Cruisingmama Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 First time sailing as Diamond. Need a little clarity on how the drink vouchers work. Do I need to tell the bartender/server that I want to use a voucher? Can I order a drink with lunch/dinner (MDR/Specialty) and do I need to tell them I will be using a voucher? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_Texas Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 23 minutes ago, Cruisingmama said: First time sailing as Diamond. Need a little clarity on how the drink vouchers work. Do I need to tell the bartender/server that I want to use a voucher? Can I order a drink with lunch/dinner (MDR/Specialty) and do I need to tell them I will be using a voucher? Yes you should let your server know any time you want to use them. You may want to use them all for $14 cocktails and not $7 beer (you have a couple 50% off glass of beer and wine vouchers in addition to D vouchers). Drinking is a science and does involve math. System works well. We always take a stack of $1 bills for gratuities. The servers get no automatic gratuity for a voucher. You can tip by using the slip they bring you but we have noticed they like cash better. We've noticed using cash there are more times they give you a freebie. Check your vouchers from the app to see if a freebie was given. Works the same in MDR. Congratulations on Diamond! OCSC Mike, Bob Burd, Cruisingmama and 4 others 6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCSC Mike Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 6 minutes ago, Doug_Texas said: You can tip by using the slip they bring you but we have noticed they like cash better. It also varies greatly from ship to ship, sailing to sailing, and even bar to bar if you actually get a slip. We have always tipped in cash as well for various reasons. Doug_Texas and Cruisingmama 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 Even without verbally specifying, I've never had a waiter/bartender not use an available voucher for an alcoholic drink. They do tend to ask though when ordering non-alcoholic drinks if I want to pay or just a voucher. Cruisingmama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisingmama Posted January 15 Author Report Share Posted January 15 Thanks everyone. I'm not a big drinker and happy to use the included flavored fountain drinks, so 4 a day should cover all my drinks including my morning latte. I wanted to make sure I know what the process is and let my kids know they need to let the servers/bartenders know to use the voucher when ordering their virgin pina coladas & johnny rockets milkshakes (they are so excited). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCSC Mike Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 5 minutes ago, Cruisingmama said: 4 a day should cover all my drinks including my morning latte You can get free specialty coffee virtually 24/7 from the Crown Lounge coffee machine (self-serve). No need to use a voucher. That machine is probably my 2nd favorite perk after the vouchers. Mturk, Snotarni and WAAAYTOOO 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisingmama Posted January 15 Author Report Share Posted January 15 Just now, OCSC Mike said: You can get free specialty coffee virtually 24/7 from the Crown Lounge coffee machine (self-serve). No need to use a voucher. That machine is probably my 2nd favorite perk after the vouchers. OH RIGHT! Almost forgot about that! thanks! OCSC Mike 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 10 minutes ago, Cruisingmama said: Thanks everyone. I'm not a big drinker and happy to use the included flavored fountain drinks, so 4 a day should cover all my drinks including my morning latte. I wanted to make sure I know what the process is and let my kids know they need to let the servers/bartenders know to use the voucher when ordering their virgin pina coladas & johnny rockets milkshakes (they are so excited). I too have my first Diamond cruise coming up in a couple of weeks (congrats @Cruisingmama!) Anybody able to confirm if Johnny Rockets shakes ARE included please? Thanks Cruisingmama and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shari Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 Another tip is to stop by a bar and use any remaining vouchers for that day to get bottled water as you head up to your cabin for the night. WAAAYTOOO, OCSC Mike and Cruisingmama 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCSC Mike Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 6 minutes ago, Shari said: Another tip is to stop by a bar and use any remaining vouchers for that day to get bottled water as you head up to your cabin for the night. Other options for unopened drinks to keep in your cooler (assuming it's cold enough which varies greatly) are cans of soda, bottles of beer, cans of Truly, etc. Cruisingmama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 7 minutes ago, Shari said: Another tip is to stop by a bar and use any remaining vouchers for that day to get bottled water as you head up to your cabin for the night. Also PowerAde and occasional juices if anyone in your group wants something bottled besides water Cruisingmama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steverk Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 Last night I used a diamond voucher for a Johnny Rockets milkshake. yummy Bazza, Cruisingmama, WAAAYTOOO and 1 other 2 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXcruzer Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 1 hour ago, Shari said: Another tip is to stop by a bar and use any remaining vouchers for that day to get bottled water as you head up to your cabin for the night. or a shot of Baileys for the next morning's coffee Cruisingmama and OCSC Mike 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXcruzer Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 2 hours ago, Doug_Texas said: Yes you should let your server know any time you want to use them. You may want to use them all for $14 cocktails and not $7 beer (you have a couple 50% off glass of beer and wine vouchers in addition to D vouchers). Drinking is a science and does involve math. System works well. We always take a stack of $1 bills for gratuities. The servers get no automatic gratuity for a voucher. You can tip by using the slip they bring you but we have noticed they like cash better. We've noticed using cash there are more times they give you a freebie. Check your vouchers from the app to see if a freebie was given. Works the same in MDR. Congratulations on Diamond! The servers do get the automatic gratuity for the C&A loyalty drinks, this has been posted and conformed many times on multiple boards/threads. Jim Bonaventura 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatsFanBrian Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 My wife and I had the same question as we will be sailing this Saturday for the first time as Diamond. Thanks for all the answers. Cruisingmama and OCSC Mike 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_Texas Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 22 minutes ago, TXcruzer said: The servers do get the automatic gratuity for the C&A loyalty drinks, this has been posted and conformed many times on multiple boards/threads. Please provide details/URL because I haven't seen that. The paper receipt they bring shows no gratuity like a drink ordered for a charge does. Snotarni 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steverk Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 23 minutes ago, Doug_Texas said: Please provide details/URL because I haven't seen that. The paper receipt they bring shows no gratuity like a drink ordered for a charge does. I agree. Please let us know the source. Everything I've seen says the bartender doesn't get an automatic gratuity on diamond vouchers. If that's incorrect, I'd like to know Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 I can't imagine RC would pay voucher gratuities to the crew out of the goodness of their own hearts. Doug_Texas and WAAAYTOOO 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXcruzer Posted January 15 Report Share Posted January 15 The receipts I receive, state at the bottom, that gratuity has been paid. No, I do not have a picture of the receipt handy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyfsu21 Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 6 hours ago, TXcruzer said: The receipts I receive, state at the bottom, that gratuity has been paid. No, I do not have a picture of the receipt handy I have seen the same thing listed on the bottom of the receipt indicating the gratuity was added. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TXcruzer Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 11 hours ago, tonyfsu21 said: I have seen the same thing listed on the bottom of the receipt indicating the gratuity was added. Thanks for adding your experience. I brought this up to a bartender in Schooner on Wonder last year, and he told me Royal pays them the gratuity on loyalty drinks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jolly Ogre Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 I will still tip a dollar or two. Pattycruise and Jim Bonaventura 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrznTxn Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 Since we do not pay any gratuity on our vouchers we always tip the waiter/bartender for our drinks. This has become second nature to us and would not even think now of not tipping. Our nightly trip includes a stop by guest services or the casino cashier for $1 bills for the next day. Makes the waiters look for you for future drinks. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyfsu21 Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 2 hours ago, CrznTxn said: Since we do not pay any gratuity on our vouchers we always tip the waiter/bartender for our drinks. This has become second nature to us and would not even think now of not tipping. Our nightly trip includes a stop by guest services or the casino cashier for $1 bills for the next day. Makes the waiters look for you for future drinks. I tip 2.00 per drink in cash but the nightly stops at guest services would interfere with my vacation so I come prepared with $100 in singles. TXcruzer and OCSC Mike 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCSC Mike Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 22 minutes ago, tonyfsu21 said: so I come prepared with $100 in singles Yep, have had this conversation before... my pre-cruise trip to the bank for an envelope of singles is one of my favorite rituals (as is wondering if the teller thinks I'm going to a strip club). tonyfsu21, Jim Bonaventura, KevinK and 1 other 1 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 We just save up all of our $1s in between cruises. Though with society being so cashless anymore, we still often end up going to the bank to get $1s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WesKinetic Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 On 1/15/2024 at 9:11 AM, Doug_Texas said: Drinking is a science and does involve math. BRB, off to share that quote with my wife, the math teacher! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Bonaventura Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 1 hour ago, OCSC Mike said: Yep, have had this conversation before... my pre-cruise trip to the bank for an envelope of singles is one of my favorite rituals (as is wondering if the teller thinks I'm going to a strip club). Same here!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatsFanBrian Posted January 16 Report Share Posted January 16 2 hours ago, OCSC Mike said: Yep, have had this conversation before... my pre-cruise trip to the bank for an envelope of singles is one of my favorite rituals (as is wondering if the teller thinks I'm going to a strip club). I’ll be doing this tomorrow, getting a batch of 5’s as well. OCSC Mike 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_Texas Posted January 17 Report Share Posted January 17 We had weather which delayed the trip to the bank. We leave a week from Friday for a SBS so it’s 200 $1 bills. One of the exciting rituals. (It’s the packing I hate - except this trip includes threads for Empire Supper Club!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PatsFanBrian Posted January 29 Report Share Posted January 29 We just finished sailing as Diamond for the first time. Because of this thread, I paid extra attention to the slips when they were given to us. The printout at the bottom regarding gratuities is boiler plate printing that is on every receipt you receive whether it's at a bar or at a restaurant. The computer just spits it out as part of the programming. For the vouchers, the gratuity line was always blank. We asked around a few times and we were consistently told that they do not get gratuities on vouchers. We always left a cash tip when we used vouchers (many times, we never got a receipt if we had wanted to add one on the slip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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