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Gratuity


Cody

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We are ready to set sail on the Allure of the Seas. I will be going this summer with my wife and two kids.  The bill is paid for except gratuity. I have a hard time excepting that gratuity is added to each sailing member. I don't mind paying for 2 of us but all four of us are staying in one stateroom and i guess what I'm asking is there a way to talk to guest services and see if they can waive half of our total? It would be a 200.oo dollar saving.

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58 minutes ago, Cody said:

We are ready to set sail on the Allure of the Seas. I will be going this summer with my wife and two kids.  The bill is paid for except gratuity. I have a hard time excepting that gratuity is added to each sailing member. I don't mind paying for 2 of us but all four of us are staying in one stateroom and i guess what I'm asking is there a way to talk to guest services and see if they can waive half of our total? It would be a 200.oo dollar saving.

it can be done but it is highly frowned upon. Your tips don't just go to the room attendant they also go to all the waitstaff in the dining room and windjammer. 

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What you're proposing is morally objectionable.

I get that you disagree gratuity should be the obligation of the guest to pay whether or not it's merited or not.  That's a great point you should bring up with the cruise line in the hopes that in the future, they roll it into the cruise fare and return gratuity to being something optional.

In the meantime, you are obliged to pay the daily gratuity because it is the way the system works.

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Plus, I don't think folks realize the tips are not just for the Cabin Stewards .... but so many more people that help to enhance your cruise experience, both, in public and behind the scenes .......Personally, we are totally good with the system now, and then we'll tip additional to the folks that really go above and beyond, like a particular bartender..... last October on Grandeur, we had Erik from Kenya (he was working the pool deck) ..... that guy was EVERYWHERE and was just a fun person to have around....

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Our family has always paid the daily auto gratuity but I've often wondered if the crew would appreciate cash instead. I wonder if the gratuity I'm paying really sees it's way to each deserving individual. In theory, could I actually give a monetary tip to each individual I encounter? ie leaving money on the table in the windjammer/dining room after meals, tipping at the bar, leaving money for my room steward. This way I'd know that these hard working folks are being rewarded. Does anyone have insight as to how RC actually distributes the gratuity?

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Recently, Dan and I were on a cruise and eating in the Windjammer.  There was a couple next to us with 2 small children.  The table was a complete wreck !  There was food on the floor everywhere and I said to Dan - "this is why they charge gratuities for children !".  I feel terrible for whoever had to clean up that mess.

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Prepaid gratuities are great. Instead of gratuities being added daily to ur onboard spending account. That way u can break up the cost of trip instead of a bill at the end of cruise. On the last night my boyfriend and I gave a cash tip to the waiter and assistant waiter in the main dining room, the room attendant, and the casino bartender who was always making us drinks..they really made our cruise special. 

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On 3/14/2019 at 8:32 AM, coneyraven said:

Plus, I don't think folks realize the tips are not just for the Cabin Stewards .... but so many more people that help to enhance your cruise experience, both, in public and behind the scenes .......Personally, we are totally good with the system now, and then we'll tip additional to the folks that really go above and beyond, like a particular bartender..... last October on Grandeur, we had Erik from Kenya (he was working the pool deck) ..... that guy was EVERYWHERE and was just a fun person to have around....

If we are tipping the people who wash towels, wipe down railing, wash dishes in the kitchens, prep food then they should move to a mandatory fee and pay their employees with it.

I am not saying these people do not work hard also but TELL us where the money is going instead of just saying 14.25 per day is optional.

When i go into a restaurant I dont leave 9 tips saying: Tip 1 for server, Tip 2 for food prep, Tip 3 for Salad Cook, Tip 4 for Hot Items cook, Tip 5 for Desert, Tip 6 for Host, Tip 7 for Busboy, Tip 8 for carpet cleaners, Tip 9 for Dishwasher......  They all made my "restaurant" experience better but its just confusing.

Also how many of you with a family of 4 leaves 25+ dollar tips per night in your land based hotel room for the Housekeeping and everything that goes into the clean sheets, towels etc...

 

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16 hours ago, marti314 said:

When i go into a restaurant I dont leave 9 tips saying: Tip 1 for server, Tip 2 for food prep, Tip 3 for Salad Cook, Tip 4 for Hot Items cook, Tip 5 for Desert, Tip 6 for Host, Tip 7 for Busboy, Tip 8 for carpet cleaners, Tip 9 for Dishwasher......  They all made my "restaurant" experience better but its just confusing.

True, you leave one tip for your server, but then they are supposed to give a portion of it to all those people.

16 hours ago, marti314 said:

Also how many of you with a family of 4 leaves 25+ dollar tips per night in your land based hotel room for the Housekeeping and everything that goes into the clean sheets, towels etc...

If that hotel had hundreds of employees working behind the scenes to make it comparable to a cruise ship...

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