Avoid the crowd at guest services?

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

I have seen on countless threads comments about paying your account during your cruise with GS to avoid the long lines on the last evening paying off accounts at guest services.

I'm not sure I understand how this works.

Even if you paid daily- you're spending more time at guests services- right? But what I don't get... does that mean you pay daily and then make sure you don't charge a THING on the last day so you won't have to go to guests services that night when a vast majority of the guests will be doing the same thing?

I can't figure it out whether it's worth the extra effort/time to go to GS every day/night and pay up on the account (or even ever few days) if you end up charging on the last day and end up having to go to GS when they are busy on the last night anyway?

So how do you avoid that? How do you pay your account either daily or the next to the last night- and avoid going to GS on the last night when the lines are long... do you just not charge anything that last day to avoid that?
And if that is what you do- does it really save you "time" by going often to pay on the account throughout the cruise vs. how long it would take in line on the last night?

I'm all for saving time and not standing in long lines- but I just can't figure out how to avoid STILL having to be in that long line the last night. Any help here?

 

[WDWLVR]

We avoid the lines two ways. 1) we give our tips in cash and 2) we keep our charges on the credit card and pay it off as soon as it comes.

If you want to settle your account in cash I would say the best thing to do is settle it a couple of times during the day when you see they aren't busy and then either very late the last night or early the last morning.

I think what most people are talking about when they discuss avoiding the lines is getting their tip slips earlier than the last day. If you want to add the tip charges to your room you should know by the 3-4th day how you feel about those you are tipping and can ask for the tip slips then with your requested amount.

I always put the tips aside before we leave home (of a higher amount than recommended). That gives me a cushion of cash if we need it (and we can than charge the tips) but most often I just use the cash for tips. We also add phone cards to our tips.

Hope this helps.

 

[prymsu]

I usually go the first day or two when i see the line isn't long and go ahead and put cash down, and get my tip coupons so i can avoid the long lines on the last night. I also check what my cash balance early in the mornings if i need to go to guest services, and since i am an early riser i have been lucky to not encounter any long lines.

 

[stancan]

I have been on two 7 day cruises. Before you board the boat , the check in person takes your credit card info and gives you your " key to the world card". You put your expenses on the that card. At the end of cruise a " expense statement " is delivered to your room, if you agree with the statement: you do nothing and your credit card is charged automatically. I Have never lined up for anything on a Disney Cruise.

 

[MarkRG]

The line being avoided is for people who on the last day mostly are trying to get tip vouchers charged to their room for the servers. Also people looking to pay off their room charges with cash.

Personally, my experience is the last person has it best, put the room charges on the credit card and tip the servers cash.

 

[webray]

Us too, we tipped the servers all in cash and just let everything else fall to the credit card. They were not able to deliver printouts of our bill on our cruise..they said if there are any problems once you get back home..just call. They would fix everything.

 

[kcashner]

You could easily not have to go to guest services at all. If you put a credit card on your account when you check in, you will get a statement in your cabin on the last morning. If it is correct, you do nothing. If it is incorrect, you can either go to guest services and straighten it out on the ship or you can call them when you get home.

The reason people go to guest services is to charge their tips. If you tip in cash, you don't need to do this.

Another reason people go to guest services is to put Disney Dollars or their Disney credits from their Visa on their account. You can easily do this any day...the lines occur on day one and the last full day, so do it some other time.

Some people (especially kids) like to get a print out of their account every day. They make the choice to go to guest services and do this, but you certainly don't have to.

 

[mmouse37]

I pay off what I have charged so far about half way through a seven day cruise and then just let the charge card be billed for the remaninder. This way the total amount charged on the credit card is not such a shock to my hubby!!!! Plus, I like to earn air miles by putting it my charge card.

MJ

 

[disneyholic family]

we do what several of the other posters do:

everything goes on our credit card (we had less than $200 in shipboard charges)....we got the bill a month later from the credit card company....

we paid our tips in cash.....we put the money in the little envelopes provided (they were left in our room i think).....
when i gave each person their envelope, i mentioned to them that it was cash, just so that they would know that they should be more careful with it than they might be with the little receipts.....

oh....and we knew we were planning on tipping in cash, so we had enough with us to cover that...

 

[MrsPete]

I didn't go to guest services at all. I gave my credit card number at check-in, and everything we charged automatically went to the card. On the last day we received a bill under the door that gave the amount we'd charged. Since there was no problem with the bill, we were able to just leave the ship.

On the last evening our cabin steward left the tip envelopes on our bed. We preferred to tip with cash and to place the envelopes in the servers' hands personally, so -- again -- no need to visit guest services.

 

[lbgraves]

I managed to avoid the lines by taking care of our tip slips Thursday afternoon when we were at sea. There was no line at all.

 

[clh2]

We stopped by guest services every day, just to check on our balances. We made a point to walk through the lobby several times a day, and when there wasn't a line...then we would go and do our business there.

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

Okay, see everyone saying they paid daily or took care of either tips or charges earlier the last full day or the night before- THAT'S what I'm talking about... those people, do you not charge a dime on the last day? If you did, wouldn't that make you end up having to go back to GS that last night anyway?

Personally, my experience is the last person has it best, put the room charges on the credit card and tip the servers cash.

This sounds like the best way to go- EXCEPT THAT I really didn't want to carry a ton of cash with me on the trip.... tips alone would be around $700 or so ($500 or a little less is the recommended- I wanted to take extra for not only Palo but to give extra where earned)- add to that having cash for things at the ports of call (can't use credit cards there- can we?)- it's adding up to a lot of cash "on hand". And no, I don't think I will tip on the first day- I don't believe in tipping BEFORE the service is given... I don't tip waiters soon as I sit down before serving me at any restaurant. That would be too weird to me (not to mention lack of motivation possibly.. if they've already gotten the tip the first night or something like that).

I was planning on putting tips on the card and giving receipts- and had even heard others mentioning that they prefer this method so THEY aren't carrying cash around to possibly get lost? (meaning the wait staff ofcourse)

So let's see... I could pick some time when GS is not busy and put the tips on there earlier in the week- but then I'd be tipping before services were fully rendered (and I do want to give extra if someone(s) earn it!) and then let the rest just get charged. I'd like to have a print out though- I love Disney but I trust NO ONE to just go my merry way home and find out later what the charges were- especially because I'd be using a debit/credit card that comes out of my checking account!

So I guess carry lots of cash and just hope there isn't a long line the last night? I'm not really worried about a long line- won't kill me. I just didn't understand how others were avoiding the 'long lines on the last night" at GS by paying early... I kept thinking that must mean they don't charge ANYTHING that last day? LOL

 

[MrsPete]

BBB -- You're obsessing about non-issues here.

Don't worry about bringing the cash. You'll have a safe in your room.

Give a credit card number when you check in. Charge all you want on the last day -- it goes automatically to the credit card -- you authorized it when you checked in. NO NEED to go to guest services AT ALL (unless they make a mistake on your bill and charge you for something you didn't get).

On the last day of your cruise, someone will slip an itemized bill under your door around 6:00 AM. It'll list EVERYTHING you've charged over the week: excursions, drinks, mugs, hair braiding , etc. They will have already applied these things to your card. If you charge anything else (last minute pictures from Shutters or a Bloody Mary at breakfast, for example), they'll apply it to your card too.

The only people who need to go to guest services EVER are the ones who are paying their bills in cash.

 

[laurenk]

Going to Guest Services is NOT a bad thing. We really enjoyed some of the CM's there. We only saw big lines when it was dinner time. They are there 24/7.

Didn't I have to go there even when I charged my tips? I seem to remember them giving me a "ticket" with our servers names and amount tipped to put into the tip envelope. My memory is bad. That was only in October

 

[MarkRG]

I agree if you don't want to bring cash, yes, get the tip voucher earlier in the week.

One thing about getting it in advance of the last night, you will know LONG before the last night is your server/room steward team is exceptional or just average. Usually by the second night.

And, like others have said, if you put a credit card to cover all chages you have no need to visit guest services for that ever, you will recieve a copy of the charge bill on the last day, or later, if there's a problem.

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

Originally posted by MrsPete
BBB -- You're obsessing about non-issues here.

Pardon me, but who are you to decide what are non-issues or not? I don't think I'm "obsessing" about anything- but the issues I'm discussing and asking questions about ARE issues- not "non-issues".

Us too, we tipped the servers all in cash and just let everything else fall to the credit card. They were not able to deliver printouts of our bill on our cruise..they said if there are any problems once you get back home..just call. They would fix everything.

They stated there that they were not able to deliver printouts- and I state I don't like the idea of charging and never seeing the bill until I'm back home. I don't consider that a "non-issue".

Thanks for all the information though- I appreciate that... just don't appreciate the judgemental first sentence.

Thank you ALL for all the information on how to handle this- it's just difficult to know exactly what to expect when you get variations of what might/can happen... it sounds great to never have to deal with GS lines nor carry extra money with us- IF it is guaranteed that we'd have a bill to look over for accuracy before disembarking.

 

[Michelemouse]

GS lines are not bad, except as you get near the end of the cruise. I stopped by there several times during our trip and there was usually nobody in line in front of me...just the GS CMs waiting to help. I charged my tips on Thursday morning when there was no line and all was well.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

I put cash down on my account the first or second day (added to say: it was the cash leftover from our WDW portion of the trip -- it made it easier financially) . Then, at least two days before the end of the trip, I make a visit to GS later in the evening to settle the tips (will use cash tips next time). It is SO much better to take care of all of this when the lines aren't long -- and they DO get rediculously long!

 

[Nick@ VB+OKW]

Anyone know the hours of Guest Services?