New to cruising gratuities

[Alex Aymar]

if your room steward is good and your dining team how much extra do people give them. If you could tell me what you do it will help me thank you

 

[Alex Aymar]

Thanks again

 

[Tara619]

We are a family of 3 and gave an extra $40-50 to the server and stateroom host. I think we gave the drink server and head server an extra $20-30. I can't remember exactly. It was $400 total for 3 people for 7 days.

 

[adamki]

For the waiters, if the service is great, I try to figure out how much I would have tipped if I had been at a restaurant of similar quality then multiply by the number of meals (then find a nice round number). I split off about a third of that for the assistant server.

On our last cruise, our waiter let us know where he would be for breakfast and lunch so we would often see him for two or three meals, I took that into account as well.

For the head server, I adjust based on our interaction. For one cruise, we only interacted with the head server once (when he was plugging for tips) ... he only got the standard allotment. On another cruise, the head server always seemed to notice our son as we approached the restaurant. We would hear him yell over everyone, "My friend is here!", then he would push through the crowd, take my son's hand and bring him to our waiter or directly to our table. That guy got a nice bonus (the standard is only $1/person/night).

For the stateroom host, I adjust up for exceptional service

 

[Plaid Princess]

It really varies a lot depending on the servers/stateroom host we get... but we typically leave between $40-80 additional for the Server/Asst. Server/Stateroom host. Only once have I added anything to the head server, because on all but one cruise, he barely introduced himself, and we never saw him until he came around to collect. On our last cruise, the HS was very friendly, stopping by each night and checking up... he even made a point to remember names, and bring out an occasional dish or drink himself. I know he has other duties, so I appreciated him taking a few moments out of his night to interact with us.

 

[tinkerone]

I have to say, I like to tip the room steward some extra on the first day. it usually sets the mood and they are a little more attentive imo. I never want for anything and they are always checking to make sure I don't need anything.
if you think your going to tip extra, start off with it and see how it works out for you.

 

[Plaid Princess]

I have to say, I like to tip the room steward some extra on the first day. it usually sets the mood and they are a little more attentive imo. I never want for anything and they are always checking to make sure I don't need anything.
if you think your going to tip extra, start off with it and see how it works out for you.

I've always wondered about this. Just out of curiosity, how do you go about it? Just pass it off to them when they introduce themselves?

 

[Alex Aymar]

I've always wondered about this. Just out of curiosity, how do you go about it? Just pass it off to them when they introduce themselves?

How much would you normally give in advance ?

 

[Alex Aymar]

I have to say, I like to tip the room steward some extra on the first day. it usually sets the mood and they are a little more attentive imo. I never want for anything and they are always checking to make sure I don't need anything.
if you think your going to tip extra, start off with it and see how it works out for you.

How much do you normally give to start off with ?

 

[mmouse37]

Tipping above the standard amout is what you want to do if at all. There is no right or wrong answer. The above posts are very generous with their overages IMO. I also tip above on most cruises but not that high. It is all personal choice based on your experience. I also never base it on what I would pay for service in a land based restaurant....I just figure out a number and add it in cash to my tip envelope.

MJ

 

[tinkerone]

How much do you normally give to start off with ?

i normally just give $10 to start. then at the end of the cruise another extra $10 so long as everything has gone well, which it always has.

 

[tinkerone]

I've always wondered about this. Just out of curiosity, how do you go about it? Just pass it off to them when they introduce themselves?

when the steward comes and introduces him/herself is when i pass it. i always explain that it is extra so they don't think i don't know about tipping and thats all i will be giving them. i just say this is because i know that sometime during the week we will need something and since i don't always see them i want to make sure they know it is appreciated.
after that i slip in that i could use an extra tube of shampoo and body lotion…...

 

[Plaid Princess]

when the steward comes and introduces him/herself is when i pass it. i always explain that it is extra so they don't think i don't know about tipping and thats all i will be giving them. i just say this is because i know that sometime during the week we will need something and since i don't always see them i want to make sure they know it is appreciated.
after that i slip in that i could use an extra tube of shampoo and body lotion…...

I'm going to give this a try on our next cruise. We've always had great Stateroom Hosts in the past, but I figure it couldn't hurt for them to know that we're good tippers.

 

[Shelley Chiarats]

I gave the Stateroom Host an extra $20, the Server and extra $10, the Assistant Server an extra $5 and the Head Server just the standard amount. It wasn't as much as some have suggested and it was not that they did not do a great job. Like others I just was not sure how much was appropriate and randomly decided on those amounts.

 

[ladypiph]

I gave the Stateroom Host an extra $20, the Server and extra $10, the Assistant Server an extra $5 and the Head Server just the standard amount. It wasn't as much as some have suggested and it was not that they did not do a great job. Like others I just was not sure how much was appropriate and randomly decided on those amounts.

This is exactly what I do for my family. Except one time the head server was extremely accommodating (my DS and DH are picky eaters) and she went really out of her way for us so she got an extra $10 as well. I also always prepay my tips just a small side note. And like others have said I give my stateroom host $10 upon our first encounter inform him/her I like to have fresh ice every evening at turn down and need Cars theme sheets for my DS they are always more than happy to make sure of it and then leave another $10 later. ( I have only done 4 night cruises, but I am sure these numbers should increase for longer sailings)

 

[lowrider]

We gave our server an extra 50, our head server and xtra 50 and our room hostess an xtr 40. Our server and head server were awesome from taken 'selfies' with us to going the extra mile for my wife and her food allergies. They leave envelopes in your room with who it goes to on your last night of the cruise

 

[bethy]

I have to say, I like to tip the room steward some extra on the first day. it usually sets the mood and they are a little more attentive imo. I never want for anything and they are always checking to make sure I don't need anything.
if you think your going to tip extra, start off with it and see how it works out for you.

This is what I do when we travel and stay somewhere for more than one night.

 

[DCLDVC1]

We usually give an extra $10 per day to the server, assistant server and stateroom host if the service is great.