As long as they're AUTOMATICALLY CHARGING ME I won't tip any extra. When we cruised before tipping was mandatory, we tipped generously. We appreciate the crew and the mostly wonderful service they provide. The problem is cruise lines are like restaurants in the U.S. in that they expect the public to pay their employees. Which is bullshit.
100% agree with that! Just got back from Virgin Voyages where gratuities are included. Having gratuities included with no expectation of tipping extra was AMAZING!
100% agree as well! I have already prepaid my gratuities in advance and I will NOT be doing any additional tipping on my cruise besides excursions and porter staff at the airport that is it. It is not the responsibility of customers to pay employees salaries smh
This feels like the "Resort fee" hotels are now charging for services they used to provide for free. The psychology behind it is BS, and a smoke screen for simply raising every avenue they can.
We remove gratuities and then tip at the end to our room attendant and main waiters. I’m English so the whole tipping thing isn’t the same for me as it would be to an American. We’ve received absolutely A1 service regardless of tipping or paying gratuities. Also, I’m going out on a limb here, but most people who are happy to pay gratuities and then tip on top probably aren’t people with children. If we pay gratuities across our family the we’re adding a sizeable amount to our already pricey holiday. Regardless, we couldn’t care less what others do and will always remove gratuities where we can and tip individually as we see fit.
Never thought about the children aspect but that is very true. The gratuities add up quick for a larger family! That is the great thing about tipping, we all get to do exactly what we want :-)
This exactly. I'm American and despise that tipping is being pushed as mandatory so I "don't take it out on the staff". Personally, tipping here has become more like mob extortion or a ransom.
Agree 100%!! Crew salaries need to be increased such that they get compensated adequately without needing tips to do so. I hate the stress of making sure my actions are looking out for the crews compensation. Did I tip enough? Was I supposed to tip him? I would love if the US adopted the convention of most of the rest of the world.
The tipping discussion is always circular: 1. Guests get annoyed that employees' wages are not built in into the product price 2. Guests dont want to take out frustration on service people and, until things change, tipping feels/is mandatory 3. Employer/company see that guests are willing tippers and could get away with charging less for products and paying their employees artificially low wage (which, btw, allow both workers and employers to circumvent some income taxes) 4. Repeat
It was very true! Though, not tipping the crew to enact change is like voting for a 3rd party political candidate. Very glad Celebrity has shown that it can be done! I believe there is a movement among some large corporations to do good. Ex: many Fortune 100 companies have raised their minimum wage above what states require. I hope Royal Caribbean will take this on as well!
@@TheWeekendCruiserif every one votes for a third party candidate then we can have some change…too many people see voting for a third party candidate as a lost cause. The issue is perception
@@istherenooneleft Same response as before. Until there is a mass change in thinking that 3rd parties are genuinely electable, you only hurt your 2nd favorite candidate. Elections have been won/lost because of 3rd parties splitting voters.
My biggest problem with the "expected" gratuities is the company uses it for two reasons, to pay less themselves for the employees, and to make the headline cruise rate look lower. For example, a cruise is $699 per person for a 7 day cruise. The gratuities at $15 a day average means your actual cost is $804 for that cruise per person, or an extra $210 for the cabin. That is before they add on taxes and port fees. I would much rather the rate they advertised covered all that but they want it to look as cheap as possible. I went cruising last December and paid $302 basic cruise fare per person, so $604 for a 7 day cruise on Harmony of the Seas. The actual cost though was $1244, this did include prepaying the gratuities, taxes and port fees. This is obviously still a great deal versus the normal cost of that cruise but it makes it more difficult to compare one vacation against another. I would much rather employees were paid a decent basic wage and that they were still allowed additional tips if the guest wants to do that for EXCEPTIONAL service not just doing the job. I would be interested to know if the base pay is different in different regions of cruising based on the likelihood of them receiving tips. Hotels are doing the same thing in some locations by hiding a resort fee or parking fee. Some parking fees in Vegas and DC are astronomical so your hotel looks cheap but the actual price you pay is way higher. Its just misleading. I actually created a spreadsheet when we were looking at a trip to DC and had a column for room rate, parking fee, resort fee, so it would calculate a total cost without having to go through the booking process to find out. Its ridiculous.
As someone from europe, I will refuse to pay 18% extra on my cruise as I have already paid so much for the cruise they should just pay them a better salary rather than putting all the profit in their pockets. I will only tip for exceptional service.
@@istherenooneleft I don't, not until it is mass scale and we are not even close to that. By not tipping at this time, we simply harm those that have nothing to do with it.
@@TheWeekendCruiser by causing harm you can force change at a local level…everything starts grassroots…change one restaurant…change a bunch…change city…change a cruise…but I understand your point of view as well
The ships could eliminate the 18% gratuity- just raise the prices 18% . I always overtip the cabin steward and my waitstaff, because it makes a difference to them, and a few hundred bucks doesn't affect me. I also write down names of the people who serve me well and make sure I call them out by name on the post-cruise survey.
My husband and I always tip the drink servers a dollar or two (especially if the server sees us daily in the Schooner bar for trivia!). I cringe when I see a large party order 8 - 10 drinks and not one of them puts a buck on the tray!
With the drink package, a lot of people feel like the 18% gratuity is already covering everything. Depending on how much you drink, it might or might not! lol That money is also not necessarily going to the person who is helping you the most. as it is spread around to MANY folks.
@@TheWeekendCruiser There are many non-facing people who should rightly get a cut. The guy who busses the breakfast area, or who works behind the scenes at dinner rightly deserves a cut. In America, almost all restaurants require the wait staff to "tip back" (typically 5% of the total tab) to the dishwashers/bussers and cooks. Yeah, I know the Windjammer lounge is staffed with the evening wait staff, but how many people tip at breakfast or lunch?
@@RetiredSignDude Not arguing with the logic. I don't like the system for this very reason as it becomes subjective and as a guest, I have no idea what all goes into actually making my experience great. I just know it happens.
I hate the guilt trip involved with tipping, it's somehow become an obligation otherwise I'm evil. I prepay my gratuities and on top of that the Cruise Ship force an 18 percent gratuity on nearly everything you do and every reservatiin you make. So I'm already out of $200 in gratuities before I even step on the ship why should I pay more?? As a customer why should I pay a multibillion dollar company's employees. They should pay a fare wage.
Tipping remains 100% in your discretion and you control how much, if any, you want to tip. Hopefully, the video was more informative and educational so that people can see how much the crew is getting from onboard gratuities and determine if they like that amount. For me, and only for me, it is not enough and I like to tip on top of that. I also hope this video spurs people to action to write the cruise lines and advocate for including tipping/gratuities in their cruise fare so we can change the tipping culture. I love to cruise but want to simply get on the ship and enjoy without worrying about paying a crew members salary as well.
@@TheWeekendCruiser for me, I'd rather tip the people who actually wait on me, but the Cruise Lines are already forcing me to pay 18 percent on everything so it sours me on the entire process. I always tip, but it also ticks me off when I've already been FORCED to.
Great breakdown so I had to screenshot! I can’t believe $1 per day for some of the restaurant staff. I’m sure a lot people don’t tip anything extra and to no fault of there own as they did pre pay the gratuities.
I get why people do not tip above the automatic gratuities as you def feel like you did you part. People just don't realize how little that comes out to when split with everyone.
I just came back from RCCL's Oasis of the Seas and I wished that "pre-paid" grats/tips were rolled into the cruise fare. I felt kinda uncomfortable tipping on top of what I already "pre-paid" for, although I agree some staff went above and beyond, I still feel these additional tips should be included in the fare from the start. We live in a tipping society in the U.S. I get tipping when you go out for dinner, bar or nightclub etc. on land. My belief is a cruise is a product that you purchase from a cruise line and this "product" should include tips/grats that are rolled into the price from the start. Congrats on Celebrity and Virgin for moving forward on that issue.
Hi Brandon, it was a pleasure to meet you on the Wonder last week. Carnival sailings out of Australia have the gratuity built into the fare. It’s not expected that you’ll tip on a carnival australia cruise. Keep up the good work on CZcams. Rodd :)
Hey Rodd! Great to meet you as well and we had a blast that sailing!!! Yes, it is country specific and I believe that is due to an Aussie regulation requiring everything to be included?
When we cruise royal Caribbean, we typically tip 20 dollars for room staff, restaurant staff and buffet staff daily. Thats plus prepaid gratuity. Always have had great service on Royal !
I love how cruise lines guilt guests into thinking it is our job to pay their employees. I don't tip servers at Walmart or Burger King...Maybe I should? I always opt-out of automatic paying. I tip at my own discretion.
Thanks for the feedback Harry! No wrong way to tip as it is all up to you :-) Unfortunately, I think every company would opt into a tipping model if they could. Horrible system but it is the system we have.
It is true. The culture of tipping is only in Canada and the USA. Other countries around the world do not even think about it or have laws mandating gratuities be included (Australia)
This is a tricky one for me. The tips could go to people who allow that room steward to provide amazing service. Even back of the house folks in this model have come to expect tips as part o their compensation which is the real shame.
Excellent video today, I too believe the workers solid be paid better, but I tip my room steward well and also my waiters. Thanks for tackling this controversial issue.
We don’t have a tipping culture here in Australia. We pay more for cruises because of this. Personally I don’t mind giving an extra gift to my room stewards at the end. As for what I think of tipping in America (from listening to my American friends), I believe that a lot stems from the really low pay people get. I once had someone tell me they worked for tips and didn’t get paid as such from their employer. Im sorry, that sounds a lot like slavery. If employers can’t afford to pay their employees a decent wage, then they shouldn’t be hiring.
While not slavery it is extortion in my eyes. Extorting the customer by shaming them. The wait staff are free to get other jobs and I stand behind that. On a side note I'd really like to visit Australia before I get too much older. You should come visit Texas if you haven't already. Just stay away from chain BBQ joints, Austin (it's more like California than Texas now), and Houston (unless you are into combat driving). 😁
I love how you present the big picture. I am an avid cruiser and feel your amounts presented in previous videos are right on target. I have also read that sometimes crew can't get off the ship so I give them gift bags of toothpaste, detergent and shampoo. I don't know if this is appreciated or the crew are just being polite. Your videos have been very informative. Can't wait till next week when I try the Nassau walking tour.
Honestly, I have often told people that if you are going to give cash OR a gift bag, always give the cash. If you are giving a gift bag as an above and beyond, I am sure they will be thankful though some might just want the $5 cash you spent on the gift bag honestly. I have brought items on the ship many times for crew but it was at their request and something they told me they needed. If you know you are coming back soon, it is always nice to offer if you can bring anything and gain their response.
I would never pre-pay grats. My rule is never pay anything before I have to. Plus if I had to cancel, that is more money that I will have to try to get back. I mostly cruise on Princess and Celebrity, so now it is all included. (princess have a choice now of all inclusive or basic fare).
I completely agree with that as well! That is the last thing I need is more FCCs to track and figure out! I also allow them to be charged when I am on the sailing.
Totally agree it’s not enough. Makes me so upset when I hear that passengers even take off the gratuity on the last day. Why be sneaky if you’re really opposed to the tipping. On my last 4-day cruise, we left an extra $40 each for the main server and assistant server. $20 for the maitre D. $40 for our room attendant. That’s on top of the automatic gratuity of course. We also have $1-$2 for each round of drinks that a server brought to us. Even if you don’t tip, the crew is awesome. When you tip, it’s a measurable token of appreciation for their hard work.
Thank you for sharing what you do as well! You are 100% correct, you are going to get amazing service either way but it is a great thing to be able to thank them monetarily.
Agree with you. I'm usually on NCL do usually tip $5 or so at dinner, almost always a different waiter. $40/week for cabin steward and like you 1-2 with more sometimes to a particularly good bartender. They will remember you and it is funny how others recognize your name after a few days at different bars. These guys work 7 days a week for less than the vast majority of Americans would work for in a 40 hour week.
@@itzyogirl100 Not uncouth at all and a fair question. It's similar to tipping your restaurant server 15%. That's the minimum that is customary and expected for the service. But sometimes you want to add a little more (e.g., 18% or 20%). That's how I approach it on the cruise, the "automatic" gratuity is enough and fair. But when I think of the terrific experience and anyone who has provided us some above and beyond service, then I'll for sure add an extra cash tip. Totally optional. I also worry about that certain staff members do not get any portion of the gratuity, so I slip them a little extra.
Your average Filipino server on a cruise ship makes double what the average Filipino doctor makes. That doesn't take into account free room and meals, so the fact they get to save up almost all of that money. I would not feel too sorry for them.
they remove because they know the system better than you . i worked 4 years on royal caribbean cruises on 4 diffrent ships and i am telling you if you prepay 300 usd only maybe 40usd will reach crewmember and rest will be kept by company. so good job giving tips to company thinking you give it to crew member .
We always tip, we believe that those more fortunate have a responsibility to those that are tasked with ensuring our comfort. Some don't feel that way and that's fine, to each their own. We tip our steward $10 a day, so $70 on a seven day. We tip our wait staff in the main dining room about double that and round it up to $150, We try to tip $1 for each drink order, but sometimes we forget. We always carry some $5 bills to hand out for excellent service by other staff members. The staff on these ships works exceedingly hard and I believe they deserve some compensation for their efforts
It's shitty of these companies too put wages of their employees in the fare of a cruise in a way that the guest can simply "not pay". It's also not okay to charge an automatic 18% on everything...but, it is what it is. If we wanna cruise we gotta play by their rules.
I appreciate hearing what people tipped additionally. I gave my main waiter and assistant waiter $20 each and gave my cabin steward $40 on my last cruise (4 days). Still wasn't sure if that was enough but based on what others are saying, I'm glad that seems to be in the right ballpark
@@itzyogirl100 I always prepay gratuities! Royal Caribbean did recently increase auto gratuities to $17.50 per person, per day. So the more people per cabin and the longer the cruise, the more gratuities you'll pay.
I typically give my room attendant what I consider a good tip for the cruise at the beginning. I’m often in a larger suite so often $75 to $100. If they go well above and beyond I add more at the end. I do prepaid as well. I then tip above for other quality service. I don’t think the prepaid is sufficient for above and beyond service. I’d happily pay more for a system where I’m told tipping is not necessary but welcome if you choose to do so. It’s clearly not that way if they allow the passenger to prepay.
This video has been super helpful, and thought-provoking too! The breakdown of tips you show was surprising, and disappointing to me. What about other crew who aren’t visible to guests, like kitchen staff and those in the mechanical trades? By the way, that the tipping culture in Canada is virtually identical to that in the U.S.
I believe that is why the tipping amounts are given in generalities like "dinning services" because it does support many people on the ship. Not just the ones you interact with. Good to know America isn't the only one with tipping! I thought it was just us!
This (and your other video) is what I’ve been looking for! It stressed me out trying to figure out how much to tip the crew on my last cruise. In the end, we figured $5/day to MDR head and assistant waiter each and $10/day to room attendant. I feel better now 😅 Question: Regarding Virgin and Celebrity rolling the gratuities into their fare, what is the difference between them doing that and Royal listing the gratuities separately? Sounds like either way, we would still tip the crew extra either way. Subscribed! ✅🛎
Hey Hannah! Thank you! It is very stressful! When I was on VV I did not see anyone tipping extra and there was no receipt option to do so. Price wise, I it is tough to say...some cruises are priced better than others. Have heard of some folks getting great deals on VV., just depends
By definition a “gratuity” is something given AFTER a service is rendered. Since when do you tip before a service? RC needs to change the wording to service fee NOT gratuity!
I think it's kind of insulting to say that someone prepays the gratuities expecting better service. First, that never crossed my mind. Second, it was just another item along with the insurance, taxes, etc. This is my first cruise and I've learned a lot about tipping since i first booked my cruise. How much to tip bag handlers, drivers, tour guides, etc etc. I will probably still prepay if I go on another cruise because it helps defray the cost ahead of time.
The entire premise of tipping is to receive or reward good service. That is the entire reason we tip... not meant to be insulting, that's just the system. Good news, there is no right or wrong way to tip. Totally discretionary and we all get to decide what works best for us :-) Prepaying is a great option!
I often feel uncomfortable with tipping on a cruise (or anywhere really) because I am unsure of how much is enough, or what I should give. Every business compensates differently so if I go to a restaurant where I mostly do self-service I don't expect to tip much but then I worry.. what if the employees are getting low wages and they NEED the tips. It would be nice if we simply applied a minimum wage to all businesses in the US or doing business with U.S. customers.
Whatever you choose to tip Victoria should be appreciated and thanked regardless of the amount! You will like my newest video where I talk about just that. Let's do away with the tipping system and just ensure folks are paid.
We will pay for it either way. If the cruise industry starts paying more to the staff then their cruise prices will increase. Being in the service industry for 20 years I feel like a tipping system encourages servers to give great customer service. I’ve been to Europe and it’s the worst customer service because they have no incentive to go above and beyond. My opinion, obviously, but that’s the way I see it. I’m a very generous tipper and I feel like everyone should have to work some sort of customer service position in their life to “see behind the curtain”.
I am on same page as you man. I hate that the cruise industry has basically forced guests to pay wages for thier employees. Multi-Billion dollar companies that offer jobs to mostly poorer residents from other countries, then pay them bottom dollar...so now you feel bad for the crew for their hard work. On a recent cruise our Genie told us that stateroom attendants only work for tips. He also hinted at the fact that not 100 percent of the gratutity is given to the crew members...not sure if this is true, but what if the ship holds back a half percent or one percent?? That would certainly add up. Cruise ships charge top dollar for drinks and merch at the shops so you know they are making money. I know Covid has impacted the industry hard, but my last cruise was about 75% capacity and looks like it growing and just wish they treated their workers better in the wages paid and days worked etc. We tipped stateroom attendant 100 dollars, room service tipped everytime and I tipped the bartenders at the end as well as my favorite server in casino. Gave him a 25 dollar chip and the guy was so grateful, I thought he was gonna cry...so I know they appreciate it more than we probably realize. Love the videos..keep them coming!
Hey Brandon! Thanks for this explanation. I've only been on 2 cruises now, a 3rd coming in Oct. I did not realize on my first I should (understand not a requirement, but I'm usually a give more person) be tipping beyond that prepaid. Made up for it some on my 2nd (Freedom!) but know to be better prepared going forward. I'm curious though - what is hotel services? Did I miss that? Appreciate all of your content!
There is no wrong way to tip and I am sure you were fine! Hotel services is a very broad category and I do not know who all gets paid out on that. I believe it is guest services, laundry services, etc but that is the only detail of detail given
Prepaid gratuity? Whatever. Tipping used to make a difference for a better service but for the last 2 years it became a pressure thing and most people only tip because they are put on the spot light. The problem is that tipping has got out of control and like anything soon customers will realize that they got scammed (like car dealerships selling cars above MSRP) and the people that really rely on tipping will be the ones suffering. Tipping became a bribery and not a “thank you” for a service that went above and beyond. I don’t prepay for tips and actually as soon as I get the chance I proudly go to the service desk and request to not be charged for tips as I decide who will get the tip. I work hard for my money and don’t need no one telling me is the “moral” thing to do. I do tip but on my terms not because a tablet screen asks me how much I want to tip. Mark my words soon tips will be a thing of the past because many customers are feeling resentful of the tipping in general. So many people thinking cruise employees don’t make enough money. They actually earn more than most Americans. If you want to tip go ahead just don’t try to make others feel guilty ( I sure don’t) for not tipping for no reason at all. More than 60% of Americans don’t tip and many more will join as we are entering another inflation in this country.
It is interesting, I do not disagree with you and tipping is 100% in your discretion to do what works best for you. Trying to balance the tipping culture with wanting to support my friends who are crew members is definitely an internal struggle of mine. I too will be glad when tipping is a thing or the past but worry it is becoming so engrained it might be tough to back out. Especially, with companies enjoying having lower marketed cost knowing we will pay more to support their employees. It will either need to be a literal act of Congress or corporations stepping up to make changes.
Your initial premise is wrong. Tipping is not a judgement regarding how much people should make so please stop saying that. It is a RECOGNITION and reward for exemplary service. This misunderstanding means everything you have to say on this topic is off.
It might not be an intentional decision to decide how much or little someone should make, but if you decide how much or how little monetary recognition someone deserves, you have impacted how much cash they will take home (positively or negatively). This is also way tips in the US are taxable and companies can pay below minimum wage - tips are considered income and part of your compensation.
@@TheWeekendCruiser "if you decide how much or how little monetary recognition someone deserves, you have impacted how much cash they will take home". No, again, you've got it backwards. The level of service the frontline worker decides to give (or not to give) is what should impact how much they can potentially make. Good service is not a consistent reality. Why should someone who gives bad service get the same gratuity as someone who gives exemplary service? The fact that companies can pay below minimum wage (if that even exists?) based on the promise of tips making up the difference is morally wrong but pushing that obligation onto the consumer by perverting their recognition of service into a product of emotional manipulation via guilt tripping is also morally wrong.
Does a stateroom attendant look after one room per day? because if they are looking afer 50 rooms per day they are making bank =), I dont like the tipping system, maybe because I am not American and have never tipped anyone ever, but it just makes sense the the company pays the staff what they think they are worth and if the employee thinks that is not fair they should leave. It just seems confusing and I would not want to annoy staff etc. It would make more sense to me to let the company know about a great staff memeber so the company works harder to keep good staff.
Sorry this is my first cruise coming up I have questions when buying drinks. I didn’t buy the drink package not a big drinker I know they have an 18% on top of the drink all of that is charged to the state room card and you pay it off at the end of the cruise? Sorry it maybe obvious I’m just so confused with all this. 😅
Welcome to your first cruise! Yes, there is no cash transactions onboard and your "sea pass card" or "room key" will be your charge card as well. Anytime you order anything, present that or your room number and they can charge it to your account. When checking in, it is recommended you put a credit card on file that will automatically be charged at the end of the cruise and no action is needed from you. However, if you don't want a credit card on file, I would recommend going to guest services the night the cruise is ending to settle your account and pay cash for your tab you started. Keep in mind, they will not let you off the ship without paying ;-)
@@TheWeekendCruiser Lol I’ll be held hostage!! Thank you so much this takes a lot off my mind. I binged like 5 of your videos thank you for all the information!!
Thanks for explaining this. I'm interested as I am a new cruiser this August. QUESTION: Do the employees get at least minimum wage before tips? 2) Are tips shared with other employees not in the areas you mentioned. What about cooks? What about those that run the ship behind the scene, etc.?
This is where things get tricky. The ships are registered in non-US ports, so who knows what minimum wages are. And there is a lack of transparency where the tips go in each category. A more seasoned cruiser might know the answer but there is a lack of consistency for sure.
When you pay onboard gratuities it goes to people seen and unseen and is shared amongst a large group. If you hand pay or leave extra in a receipt, that goes to the specific crew member. They do recieve a small bass salary but that is based on the fact they will recieve tips. Welcome to cruising!
as i former crew member of royal caribbean i will tell you this i worked on 4 diffrent royal caribbean ships and even if you do tip through ship many times i got 0 of that tip becuase i didnt hit my cruise target. i was working as fitness guy. so even if you tip 200 usd company takes that i dont get anything . so good luck to you tipping through ship maybe 20 percent of that will reach crew member rest 80 percent will be taken by company. @@TheWeekendCruiser
Thank you for this excellent video! I try to always give at least $1 to anyone who is handing me anything like an omelette, bottle of water, cup of coffee. I don't tip the folks at the buffet when I get my chocolate croissant - maybe I should start doing that...
Let's said I prepaid the gratuities, and then I go for dinner and i have an amazing waiter, do I have to tip her? and if i don't (because i prepaid), she wouldn't think I'm rude for not tipping her??
Hey Maracay! Tipping is always 100% optional and up to your discretion. I would say MOST people will do the automatic gratuities and not tip additional. The wait staff does receive a report at the end of the cruise on how much money they receive from auto gratuities but I do not believe it has breakdown of who had them turned on vs off.
I work as hard as any cruise ship member of staff and have to pay rent, food, electric, petrol to commute, car payments and don’t get to see the world, and then I am guilted into paying a tip…….I don’t get any tips for doing my job, so I remove auto gratuities.
I just ran into your channel, and it's great!!! It's answered everything so far that we'll need when we start cruising. :) I did want to ask one sensitive question, what if the service is bad, even if you complain about it, and it doesn't change, and then you are still stuck with the auto gratuity? I like to tip on a job well done, because yanno, a tip? :) But I almost always tip something because of the crappy system here, and they'll starve if we don't. :/ Thanks, you're awesome!
That is fantastic and thank you! If you do find a cruise where things are just off and nothing seems to be going your way,, I would encourage you to mention those items to someone in charge and speak with guest services if you want to discuss options of removing the tips. They will guide you through the options.
As a bartender/server on dry land, I take $1/day as a slap in the face. Either give people guidelines for each tier (housekeeping/butler/bartender), or include it in the cost, so nobody has to think about it, which is the reason for autograt's existence. P.S. Just found this channel, and it's a real helper. Considering a cruise in 2023/24, and so far, you've got me hooked on RCL. Thanks for the content 💕
The reason cruise lines did not want to add tips and other items i to the fare is that when the fare is higher they have to pay travel agents mores as they get a percentage of the fare. Same reason why they keep the port taxes separate as then they do not pay the TA a % of that too. Same reason why excursions are not included. I was in the Travel industry for over 30 years and it was always annoying when clients wanted to spend a lot of my time talking about excursions, when we made no money on that. So it was a big surprise when Celebrity started including tips, wi-fi and beverages.
All of that could be lumped into the cruise fare with no issue. If they pay TAs more, that too would need to pass through to the customer. I am not asking the cruise lines to loose money but take all that into account and charge me what you need to :-)
Hey Orange bird, you can do either! I would recommend always having singles on you because if you don't get a receipt, you can't tip. Though, I always like tipping on the receipt. The receipt tip goes direct to your person too.
I think that the crew is paid based upon wages in their own country. If wages are really low where they live then they will be paid accordingly. The only exception would be US registered ships, which is nobody except for ships that don’t visit foreign ports.
I disagree with your thoughts about decision, when And Who to tip, “ based on their performance “ . I say , that overall ~ 95 % of the staff are deserving. Thusly, you’re wasting time and effort in surveillance of the staff.
Never pay the gratuity and ask for it to be removed. Only a small percentage goes to the staff, the rest, probably goes to the share holders, executives and towards the building of new ships - how else do they pay for them? Tip staff at the end of the cruise. Do the math 3000 passengers at 20 a day on a seven night cruise is 20x3000x7 = 420,000 Usually around a 1000 crew on that size ship so does each crew member receive 420 for a weeks work - I think not.
I think this is the part that bothers me the most about the lack of transparency with where the gratuities goes. I don't think anyone would put it past the corporation to siphon some off the top.
How come you didn’t ask your “friends” what their tips are, what percentage of tips do they get from prepaid gratuities vs extra cash tips they get individually? Perhaps actually talking to each person that gets prepaid gratuities in your cabin category would really help so that we are not guessing or assuming how much they receive. I’m sure they know you vlog so your not being nosy. It would be very informative to your subscribers. The numbers may seem small per person but multiply that by the many people and families on the ship multiplied by all the sailings for the entire length of their contract, plus their salary and it may not be as low as we think. Not that this means we should not give extra when warranted but let’s not think that they are so seriously under paid that we never attempt to actually find out what it is they really get. Just my thoughts. I appreciate all your vlogs and I sincerely thank you for them.
Thank you! I did have a few conversation with them on researching this video. They too do not know the full breakdown of how they are paid out. They receive a "tip sheet" of that sailing with how many passengers were on board, how many auto paid gratuities, and what their take home was. No additional details. The tough part for determining their "all-in-pay" is what is room and board worth?
Absolute rubbish. We tipped at the end and removed gratuities and received amazing services throughout. People who say they get better service when they start tipping immediately are just trying to convince themselves that’s true.
Brandon you have a good take on tipping and I definitely believe your bias bc you spend so much time on the ship. I cruise a lot as well, however I do a variety of vacations, cruising, resorts and city vacations. No other intity requires this type of tipping. So I don't agree with it. The CEO's of the cruise companies need to be ashamed of themselves bc they are taking these big salaries and want the customer's to pay they're employees salaries.
@@TheWeekendCruiser honestly I only am going on Oasis of the Sea bc it's been a dream of mine to experience all the sights of that ship. Royal's crowd is not as lively as I like so I think Celebrity would be more conservative than I'm used to. I normally cruise on NCL bc they are based in NYC and Carnival when they come to NYC cruise port. NYC is the nearest cruise port to where I live.
Isn't it true that pre-paying gratuities locks in that price for you? So, if the cruise line does raise the rates on a cruise that you booked for next year, it should protect you for that cruise at least right?
That is how NCL is handling their increase. You can lock in the rate when you prepay Gratuities before their effective date. I would assume RCL would do the same but there is never a guarantee.
Well this is interesting. On my cruises I rarely eat in the Main dining room, i usually do specialty dining so now it sounds like im tipping people Im not even using. Do you know how it works if you use My time dining since you usually have a different set of waiters when you go? I always tip my room attendant extra as well as each time I eat at a specialty restaurant.
Hey Jenn, I am asking around about this one and the specialty. As you can see, tips are not that transparent but will see if I can figure out what happens in those cases for you! The way I understand it, one of the reasons the matre de needs your cabin number to sit you is so that your accounted for with a waiter, head waiter etc. At the end of the cruise, the waiters get to see what their "seat assignment" or "seat value" was for those at their tables.
@@TheWeekendCruiser ok that makes sense if they do it by your cabin number for things like my time dining. Maybe I need to go for an appetizer each night before dinner so my tip gets assigned to someone haha. I appreciate you helping with this type of info, i know its a hot topic amongst cruisers.
@@pryttyfatchick It's not the most clear in the world. I think the key is to know that when you pay gratuities, it goes into a large gratuity pool for many crew members: some you see and some you do not. So the people you are directly interacting with, might not be getting what you think.
the definition of gratuity is something given voluntarily or beyond obligation. So why they even dictate to us what we should be tipping in the 1st place is baffling to me. This is how it works: The "gratuities" you pay on a cruise are what the cruiselines use to pay their workers what they are contractually obligated to pay them. Only when the amount of "gratuity" received on a sailing is in excess of what they owe their workers do the workers get that in the form of a "tip". So your "gratuities" are being used to pay the crews' salary 1st and foremost and anything leftover is divvied amongst them as a "tip". If the "gratuities" received on a cruise aren't enough to cover the crews' minimum agreed upon pay, the cruise line has to kick in to cover the difference. So basically cruiselines are guilt tripping their customers into paying their workers' salaries for them so that they can advertise their cruises as being less expensive than they truly are. Its a pretty shady practice on the part of the cruise lines IMO and one that a lot of fools are all to happy to participate in.
Agreed that it is very poor practice and should absolutely not be called tipping if in essence, we are simply supporting their wage. However, I wouldn't say we are fools to participate and help pay the crew. The guest are not the ones who are going to change this policy and should not be blamed for promoting this strategy. It is 100% in the cruise lines discretion to enact this change and the guest decision to tip or not tip makes no difference to the cruise line. We only harm the crew members by not tipping and we do not enact change this way. I
@@TheWeekendCruiser whether guests decide to tip or not does in fact make a huge difference to the cruise line. If the cruiseline does not receive gratuities from passengers they then have to pay the crew's salary themselves. The crew is getting paid one way or another. Nobody is working for free. What they need to do is raise the advertised price of their cruises enough to cover the cost of the crew's base salary. Then they should give us the option to leave gratuities which would be paid to the crew on top of their base salary. They should not call what we are paying them "gratuity" if it is being used to pay what they are already contractually obligated to pay their workers.
These "automatic gratuities" are a total scam. For one, they call it a "service charge". I ran the numbers. Let's say 6000 people on board and 1500 crew. Passengers being charged $16 a day @ 26 days a month ($2,496,000). Divide that by the crew 2,496,000 ÷ 1500 = $1664 a person. Some crew members only make $600 a month! Can you explain that? I am so tired of every business doing this autocharging stuff. I bet if you ask any of the cruise ship employees on what they would prefer that would all want cash tips because some would triple their pay. "Sir, the automatic gratuity is for your convience." Since when do I not get to decide what is or is not convient for me?
"$1.00 per day is not enough." You are funny. Wrong, but still funny. To start with, the workers knew what they would earn when they signed on for the job. If they didn't think that amount was worth the time and effort they would put in, they wouldn't sign on. They agreed that what they got in pay was adequate compensation for their labor. Next, that waiter doesn't tend to your meal, then spend the rest of his day in his cabin. He does many tables a day, probably several tables at the same time. Simply multiply that $1.00 by the number of customers he tends to get a much better appreciation of how much he rakes in during a day.
That the great thing with discretionary tipping. Neither one of us is "right" or "wrong" we just have our personal opinions on what people should do. But there is no correct answer to how much or how little one should tip. It is all up to that individual person but wanted to share what I did for those that were interested.
Stateroom attendances can have different numbers of rooms. Does my room steward still get all of my gratuity? Secondly, there are always rumors that the extra tips are shared and can’t go to just the person you gave them too. Could you speak to whether that is reality?
Yes, to my knowledge, the stateroom attendant(s) would receive the full amount. If you tip someone in cash or on a receipt, that will go directly to that individual. With that said, certain bars will choose to pool their tips but that is the crews decision to make each cruise.
@@TheWeekendCruiser Thank you. I knew it was often in the bars, and that makes some sense if it’s an event where it’s better to just get drinks to people as fast as you can. But, I’d heard some tips didn’t go to anyone specific but went into the crew emergency funds that help crew get home on emergencies etc. While I think crew deserve merit bonuses, I have a problem with they just having to be more lucky in passengers rather than actually being better! And no, I don’t see a solution to some of that either. Those that have worked for tips are often much more generous than those that haven’t and that can happen on any floor or with any room steward.
Completely agree! It would make everyone's life that much easier! Just charge me what you need to and allow me to walk on and enjoy the cruise :-) In the meantime, I will be tipping as I am not holding my breath! But very proud of Celebrity for taking the leap last year and including gratuities!
I heard NCL doesn’t give the tips to the crew but to the officers of the ship. Not sure if this is correct. If it is that isn’t right. I go on a lot of cruises and I tip the room attendant and if I go into specialty restaurants. Of course,I pay the up front tips before I get onto the ship….thanks for the info….I will become a subscriber…
I cannot speak for NCL but on Royal the tips for into a massive pot and many people seen and unseen are paid out on it. With the level of detail, there is no way to confirm if officers recieve or not. 🤷🏼
Most countries don't have a tipping service, mostly done in the USA except that Cruise Ships "home " is not USA so they can legally get paid crap. The customer is making up for the crud the Cruise Ship Pays,, even though your paying a lot to even sail. Its PER PERSON IN ROOM, an infant is not going to be ordering food in the dining room yet they are technically tipping out. If you have 3 people in a cabin that is near $18 a day on just "room attendance"....I wouldn't tip over that unless its above and beyond.
If you feel the daily automatic gratuities are adequate but you feel that your waiter should get more for outstanding service, why can't you tell Guest Services that you want to reduce the daily automatic amount, say by $2, so that you can give your waiter the appropriate cash amount? The total gratuities are the same; the distribution is different.
I make tipping a priority on all of my cruises. I always plan ahead by bringing cash , more than plenty of ones, fives.10's and 20s. (Its what in room safe's are for) Tipping is for service sometimes better than others but always something for the person brining the drinks, refilling my meal time drink, doing any direct service that may come along even up to and including the omelet maker at breakfast. I consider the automatic gratuity for the behind the scenes worker. If you are a frequent cruiser the automatic tip is what it is on most ships. The personal tip is my pleasure to give. Of course the kind of service being provided weighs heavily on how much I tip. My room stewards (yes there are two on Holland America) get the largest tip but I don't forget to tip every server and I even tip the hostess getting my seat assignment for remembering every time I come in and seating me with my chosen server and section. At least on HAL frequency breeds loyalty and being called by name usually on the second night in the main dining room. Usually I tip at the end of the cruise or the last couple of days of the trip. I've found you can't wait for the last day especially for the room steward as times you may not even see them due to their working to clean and set rooms for turn around day. It's actually a pleasure giving recognition to my favorite service providers. I always return to the same servers and request seats in the same sections with the people I feel the most comfortable being around. Honestly I've never met anyone working on a cruise that I've interact with on a daily basis that I did not believe deserved the customary tip amount I give for any service provided on land.
what is curious is all the secrecy by cruise lines, which seem suspicious -- if it was all genuine surely they have nothing to hide ??? ..... such as where the money goes who gets what --- an international agreed code of conduct would solve this .... most are happy to pay gratuities. if service is excellent and all the money goes to the correct staff .. BUT HOW DO CUSTOMERS KNOW ...
Completely agree! The lack of transparency just causes us to loose faith in the system. This is one of my biggest pet peeves with cruising is I don't know where my gratuities are going or IF they are going to the crew.
Agreed but when they switch to "service fee" it becomes taxable to the cruise line. They save a ton of money by playing this game. Companies should absolutely pay heir staff a decent wage.
I disagree, that its not enough. Even if 1.00 a day were the case, (if your comparing dining out and the tip is far greater, its not the same comparison) and im sure its more. That same waiter deals with hundreds of people who pay that dollar each day. They are making money, lets not make these people out to be homeless. If your comparing a dinner out in a posh restaurant, for a 2 hour dinner, naturally you pay more for a tip. These people are making money, or they would not be working for the cruise line. These are not people that they scraped off the street and forced to work. If thats the case, give the employees more money, dont put that on the cruiser. Greedy cruise companies trying to recoup moneys lost during Covid, simply raising prices, as they know people are desperate to travel. The cruise line should pay them well enough, tips are additional for whats offered in ways of "Good Service" This feels like the "RESORT FEES" Hotels are now are stealing from its patrons. Just another way to make it more expensive to cruise, and its no longer "tip those that provided good service", now its being forced down our throat. GREED! Thats all it is. Cruise lines are getting GREEDY! Never enough!
Automatic gratuity is a cardinal sin that should not be condoned. The ship staff are hired to provide service which is the nature of their hospitality works. They deserve tipping only if they provide over and above services. As for the cabin steward who clean the room daily, one way of showing appreciation of their work is not to mess up with the room, but keep in a tidy and orderly manner so the cleaning would require least effort. As an analogy, postmen also provide services, bring mail to your mail box. Should we tip them too. Hell no, that is the nature of their work.
I'm glad you're a little bit biased because I want to know how to treat the crew how they want to be treated! I want to know what the crew's expectations are on what's fair and right to do. :D
How about their employers give them better salaries, so we customers don't have to tip. Tipping culture just give employers an excuse to keep employees salaries low and hog all the profit.
What pisses me off, is why roll in the automatic gratuity into the cruise cost when the people that work on that ship don't even get that money. Its nothing more than extra cash to the upper heads. My friends sister worked on a cruise ship THEY DON'T SEE ANY OF THIS GRATUITY. It's all bullcrap extra money for the business and nothing more. I hope Royal Caribbean keeps it as it is, cause I tip my services handsomely, I don't have my room serviced, so its unfair if its already in the cruise cost. What is other hotel service? Do you tip a host, the front desk, the cleaning guy at a land hotel?
I totally here you Rich. The lack of transparency to the gratuities is pretty bad. If they were more clear on it, people might be more onboard with automatic gratuities. Or, just include it in our cruise fare. Will be making a video this weekend about the most recent increase.
i don't think i'll ever understand the tipping culture, as how it is fair to people of other occupations? police/teachers/bus driver/amazon delivery/garbage collection/postman... etc. people thinks that crew staff are underpaid, but no one forces them to work in such profession, and when there's not enough employee, the employer must think long/hard how they need to manage the salary. it is not the responsibility of consumer to compensate the staff directly.
The auto gratuity math is def on the fuzzy side and I cannot confirm where all the money goes. I hope and trust all of it goes to crew members somewhere on the ship at least!
@@Worktocruise I think that is one big reason they do not include it in the cruise fare is the marketing aspect. The price will initially sound much higher up front and they worry people will baulk at the higher figure, even if that is what you are still paying just in two different smaller buckets.
As long as they're AUTOMATICALLY CHARGING ME I won't tip any extra. When we cruised before tipping was mandatory, we tipped generously. We appreciate the crew and the mostly wonderful service they provide. The problem is cruise lines are like restaurants in the U.S. in that they expect the public to pay their employees. Which is bullshit.
100% agree with that! Just got back from Virgin Voyages where gratuities are included. Having gratuities included with no expectation of tipping extra was AMAZING!
100% agree as well! I have already prepaid my gratuities in advance and I will NOT be doing any additional tipping on my cruise besides excursions and porter staff at the airport that is it. It is not the responsibility of customers to pay employees salaries smh
This feels like the "Resort fee" hotels are now charging for services they used to provide for free. The psychology behind it is BS, and a smoke screen for simply raising every avenue they can.
We remove gratuities and then tip at the end to our room attendant and main waiters. I’m English so the whole tipping thing isn’t the same for me as it would be to an American. We’ve received absolutely A1 service regardless of tipping or paying gratuities. Also, I’m going out on a limb here, but most people who are happy to pay gratuities and then tip on top probably aren’t people with children. If we pay gratuities across our family the we’re adding a sizeable amount to our already pricey holiday. Regardless, we couldn’t care less what others do and will always remove gratuities where we can and tip individually as we see fit.
Never thought about the children aspect but that is very true. The gratuities add up quick for a larger family! That is the great thing about tipping, we all get to do exactly what we want :-)
This exactly. I'm American and despise that tipping is being pushed as mandatory so I "don't take it out on the staff".
Personally, tipping here has become more like mob extortion or a ransom.
Agree 100%!! Crew salaries need to be increased such that they get compensated adequately without needing tips to do so. I hate the stress of making sure my actions are looking out for the crews compensation. Did I tip enough? Was I supposed to tip him? I would love if the US adopted the convention of most of the rest of the world.
Yes and yes!
Seems like the cruises hire non-U.S. citizens to pay non-U.S. wages..
Did you know the ceo of these GREEDY cruise lines, categorically deny salaries are being effected with these extras?
You shouldn't worry at all. It's not your fight. Gratuities are simply gratuities. Don't do auto-tipping of course.
@@richardtheman-orhouse6015 I agree that I "shouldn't" but my neurotic brain does not allow for such peace. Consider yourself lucky.
The tipping discussion is always circular:
1. Guests get annoyed that employees' wages are not built in into the product price
2. Guests dont want to take out frustration on service people and, until things change, tipping feels/is mandatory
3. Employer/company see that guests are willing tippers and could get away with charging less for products and paying their employees artificially low wage (which, btw, allow both workers and employers to circumvent some income taxes)
4. Repeat
Except Australia, where tips are included in cruise fare.
It was very true! Though, not tipping the crew to enact change is like voting for a 3rd party political candidate. Very glad Celebrity has shown that it can be done! I believe there is a movement among some large corporations to do good. Ex: many Fortune 100 companies have raised their minimum wage above what states require. I hope Royal Caribbean will take this on as well!
@@TheWeekendCruiserif every one votes for a third party candidate then we can have some change…too many people see voting for a third party candidate as a lost cause. The issue is perception
@@istherenooneleft Same response as before. Until there is a mass change in thinking that 3rd parties are genuinely electable, you only hurt your 2nd favorite candidate. Elections have been won/lost because of 3rd parties splitting voters.
@@TheWeekendCruiser I understand your point. Great video.
My biggest problem with the "expected" gratuities is the company uses it for two reasons, to pay less themselves for the employees, and to make the headline cruise rate look lower.
For example, a cruise is $699 per person for a 7 day cruise. The gratuities at $15 a day average means your actual cost is $804 for that cruise per person, or an extra $210 for the cabin. That is before they add on taxes and port fees. I would much rather the rate they advertised covered all that but they want it to look as cheap as possible. I went cruising last December and paid $302 basic cruise fare per person, so $604 for a 7 day cruise on Harmony of the Seas. The actual cost though was $1244, this did include prepaying the gratuities, taxes and port fees. This is obviously still a great deal versus the normal cost of that cruise but it makes it more difficult to compare one vacation against another.
I would much rather employees were paid a decent basic wage and that they were still allowed additional tips if the guest wants to do that for EXCEPTIONAL service not just doing the job. I would be interested to know if the base pay is different in different regions of cruising based on the likelihood of them receiving tips.
Hotels are doing the same thing in some locations by hiding a resort fee or parking fee. Some parking fees in Vegas and DC are astronomical so your hotel looks cheap but the actual price you pay is way higher. Its just misleading. I actually created a spreadsheet when we were looking at a trip to DC and had a column for room rate, parking fee, resort fee, so it would calculate a total cost without having to go through the booking process to find out. Its ridiculous.
Yes! It is all a marketing ploy to get consumers to spend more money. 100%
As someone from europe, I will refuse to pay 18% extra on my cruise as I have already paid so much for the cruise they should just pay them a better salary rather than putting all the profit in their pockets. I will only tip for exceptional service.
I 100%. I do not like the tipping system but it is what we have.
@@TheWeekendCruiserdon’t you think that by participating in the system we won’t see the change
@@istherenooneleft I don't, not until it is mass scale and we are not even close to that. By not tipping at this time, we simply harm those that have nothing to do with it.
@@TheWeekendCruiser by causing harm you can force change at a local level…everything starts grassroots…change one restaurant…change a bunch…change city…change a cruise…but I understand your point of view as well
@@TheWeekendCruiser This can be changed. Just don't tip. If people stop tipping something will change.
The ships could eliminate the 18% gratuity- just raise the prices 18% . I always overtip the cabin steward and my waitstaff, because it makes a difference to them, and a few hundred bucks doesn't affect me. I also write down names of the people who serve me well and make sure I call them out by name on the post-cruise survey.
That is great Patrick! Thank you for sharing and the post-cruise survey goes a long ways too!
Same! I do the pre-paid and give extra to my steward, waitstaff, any one else who was very helpful to us, and note them in my post-cruise survey!
My husband and I always tip the drink servers a dollar or two (especially if the server sees us daily in the Schooner bar for trivia!). I cringe when I see a large party order 8 - 10 drinks and not one of them puts a buck on the tray!
With the drink package, a lot of people feel like the 18% gratuity is already covering everything. Depending on how much you drink, it might or might not! lol That money is also not necessarily going to the person who is helping you the most. as it is spread around to MANY folks.
@@TheWeekendCruiser There are many non-facing people who should rightly get a cut. The guy who busses the breakfast area, or who works behind the scenes at dinner rightly deserves a cut. In America, almost all restaurants require the wait staff to "tip back" (typically 5% of the total tab) to the dishwashers/bussers and cooks. Yeah, I know the Windjammer lounge is staffed with the evening wait staff, but how many people tip at breakfast or lunch?
@@RetiredSignDude Not arguing with the logic. I don't like the system for this very reason as it becomes subjective and as a guest, I have no idea what all goes into actually making my experience great. I just know it happens.
I throw a buck down as well but it does seem a bit egregious when RC is already tacking on an automatic 18% tip to the drink.
I hate the guilt trip involved with tipping, it's somehow become an obligation otherwise I'm evil. I prepay my gratuities and on top of that the Cruise Ship force an 18 percent gratuity on nearly everything you do and every reservatiin you make. So I'm already out of $200 in gratuities before I even step on the ship why should I pay more?? As a customer why should I pay a multibillion dollar company's employees. They should pay a fare wage.
Tipping remains 100% in your discretion and you control how much, if any, you want to tip. Hopefully, the video was more informative and educational so that people can see how much the crew is getting from onboard gratuities and determine if they like that amount. For me, and only for me, it is not enough and I like to tip on top of that. I also hope this video spurs people to action to write the cruise lines and advocate for including tipping/gratuities in their cruise fare so we can change the tipping culture. I love to cruise but want to simply get on the ship and enjoy without worrying about paying a crew members salary as well.
@@TheWeekendCruiser for me, I'd rather tip the people who actually wait on me, but the Cruise Lines are already forcing me to pay 18 percent on everything so it sours me on the entire process. I always tip, but it also ticks me off when I've already been FORCED to.
I do the same thing. At the end I tip because I like to observe who is going above and beyond
Me too! I do the same thing as you 💜
I think you can't go wrong with that strategy!
The per day tipping system in cruises just started maybe 15 yrs ago. I’ve been cruising since 1969, when tips were done directly on last day.
Good trivia knowledge and jealous I didn't get to cruise int eh glory days of cruising!!
Cruised in 1998 and carnival charged per day.
Great breakdown so I had to screenshot! I can’t believe $1 per day for some of the restaurant staff. I’m sure a lot people don’t tip anything extra and to no fault of there own as they did pre pay the gratuities.
I get why people do not tip above the automatic gratuities as you def feel like you did you part. People just don't realize how little that comes out to when split with everyone.
I just came back from RCCL's Oasis of the Seas and I wished that "pre-paid" grats/tips were rolled into the cruise fare. I felt kinda uncomfortable tipping on top of what I already "pre-paid" for, although I agree some staff went above and beyond, I still feel these additional tips should be included in the fare from the start. We live in a tipping society in the U.S. I get tipping when you go out for dinner, bar or nightclub etc. on land. My belief is a cruise is a product that you purchase from a cruise line and this "product" should include tips/grats that are rolled into the price from the start. Congrats on Celebrity and Virgin for moving forward on that issue.
All good points! Maybe one day we can change the world! 😃
Thank you so much… This was so very informative… I Appreciate your honesty🚢🚢
Thanks Laura! If I offer nothing else, I will give you my honesty :-)
Hi Brandon, it was a pleasure to meet you on the Wonder last week. Carnival sailings out of Australia have the gratuity built into the fare. It’s not expected that you’ll tip on a carnival australia cruise. Keep up the good work on CZcams. Rodd :)
Hey Rodd! Great to meet you as well and we had a blast that sailing!!! Yes, it is country specific and I believe that is due to an Aussie regulation requiring everything to be included?
@@TheWeekendCruiser that could be the case. With airlines etc the the price needs to be the final price. Take care
When we cruise royal Caribbean, we typically tip 20 dollars for room staff, restaurant staff and buffet staff daily. Thats plus prepaid gratuity. Always have had great service on Royal !
I love how cruise lines guilt guests into thinking it is our job to pay their employees. I don't tip servers at Walmart or Burger King...Maybe I should? I always opt-out of automatic paying. I tip at my own discretion.
Thanks for the feedback Harry! No wrong way to tip as it is all up to you :-) Unfortunately, I think every company would opt into a tipping model if they could. Horrible system but it is the system we have.
@@TheWeekendCruiser True.
Brandon, another beautifully colored shirt that accentuates your eyes! I love your friendships with many crew members.
Thanks Mitchell!!! Yeah, they are the best!
@@TheWeekendCruiser You are a wonderful person who treats everyone equally. I wish that more Americans were like you.
Thank you for the tipping suggestions. It was great meeting you this week in the casino. Happy cruising!
Same to you Michelle! Hope to see you again soon!
A crew member shared that the get very little tipping in some areas of the world and the cruise line doesn’t make up for it. We try to tip well !
It is true. The culture of tipping is only in Canada and the USA. Other countries around the world do not even think about it or have laws mandating gratuities be included (Australia)
Finally, the accounting and line items. So the great steward had to share for his personal best. Shane on the cruise lines
This is a tricky one for me. The tips could go to people who allow that room steward to provide amazing service. Even back of the house folks in this model have come to expect tips as part o their compensation which is the real shame.
Excellent video today, I too believe the workers solid be paid better, but I tip my room steward well and also my waiters. Thanks for tackling this controversial issue.
Always my pleasure Barb!
You can remove the gratuities as soon as you board. Then tip who you want.
We don’t have a tipping culture here in Australia. We pay more for cruises because of this. Personally I don’t mind giving an extra gift to my room stewards at the end. As for what I think of tipping in America (from listening to my American friends), I believe that a lot stems from the really low pay people get. I once had someone tell me they worked for tips and didn’t get paid as such from their employer. Im sorry, that sounds a lot like slavery. If employers can’t afford to pay their employees a decent wage, then they shouldn’t be hiring.
I do not disagree!! It is a very bad system we can't seem to undo.
While not slavery it is extortion in my eyes. Extorting the customer by shaming them. The wait staff are free to get other jobs and I stand behind that.
On a side note I'd really like to visit Australia before I get too much older. You should come visit Texas if you haven't already. Just stay away from chain BBQ joints, Austin (it's more like California than Texas now), and Houston (unless you are into combat driving). 😁
They can afford to pay employees more. They choose not to.
I love how you present the big picture. I am an avid cruiser and feel your amounts presented in previous videos are right on target. I have also read that sometimes crew can't get off the ship so I give them gift bags of toothpaste, detergent and shampoo. I don't know if this is appreciated or the crew are just being polite. Your videos have been very informative. Can't wait till next week when I try the Nassau walking tour.
Honestly, I have often told people that if you are going to give cash OR a gift bag, always give the cash. If you are giving a gift bag as an above and beyond, I am sure they will be thankful though some might just want the $5 cash you spent on the gift bag honestly. I have brought items on the ship many times for crew but it was at their request and something they told me they needed. If you know you are coming back soon, it is always nice to offer if you can bring anything and gain their response.
@@TheWeekendCruiser great tips. FYI, I always give cash as well, much more if the casino is kind!
I would never pre-pay grats. My rule is never pay anything before I have to. Plus if I had to cancel, that is more money that I will have to try to get back. I mostly cruise on Princess and Celebrity, so now it is all included. (princess have a choice now of all inclusive or basic fare).
I completely agree with that as well! That is the last thing I need is more FCCs to track and figure out! I also allow them to be charged when I am on the sailing.
Perfectly put and to the point! Love it!
Thank you A C!
Totally agree it’s not enough. Makes me so upset when I hear that passengers even take off the gratuity on the last day. Why be sneaky if you’re really opposed to the tipping. On my last 4-day cruise, we left an extra $40 each for the main server and assistant server. $20 for the maitre D. $40 for our room attendant. That’s on top of the automatic gratuity of course. We also have $1-$2 for each round of drinks that a server brought to us. Even if you don’t tip, the crew is awesome. When you tip, it’s a measurable token of appreciation for their hard work.
Thank you for sharing what you do as well! You are 100% correct, you are going to get amazing service either way but it is a great thing to be able to thank them monetarily.
Agree with you. I'm usually on NCL do usually tip $5 or so at dinner, almost always a different waiter. $40/week for cabin steward and like you 1-2 with more sometimes to a particularly good bartender. They will remember you and it is funny how others recognize your name after a few days at different bars. These guys work 7 days a week for less than the vast majority of Americans would work for in a 40 hour week.
@@itzyogirl100 Not uncouth at all and a fair question. It's similar to tipping your restaurant server 15%. That's the minimum that is customary and expected for the service. But sometimes you want to add a little more (e.g., 18% or 20%). That's how I approach it on the cruise, the "automatic" gratuity is enough and fair. But when I think of the terrific experience and anyone who has provided us some above and beyond service, then I'll for sure add an extra cash tip. Totally optional. I also worry about that certain staff members do not get any portion of the gratuity, so I slip them a little extra.
Your average Filipino server on a cruise ship makes double what the average Filipino doctor makes. That doesn't take into account free room and meals, so the fact they get to save up almost all of that money. I would not feel too sorry for them.
they remove because they know the system better than you . i worked 4 years on royal caribbean cruises on 4 diffrent ships and i am telling you if you prepay 300 usd only maybe 40usd will reach crewmember and rest will be kept by company. so good job giving tips to company thinking you give it to crew member .
We always tip, we believe that those more fortunate have a responsibility to those that are tasked with ensuring our comfort. Some don't feel that way and that's fine, to each their own. We tip our steward $10 a day, so $70 on a seven day. We tip our wait staff in the main dining room about double that and round it up to $150, We try to tip $1 for each drink order, but sometimes we forget. We always carry some $5 bills to hand out for excellent service by other staff members. The staff on these ships works exceedingly hard and I believe they deserve some compensation for their efforts
Thank you for sharing and agree Bard!
It's shitty of these companies too put wages of their employees in the fare of a cruise in a way that the guest can simply "not pay". It's also not okay to charge an automatic 18% on everything...but, it is what it is. If we wanna cruise we gotta play by their rules.
You totally get me. Hate the system but have to play the game.
Auto tips is generally not applicable for Australia cruises where tips are included in fares.
Trying to make me jealous! 😜 Such a great system.
Great talking to you on one of the Facebook forums. Amazing video as usual.
Thank you!!n always glad to help!
I appreciate hearing what people tipped additionally. I gave my main waiter and assistant waiter $20 each and gave my cabin steward $40 on my last cruise (4 days). Still wasn't sure if that was enough but based on what others are saying, I'm glad that seems to be in the right ballpark
Thanks for sharing Cayla! No wrong way to tip but the crew is always very appreciative!
@@itzyogirl100 I always prepay gratuities! Royal Caribbean did recently increase auto gratuities to $17.50 per person, per day. So the more people per cabin and the longer the cruise, the more gratuities you'll pay.
+1 for Virgin. It's great not worrying about this and, the crew seem a lot more team oriented.
I have only heard good things from Virgin and how happy their Crew seems to be. Even the crew on RCL has taken notice.
I typically give my room attendant what I consider a good tip for the cruise at the beginning. I’m often in a larger suite so often $75 to $100. If they go well above and beyond I add more at the end. I do prepaid as well. I then tip above for other quality service. I don’t think the prepaid is sufficient for above and beyond service.
I’d happily pay more for a system where I’m told tipping is not necessary but welcome if you choose to do so. It’s clearly not that way if they allow the passenger to prepay.
Thank you for sharing and I am sure the crew appreciated that!
Write to cruise lines and also show with your dollars. Only cruise with the cruise lines that are including the tipping in the fare.
Good feedback! Trying my first celebrity later this year!
@@TheWeekendCruiser I'm trying my first Virgin Voyages in August. Celebrity is next on my to do.
This video has been super helpful, and thought-provoking too! The breakdown of tips you show was surprising, and disappointing to me. What about other crew who aren’t visible to guests, like kitchen staff and those in the mechanical trades? By the way, that the tipping culture in Canada is virtually identical to that in the U.S.
I believe that is why the tipping amounts are given in generalities like "dinning services" because it does support many people on the ship. Not just the ones you interact with. Good to know America isn't the only one with tipping! I thought it was just us!
This (and your other video) is what I’ve been looking for! It stressed me out trying to figure out how much to tip the crew on my last cruise. In the end, we figured $5/day to MDR head and assistant waiter each and $10/day to room attendant. I feel better now 😅
Question: Regarding Virgin and Celebrity rolling the gratuities into their fare, what is the difference between them doing that and Royal listing the gratuities separately? Sounds like either way, we would still tip the crew extra either way.
Subscribed! ✅🛎
Hey Hannah! Thank you! It is very stressful! When I was on VV I did not see anyone tipping extra and there was no receipt option to do so. Price wise, I it is tough to say...some cruises are priced better than others. Have heard of some folks getting great deals on VV., just depends
By definition a “gratuity” is something given AFTER a service is rendered. Since when do you tip before a service? RC needs to change the wording to service fee NOT gratuity!
I think it's kind of insulting to say that someone prepays the gratuities expecting better service. First, that never crossed my mind. Second, it was just another item along with the insurance, taxes, etc.
This is my first cruise and I've learned a lot about tipping since i first booked my cruise. How much to tip bag handlers, drivers, tour guides, etc etc.
I will probably still prepay if I go on another cruise because it helps defray the cost ahead of time.
The entire premise of tipping is to receive or reward good service. That is the entire reason we tip... not meant to be insulting, that's just the system. Good news, there is no right or wrong way to tip. Totally discretionary and we all get to decide what works best for us :-) Prepaying is a great option!
I often feel uncomfortable with tipping on a cruise (or anywhere really) because I am unsure of how much is enough, or what I should give. Every business compensates differently so if I go to a restaurant where I mostly do self-service I don't expect to tip much but then I worry.. what if the employees are getting low wages and they NEED the tips. It would be nice if we simply applied a minimum wage to all businesses in the US or doing business with U.S. customers.
Whatever you choose to tip Victoria should be appreciated and thanked regardless of the amount! You will like my newest video where I talk about just that. Let's do away with the tipping system and just ensure folks are paid.
There is a minimum wage in the United States. It ranges from $2.13 to $19.10 per hour.
Always tip at least 20% when dining at a sit down restaurant.
If they move it into the cruise fare, the cruise line has to pay tax on that amount.
We will pay for it either way. If the cruise industry starts paying more to the staff then their cruise prices will increase. Being in the service industry for 20 years I feel like a tipping system encourages servers to give great customer service. I’ve been to Europe and it’s the worst customer service because they have no incentive to go above and beyond. My opinion, obviously, but that’s the way I see it. I’m a very generous tipper and I feel like everyone should have to work some sort of customer service position in their life to “see behind the curtain”.
Kitchen staff maybe? And what exactly is Hotel Services? I understand no reduced price for kids 😅 they can be the messiest. 😀.
haha, agreed on the kids! No idea what all hotel services entails as 80% of the ship is hotel services... not a very transparent system.
I am on same page as you man. I hate that the cruise industry has basically forced guests to pay wages for thier employees. Multi-Billion dollar companies that offer jobs to mostly poorer residents from other countries, then pay them bottom dollar...so now you feel bad for the crew for their hard work. On a recent cruise our Genie told us that stateroom attendants only work for tips. He also hinted at the fact that not 100 percent of the gratutity is given to the crew members...not sure if this is true, but what if the ship holds back a half percent or one percent?? That would certainly add up. Cruise ships charge top dollar for drinks and merch at the shops so you know they are making money. I know Covid has impacted the industry hard, but my last cruise was about 75% capacity and looks like it growing and just wish they treated their workers better in the wages paid and days worked etc. We tipped stateroom attendant 100 dollars, room service tipped everytime and I tipped the bartenders at the end as well as my favorite server in casino. Gave him a 25 dollar chip and the guy was so grateful, I thought he was gonna cry...so I know they appreciate it more than we probably realize. Love the videos..keep them coming!
Thank you and that is a fantastic story! Thank you for sharing! It doesn't take a lot to go a long ways!
Hey Brandon! Thanks for this explanation. I've only been on 2 cruises now, a 3rd coming in Oct. I did not realize on my first I should (understand not a requirement, but I'm usually a give more person) be tipping beyond that prepaid. Made up for it some on my 2nd (Freedom!) but know to be better prepared going forward. I'm curious though - what is hotel services? Did I miss that? Appreciate all of your content!
There is no wrong way to tip and I am sure you were fine! Hotel services is a very broad category and I do not know who all gets paid out on that. I believe it is guest services, laundry services, etc but that is the only detail of detail given
@@TheWeekendCruiser Thank you! Skimming some of these comments, such an interesting topic and range of opinions.
Prepaid gratuity? Whatever. Tipping used to make a difference for a better service but for the last 2 years it became a pressure thing and most people only tip because they are put on the spot light. The problem is that tipping has got out of control and like anything soon customers will realize that they got scammed (like car dealerships selling cars above MSRP) and the people that really rely on tipping will be the ones suffering. Tipping became a bribery and not a “thank you” for a service that went above and beyond. I don’t prepay for tips and actually as soon as I get the chance I proudly go to the service desk and request to not be charged for tips as I decide who will get the tip. I work hard for my money and don’t need no one telling me is the “moral” thing to do.
I do tip but on my terms not because a tablet screen asks me how much I want to tip. Mark my words soon tips will be a thing of the past because many customers are feeling resentful of the tipping in general. So many people thinking cruise employees don’t make enough money. They actually earn more than most Americans. If you want to tip go ahead just don’t try to make others feel guilty ( I sure don’t) for not tipping for no reason at all. More than 60% of Americans don’t tip and many more will join as we are entering another inflation in this country.
It is interesting, I do not disagree with you and tipping is 100% in your discretion to do what works best for you. Trying to balance the tipping culture with wanting to support my friends who are crew members is definitely an internal struggle of mine. I too will be glad when tipping is a thing or the past but worry it is becoming so engrained it might be tough to back out. Especially, with companies enjoying having lower marketed cost knowing we will pay more to support their employees. It will either need to be a literal act of Congress or corporations stepping up to make changes.
Your initial premise is wrong. Tipping is not a judgement regarding how much people should make so please stop saying that. It is a RECOGNITION and reward for exemplary service. This misunderstanding means everything you have to say on this topic is off.
It might not be an intentional decision to decide how much or little someone should make, but if you decide how much or how little monetary recognition someone deserves, you have impacted how much cash they will take home (positively or negatively). This is also way tips in the US are taxable and companies can pay below minimum wage - tips are considered income and part of your compensation.
@@TheWeekendCruiser "if you decide how much or how little monetary recognition someone deserves, you have impacted how much cash they will take home". No, again, you've got it backwards. The level of service the frontline worker decides to give (or not to give) is what should impact how much they can potentially make. Good service is not a consistent reality. Why should someone who gives bad service get the same gratuity as someone who gives exemplary service? The fact that companies can pay below minimum wage (if that even exists?) based on the promise of tips making up the difference is morally wrong but pushing that obligation onto the consumer by perverting their recognition of service into a product of emotional manipulation via guilt tripping is also morally wrong.
Great video, Brandon! I couldn't agree more about automatic gratuities not being enough.
Thanks Andrew!
Does a stateroom attendant look after one room per day? because if they are looking afer 50 rooms per day they are making bank =), I dont like the tipping system, maybe because I am not American and have never tipped anyone ever, but it just makes sense the the company pays the staff what they think they are worth and if the employee thinks that is not fair they should leave. It just seems confusing and I would not want to annoy staff etc. It would make more sense to me to let the company know about a great staff memeber so the company works harder to keep good staff.
100% Agree.
how do you add it on the app?
Sorry this is my first cruise coming up I have questions when buying drinks. I didn’t buy the drink package not a big drinker I know they have an 18% on top of the drink all of that is charged to the state room card and you pay it off at the end of the cruise? Sorry it maybe obvious I’m just so confused with all this. 😅
Welcome to your first cruise! Yes, there is no cash transactions onboard and your "sea pass card" or "room key" will be your charge card as well. Anytime you order anything, present that or your room number and they can charge it to your account. When checking in, it is recommended you put a credit card on file that will automatically be charged at the end of the cruise and no action is needed from you. However, if you don't want a credit card on file, I would recommend going to guest services the night the cruise is ending to settle your account and pay cash for your tab you started. Keep in mind, they will not let you off the ship without paying ;-)
@@TheWeekendCruiser Lol I’ll be held hostage!! Thank you so much this takes a lot off my mind. I binged like 5 of your videos thank you for all the information!!
Thanks for explaining this. I'm interested as I am a new cruiser this August. QUESTION: Do the employees get at least minimum wage before tips? 2) Are tips shared with other employees not in the areas you mentioned. What about cooks? What about those that run the ship behind the scene, etc.?
This is where things get tricky. The ships are registered in non-US ports, so who knows what minimum wages are.
And there is a lack of transparency where the tips go in each category. A more seasoned cruiser might know the answer but there is a lack of consistency for sure.
When you pay onboard gratuities it goes to people seen and unseen and is shared amongst a large group. If you hand pay or leave extra in a receipt, that goes to the specific crew member. They do recieve a small bass salary but that is based on the fact they will recieve tips. Welcome to cruising!
5.25 is minimum wage in bahamas. That's if they don't put them in a non tipping position
as i former crew member of royal caribbean i will tell you this i worked on 4 diffrent royal caribbean ships and even if you do tip through ship many times i got 0 of that tip becuase i didnt hit my cruise target. i was working as fitness guy. so even if you tip 200 usd company takes that i dont get anything . so good luck to you tipping through ship maybe 20 percent of that will reach crew member rest 80 percent will be taken by company. @@TheWeekendCruiser
Thank you for this excellent video! I try to always give at least $1 to anyone who is handing me anything like an omelette, bottle of water, cup of coffee. I don't tip the folks at the buffet when I get my chocolate croissant - maybe I should start doing that...
haha, my take away from this is the ship has chocolate croissants?!?!
@@TheWeekendCruiser We must be kindred spirits! Yes - Holland has them at breakfast, Royal has them in the Promenade cafe.
@@lauriestrickland1146 will def take a look tomorrow!
Let's said I prepaid the gratuities, and then I go for dinner and i have an amazing waiter, do I have to tip her? and if i don't (because i prepaid), she wouldn't think I'm rude for not tipping her??
Hey Maracay! Tipping is always 100% optional and up to your discretion. I would say MOST people will do the automatic gratuities and not tip additional. The wait staff does receive a report at the end of the cruise on how much money they receive from auto gratuities but I do not believe it has breakdown of who had them turned on vs off.
I work as hard as any cruise ship member of staff and have to pay rent, food, electric, petrol to commute, car payments and don’t get to see the world, and then I am guilted into paying a tip…….I don’t get any tips for doing my job, so I remove auto gratuities.
That's the great thing about tipping, you have full discretion! Thanks for sharing.
I just ran into your channel, and it's great!!! It's answered everything so far that we'll need when we start cruising. :) I did want to ask one sensitive question, what if the service is bad, even if you complain about it, and it doesn't change, and then you are still stuck with the auto gratuity? I like to tip on a job well done, because yanno, a tip? :) But I almost always tip something because of the crappy system here, and they'll starve if we don't. :/ Thanks, you're awesome!
That is fantastic and thank you! If you do find a cruise where things are just off and nothing seems to be going your way,, I would encourage you to mention those items to someone in charge and speak with guest services if you want to discuss options of removing the tips. They will guide you through the options.
As a bartender/server on dry land, I take $1/day as a slap in the face. Either give people guidelines for each tier (housekeeping/butler/bartender), or include it in the cost, so nobody has to think about it, which is the reason for autograt's existence.
P.S. Just found this channel, and it's a real helper. Considering a cruise in 2023/24, and so far, you've got me hooked on RCL. Thanks for the content 💕
Completely Agree and welcome to the channel!! Hope to see a lot more comments and questions.
The reason cruise lines did not want to add tips and other items i to the fare is that when the fare is higher they have to pay travel agents mores as they get a percentage of the fare. Same reason why they keep the port taxes separate as then they do not pay the TA a % of that too. Same reason why excursions are not included. I was in the Travel industry for over 30 years and it was always annoying when clients wanted to spend a lot of my time talking about excursions, when we made no money on that. So it was a big surprise when Celebrity started including tips, wi-fi and beverages.
All of that could be lumped into the cruise fare with no issue. If they pay TAs more, that too would need to pass through to the customer. I am not asking the cruise lines to loose money but take all that into account and charge me what you need to :-)
Thank you for sharing..!
Always!
Question - when you tip $1 extra per drink, do you add it to the receipt or carry cash for this? New to cruising, thanks!
Hey Orange bird, you can do either! I would recommend always having singles on you because if you don't get a receipt, you can't tip. Though, I always like tipping on the receipt. The receipt tip goes direct to your person too.
I think that the crew is paid based upon wages in their own country. If wages are really low where they live then they will be paid accordingly. The only exception would be US registered ships, which is nobody except for ships that don’t visit foreign ports.
I have no idea what drives there salary.... I have just always heard it is low
I disagree with your thoughts about decision, when And Who to tip, “ based on their performance “ . I say , that overall ~ 95 % of the staff are deserving. Thusly, you’re wasting time and effort in surveillance of the staff.
I am pissed of the gratitude is 18 percent each person even kids. That is messed up
Service, in it's definition, should be good or adequate. One should only pay more if it's better than standard.
Thanks for sharing how you do it! Lots of ways to tip!
Never pay the gratuity and ask for it to be removed. Only a small percentage goes to the staff, the rest, probably goes to the share holders, executives and towards the building of new ships - how else do they pay for them? Tip staff at the end of the cruise. Do the math 3000 passengers at 20 a day on a seven night cruise is 20x3000x7 = 420,000 Usually around a 1000 crew on that size ship so does each crew member receive 420 for a weeks work - I think not.
I think this is the part that bothers me the most about the lack of transparency with where the gratuities goes. I don't think anyone would put it past the corporation to siphon some off the top.
Curious...if you eat your meals in the Windjammer, does the dining gratuity get allocated to that staff?
I cannot say with certainty but those folks should be part of the larger pool of funds being divided.
This was a big issue in the last weeks, and not only on the cruise! 😅🙈🤪
haha, yes very different for people that are not used to tipping to be able to understand! It's not easy and doesn't always make sense.
How come you didn’t ask your “friends” what their tips are, what percentage of tips do they get from prepaid gratuities vs extra cash tips they get individually? Perhaps actually talking to each person that gets prepaid gratuities in your cabin category would really help so that we are not guessing or assuming how much they receive. I’m sure they know you vlog so your not being nosy. It would be very informative to your subscribers. The numbers may seem small per person but multiply that by the many people and families on the ship multiplied by all the sailings for the entire length of their contract, plus their salary and it may not be as low as we think. Not that this means we should not give extra when warranted but let’s not think that they are so seriously under paid that we never attempt to actually find out what it is they really get. Just my thoughts. I appreciate all your vlogs and I sincerely thank you for them.
Thank you! I did have a few conversation with them on researching this video. They too do not know the full breakdown of how they are paid out. They receive a "tip sheet" of that sailing with how many passengers were on board, how many auto paid gratuities, and what their take home was. No additional details. The tough part for determining their "all-in-pay" is what is room and board worth?
What about all the tips from drinks? where do those go?
Cash tips or those you out on a slip go directly to the person you tip
Even when the gratuity is automatically included, I start tipping immediately so that I receive better service.
Thanks for sharing Jim!
Absolute rubbish. We tipped at the end and removed gratuities and received amazing services throughout. People who say they get better service when they start tipping immediately are just trying to convince themselves that’s true.
Brandon you have a good take on tipping and I definitely believe your bias bc you spend so much time on the ship. I cruise a lot as well, however I do a variety of vacations, cruising, resorts and city vacations. No other intity requires this type of tipping. So I don't agree with it. The CEO's of the cruise companies need to be ashamed of themselves bc they are taking these big salaries and want the customer's to pay they're employees salaries.
It is very true, the cruise line has created this monster. Not sure how they unwind it but Celebrity has figured it out...
@@TheWeekendCruiser wow that's funny bc Celebrity isn't even a line that I would consider.
With their all inclusive fares, I would take a look at it! It's also the same corporate owner as Royal Caribbean. Go figure. 🤷🏼
@@TheWeekendCruiser honestly I only am going on Oasis of the Sea bc it's been a dream of mine to experience all the sights of that ship. Royal's crowd is not as lively as I like so I think Celebrity would be more conservative than I'm used to. I normally cruise on NCL bc they are based in NYC and Carnival when they come to NYC cruise port. NYC is the nearest cruise port to where I live.
I tip last night also! Name them on the surveys also.
Great strategy!
Isn't it true that pre-paying gratuities locks in that price for you? So, if the cruise line does raise the rates on a cruise that you booked for next year, it should protect you for that cruise at least right?
That is how NCL is handling their increase. You can lock in the rate when you prepay Gratuities before their effective date. I would assume RCL would do the same but there is never a guarantee.
What is "Hotel services "?
Great question... There is no way to know as trust is as detailed as it gets. .
@@TheWeekendCruiser Maybe the maitre'd just pockets it all ?
Lol whose to say? When there isn't transparency, it is easy to doubt how a system works and not trust the process.
@@TheWeekendCruiser You are right. It probably just goes into the general revenue pool.
Well this is interesting. On my cruises I rarely eat in the Main dining room, i usually do specialty dining so now it sounds like im tipping people Im not even using. Do you know how it works if you use My time dining since you usually have a different set of waiters when you go? I always tip my room attendant extra as well as each time I eat at a specialty restaurant.
Hey Jenn, I am asking around about this one and the specialty. As you can see, tips are not that transparent but will see if I can figure out what happens in those cases for you! The way I understand it, one of the reasons the matre de needs your cabin number to sit you is so that your accounted for with a waiter, head waiter etc. At the end of the cruise, the waiters get to see what their "seat assignment" or "seat value" was for those at their tables.
@@TheWeekendCruiser ok that makes sense if they do it by your cabin number for things like my time dining. Maybe I need to go for an appetizer each night before dinner so my tip gets assigned to someone haha. I appreciate you helping with this type of info, i know its a hot topic amongst cruisers.
@@pryttyfatchick It's not the most clear in the world. I think the key is to know that when you pay gratuities, it goes into a large gratuity pool for many crew members: some you see and some you do not. So the people you are directly interacting with, might not be getting what you think.
No one should be telling passengers what to tip. Great service deserves cash tips. It’s that simple!
the definition of gratuity is something given voluntarily or beyond obligation. So why they even dictate to us what we should be tipping in the 1st place is baffling to me. This is how it works: The "gratuities" you pay on a cruise are what the cruiselines use to pay their workers what they are contractually obligated to pay them. Only when the amount of "gratuity" received on a sailing is in excess of what they owe their workers do the workers get that in the form of a "tip". So your "gratuities" are being used to pay the crews' salary 1st and foremost and anything leftover is divvied amongst them as a "tip". If the "gratuities" received on a cruise aren't enough to cover the crews' minimum agreed upon pay, the cruise line has to kick in to cover the difference. So basically cruiselines are guilt tripping their customers into paying their workers' salaries for them so that they can advertise their cruises as being less expensive than they truly are. Its a pretty shady practice on the part of the cruise lines IMO and one that a lot of fools are all to happy to participate in.
Agreed that it is very poor practice and should absolutely not be called tipping if in essence, we are simply supporting their wage. However, I wouldn't say we are fools to participate and help pay the crew. The guest are not the ones who are going to change this policy and should not be blamed for promoting this strategy. It is 100% in the cruise lines discretion to enact this change and the guest decision to tip or not tip makes no difference to the cruise line. We only harm the crew members by not tipping and we do not enact change this way. I
@@TheWeekendCruiser whether guests decide to tip or not does in fact make a huge difference to the cruise line. If the cruiseline does not receive gratuities from passengers they then have to pay the crew's salary themselves. The crew is getting paid one way or another. Nobody is working for free. What they need to do is raise the advertised price of their cruises enough to cover the cost of the crew's base salary. Then they should give us the option to leave gratuities which would be paid to the crew on top of their base salary. They should not call what we are paying them "gratuity" if it is being used to pay what they are already contractually obligated to pay their workers.
These "automatic gratuities" are a total scam. For one, they call it a "service charge". I ran the numbers. Let's say 6000 people on board and 1500 crew. Passengers being charged $16 a day @ 26 days a month ($2,496,000). Divide that by the crew 2,496,000 ÷ 1500 = $1664 a person. Some crew members only make $600 a month! Can you explain that? I am so tired of every business doing this autocharging stuff. I bet if you ask any of the cruise ship employees on what they would prefer that would all want cash tips because some would triple their pay. "Sir, the automatic gratuity is for your convience." Since when do I not get to decide what is or is not convient for me?
Love the advocacy on all the videos!
@@TheWeekendCruiser The truth has to be told by someone or the deaf will never hear it.
"$1.00 per day is not enough."
You are funny.
Wrong, but still funny.
To start with, the workers knew what they would earn when they signed on for the job.
If they didn't think that amount was worth the time and effort they would put in, they wouldn't sign on.
They agreed that what they got in pay was adequate compensation for their labor.
Next, that waiter doesn't tend to your meal, then spend the rest of his day in his cabin.
He does many tables a day, probably several tables at the same time.
Simply multiply that $1.00 by the number of customers he tends to get a much better appreciation of how much he rakes in during a day.
That the great thing with discretionary tipping. Neither one of us is "right" or "wrong" we just have our personal opinions on what people should do. But there is no correct answer to how much or how little one should tip. It is all up to that individual person but wanted to share what I did for those that were interested.
Stateroom attendances can have different numbers of rooms. Does my room steward still get all of my gratuity?
Secondly, there are always rumors that the extra tips are shared and can’t go to just the person you gave them too. Could you speak to whether that is reality?
Yes, to my knowledge, the stateroom attendant(s) would receive the full amount. If you tip someone in cash or on a receipt, that will go directly to that individual. With that said, certain bars will choose to pool their tips but that is the crews decision to make each cruise.
@@TheWeekendCruiser Thank you. I knew it was often in the bars, and that makes some sense if it’s an event where it’s better to just get drinks to people as fast as you can. But, I’d heard some tips didn’t go to anyone specific but went into the crew emergency funds that help crew get home on emergencies etc.
While I think crew deserve merit bonuses, I have a problem with they just having to be more lucky in passengers rather than actually being better! And no, I don’t see a solution to some of that either. Those that have worked for tips are often much more generous than those that haven’t and that can happen on any floor or with any room steward.
I wish the company pay the staff better in the first place.
Completely agree! It would make everyone's life that much easier! Just charge me what you need to and allow me to walk on and enjoy the cruise :-) In the meantime, I will be tipping as I am not holding my breath! But very proud of Celebrity for taking the leap last year and including gratuities!
I heard NCL doesn’t give the tips to the crew but to the officers of the ship. Not sure if this is correct. If it is that isn’t right. I go on a lot of cruises and I tip the room attendant and if I go into specialty restaurants. Of course,I pay the up front tips before I get onto the ship….thanks for the info….I will become a subscriber…
I cannot speak for NCL but on Royal the tips for into a massive pot and many people seen and unseen are paid out on it. With the level of detail, there is no way to confirm if officers recieve or not. 🤷🏼
Most countries don't have a tipping service, mostly done in the USA except that Cruise Ships "home " is not USA so they can legally get paid crap. The customer is making up for the crud the Cruise Ship Pays,, even though your paying a lot to even sail. Its PER PERSON IN ROOM, an infant is not going to be ordering food in the dining room yet they are technically tipping out. If you have 3 people in a cabin that is near $18 a day on just "room attendance"....I wouldn't tip over that unless its above and beyond.
Thanks for sharing! Interestingly, NCL does dictate it only applies to those over age 3. Royal does not do this and is for everyone.
If you feel the daily automatic gratuities are adequate but you feel that your waiter should get more for outstanding service, why can't you tell Guest Services that you want to reduce the daily automatic amount, say by $2, so that you can give your waiter the appropriate cash amount? The total gratuities are the same; the distribution is different.
I've never heard anyone try to do that. I would assume it is a system limitations as RCL isn't known for state of the art computer technologies.
Scandalous! :)
Ha, admittingly, this was take 2. After listening to my advisory panel, I took a different approach ;-)
@@TheWeekendCruiser haha your advisory board 🤣🤣 love it! Still a great approach!!!
The initial draft was one that warranted review prior to publishing.🤐
@@TheWeekendCruiser oh i have no doubt 😝🤣
I make tipping a priority on all of my cruises. I always plan ahead by bringing cash , more than plenty of ones, fives.10's and 20s.
(Its what in room safe's are for)
Tipping is for service sometimes better than others but always something for the person brining the drinks, refilling my meal time drink, doing any direct service that may come along even up to and including the omelet maker at breakfast.
I consider the automatic gratuity for the behind the scenes worker. If you are a frequent cruiser the automatic tip is what it is on most ships.
The personal tip is my pleasure to give. Of course the kind of service being provided weighs heavily on how much I tip. My room stewards (yes there are two on Holland America) get the largest tip but I don't forget to tip every server and I even tip the hostess getting my seat assignment for remembering every time I come in and seating me with my chosen server and section.
At least on HAL frequency breeds loyalty and being called by name usually on the second night in the main dining room. Usually I tip at the end of the cruise or the last couple of days of the trip. I've found you can't wait for the last day especially for the room steward as times you may not even see them due to their working to clean and set rooms for turn around day. It's actually a pleasure giving recognition to my favorite service providers. I always return to the same servers and request seats in the same sections with the people I feel the most comfortable being around.
Honestly I've never met anyone working on a cruise that I've interact with on a daily basis that I did not believe deserved the customary tip amount I give for any service provided on land.
Great feedback Ben and thank you for sharing! Have not been on HAL yet but people that love HAL, LOVE HAL :-)
what is curious is all the secrecy by cruise lines, which seem suspicious -- if it was all genuine surely they have nothing to hide ??? ..... such as where the money goes who gets what --- an international agreed code of conduct would solve this .... most are happy to pay gratuities. if service is excellent and all the money goes to the correct staff .. BUT HOW DO CUSTOMERS KNOW ...
Completely agree! The lack of transparency just causes us to loose faith in the system. This is one of my biggest pet peeves with cruising is I don't know where my gratuities are going or IF they are going to the crew.
Gratuities=SERVIS FEE. NO TIPS .Simple .This is work. Travel companies should pay decently for their work.
Agreed but when they switch to "service fee" it becomes taxable to the cruise line. They save a ton of money by playing this game. Companies should absolutely pay heir staff a decent wage.
I disagree, that its not enough. Even if 1.00 a day were the case, (if your comparing dining out and the tip is far greater, its not the same comparison) and im sure its more. That same waiter deals with hundreds of people who pay that dollar each day. They are making money, lets not make these people out to be homeless. If your comparing a dinner out in a posh restaurant, for a 2 hour dinner, naturally you pay more for a tip. These people are making money, or they would not be working for the cruise line. These are not people that they scraped off the street and forced to work. If thats the case, give the employees more money, dont put that on the cruiser. Greedy cruise companies trying to recoup moneys lost during Covid, simply raising prices, as they know people are desperate to travel. The cruise line should pay them well enough, tips are additional for whats offered in ways of "Good Service" This feels like the "RESORT FEES" Hotels are now are stealing from its patrons. Just another way to make it more expensive to cruise, and its no longer "tip those that provided good service", now its being forced down our throat. GREED! Thats all it is. Cruise lines are getting GREEDY! Never enough!
Automatic gratuity is a cardinal sin that should not be condoned. The ship staff are hired to provide service which is the nature of their hospitality works. They deserve tipping only if they provide over and above services. As for the cabin steward who clean the room daily, one way of showing appreciation of their work is not to mess up with the room, but keep in a tidy and orderly manner so the cleaning would require least effort.
As an analogy, postmen also provide services, bring mail to your mail box. Should we tip them too. Hell no, that is the nature of their work.
I'm glad you're a little bit biased because I want to know how to treat the crew how they want to be treated! I want to know what the crew's expectations are on what's fair and right to do. :D
How about their employers give them better salaries, so we customers don't have to tip. Tipping culture just give employers an excuse to keep employees salaries low and hog all the profit.
Makes sense to me! Tipping will need to be outlawed for us to tackle corporate greed though.
Good video also your eyes are beautiful! 😊
hahaha thank you Aisha!!! Come for the content, stay for the eyes ;-)
What pisses me off, is why roll in the automatic gratuity into the cruise cost when the people that work on that ship don't even get that money. Its nothing more than extra cash to the upper heads. My friends sister worked on a cruise ship THEY DON'T SEE ANY OF THIS GRATUITY. It's all bullcrap extra money for the business and nothing more. I hope Royal Caribbean keeps it as it is, cause I tip my services handsomely, I don't have my room serviced, so its unfair if its already in the cruise cost. What is other hotel service? Do you tip a host, the front desk, the cleaning guy at a land hotel?
I totally here you Rich. The lack of transparency to the gratuities is pretty bad. If they were more clear on it, people might be more onboard with automatic gratuities. Or, just include it in our cruise fare. Will be making a video this weekend about the most recent increase.
i don't think i'll ever understand the tipping culture, as how it is fair to people of other occupations? police/teachers/bus driver/amazon delivery/garbage collection/postman... etc. people thinks that crew staff are underpaid, but no one forces them to work in such profession, and when there's not enough employee, the employer must think long/hard how they need to manage the salary. it is not the responsibility of consumer to compensate the staff directly.
I certainly agree with you on these points! I don't know where it ends...
I've finally put a deposit on a cruise!!!!!.. xx
That is the best news!!!!! Congrats Tony and happy for you!!! What did you book?
I'm just here for the "you should never remove tips" comments.
Ha it's a healthy blend before me we remove and always remove lol
You ask the crew how much tip they get from the cruise company. Then do the math, It is no where near what you pay.
The auto gratuity math is def on the fuzzy side and I cannot confirm where all the money goes. I hope and trust all of it goes to crew members somewhere on the ship at least!
The company should pay them, it shouldn’t be automatic . It is scam
I assume you pay for one person, I’ll be in the Norwegian with my 3 grandkids, 4 gratuities per day is way too much!
Imagine $60 PER DAY! For me and 3 grand kids in one room!!
It is per person, per day for all guest over the age of 3 with NCL. www.ncl.com/ca/en/cruise-faq/what-is-onboard-service-charge
I completely agree! Should be set price per stateroom. Last 7 night cruise was $500 for my family of four on Royal
@@Worktocruise I think that is one big reason they do not include it in the cruise fare is the marketing aspect. The price will initially sound much higher up front and they worry people will baulk at the higher figure, even if that is what you are still paying just in two different smaller buckets.
@@TheWeekendCruiser I think Royal should do what celebrity is doing and make it all inclusive