Hey everyone here is a topic that is near and dear to our hearts. TIPPING ON THE CRUISE SHIPS!!!!!!! What the heck is wrong with these cruise lines who allow their employees to "BEG" for tips? This is an area of cruising that I think is low class and disgusting. I am in favor of all cruise lines taking HAL's suggestion of tipping not required. Why don't the cruise lines just pay their employees more? When I get on board a ship I immedeiately inform the room steward that if he expects a tip at the end of the cruise I expect him to do an excellent job. If not NO TIP!!! The first thing I express to the waiter and bus boy is that I expect excellent service from them or NO TIP!!!!! Why don't the cruise lines take a lesson from land based All inclusives, everything is included and I have never been hounded for a tip on a land based resort. Actually I am beginning to like them more. More room, better food, drinks included and no tipping.
Hey everyone here is a topic that is near and dear to our hearts. TIPPING ON THE CRUISE SHIPS!!!!!!! What the heck is wrong with these cruise lines who allow their employees to "BEG" for tips? This is an area of cruising that I think is low class and disgusting. I am in favor of all cruise lines taking HAL's suggestion of tipping not required. Why don't the cruise lines just pay their employees more? When I get on board a ship I immedeiately inform the room steward that if he expects a tip at the end of the cruise I expect him to do an excellent job. If not NO TIP!!! The first thing I express to the waiter and bus boy is that I expect excellent service from them or NO TIP!!!!! Why don't the cruise lines take a lesson from land based All inclusives, everything is included and I have never been hounded for a tip on a land based resort. Actually I am beginning to like them more. More room, better food, drinks included and no tipping.
What I would like to know is....
When you go into a normal land-based restautant, do you say to the waiter -- if you don't give me good service, you won't get a good tip?
How many cruises have you actually been on?
Is it the thought of giving people a tip that offends you, or the thought that perhaps you didn't "budget" this into your plans and are offended that you have to give some money on the last night?
I think that the staff on cruise ships work extremely hard, and probably, do not make much money. In my limited cruising experience, I have only not tipped the required amount for one night only on NCL's Sky (freestyle cruising), because the service on that particular night at that particular table was REALLY BAD (and it was the Captain's dinner).
I would suggest that Tom & Mary Milano's method of tipping is probably the best I've heard.
Interesting difference in cultures here. As an Aussie, I am used to the "tip if you feel it is deserved, but don't if you regard the service as ordinary" ethos. What I find objectionable is compulsary tipping (and particularly a set percentage to boot). Current cruising culture really seems to be transferring the costs of paying service staff a living wage from the cruise line to the cruiser - a sophisticated version of nickel & dimeing.
Sure, the cost of cruising has declined relative to inflation over the last 25 - 30 years, but at the cost of optional tipping, duty free drinks, 6 course menus (with no surcharges)& small to medium sized ships. I for one would rather pay the real price up front, rather than wrestle with the relentless passing on of costs to the passenger in a manner calculated to keep the entry level pricing attractive but the bottom line firmly in the black.
Silverseas of course do it brilliantly, but we really do need a budget version of them so that we can continue to cruise repeatedly rather than once in a life-time.
Or am I a deluded prisoner of nostalgia
Dave, I quite agree with you. However, lets not forget Radisson cruise line. They also have all tips included, and include many drinks as well - initial bar setup in your cabin with whatever you would like, and all wines and cocktails in the dining rooms. Pax really seem to like the all-inclusive style of cruising, and I think open seating is tremendously popular as well. I think we will see a trend toward more inclusive cruising. For one thing, apparently there are still pax who will "stiff" their servers on the last night and not tip at all. I guess that is why Princess and maybe others went to attaching a specific fee each day for tips. I understand you don't like it, but I can understand it if the skinflints are becoming more numerous. For all of these reasons, I will only sail the luxury lines - more expensive, yes, but the "nickle & diming", charging for everything, and the larger ships are just not for me!! I do think that the Radisson cruises are affordable - at least, more affordable than Silver Sea (I love that line, but as you say, expensivo.)
If your not happy with tipping, stay home. Leave the ships available to the people that enjoy good service and willing to pay for it. If I were a room steward or a waiter, I certainly wouldn't want you in my area.
I QUITE AGREE WITH YOU ,CRUISEFAN.
TIPPING IS ALWAYS VOLUNTARY , BUT GOOD SERVICES
SHOULD BE HONOURED WITH A TIP.
I PERSONALLY TEND TO TIP IN ADVANCE ,SO ON MY LATEST CRUISE ON THE RADIANCE LAST WEEK , I GAVE THE ROOM STEWART $70 AS SOON AS I OCCUPIED THE ROOM.
I HAD FRESH FLOWERS EVERY DAY , MY STATEROOM
LOOKED THE BUSINESS.
I DIDN T EXPECT EXTRA SERVICES, BUT I APPRECIATED , THE WAY I WAS LOOKED AFTER FROM DAY ONE.
TEDDY
Tipping included in the price is definitely the way to go; however, most of us (including myself) could only dream of going on SilverSea.
Can anyone tell me what happens when you're going on a ship like the Marco Polo to Antartica, for instance (another dream of mine). Is tipping included here, or again, tip at the end of the cruise? Just curious.
Hi HappyCruiser:
When I cruised on the Marco Polo two years ago, we tipped at the end of the cruise. This was one of those occasions when I tipped more than the recommended amount. The Phillipine staff were absolutely first class! Cruiseman
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