JS Tipping?

[JerseyGirl66]

Is there a Suite Attendant with a Junior Suite cabin? Just trying to figure out the total tips for the week and would like to know if I should be adding a tip for Suite attendant???

[vickiw0318]

Your tips for the JS will be the same as the other cabins. They are larger only for a GS and above.

[jhmoore143]

I figured out that the difference between a cabin and a suite tip is $18 for two people on a 4 day cruise.

 

Yes, the room isn't as big as a Grand, Royal or Family suite but it is still listed as a suite none the less. I was surprised to see the tip was rated at a normal cabin tip rate.

 

The way we looked at it was this: We have a Junior Suite which is larger than a regular cabin. We received the benefit of priority booking because we were in a "suite" - so why shouldn't we tip the same rate as a "suite".

 

This link might help you decide:

 

Cruise Tip Calculator

[madforcruising]

I figured out that the difference between a cabin and a suite tip is $18 for two people on a 4 day cruise.

 

Yes, the room isn't as big as a Grand, Royal or Family suite but it is still listed as a suite none the less. I was surprised to see the tip was rated at a normal cabin tip rate.

 

The way we looked at it was this: We have a Junior Suite which is larger than a regular cabin. We received the benefit of priority booking because we were in a "suite" - so why shouldn't we tip the same rate as a "suite".

 

This link might help you decide:

 

Cruise Tip Calculator

 

Tipping is a personal matter and of course there´s nothing wrong in giving your cabin attendant the suite rate.

 

However if asked what RCI recommends as tip for the cabin attendands of JS, the answer is clearly $3.50/person/day. If you prepay your tips, or let them charge them to your onboard account, that´s the amount RCI charges you.

[critterchick]

I figured out that the difference between a cabin and a suite tip is $18 for two people on a 4 day cruise.

 

Yes, the room isn't as big as a Grand, Royal or Family suite but it is still listed as a suite none the less. I was surprised to see the tip was rated at a normal cabin tip rate.

 

The way we looked at it was this: We have a Junior Suite which is larger than a regular cabin. We received the benefit of priority booking because we were in a "suite" - so why shouldn't we tip the same rate as a "suite".

 

This link might help you decide:

 

Cruise Tip Calculator

 

What does your cabin steward have to do with priority boarding (I assume that's what you mean)? Or those two extra credits, for that matter?

 

In a full suite, the cabin steward may have more responsibilities than in a standard cabin (including a JS) - cleaning out the coffeemaker, replenishing the fruit bowl, drink glasses (for all those smuggled cocktails:rolleyes:) two sinks to clean, a larger tub & bathroom floor to swab, more room service dishes to deal with, etc. The JS would require a little extra vacuuming, and that's about it.

 

I suspect that the additional suite charge dates back to when the full suites got more than just extra square footage, slippers and robes and there was no Concierge onboard (so perhaps that extra tip, or part of it, should go to the Concierge now, but that's not how RCI sees it). I wonder if the cabin stewards were once like the "butlers" (cabin stewards in tuxes) on Azamara, who are also responsible for helping you make specialty restaurant reservations, bring your breakfast from room service and, in the full suites, delivering your complimentary specialty coffees.

 

But the short answer is that the JS pays the standard cabin rate.:)

[kyriecat]

Tipping is a personal matter and of course there´s nothing wrong in giving your cabin attendant the suite rate.

 

However if asked what RCI recommends as tip for the cabin attendands of JS, the answer is clearly $3.50/person/day. If you prepay your tips, or let them charge them to your onboard account, that´s the amount RCI charges you.

This same topic came up a month or two ago. I read that some people were charged the suite amount for their JS when they put their tips on the Sea Pass. I've stayed in a JS several times and always put the tips on my Sea Pass. I don't ever remember being charged more than the regular cabins. For the people who were charged suite rates, I wasn't sure if RC was changing theit tipping policy for the JS's or if the personnel onboard the ships made a typo.

[jhmoore143]

What does your cabin steward have to do with priority boarding (I assume that's what you mean)?

 

Obviously I didn't make myself clear. What I meant was if we get the privilege of priority boarding because we are in a suite, why should the suite attendant get a suite rate on the tip.

 

Ours (Desmond, I think) was wonderful. He kept our ice bucket filled two or three times a day - and we never asked for it. He was very polite and knew our names before we ever met him. He called us by name the first time we left the room on day one - I didn't even know who he was at the time.

 

He probably didn't do anything over and above in his normal routine, but we were very pleased with him and felt he should be tipped in accordance with the "suite" rate.

[kyriecat]

Obviously I didn't make myself clear. What I meant was if we get the privilege of priority boarding because we are in a suite, why should the suite attendant get a suite rate on the tip.

 

Ours (Desmond, I think) was wonderful. He kept our ice bucket filled two or three times a day - and we never asked for it. He was very polite and knew our names before we ever met him. He called us by name the first time we left the room on day one - I didn't even know who he was at the time.

 

He probably didn't do anything over and above in his normal routine, but we were very pleased with him and felt he should be tipped in accordance with the "suite" rate.

Those are all things the cabin stewards are supposed to do whether for suites or regular cabins. Actually the best cabin steward I ever had was on my second cruise. We were in an oceanview on deck 2 on Rhapsody. Out cabin steward (Oscar) would always greet us by name and when he saw us coming, he would unlock our cabin door and give us a little bow. Talk about service! He got the base tip plus some cash. Worst service was last trip on Legend in a junior suite. Our cabin steward forgot to leave towels almost every day, wouldn't refill the ice bucket unless asked each time even though I told her on the first day that I wanted ice each time, and I don't think she ever really cleaned the cabin. If I hadn't put the tips on my Sea Pass, she wouldn't have got anything from me. I definitely didn't leave her any extra! I would have been really mad if I had been charged a suite attendant rate for her!

[madforcruising]

This same topic came up a month or two ago. I read that some people were charged the suite amount for their JS when they put their tips on the Sea Pass. I've stayed in a JS several times and always put the tips on my Sea Pass. I don't ever remember being charged more than the regular cabins. For the people who were charged suite rates, I wasn't sure if RC was changing theit tipping policy for the JS's or if the personnel onboard the ships made a typo.

 

I can´t say if they made a mistake or what happened for the people that had the higher amount charged to their Seapass. However I have a theory (personal opinion) on why it happened.

 

I think the Seapass cards are charged with exactly the amount authorized. Now when you want the tips charged to your SeaPass account you have to fill out a form, sign it and turn it over to the guest relations. They have two versions of that form, one for suite guests (higher amount) and another one with the lower amount for all others. I didn´t pay much attention to this until when I was in a JS and got the form delivered (lower amount) and picked up another form in the CL (higher amount). Now if you are in a JS and for whatever reason happen to get a from with the higher amount and either don´t realize or think that´s what it should be, they will charge you the higher amount. I doubt the person working on those forms will think about the amounts and booked cabin category, but just punch them into the computer. On the same note I´d say a person in a full suite using the form with lower amounts, would be only charged the $3.50.

 

With all this said ( and I´m not saying this ever happened ) in theory a sneaky room attendant of a JS could purposely place a from with the Suite attendants rates in their serviced cabins, hoping for guests not realizing and getting higher tips:eek::eek::eek:

[cb at sea]

For JS or below, tip regular cabin rates. For GS or above, tip the "suite" rate.