Tip question

[smd8z]

Sorry, first time cruiser question. Are tips auto added to your bill at the end of the cruise? I've read conflicting info about tips being added to your account vs tip envelopes in the room. So, how are we supposed to tip? Are we forced to auto tip on our end of cruise bill? If so, then we just leave the envelopes in the room?

 

[Dug720]

The auto-tips are applied daily.

On the next to last night, you'll get a print out of your stateroom host and servers - and there will be a tear-off tab for each. You can put that in the envelope - and include extra cash if you would like - and give that to them. Or you don't have to give them the slip - they will still receive the tips.

 

[apathetic]

The tips are automatically added to your room or you can prepay before you get on the cruise. Around the last day of the cruise, they leave the tip cards and envelopes in your room. You generally hand them to the server, assistant server, head server and stateroom host/hostess. I don't think you have to, the money is given to them whether you give them the cards or not.

Other areas, like the bar, spa, etc they charge the tip automatically, usually 15%. No card, no envelopes, just a receipt to sign.

 

[All about me]

How do I stop that from happening? I don't want anything auto billed. Certainly not tips which will be according to service.

 

[lilsonicfan]

How do I stop that from happening? I don't want anything auto billed. Certainly not tips which will be according to service.

I think this is very typical for most cruise lines these days, an auto-gratuity (some lines even refer to it as a daily service charge). You will have to go to guest services to ask them to remove this charge. I'm sure they will ask why etc.

 

[Dug720]

I think this is very typical for most cruise lines these days, an auto-gratuity (some lines even refer to it as a daily service charge). You will have to go to guest services to ask them to remove this charge. I'm sure they will ask why etc.

And expect to be approached by your stateroom host and dining room team to be asked what they can do to improve their service and make you happy. Because they do get a list of people who have removed the gratuities and the assumption is that something is wrong.

Just as a note - the MDR servers also work the buffet on board and on Castaway and the daytime MDR meals...so even if your particular ones are not helping you, they ARE helping others and you are being helped by other people's servers.

 

[All about me]

I think this is very typical for most cruise lines these days, an auto-gratuity (some lines even refer to it as a daily service charge). You will have to go to guest services to ask them to remove this charge. I'm sure they will ask why etc.

Thank you for your reply.

 

[apathetic]

How do I stop that from happening? I don't want anything auto billed. Certainly not tips which will be according to service.

If you want to stop the auto gratuities for the server, assistant server, head server and stateroom host (housekeeper) you have to go to guest services to have them removed. You don't assign a tip per meal, it is an auto amount based on days of cruise. I think currently it is $12 per day per person in your party. That amount is divided up to those 4 job positions.

Before you do that, please understand the system. This is how they get paid. They will ask you about 500 times how they can do better. So, tell them. Because if you remove the tips, they don't get paid. They work 3 meals a day, everyday. You may only see them at dinner, but they are also working somewhere on the other meals. They are busting it and I've never seen a team do anything but try to be perfect (12 cruises). On top of not getting paid, taking the tips will reflect negatively on them and risks them not being rehired after their contract. All of that is unnecessary because they are professionals and will do anything you ask them to do.

I say this because people see the tips and then remove them. They give no thought to the service they receive. The service is always great and infinitely better than you get outside of a cruise. As for the other tips (bar, spa, etc) I don't think you can remove them. I've never heard of anyone doing that. I guess if you have a bad experience, you can talk to a manager and they will take care of you.

 

[All about me]

If you want to stop the auto gratuities for the server, assistant server, head server and stateroom host (housekeeper) you have to go to guest services to have them removed.

Thank you for all the information.

The last cruise was on did the auto gratuity thing also but it was not done daily, it was done at the end of the cruise so adjustments could be made. And I did make adjustments as my cabin steward was the worse so I want that option.

If anyone does ask, which I will consider gauche, I will simply be honest and say I tip according to service not a schedule. After all, a tip is a gratuity not a substidy.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I think this is very typical for most cruise lines these days, an auto-gratuity (some lines even refer to it as a daily service charge). You will have to go to guest services to ask them to remove this charge. I'm sure they will ask why etc.

Unlike other cruise lines, DCL does not question why you remove the auto-gratuities.

Other cruise lines, it's typically called a "service charge" and is automatically charged to your onboard account. Removing the service charge can be questioned on other lines (some lines don't allow removal of them). And, if you tip the room host/dining room servers directly, they must turn in those tips to be pooled in the service charge pool.

On DCL they are still a gratuity. The auto-charge is just a courtesy to make it easier for people. The auto-gratuity goes directly (and only) to those specified - your room host; your dining room serving team. Removing the auto gratuity isn't, necessarily, a bad thing on DCL.

 

[lilsonicfan]

Unlike other cruise lines, DCL does not question why you remove the auto-gratuities.

Other cruise lines, it's typically called a "service charge" and is automatically charged to your onboard account. Removing the service charge can be questioned on other lines (some lines don't allow removal of them). And, if you tip the room host/dining room servers directly, they must turn in those tips to be pooled in the service charge pool.

This part really shocks me. Is this true if you tip the server directly with an additional tip? Frankly that would just be horrifying to me, we tipped our server an extra $50 or so because she was so fantastic but the extra tip for our assistant server was much less - the tip envelope even says "please accept ... in recognition of the service you provided"...

 

[PrincessShmoo]

This part really shocks me. Is this true if you tip the server directly with an additional tip? Frankly that would just be horrifying to me, we tipped our server an extra $50 or so because she was so fantastic but the extra tip for our assistant server was much less - the tip envelope even says "please accept ... in recognition of the service you provided"...

Not on DCL. On other lines where the service charge is mandatory. The service charge is pooled to be shared by more than just those crew members you deal directly with (room host/dining team), like the laundry & kitchen staff.

Yes, if you tip directly to, say, your dining room server, that tip must be handed in. Once the determination has been made that you have not removed the service charge, they additional tip will be returned to the person who you gave it to. If you've removed the daily service charge, the "additional" tip you gave will be put in the pool to be shared. Meaning that the person who you've given the extra to is actually getting less.

On Princess, the daily service charge is pooled across the fleet to be shared.

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

And expect to be approached by your stateroom host and dining room team to be asked what they can do to improve their service and make you happy. Because they do get a list of people who have removed the gratuities and the assumption is that something is wrong.

We've removed the automatic gratuity on every cruise since it became a thing and have never been questioned by the staff. I see no reason for the cruise line to tell anyone you've removed the automatic gratuity as it is none of their business. If you can provide evidence of these lists, I'd like to hear it because I will make sure to make a stink at Guest Services about it.

 

[DynamicDisneyDuo]

Yes, if you tip directly to, say, your dining room server, that tip must be handed in. Once the determination has been made that you have not removed the service charge, they additional tip will be returned to the person who you gave it to. If you've removed the daily service charge, the "additional" tip you gave will be put in the pool to be shared. Meaning that the person who you've given the extra to is actually getting less.

That is just plain silly. The staff should not be penalized because someone chooses to tip in cash versus putting it on their room account.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

That is just plain silly. The staff should not be penalized because someone chooses to tip in cash versus putting it on their room account.

Ah, but it's not a "tip". It's a "daily service charge". This happens in hotels on land, also. It covers those people you won't have contact with in addition to the ones you actually have face to face encounters with.

Not defending the process, just explaining it.

Personally, I hate that Princess pools the tips to be shared across the fleet. Not just on the ship I've cruised on.

 

[lilsonicfan]

Not on DCL. On other lines where the service charge is mandatory. The service charge is pooled to be shared by more than just those crew members you deal directly with (room host/dining team), like the laundry & kitchen staff.

Yes, if you tip directly to, say, your dining room server, that tip must be handed in. Once the determination has been made that you have not removed the service charge, they additional tip will be returned to the person who you gave it to. If you've removed the daily service charge, the "additional" tip you gave will be put in the pool to be shared. Meaning that the person who you've given the extra to is actually getting less.

On Princess, the daily service charge is pooled across the fleet to be shared.

Sorry PS, I misread your post!

 

[starvenger]

Unlike other cruise lines, DCL does not question why you remove the auto-gratuities.

Other cruise lines, it's typically called a "service charge" and is automatically charged to your onboard account. Removing the service charge can be questioned on other lines (some lines don't allow removal of them). And, if you tip the room host/dining room servers directly, they must turn in those tips to be pooled in the service charge pool.

On DCL they are still a gratuity. The auto-charge is just a courtesy to make it easier for people. The auto-gratuity goes directly (and only) to those specified - your room host; your dining room serving team. Removing the auto gratuity isn't, necessarily, a bad thing on DCL.

And it isn’t in general. But some cruise lines will look at this as “something is wrong with our service” and investigate.

Personally I’ve found the auto tip/gratuity/service/whatever rate to be fair. But at the end of the day you should do what you’re comfortable with and tip accordingly.

 

[southerngirl528]

Personally I’ve found the auto tip/gratuity/service/whatever rate to be fair.

 

[dvcdisney]

Thank you for all the information.

The last cruise was on did the auto gratuity thing also but it was not done daily, it was done at the end of the cruise so adjustments could be made. And I did make adjustments as my cabin steward was the worse so I want that option.

If anyone does ask, which I will consider gauche, I will simply be honest and say I tip according to service not a schedule. After all, a tip is a gratuity not a substidy.

I understand about tipping based on service, but I believe DCL is doing the auto gratuity for convenience. I remember when we had to fill out the form, near the end of the cruise, and submit it so they can process what we wanted to tip. Now, if you're fine with the standard tip, you don't have to do anything. I do think that it's convenient. Sometimes I just add cash to the envelope with the tip slip. Sometimes I go to GS and ask them to increase the tip and they just charge my card on file and print a new set of slips. If you want to do this, I suggest you don't wait until the evening before...it gets busy.

But if you feel you want to decrease it (or even increase it) you can go to GS to get this done. You still have full control of how much to tip.

But as others have said, you can let them know that you'd like to tip in cash instead. I heard many people at GS request that and not once have I heard any issues.

You can even pay cash and have them print out the tip slips so that you don't have to worry about putting cash in the the envelopes. They're pretty flexible that way. You don't need to worry about it.

 

[Geomom]

Thank you for all the information.

The last cruise was on did the auto gratuity thing also but it was not done daily, it was done at the end of the cruise so adjustments could be made. And I did make adjustments as my cabin steward was the worse so I want that option.

If anyone does ask, which I will consider gauche, I will simply be honest and say I tip according to service not a schedule. After all, a tip is a gratuity not a substidy.

I thought it was done at the end of the cruise, but based on a 'suggested' daily amount. The slips you're given towards the end of the cruise list the total amount/position for the whole cruise; and the total you're paying in gratuities. The 'suggested' amounts that are automatically added are $12/guest/day. That $12 breaks down to $4 server, $3 assistant server, $1 head server, $4 stateroom host.