If we eat dinner in the Windjammer..........

[SusieQT]

do we tip the servers that night while we are there?

[cb at sea]

No, the prevailing theory is that you tip the dining room staff, because all of those waiters also do time in the Windjammer, and they "pool" the tips.

[banderboo]

I do since they are the ones waiting on me. With that said if I eat in the dinning room at all, even if it's one night I tip there as well. And I'm not so sure about the pooling of the tips. Every waiter I've ever talked to said that they don't pool tips.

[sas80]

do we tip the servers that night while we are there?

 

If you want to, sure!

[cruisePRN]

I have never tipped in the buffet but I always fully tip the dining room waiter and his assistant. I personally have never seen money laying on a table in the windjammer. we don't carry cash around on the ship because it's of no use (except the casino) we use the sea passes.

[packercruising]

Ok help me out here. Is the Windjammer the buffet? Or is it like the DR only outside?

 

Thanks! :)

[Nemo2005]

The Windjammer is the buffet location. On some RCI ships the Windjammer has outdoor and indoor seating. On others, only indoor seating.

[packercruising]

Thank you. That helps to explain alot. :)

[banderboo]

I have never tipped in the buffet but I always fully tip the dining room waiter and his assistant. I personally have never seen money laying on a table in the windjammer. we don't carry cash around on the ship because it's of no use (except the casino) we use the sea passes.

 

When we tip we hand the money to the person helping us. We don't leave the money on the table.

[thesawch]

I give a dollar to the guys or gals going around picking up our plates etc after my meal..Its only one dollar at breakfast and lunch but it makes me feel good giving it and i alwasy get a nice smile when i give it to them.lots of people take the servers for grantade in the windjammer but they appreciate it.these kids work hard and some people treat them with no respect.Thesawch

[thesawch]

I give a dollar to the guys or gals going around picking up our plates etc after my meal..Its only one dollar at breakfast and lunch but it makes me feel good giving it and i alwasy get a nice smile when i give it to them.lots of people take the servers for grantade in the windjammer but they appreciate it.these kids work hard and some people treat them with no respect.Thesawch

[BobBeaSea]

The easiest way is to let the ship sort it out. Pre-pay your tips and you have fulfiiled your obligation as far as the crew is concerned. If you do this everyone is happy; the passenger is happy because she/he is no longer confused (tip pool or no tip pool, crew rotation etc. etc.) and has done the right thing, the crew is happy because the tips are paid and the ship is happy because you paying your tips has cut the stiff rate down. If you feel the need to give more to anyone of your choosing, feel free to do so...it will be appreciated but is unecessary if you have paid the tips required. Couldn't be simpler. :)

[dutchess43]

When we were on the Enchantment this past Aug we had a special waiter in the windjammer that would find us seats for breakfast & lunch when he was on duty. We always tried to eat in his section not only was he an excellent waiter but very personable. By day two he knew exactly what we were drinking & ran to get us our drinks. I only wished he was our dining room waiter as well. The last day DH tipped him handsomely & we received Commodore cards to fill out & vote for our favorite person while on board. Naturally we voted for him & when I told him I think that was even worth more to him then the tip.

[Ocean Boy]

I don't like pre-paying tips. The way I see it a tip is to show gratitude for service performed for me. When they are pre-paid I don't know who is getting it.

 

We no longer eat dinner in the dining room. The commotion and noise in there is too much for me. Since we have all of our meals in the Windjammer we tip the staff in there at the end of the week like we would have in the dining room if we had used it. The same staff is in the Windjammer each evening and we sit in the same section every night so we have the same waiter every night. He takes care of us and we take care of him.

 

When we were on Serenade the hostess in the Windjammer made us feel so welcome when we came in even at breakfast and lunch. She made it so special that we remembered to tip her at the end of the week too. She was so surprised and I felt so good. I'll keep sticking to my way of handling tips.

[mamaza]

Wasn't there a large pot type jar as you enter/exit the Windjammer that was ment for general tips for the staff there? It seems I put a couple dollars into something at that location last year.

[sustyse]

I give a dollar to the guys or gals going around picking up our plates etc after my meal..Its only one dollar at breakfast and lunch but it makes me feel good giving it and i alwasy get a nice smile when i give it to them.lots of people take the servers for grantade in the windjammer but they appreciate it.these kids work hard and some people treat them with no respect.Thesawch

 

That's a lovely idea, must remember to do that on my next cruise.:)

[pcur]

I don't like pre-paying tips. The way I see it a tip is to show gratitude for service performed for me. When they are pre-paid I don't know who is getting it.

 

We no longer eat dinner in the dining room. The commotion and noise in there is too much for me. Since we have all of our meals in the Windjammer we tip the staff in there at the end of the week like we would have in the dining room if we had used it. The same staff is in the Windjammer each evening and we sit in the same section every night so we have the same waiter every night. He takes care of us and we take care of him.

 

When we were on Serenade the hostess in the Windjammer made us feel so welcome when we came in even at breakfast and lunch. She made it so special that we remembered to tip her at the end of the week too. She was so surprised and I felt so good. I'll keep sticking to my way of handling tips.

 

(applause)......good for you!!!

[mikeblum]

we have been wityh rccl 13 times and personally i have never tipped in the windjammer and have never eat'n dinner in the windjammer either...tipping is a personal thing and if you would like to tip in the windjammer go right ahead...i 'm not sure if it is excpected but it's a wonderful gesture...being that i have never eat'n dinner upstairs do they serve the same thing buffet style that is on the main dinning room menu...we have eat'm at both chop's and portofino's many many times and let me tell you those were some fantatico meals...

[katiel53]

I don't like pre-paying tips. The way I see it a tip is to show gratitude for service performed for me. When they are pre-paid I don't know who is getting it.

 

 

I guess this part of your post confuses me. There is a list of who gets the tips when they are prepaid. You get vouchers, I believe, that say to my waiter, my assistant waiter, my headwaiter and cabin steward.

 

 

We tip the full amount even when we eat dinner at Portofino, Chops or room service. We haven't ever had dinner in the WJ, but last time on Radiance we had a great beverage server in there in the morning, so we tipped her every morning. I feel tipping is part of the cruise, so we plan on the standard amounts as part of the expense of the cruise.

 

We also tip additionally where we feel it is warranted. The tips in the dining room are not pooled. They go to the individuals for whom they are intended. I do believe that the tips in the box near the entrance of the WJ are pooled for those who work there only that week.

 

I know tipping is a personal thing and it doesn't matter how it's done as long as it is done. JMO.

[Ocean Boy]

I guess this part of your post confuses me. There is a list of who gets the tips when they are prepaid. You get vouchers, I believe, that say to my waiter, my assistant waiter, my headwaiter and cabin steward.

 

Correct, you get a voucher to give to the people that you mentioned. However, I don't know if that is just so you then have something to hand them so the staff does not think they are getting stiffed or so that you don't look like you are stiffing the staff (because we all know from previous threads there are people with their noses in everyone elses business looking for things like that) or if the staff then hands in that voucher in exchange for the cash. When I hand them the tip I know exactly where it has gone.

[Crosboro]

I don't, as I found the service there basically non-existant. Most irritating is walking back to the table with a plate of food, and having the staff just walk right in front of you like you don't even exist. Oh, yes, some will think that's snobbish, but you are the guest, and should be treated as such.