 day trip for DSC is $280. If he gets 3 specialty meals that is approx. $70 more for tips and drinks pkg tip is approx $300 so that is $650  for a 7 day cruise in a regular cabin, no haven. 

 

We paid approx. $1,800 in DSC and tips last month on a 21 day cruise. $1,800 is not cheap to me and if we had not paid that could have sailed another 7 days. That within itself is why I do not tip extra unless someone goes well and above what they should be doing and I have not seen that in a while.