Tip question

[dprincessmom]

The examples in this thread are why I believe that the cruise industry needs to move away from tips and call it a "service fee" or just add that to the cost of the trip and increase the employee's pay. To me, I just consider it a cost of the cruise and prepay it. If we have exceptional service or ok service over a major holiday, I will add cash with the slip because the folks do work hard.

 

[All about me]

The examples in this thread are why I believe that the cruise industry needs to move away from tips and call it a "service fee" or just add that to the cost of the trip and increase the employee's pay.

I so support the bolded for two reasons:

I feel things like resort fees, service fees, ect are just bait and switches. I want to know the cost of something upfront so I can make an informed decision on it. This would provide that.
Applicants will know upfront exactly what they will be earning so they can make an informed decision on pursuing/accepted a job offer.

 

[jrabbit]

I have mixed emotions re:

The examples in this thread are why I believe that the cruise industry needs to move away from tips and call it a "service fee" or just add that to the cost of the trip and increase the employee's pay.

was on an NCL cruise and the auto gratuity was almost impossible to get removed. And the "service" showed - by it NOT being there! Part of why DCL employees are usually as motivated as they are is because of the gratuities.

 

[clten]

Like jrabbit, I prefer the tip method to the service charge method. People are people and some will work hard no matter what. But some people if they know they are going to make $X whether they work hard or just go through the motions, are going to choose to just go through the motions. I've sailed with cruiselines using the service charge method and that's part of why my cruiseline of choice is DCL.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I don't see the auto charge as a convenience. It's there to help prevent the crew from getting stiffed. Someone dedicated could still go to guest services and have the auto charge removed, but others won't bother because they don't want to go stand in line.

You can make adjustments, but you have to go to the guest services desk to do it. Some cruise lines do the same but they will not allow the auto grat to be adjusted or removed (which DCL does allow).

There was a Facebook page that posted a photograph of a list it had been given by a cruise ship crew member of guests who had removed their automatic gratuities. Wasn't DCL. I remember because from the passengers on the page (as opposed to the crew members) there was a huge outcry to take it down and black out the guests' names (which hadn't been done before posting).

anyway, tipping on cruises is not the same as tipping on land. It's often assumed that it is.

 

[Van Houten]

While crew members getting stiffed is definitely a factor, I agree with earlier posters that an opportunity for better earnings and motivation definitely go together, and it shows when it comes to DCL.
We've had an amazing waitstaff in MDRs, and not just our rotation team. On our last cruise we headed to MDR for lunch on the boarding day, and the waiter who served us memorized our names, greeted us at breakfast and lunch in Cabanas, and offered to bring anything to our table from the buffet. Our rotation team was there throughout the day as well - at 6:30am breakfast in Cabanas, at lunch time, and at our second seating dinner - working hard, but always with a smile, and always taking great care of us. Needless to say, they got some extras in their envelopes.

 

[dprincessmom]

To be clear, my post to move tips to service fee is to help cover the employees so that they aren't penalized when someone doesn't understand the process or doesn't realize that the $4 per guest per day covers not only dinner but breakfast and lunch service also.

 

[clten]

To be clear, my post to move tips to service fee is to help cover the employees so that they aren't penalized when someone doesn't understand the process or doesn't realize that the $4 per guest per day covers not only dinner but breakfast and lunch service also.

Regardless of the reason for changing tips to a service fee, once it's a service fee, then it has to be divided up like a service fee -- meaning all the crew will be earning a fixed dollar regardless of the service they provide. And having seen how this affects crew on other lines, it is more likely going to benefit the "just do enough to get by crew members" than it is the crew that are currently working hard but missing out on some tips because their guests don't understand the process.

 

[kiford]

The auto-tips are applied daily.

But not charged daily. They are charged at (near) the end of the cruise or at least that's been our experience. But the staff receiving the tip don't get it until the end of the cruise regardless of when they are charged to your onboard account. That's the reason that they can be taken off your account; it's not like you'd be trying to retract it from them or you're stuck with the amount because they've already got it in hand. They won't even know what they are getting as some people take it off and give cash instead of the ticket (which is essentially just an acknowledgement of what goes into the servers account).

 

[PrincessTrisha]

I think $2 for 3 people for buffet service is pretty low. Regardless of the cost of a meal (or table service/buffet) I think the minimum tip per person should be $1.

 

[carolina_yankee]

Out of curiosity I decided to put this to the test and, unless things have changed dramatically, this would not be true for us.

Four dollars for the server, $3 for the assistant server and one $1 for the head server per day adds up to $8. Times three people that is $24 a day.

On our last Disney cruise we did the buffet for breakfast and lunch. The only service I remember being provided was table bussing. No table service as it was a buffet and no drink service because there were drink stations. This would only warrant a $2 tip (which is about 7.5% on a $27 bill, not that we calculate it that way) in total at each meal. So $4 there. (I am ignoring the one day we did a sit down lunch as well as the one day we did counter pizza because they would balance out.)

Dinners at a table service restaurant for the three of us before adult beverages and taxes typically costs between $25 and $35. Because Disney has more upscale selections, I will go with $50. Fifteen per cent of this is $7.50. (I am ignoring the dinner we did at Cabanas and the night we did room service.)

$24 - ($6+$7.50) = $12.50

So this would cost me $12.50 a day in tips on other trips, which is just over half what Disney recommends.

I would now like to see how Disney calculates their recommended amount.

A prix fix meal at Be Our Guest is $55 per adult for 3 courses. That's $165 for 3 adults. Disney assumes an 18% gratuity. That's $30 - just for dinner.

I would consider the MDR options to be on par with BOG, maybe a little better. It would seem to me that I'm tipping less for a meal in the MDR than I would a comparable meal at BoG. And the service will be better.

Plus, the server is taking care of my other meals, whether at breakfast (MDR or Buffet) or Quick Service. They rotate through all of those positions during the day. I even saw our outstanding Palo waiter with 10 years experience in Palo on the various ships bussing tables in Cabanas the next morning.

It's just the way a DCL cruise works. If you want to have more control over the gratuity, there is nothing wrong with having it removed and tipping yourself. Tipping at the level of a Denny's or Chili's, however, is way below par for the quality of meal and quality fo service.

Dirk