Average Tipping

[Xaa]

27 minutes ago, tonyfsu21 said:

I believe there are still generous people out there (especially on vacation). What is the point of spewing BS to a bunch of random people on a forum like this? Also what does “tip hundreds of dollars” mean (like at once or over a 7 day period)? I guess I am in the 10% of people that will “tip hundreds of dollars” over a 7 day cruise and I am not full of BS. These crew members work very hard and I don’t mind tipping well at all. 

Here's the thing.  If a person says they tip less than another person tips, the second person seldom thinks that's BS.  If the person tips more than the second person, the second person is much more likely to believe it to not be true.  You'll seldom meet a person that says they aren't a "good tipper" We all like to think of ourselves as "good tippers" and when we define that just in gross dollar amount some mental reconciliation needs to be made to still believe that in the face of someone who states they give more.  

Being a "good tipper" though is about the recognition of service and appreciation for the individuals providing that service to you and then offering something to the provider as a sign of that appreciation.  On cruises, the included gratuities meet the bar for being a "good tipper" at the gross dollar level.  We all get to give or choose not to give extra and be "good tippers"

Because this forum is helpful and full of knowledgeable folks helping each other, it is not uncommon for someone to seek some directional guidance on what others are doing.  It's helpful to them to make their own personal decisions on what if anything they might want to extend in addition to the included gratuities.  Human nature however always takes over these threads after about a dozen posts.

I personally trust the members of this forum community.  I don't think I get 90% BS when I ask about dining packages, shore excursions, various ports or anything else.  Given that, I don't think these helpful users become less helpful and full of BS when the subject turns to a user seeking some directional guidance on tipping.

As with most things, there are some who disagree.

[tonyfsu21]

30 minutes ago, Xaa said:

Here's the thing.  If a person says they tip less than another person tips, the second person seldom thinks that's BS.  If the person tips more than the second person, the second person is much more likely to believe it to not be true.  You'll seldom meet a person that says they aren't a "good tipper" We all like to think of ourselves as "good tippers" and when we define that just in gross dollar amount some mental reconciliation needs to be made to still believe that in the face of someone who states they give more.  

Being a "good tipper" though is about the recognition of service and appreciation for the individuals providing that service to you and then offering something to the provider as a sign of that appreciation.  On cruises, the included gratuities meet the bar for being a "good tipper" at the gross dollar level.  We all get to give or choose not to give extra and be "good tippers"

Because this forum is helpful and full of knowledgeable folks helping each other, it is not uncommon for someone to seek some directional guidance on what others are doing.  It's helpful to them to make their own personal decisions on what if anything they might want to extend in addition to the included gratuities.  Human nature however always takes over these threads after about a dozen posts.

I personally trust the members of this forum community.  I don't think I get 90% BS when I ask about dining packages, shore excursions, various ports or anything else.  Given that, I don't think these helpful users become less helpful and full of BS when the subject turns to a user seeking some directional guidance on tipping.

As with most things, there are some who disagree.

I agree. My post on page one of this thread reflects just that. The additional tipping should be at the discretion of the individual and not dictated by the opinion of a random person on this thread. If you ask the question though, you are going to get a range of answers that you may not agree with and that’s fine. 

[Nick560]

We tipped the cabin attendant $20 as well as our favorite waiters/waitress. We also do the added gratuity onto the cruise fare itself. We met a couple really cool bartenders and tipped them a $20 after we hunted them down on the last day. I think it all depends on what you personally feel comfortable tipping since it is not a necessity. 

[Austin]

We vary tipping greatly based on the service. Some people do the minimum (friendly and serve) and some just totally blow you away. We’ve had bartenders teach us our favorite drinks, guys dancing with drinks on their heads, and some who know us on a first name basis and queue up a favorite drink as we walk up during the cruise. Some waitstaff do some pretty amazing things as well. 

One of our bartenders told us towards the end of a week that he avoids European contracts since tipping is not the norm.

At the end of the day, any tip will be appreciated. We try to tip in cash in a lot of instances so they don’t have to tip share.

[GJ_123]

On 8/20/2023 at 9:57 PM, fireclan said:

So do the crew members keep the cash tips for themselves? I used to assume that but I'm not so sure anymore.  Maybe they get a portion of it?

From what I have seen I think it depends. Some bar staff I have seen them put $ in a jar then they must split it at the end of the night. But others I have seen them put it straight in their pocket which they must just be keeping themselves.

[GJ_123]

On 8/1/2023 at 7:39 PM, Al Vig said:

NOT including the gratituites charged by royal Caribbean how much extra is average for room steward (given only one cleaning a day now)/waiter/asst waiter.

I think the important thing is to tip what you can afford and how good you thought the service was. Typically we tip about $5 a day to the cabin attendant which I think is fair. Overall on the ship we must tip in the region of $200-$300 for a week cruise. Always tip $1 a drink. I even tip the Starbucks staff if I feel the service is particularly good.

Something more than one staff member has told me is they definitely appreciate tips in cash more so I always do. Adding to the receipt just goes into the overall tip pool and they'll barely see any of it. If you want to recognise anyone's individual efforts 100% give them cash!

[Riley]

We tip $1 per drink. I give the room attendant $50 at the end of a 7-day cruise (more for longer).  Our waiter gets $40, the assistant/busser gets $20, the headwaiter if he or she has been terrific gets another $20, and we've been known to also tip in the Windjammer... I have even slipped the "washy washy" kids $5 each for fun. 

[Ray]

16 hours ago, Austin said:

 European contracts since tipping is not the norm.

 

Can we put this lie to bed once and for all? 

Europeans DO tip just not to the same extent as in the US! 

There are a number of factors for this

1 : Europe pays better wages to staff meaning we don't have to put 16,18 or 20 % tip expected on receipts 

2 : We tip for the service we receive not because it's expected

3 : we tip for quality 

4 : we tip what we like even just the coins in our change or we round up or leave a good tip ! Theres no expectation on us to tip anything but the majority do and any extra staff get is a bonus and appreciated.

 

 

[bport95]

My wife and I had an AMAZING statement room attendant on a 9-night cruise. I think we tipped him $50-$100

[Ampurp85]

27 minutes ago, Ray said:

Can we put this lie to bed once and for all? 

Europeans DO tip just not to the same extent as in the US! 

There are a number of factors for this

1 : Europe pays better wages to staff meaning we don't have to put 16,18 or 20 % tip expected on receipts 

2 : We tip for the service we receive not because it's expected

3 : we tip for quality 

4 : we tip what we like even just the coins in our change or we round up or leave a good tip ! Theres no expectation on us to tip anything but the majority do and any extra staff get is a bonus and appreciated.

 

 

I hate that this a generalization.

It should be they don't rely on tips to live like in the USA.

I still stand by the notion that tipping is personal and that there are a ton of lies involved. 

[RCIfan1912]

3 hours ago, Ray said:

Can we put this lie to bed once and for all? 

Europeans DO tip just not to the same extent as in the US! 

There are a number of factors for this

1 : Europe pays better wages to staff meaning we don't have to put 16,18 or 20 % tip expected on receipts 

2 : We tip for the service we receive not because it's expected

3 : we tip for quality 

4 : we tip what we like even just the coins in our change or we round up or leave a good tip ! Theres no expectation on us to tip anything but the majority do and any extra staff get is a bonus and appreciated.

 

 

I agree with all this. We do things ass backwards here. It's not just to supplement salary, tipping is the salary. 

Also we in the Northeast it's more than anywhere in the country too. It's a way of life here in the NY/NJ area. We tip like it's going out of style. It's always been kinda endearing, kinda like our thing but it's even out of control here. 

[teddy]

To stir the pot a teeny bit….

The people I personally know who are waiters/waitresses would absolutely rather not be subject to minimum wage and just keep their lower wages and tips. 

A long time friend of ours has been waiting tables for decades.  The cash tips she gets just during hunting season pays for their vacation in St. Maarten every year. 
 

To be upfront, I’ve never worked for tips, so I have no dog in this fight.  

[RCIfan1912]

1 minute ago, teddy said:

To stir the pot a teeny bit….

The people I personally know who are waiters/waitresses would absolutely rather not be subject to minimum wage and just keep their lower wages and tips. 

A long time friend of ours has been waiting tables for decades.  The cash tips she gets just during hunting season pays for their vacation in St. Maarten every year. 
 

To be upfront, I’ve never worked for tips, so I have no dog in this fight.  

Yeah I never worked for tips either but I guess it works for those that do like the waiter you know. 

It's never going to change here because it's just how it works. If there suddenly is no tipping or much, much less but we go to IHOP and the pancakes are double what they were no one will be happy. People, most people will not understand. 

It's a very interesting conversation though. 

To get back on cruising. The people on the ship that do receive tips, they do get a base salary right like a waiter/waitress? They get a small salary/hourly rate and then tips make majority of their pay. 

[teddy]

Just now, RCIfan1912 said:

To get back on cruising. The people on the ship that do receive tips, they do get a base salary right like a waiter/waitress? They get a small salary/hourly rate and then tips make majority of their pay. 

I’ve often wondered this.  I’m curious to see any info people share. 

[RCIfan1912]

8 minutes ago, teddy said:

I’ve often wondered this.  I’m curious to see any info people share. 

Been trying to get an answer for a while now but haven't seen anything. 

[TXcruzer]

15 minutes ago, RCIfan1912 said:

Yeah I never worked for tips either but I guess it works for those that do like the waiter you know. 

It's never going to change here because it's just how it works. If there suddenly is no tipping or much, much less but we go to IHOP and the pancakes are double what they were no one will be happy. People, most people will not understand. 

It's a very interesting conversation though. 

To get back on cruising. The people on the ship that do receive tips, they do get a base salary right like a waiter/waitress? They get a small salary/hourly rate and then tips make majority of their pay. 

Everyone on the ship receives, contractually, a guaranteed salary that is governed by International Seafarer Convention.

[RCIfan1912]

15 minutes ago, TXcruzer said:

Everyone on the ship receives, contractually, a guaranteed salary that is governed by International Seafarer Convention.

Thanks, I actually Googled it and it basically said exactly what you said. Thanks. 

[TXcruzer]

20 minutes ago, RCIfan1912 said:

Thanks, I actually Googled it and it basically said exactly what you said. Thanks. 

The question that really needs asked, and that interests me the most is this.  Does Royal use the auto gratuity monies to meet the minimum payment required by the contract OR are these monies distributed in addition to the minimum?

Because this is not clear, and I do not wish to start a debate, but I do not participate in the auto gratuity program.  It is important to me that those that serve me get money ON TOP OF their contracted salary.

[RCIfan1912]

1 hour ago, TXcruzer said:

The question that really needs asked, and that interests me the most is this.  Does Royal use the auto gratuity monies to meet the minimum payment required by the contract OR are these monies distributed in addition to the minimum?

Because this is not clear, and I do not wish to start a debate, but I do not participate in the auto gratuity program.  It is important to me that those that serve me get money ON TOP OF their contracted salary.

Yeah that I don't know but I certainly hope not. I mean on my America mind it should be base salary of 10,000 for a 7 month contract plus gratuities on top. Just making up numbers by the way. 

[Heymarco]

Did cabin attendants start receiving more tips when they went to one cabin cleaning a day? They received more cabins as a result and we are still paying same amount of ore-paid/auto gratitudes.

[Ampurp85]

I have worked a waitress on and off for years. I too agree that if you a good one, minimum wage would not be worth it. It the potential to make money, but there are horrible tradeoffs as well.  You have to put up with a LOT. I have worked a corporate job and waited tables at the same time due to budget cuts. On salary, with the demands and such you often make minimum wage. But you could put in 5/6 hours of physical work and make your paycheck, serving. For every wonderful guest there are three who come in to do the most. The part that sucks is nothing is standardized, so a server in NY is probably making $1k a week while one in AL is making $200. Minimum wage is not enough to put up with the demands, disrespect, etc. you have to deal with, especially when you factor in how much these restaurants make. 

The crew on ships are making a living wage, probably more than double, based on their home country. But they are giving of themselves for more than the standard workday as their shifts are often 12hrs. Whether you chose to tip or not is up to each individual. I know most are happy with even a $1 or $2.........or even just a friendly conversation and respect.

[Wheeler825]

1 hour ago, Heymarco said:

Did cabin attendants start receiving more tips when they went to one cabin cleaning a day? They received more cabins as a result and we are still paying same amount of ore-paid/auto gratitudes.

Of course they did.  Less work, more pay.

[Ray]

8 hours ago, teddy said:

To stir the pot a teeny bit….

The people I personally know who are waiters/waitresses would absolutely rather not be subject to minimum wage and just keep their lower wages and tips. 

A long time friend of ours has been waiting tables for decades.  The cash tips she gets just during hunting season pays for their vacation in St. Maarten every year. 
 

To be upfront, I’ve never worked for tips, so I have no dog in this fight.  

Can understand that, in an article during lockdown waiters and waitresses in NYC were complaining because the were not getting money, in most cases it was over 100k USD per year

[tonyfsu21]

On 8/22/2023 at 9:54 AM, GJ_123 said:

I think the important thing is to tip what you can afford and how good you thought the service was. Typically we tip about $5 a day to the cabin attendant which I think is fair. Overall on the ship we must tip in the region of $200-$300 for a week cruise. Always tip $1 a drink. I even tip the Starbucks staff if I feel the service is particularly good.

Something more than one staff member has told me is they definitely appreciate tips in cash more so I always do. Adding to the receipt just goes into the overall tip pool and they'll barely see any of it. If you want to recognise anyone's individual efforts 100% give them cash!

This is a good point re: cash for the bartenders and baristas. I’m glad to see that I’m not alone tipping “hundreds” during the span of a 7 day voyage because there are some people on this thread that consider that excessive for whatever reason. I need to bring more singles because they don’t last long enough and I eventually start tipping on the seapass receipt which gets thrown into the tip pool. 

[Geezer Of The Seas]

21 hours ago, TXcruzer said:

The question that really needs asked, and that interests me the most is this.  Does Royal use the auto gratuity monies to meet the minimum payment required by the contract OR are these monies distributed in addition to the minimum?

 

Interesting you mention this. There was an article on Cruise Hive posted within the last 7 days in which Carnival's brand ambassador responded to a rumor/claim made on social media that Carnival does exactly what you are wondering about.

His posted response was an empahatic NO!

[TXcruzer]

20 hours ago, Geezer Of The Seas said:

Interesting you mention this. There was an article on Cruise Hive posted within the last 7 days in which Carnival's brand ambassador responded to a rumor/claim made on social media that Carnival does exactly what you are wondering about.

His posted response was an empahatic NO!

I hope that Heald's statement is true

[Geezer Of The Seas]

1 hour ago, TXcruzer said:

I hope that Heald's statement is true

True enough. It is after all, the Internet & social media.