Tipping Poll

[KantLose]

Are you referring to John on the Wonder, A young Asian guy working the drink stations, who also would sing Eric Clapton?? We had him on the Wonder to HAwaii and he was a hit! I believe somebody reported he was promoted to MDR now.

Was on the Wonder a few weeks ago and the drink attendant was always singing - thinking it might be the same one. My daughter and I have been singing one of his songs ever since we left ”Do you want a coca-cola?” to the the tune of Do you want to build a snowman.
I really need to remember to take notes of crew member names on the next cruise so that I can include them all on the surveys.

 

[auntlynne]

Was on the Wonder a few weeks ago and the drink attendant was always singing - thinking it might be the same one. My daughter and I have been singing one of his songs ever since we left ”Do you want a coca-cola?” to the the tune of Do you want to build a snowman.
I really need to remember to take notes of crew member names on the next cruise so that I can include them all on the surveys.

The beauty of cameras in mobile phones; take a photo to include name badge.

 

[cmph]

Same as a couple others - "pay standard tips for some and increase for others" almost entirely due to the head waiter. Sounds like the poll needed that as an option - standard for head waiter, increase for everyone else! I am sure they must be doing something in the background that goes unseen, so I'd never reduce, but the range of interaction (across lines) in my experience has been so broad. I couldn't have picked ours out of a line-up a few years ago in Alaska (DCL), and we were a large extended family group celebrating multiple events, one person with dietary restrictions. We even joked about it at our last dinner - which one is ours?

 

[DCLCruiseFan09]

Chose standard for some and increase for others. We always increase for our room attendant, server, and assistant server. They work really hard and we think they deserve more. The wild card for us is the head server. We’ve been on a few cruises where he/she barely acknowledged us during the cruise, so we just left the standard tip on those.

This is exactly what we do too. Our last head server was the WORST. Instead of fixing food problems, he just punished the servers. Drove us insane. Would have docked him if I hadn't prepaid gratuities but the line at GS was longer than I cared to wait.

 

[lklgoodman]

We give an additional $100-$200 each to the cabin host and dinner servers. Head server gets additional $75-$100. This is for 7 nights, we would increase for longer cruises. We give it to them in cash on the last night.

 

[CarouselofColor]

We generally leave the standard tip- we generally only book cheaper last minute rates, and don't really do excursions or pay for a bunch of extras because that's what we can afford lol. So tipping on top of the standard isn't really in our budget, BUT if we have extra cash at the end of our upcoming cruise and anyone went super above and beyond, I def wouldn't be opposed to tipping extra. It's just not usually how our budget goes.

 

[meremac]

We almost always give extra (typically $20-$30 extra per night for servers and stateroom hosts, and $10-$20 per night for the head server), even if service is just ok. I know their jobs are not easy and they are often stretched very thin. I can only remember one time that we did not tip extra and that was because our stateroom host was undeniably and objectively subpar and had a terrible attitude.

 

[Justacruiser]

Since you started the poll what do you tip and why the interest in what others tip?

We never reduce the amount below the standard. We increase for those that deserve and utilize the survey form to also be specific why are recognizing them. Just saying “the were the best” is not quantifiable and coming from a managers perspective the specific details goes along way to assist ship leadership. Also, in the past we have noticed a few cruisers go the GS to reduce the tips for what we perceive is just to reduce the tip amount, we have also noticed when a few removed tips altogether, however it is unclear if they are tipping cash or they just aren’t tipping. Started a simulator thread years ago and wanted to see if the increase in cost to cruise or the economic instability could affect volunteer tipping.

 

[DCLMP]

We never reduce the amount below the standard. We increase for those that deserve and utilize the survey form to also be specific why are recognizing them. Just saying “the were the best” is not quantifiable and coming from a managers perspective the specific details goes along way to assist ship leadership. Also, in the past we have noticed a few cruisers go the GS to reduce the tips for what we perceive is just to reduce the tip amount, we have also noticed when a few removed tips altogether, however it is unclear if they are tipping cash or they just aren’t tipping. Started a simulator thread years ago and wanted to see if the increase in cost to cruise or the economic instability could affect volunteer tipping.

I would never reduce the standard even if I had bad service. The last few cruises I've just left the standard. I find the envelopes awkward. Disney is the only cruise that does this and it makes you feel obligated to leave extra. I thought with covid they would get rid of the paper tips like they did everything else paper.
I wish they would add something to the app where you could leave extra. I would leave extra every cruise if they did this. Sometimes I just don't have cash or don't want to stand in line at guest services. I also wish they would put the survey on the app. It's really easy to forget to drop that thing in the box when your rushing to the airport in the morning. I would say I'm 50/50 on remembering. We rarely go to the last breakfast and my mind is usually on flying home or the next leg of the vacation.

 

[DCLMP]

We generally leave the standard tip- we generally only book cheaper last minute rates, and don't really do excursions or pay for a bunch of extras because that's what we can afford lol. So tipping on top of the standard isn't really in our budget, BUT if we have extra cash at the end of our upcoming cruise and anyone went super above and beyond, I def wouldn't be opposed to tipping extra. It's just not usually how our budget goes.

Same here with the last minute rates and we cruise a lot. If I cruised once a year or every two years I'd probably be a big tipper. There seems to a lot of very generous people on this board, but this is a fan board. I wonder what the norm is and my guess is most people just leave what's automatically charged to their account. Interesting thread.

 

[EastYorkDisneyFan]

I've only cruised three times on my first one I tipped the minimum but it was only four days, I've often heard that people, will reduce the tip for the head server if they don't see them at every meal, but on this particular cruise he came over to us on the second last night and explained that he and the other head servers were helping out in the kitchen as they were trying out some new menus and we're having problems in it, so not seeing them may not mean that they aren't doing their job they may be doing it just not the way it's always done.

My second cruise was a long one so I tipped everyone more.

On my third one I had some issues with tablemates

I was in a group of people I know from another message board. Some things worked out well others not so well. There were some problems with the arrangement of the tables the first night because of some problems with shore side, apparently, the shore side dining manager quit after another group got too demanding or something like that. The serving team had some problems the first night, but then when don't they on the first night? Some of the people at the table I was at got annoying with special requests they were making things like Cheese from Palo every night at the start of dinner and with desert, crème rules every night for two people, chicken wings that they used to have on the parrot cay menu every night, banana bread every night. The head server one night had to go all the way across the ship one night to get some chicken wings from the sports bar. After all this, you would expect these people to be grateful, well one night the head server came over to find out how things were going and they just about dragged her and the serving team over the coals, I wanted to crawl under the table after that and hide. The next night since there was an extra seat at one of our other tables because someone was having some family issues, I joined them, for the rest of the cruise. Also, two of the people reduced the tip they had prepaid by half, so when the rest of us found out about that we all over-tipped by a lot to make up for them.

The last couple of nights were fine as some of the real problems at that table had Palo reservations the last two nights.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

From what I read, the automatic gratuities being added to people's onboard account was due to a season of the Magic in Europe where tipping culture overall is far, far less than typical Americans tipping. I do recall our guide in Paris laughing at me for wanting to leave paper Euros at an outdoor cafe table. He laughed and grabbed the small coins and threw them down and said THAT'S how we tip in Paris. I felt bad to leave such a skimpy tip.

Anyway, after several months of CMs on DCL getting barely any tips, they started putting it on automatically. For me it's more convenient because then we don't have to go to GS unless we want to increase it. I've also been told that you don't have to actually deal with the little strips of paper and envelopes at all. If you paid the tips through your onboard account, the CM will get it regardless of whether you hand them the envelope or not. They continue to use the envelope system because many passengers still prefer to tip in cash.

 

[DCLMP]

From what I read, the automatic gratuities being added to people's onboard account was due to a season of the Magic in Europe where tipping culture overall is far, far less than typical Americans tipping. I do recall our guide in Paris laughing at me for wanting to leave paper Euros at an outdoor cafe table. He laughed and grabbed the small coins and threw them down and said THAT'S how we tip in Paris. I felt bad to leave such a skimpy tip.

Anyway, after several months of CMs on DCL getting barely any tips, they started putting it on automatically. For me it's more convenient because then we don't have to go to GS unless we want to increase it. I've also been told that you don't have to actually deal with the little strips of paper and envelopes at all. If you paid the tips through your onboard account, the CM will get it regardless of whether you hand them the envelope or not. They continue to use the envelope system because many passengers still prefer to tip in cash.

I just spent three weeks in Europe and I never tipped once. The service was meh to awful everywhere we ate, and they never gave me the option to tip paying with a card. Some cultures consider a tip an insult so I go along with whatever the norm is. It's unfortunate that people come to our country and can't follow the same norms. The service on our DCL cruise portion of the trip was outstanding. I'll admit I liked saving the money dining in Europe, but I missed the great service you get in this country.

As far as your idea that DCL uses the envelopes because people prefer cash....hmm. I'm not buying that Disney cruise line is a tiny blip in the cruise industry and other cruise lines don't do that. Plz don't tell me it's because Disney cruisers like to tip in cash. Cash is rarely used anywhere anymore. The whole envelope thing is awkward.

 

[Lilsia]

From what I read, the automatic gratuities being added to people's onboard account was due to a season of the Magic in Europe where tipping culture overall is far, far less than typical Americans tipping. I do recall our guide in Paris laughing at me for wanting to leave paper Euros at an outdoor cafe table. He laughed and grabbed the small coins and threw them down and said THAT'S how we tip in Paris. I felt bad to leave such a skimpy tip.

Anyway, after several months of CMs on DCL getting barely any tips, they started putting it on automatically. For me it's more convenient because then we don't have to go to GS unless we want to increase it. I've also been told that you don't have to actually deal with the little strips of paper and envelopes at all. If you paid the tips through your onboard account, the CM will get it regardless of whether you hand them the envelope or not. They continue to use the envelope system because many passengers still prefer to tip in cash.

I don't do anything with the paper slips. As you said, they already get the tips and I would not want to deal with all of those envelopes if I was a server. I just hand them extra cash.

 

[auntlynne]

I just spent three weeks in Europe and I never tipped once. The service was meh to awful everywhere we ate, and they never gave me the option to tip paying with a card. Some cultures consider a tip an insult so I go along with whatever the norm is. It's unfortunate that people come to our country and can't follow the same norms. The service on our DCL cruise portion of the trip was outstanding. I'll admit I liked saving the money dining in Europe, but I missed the great service you get in this country.

As far as your idea that DCL uses the envelopes because people prefer cash....hmm. I'm not buying that Disney cruise line is a tiny blip in the cruise industry and other cruise lines don't do that. Plz don't tell me it's because Disney cruisers like to tip in cash. Cash is rarely used anywhere anymore. The whole envelope thing is awkward.

Saving money dining in Europe? Don’t they charge a service fee at restaurants - and it is printed on the ticket? Substantial enough to actually pay the workers? I thought that was the big difference between US and Europe - and we are the suckers for having to decide how much guilt we feel compel to compensate for.

As for Europeans not tipping in the US - it goes both ways. We take our rituals with us when visiting and think tipping is normal. They don’t tip at home and do the same on vacation. I am sure some won’t tip for the principal, too.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

As far as your idea that DCL uses the envelopes because people prefer cash....hmm. I'm not buying that Disney cruise line is a tiny blip in the cruise industry and other cruise lines don't do that. Plz don't tell me it's because Disney cruisers like to tip in cash. Cash is rarely used anywhere anymore. The whole envelope thing is awkward.

I posted what I was told. I don't recall where I've heard it from.
Honestly, I don't care how others tip and if DCL is going to waste a ton of paper on me, I'd prefer to get it in the form of a daily Navigator delivered to our room and cancel the stupid envelopes. I never, ever use cash in normal life at home. I haven't even carried "just in case" cash in my wallet for years. I no longer carry my ATM card in my wallet. I do however, bring cash for tips for vacation. I tip the shuttle driver who takes us to the terminal from the off-site parking lot. They usually assist with bringing luggage onto the shuttle and storing them securely.
I also, more in the past than lately, would tip a few dollars to the curbside baggage check. For a cruise, I'd tip again when our bags are taken as we go check in for the cruise. Every time we order room service, we tip again. So yes, cash is used to tip for a cruise vacation but that doesn't mean others must do what we do. I do what seems right to me. You do you.

 

[tidefan]

This is not like tipping at a restaurant; it’s not done at each time of service when dining.

The auto-gratuities can be paid when you pay for your cruise or done through your onboard account. Toward the end of the cruise, you will get a printout (with tear-off slips) that shows the names of your dining room team (server, assistant server, dining room manager) and room steward and the recommended tip. You can let those amounts be processed or you can modify them with guest services.

As stated, you can use little envelopes provided to give these workers cash, the slips provided or a combination of the two. Or you can just let them receive the money with no face-to-face exchange (my personality’s preference).

All drinks that have a fee will have an auto-gratuity of 18% on the bill. And a line to add additional tip.

Many cruise lines (especially those frequented by Americans) use gratuities as a substantial portion of pay for their workers (not officers). Operating under the flag and laws of other countries, they are not subject to US Labor laws. Disney ships are flagged under the Bahamas. I believe tipping is treated differently for guests from the UK and Europe, based on comments read on forums. They also have different passenger rights.

The daily rate of $14.50 to cover the 4 positions was a $1 increase effective in July 2022.

On some cruise lines, tips are pooled and divided among workers to include behind-the-scenes employees.

You will see your dining room servers working on Castaway Cay, too. Not just at dinner at night. Probably Cabanas buffet for breakfast and lunch.

Well, on the Wish, we bought one of the Cooler bags at the station on deck. The guy literally just handed us the bag. No alcohol in it. And we had to pay a 18% tip for that. I think that was a bit much... Not as bad for the $900 tip you have to pay if you buy the Hyperspace Lounge $5,000 drink... (we didn't)

But to your point. We always tip standard, then add some $$ to crew that we think do an exceptional job.

That said, having been on a couple Virgin cruises now, I really, really like their system of all "tipping" being included in the fare. You buy a drink, there is no "tip line" at the bottom of the slip. It's already factored into the price of the drink. We talked with the crew a bit (they are allowed to eat in the "Galley", which is kind of their buffet-type area, though it's more a food court), and a number of them had come from DCL. Also a lot from Princess, Celebrity and Royal. They all wanted to talk about how much better they liked working at VV. First, they are paid quite a bit more (they didn't say how much) on their base rate, so essentially, your "tipping" is included in the cruise fare and you don't have to worry about it. Another thing they said, and I didn't really think about this, is that they get free WiFi. I didn't realize they had to pay for Wifi on other lines, but the people we would talk to would say how much they enjoyed being able to FaceTime/Skype their families everyday and how much better they felt being able to do that. They also appreciated that VV lets them interact with guests to a much greater degree than other lines (like being able to eat and sit with guests in the Galley).

 

[auntlynne]

Well, on the Wish, we bought one of the Cooler bags at the station on deck. The guy literally just handed us the bag. No alcohol in it. And we had to pay a 18% tip for that. I think that was a bit much... Not as bad for the $900 tip you have to pay if you buy the Hyperspace Lounge $5,000 drink... (we didn't)

But to your point. We always tip standard, then add some $$ to crew that we think do an exceptional job.

That said, having been on a couple Virgin cruises now, I really, really like their system of all "tipping" being included in the fare. You buy a drink, there is no "tip line" at the bottom of the slip. It's already factored into the price of the drink. We talked with the crew a bit (they are allowed to eat in the "Galley", which is kind of their buffet-type area, though it's more a food court), and a number of them had come from DCL. Also a lot from Princess, Celebrity and Royal. They all wanted to talk about how much better they liked working at VV. First, they are paid quite a bit more (they didn't say how much) on their base rate, so essentially, your "tipping" is included in the cruise fare and you don't have to worry about it. Another thing they said, and I didn't really think about this, is that they get free WiFi. I didn't realize they had to pay for Wifi on other lines, but the people we would talk to would say how much they enjoyed being able to FaceTime/Skype their families everyday and how much better they felt being able to do that. They also appreciated that VV lets them interact with guests to a much greater degree than other lines (like being able to eat and sit with guests in the Galley).

Tip on a bag is ridiculous. It’s just goods - not a drink. I am preaching to the choir here.

I would love us to move toward a non-tip economy. But it’s pretty well ingrained in our business model. Look at the flak every time a livable wage is mentioned.

WiFi for foreign workers far from home is such a humane move; kudos to Branson and company. Dining with guests? What a fun way to increase international understanding.

They just market Virgin as a little wilder than I am prepared to experience. Even a Carnival cruise out of Mobile was pushing my comfort zone. In the end, it would have been fine if the casino smoke had not pervaded large areas of the ship. It felt like a cross between a tail-gate party and a bunch of family reunions. It was SuperBowl weekend, so that might be exactly what was happening.

 

[tidefan]

Tip on a bag is ridiculous. It’s just goods - not a drink. I am preaching to the choir here.

I would love us to move toward a non-tip economy. But it’s pretty well ingrained in our business model. Look at the flak every time a livable wage is mentioned.

WiFi for foreign workers far from home is such a humane move; kudos to Branson and company. Dining with guests? What a fun way to increase international understanding.

They just market Virgin as a little wilder than I am prepared to experience. Even a Carnival cruise out of Mobile was pushing my comfort zone. In the end, it would have been fine if the casino smoke had not pervaded large areas of the ship. It felt like a cross between a tail-gate party and a bunch of family reunions. It was SuperBowl weekend, so that might be exactly what was happening.

Well, the Carnival cruise out of Mobile "should" get better with finally getting a ship that isn't a Fantasy-class ship next year. We actually may go on it. It would be nice, because it's only a 3 1/2 hour drive for us...

But I digress. Not cruise ship related, but... Funny thing about the "livable wage" comment is that every time one of these Minimum Wage debates comes up, it predominately involves the food service industry. I was a waiter on and off for 10 years or so before and during college (yeah, I paid my way through college, funny though, huh) and learned just how the system works. Yes, we made technically $2.36/hr + tips. However, tips were always pretty good and in those days, 15% was the norm. The even better thing, and this is why if you ask people that are waiting tables today (especially at places like WDW where they make a good bit) is that you only had to claim like $7 in tips (or whatever was on your credit card receipts as those can be tracked). Waiters LOVE cash tips. Most of the time, that never gets reported and it is tax-free income. As a server, you can get A LOT tax-free income via cash tips. Most servers do not want that to end. If you take the tipping away and pay a "living wage" per hour, most servers will actually make less as a) they don't get the sometimes really good tips (especially around Christmastime!) and b) you have to pay A LOT more taxes.

 

[happycamper47]

Waiters LOVE cash tips. Most of the time, that never gets reported and it is tax-free income. As a server, you can get A LOT tax-free income via cash tips. Most servers do not want that to end. If you take the tipping away and pay a "living wage" per hour, most servers will actually make less as a) they don't get the sometimes really good tips (especially around Christmastime!) and b) you have to pay A LOT more taxes.

My SIL tends bar part time and most nights he makes close to $100 in tips and most is cash.