Tipping

[DreaminDisney]

Hi CACruiser!

I just wanted to say we just got back from our very first Disney Cruise. I want to comment that while you're cruising, you're going to see how hard everyone is working and how super nice they are to you and your family (and everyone) and how hard they WANT to make this a memorable cruise for you, In the end, I bet you're going to WANT to tip above the recommended tip amount.
Have a great cruise! -Debbie

 

[jrydberg]

I cannot buy into the "they work so hard and are paid so little" theory.

Completely agree. Frankly, that's Disney's business, not mine. As far as tips go, I don't care what someone else recommends. I'll tip what I feel is appropriate for the level of service I received. I have no problem tipping absolutely nothing if the service was non-existent. If the service is excellent, the staff will be rewarded for that. If it is not, they won't.

That said, my experience with the staff on DCL has been fantastic. I tipped them significantly more than the recommended amount because they all went out of their way to make the cruise more enjoyable for me and my daughter.

Bottom line, tip what you feel is appropriate for the service you received. I would only use the "recommended" tip level as a rough guide.

 

[Greysword]

CACruiser, thank you for bringing up the topic! This question has been stewing around, under the surface, for some time, and I am sure you asked what many wanted to know

I have some suggestions. Money is important, since our survival in America depends on it. If you can get close to the recommended, then that should be ok. I wanted to add you can try alternate methods to make up for the tip:

Maybe your kids can make a hand-written Thank You card for your servers and stewards. They may enjoy the sentiment more than the little bit of money difference.

You can bring something from home that is unique for your part of the country, anticipating it as being a portion of their tip. It doesn't have to be expensive, either. This means you put more thought into them, too.

In minimizing Christmas costs, I have gone to getting my friends and family magazine subscriptions. They are fairly inexpensive, and provide a years worth of entertainment. If you call DCL within the month, perhaps they can tell you who your room steward is and servers/head server. If you know where they are from, a newspaper or magazine from their home country may be an option. Also if you have their names, post them on here and maybe some DISers can help you with hobbies they may have. of course, ordering publications online would be just as appropriate once you get to know them.

For the head server and room steward, maybe you can get a plaque made from your family in recognition of outstanding service. Bring them with you and present them at the end of the cruise with whatever tip you can give. If you know what DISers are on the cruise with you, maybe you can present it with their tip envelopes, so it looks like a lot (especially if you are seated with other DISers, ask on your meet board if you can join them).


Bottomline, there are alternatives that you can do instead, and any monetary deficiencies will probably be made up by other cruisers.

Good luck!!

 

[Donnainnj]

Just a few comments/questions,
I think I remember reading here something about $50 for the pay they get from Disney, can't remember, this may be per week, but somehow per month might be what I read. I also remember reading that 70 hours is the normal work week.
The questions I have are on the Head Server, first does anyone know if he is paid more then the other's as a base pay? The second question is how many people are handled by one Head Server? Just wondering.
Donna

 

[NejTheLion]

I think I remember them saying on the galley tour that there were 25 serving teams (pairs) in one dining room at a time. And maybe 3-4 head servers?

 

[goingbacksoon]

Originally posted by Donnainnj
I think I remember reading here something about $50 for the pay they get from Disney, can't remember, this may be per week, but somehow per month might be what I read. I also remember reading that 70 hours is the normal work week.
Donna

I certainly hope they aren't paid $50 a week as base. That would border on indentured servitude. $50 per day would be my hope. I certainly believe the 70 hours a week, that sounds right. Basically, they work most of their waking hours. I think they do do well though, adding $50 x 7 to the weekly average tips of of $515, the gross is about $865, probably take home of low to mid $700s. $2800 monthly isn't exactly roughing it, but not rich either. After all, they wouldn't choose to work a job away from their families if it didn't prove to be financially suitable.

I'm not sure I buy into the "tip for what you don't see" theory. It starts a sort of slippery slope. If I tipped for everything I didn't see, well then, I'd be tipping the chef, dishwasher, maintanence person, engineer, etc. And then I'd be a poor mouse! The head server assemedly is due less of a tip because he has less interaction with customers than the server, and also probably because he has a higher base salary.

There are other ways to work it. We ate at Palo one night, tipped the server there, but gave slightly less to our serving team for that night we missed. Not horribly less, but a lower amount. It's all preference, and CAcruiser is due her preference.

goingbacksoon

 

[dharma517]

Oh Boy, my favorite!!! Let's continue to one-up each other.....I tip double the rec. tips, give them 1000 min phone cards EACH, and offer to clean there staterooms!!! YAY me!

To the OP: Enjoy your trip!

Jenn

 

[jrabbit]

First the acronym for TIPS:
To Insure Prompt Service - or – Tourist Input Prevents Starvation

I truly believe that the wait staff makes $50/month from Disney plus room and board (when they can fit it in to their 16+ hour days)

Here is the break down for each dinning room
Dinner Seatings: 2
Seats 475 guests
20 Serving Stations with a Server and Assistant server
2 Head servers per dinning room (there MAY be 4 – in the past on the ship I’ve heard 2, on these board have heard that there are 4)

For a 7 night cruise the suggested tips are:
Server: 25.25
Assistant Server: 18.75
Head Server: 6.50

The following is NOT justification for “shorting” the wait staff on their tips, it’s just the way the math works out.

OK from here on the numbers get “scary” and the numbers are “tax free” and based on the recommended tip.

Lets assume there are 400 guests per dinning room that tip (1-the room won’t be filled to capacity and 2-not everyone tips unfortunately and 3-that’s 2,400 that do tip-which may be a little high)
Each Server and Assistant Server wait on approximately 400 people / 20 stations = 20 people per seating or 40 people for both seatings.
Server: 25.25 * 40 = $1,010 per week (4,040/month or $52,520/year – NO time off)
Assistant Server: 18.75 * 40 = $750 per week (3,000/month or 39,000/year – NO time off)

Now hold on to your hats…
Head Server – if there are only 2 per dinning room they have on average
400 people / 2 = 200 people, but with 2 seating they have 400 people tipping them so
Head Server: 6.50 * 400 = $2,600 per week ($10,400/month or drum roll please…$135,200 /year – NO time off)
If there are 4 Head Servers per room then each would receive $1,300/week, $5,200/month or $67,600/year.

Just for arguments sake, lets say that DCL attracts more guests that don’t tip. Only 2,000 people per cruise tip that’s 333 people per dinning rotation (6 of them). Then the weekly tips are: $840/Server, $624/Asst. Server and $2,165/Head Server(2) or $1,081 if there are 4 of them.

 

[jrabbit]

I certainly hope they aren't paid $50 a week as base. That would border on indentured servitude. $50 per day would be my hope

Trust me, they are NOT paid $50/day by DCL. Like my prior post I believe it is $50/month. Basically they work for tips because the $50 isn't going to get them much!!

 

[Amberle3]

Cruise lines are notorious for paying their crew (as opposed to officer) extremely low wages. One of the reasons is because historically the crew come from poorer countries where what we would consider to be paltry would be considered a lot of money. Aside from that, the tips make up a substantial portion of their income.

I managed to find an article from 1999 here - http://www.labournet.net/docks2/9912/cruise1.htm

To offset the poor wages it's often pointed out that crew receive "free" lodging and food. Of course a typical workday goes from 4am-10pm, depending on the position.

 

[ivanova]

Because all their room & board is included it could be $50/month ... or $50/week ... that's why the tips are so important to them and they bend over backwards to earn every dime they are tipped.

I don't fault the OP for tipping less if her budget doesn't allow for more (after cutting back on excursions & everything else, there isn't much else she can do -- and she does deserve a vacation she's been working for for 3 years). When she originally posted I wasn't clear that this was a budgeting issue.

What irks me are the cheapskates that don't tip AT ALL, and it's not an issue of they can't afford it, it's plain & simple that they're cheap. That isn't the OP's situation.

We all actually do PLAN in advance what we think we'll be tipping .. it's called responsible budgeting .. I go by the suggested amounts multiplied by the number of people in our stateroom and then "pad" it a bit (assuming we'll tip more for excellent service) .. then if service sucks we tip less and stay within budget, if service was excellent then we tip more than suggested but still meet what we had budgeted. I'm assuming the suggested amounts for the 14 day repo cruises will come to $152.50 per person .. $457.50 for my family of three .. so I'll probably BUDGET for $600 .. I might ACTUALLY tip the whole $600 or it might be closer to $457.50 .. or it might be less .. depending on the quality of service.

I don't think the suggested amounts are out of line when compared to if you were staying at WDW for 7 nights, and planned on eating out 21 meals during your stay .. how much would you have spent for meals for a family of four and how much would you have tipped at those meals? You budget for meal & tip expenses at WDW, so why not budget for the same on DCL? I know at WDW the three of us spend anywhere from $100 to $200 a day on meals (depending on where we eat & how much it costs) so tips run $20 to $40 a day (figuring 20%). So that's $140 to $280 for the week just for the serving staff .. that doesn't include what you'd tip housekeeping (or the stateroom host/hostess on DCL which end up doing more than a resort housekeeping staff member). So for the three of us paing $230 (or more) in tips for a 7 night cruise wouldn't be out of line. The catch is that at WDW we can reduce our meal (and tip) expenses by eating some meals in our room (grocery shopping ahead of time). On the cruise even if you never eat in a dining room, you're still being served at the buffet, at sit down breakfasts and lunches, and on Castaway Cay.

 

[goingbacksoon]

Forgot they have two rotations. Hmm, they are doing better than I thought originally.

Anyone know what tax rate they incur as foreign employees?

goingbacksoon

 

[jrabbit]

Anyone know what tax rate they incur as foreign employees?

No US taxes. The ships are not US registered. the 12-20 US citizens pay US taxes on their wages. Who knows what the rest pay (if any) to their governments! My guess is that most of the money earned is tax free.

 

[trishy]

CACruiser - don't be dissuaded by the ignorants who believe in the "love it or leave it" motto - they are to be ignored. It's rudeness disguised as helpful advice.

As far as the tips go - other cruise lines are right on par with what DCL charges. Princess, for example, automatically adds on a $10 per day, per person charge to the account. At the end of the cruise, a passenger may make modifications as they see fit.

I always like to take into consideration another point that gets missed a lot around the cruise board when it comes to tipping. That is that these employees work around the clock. When you're in topsiders for breakfast or lunch, those dining servers are working on you; when you have lunch in Lumiere's, those dining servers are working on you. They are working even when you're not eating. They are constantly preparing, cleaning, and working to make your dining experience better. The same for your stateroom host - they are watching for when you leave so they can make up your room at the most convenient time for you; they become aware of your preferences so they can make your cruise that much better. Ice in your cooler daily, a fresh pitcher of water, extra shampoos or kleenex, etc. They really go the distance. They are cleaning and preparing that stateroom twice a day - can't get that in a hotel. When I injured my knee on my last cruise and had to keep my knee elevated, that guy was the sweetest! He brought me extra pillows, offered to arrange for food from the dining room so I wouldn't have to "crutch" around, anyway, the list goes on, he was very helpful - he definitely earned a much higher tip because he offered his help without being asked at all. The sweetest guy.

I think once you experience the service, you'll definitely understand the high rate of the tips on cruise lines. To me what's the worst thing about DCL is their disgusting price of cruising. Now that's out of line with other cruise lines and an entirely different topic for flaming.

 

[puffkin]

I think the OP has some valid points to make. Going on any vacation takes a lot of budgeting for some people and I can see where she was coming from. I believe that a lot of people on these boards have plenty of money so $300 of tips is nothing to them, but to a lot of people, it is a lot of money and needs to be budgeted for.

Honestly, I was kind of glad that Disney included the recommended tips in with the cruise documents. I generally tip 20% (15% for sub par performance) and 25% for excellent service. But, since you aren't paying for each meal, it might slip some peoples minds to tip the right amount. I do feel that Disney should do a better job of letting people know up front though that gratuities are not included in the fare because some cruise lines do include it. Some people need to know up front what ALL the costs are so that they can make the appropriate decision if they can afford to cruise or not and budget appropriately.

Finally, I tip for service, not because I feel sorry for the wait staff. It is their choice to have this job, nobody is forcing them to! I wish I would get tipped at my job because people feel sorry for me . The numbers that a previous poster calculated seem about right for me, so even with only tipping the minimum, they make a pretty decent wage!

Just my 2 cents, but I say tip for service and tip what you can afford,and have a great time

 

[DrCavin]

We just returned from the 5/15 Eastern cruise and was pretty disgusted with what we saw. Before we went to our last dinner on Friday, I told my wife to look at how empty the dinning room will be.

After about 30 minutes at dinner, she said "How did you know it was going to be empty?" I said because tonight you are supposed to give your servers tips. I bet most, (NOT ALL I know some people do roomservice, Palo, etc), of the people who were not there probably did not give any tips to the wait-staff. I saw tables that had 12 people at them the night before completly empty!! I would guess that 25% of the room was empty. Sure was a lot quiter than any other night we had dinner, but made me feel really bad for the wait-staff.

These people bust there *SS all week!!!! We ran into our head-server many mornings working in Topsiders at breakfast. Even when in port they are working, doing safety training, etc. We noticed many nights both servers sweating from all the physical work they have to do. They certainly earn any money the get & probably deserve more!

 

[CACruiser]

Hi all, just checking in to see how hot it is in here.

Commenting on this posts:
I think the OP has some valid points to make. Going on any vacation takes a lot of budgeting for some people and I can see where she was coming from. I believe that a lot of people on these boards have plenty of money so $300 of tips is nothing to them, but to a lot of people, it is a lot of money and needs to be budgeted for.>>>>

And....

<<<<I don't fault the OP for tipping less if her budget doesn't allow for more (after cutting back on excursions & everything else, there isn't much else she can do -- and she does deserve a vacation she's been working for for 3 years). When she originally posted I wasn't clear that this was a budgeting issue.>>>>


Thank you both for seeing where I was coming from. I admit, it was 20-20 hindsight on my part this late in the game of planning the trip. I am not a new cruiser and this is not my first DCL trip. I went on a 3 day years ago and I put out of mind what I need to be prepared for! Like I mentioned before, some unexpected costs came up recently and I thought I had better reconsider some plans. So far, I planned on cutting out some extras for me, not my kids. I had also saved the money for a special treat for my husband and I, the REAS package. I had been seriously thinking of giving that up, but I saved a LONG time to have that special time with my husband. I am not giving that up, since I planned something really grand for us since Christmas!

Last night I sat down and figured out I can give a respectable tip without feeling cheap. It is more that I previously posted. I have also planned on using any "leftover" from another category to add to our tips as I see fit.

<<<What irks me are the cheapskates that don't tip AT ALL, and it's not an issue of they can't afford it, it's plain & simple that they're cheap. That isn't the OP's situation.>>

I have seen people on the last night of the cruise not show up at all! I think that IS creepy! We have always given our proper tips. I remember my first cruise when our servers told us many people just avoid them and go to the last buffet for dinner instead of being faced with their servers.

This is the first time I can remember being faced with a much tighter budget and I am planning out everything ahead so I am not caught totally empty handed on the last night.

<<We all actually do PLAN in advance what we think we'll be tipping .. it's called responsible budgeting >>

Thank you. I mentioned to another kind Diser, privately, that one of the things I am most proud of in my life....I am debt free. I grew up in a home with a mountain of debt and swore when I got married that nothing would go on my CC that I could not pay for THAT month. SO, knowing that I need to keep my budget in check, I was writing down EVERYTHING on my passporter planner and consulting my husband. We have lived in a military world for so long, I guess we forgot the sticker shock of the "real" world.
We both agree we need to be fair and tactful about what we do for our tips. We believe how we treat all the staff speaks better that the tip envelope!

<<<I don't think the suggested amounts are out of line when compared to if you were staying at WDW for 7 nights, and planned on eating out 21 meals during your stay .. how much would you have spent for meals for a family of four and how much would you have tipped at those meals? >>

I will admit that even then we are sheltered from some of the real cost of things. Since we qualify for the military resort, Shades of Green, we tend to eat mainly in their facilities and save one or two special meals at the parks.

As for the suggested tips, they are slightly higher than most cruiseship guidelines. Anyway, I have re-thought my plans and I think I can be safe around other folks who might prefer I wear a scarlet "C" for Cheapskate.

Again, for those who corrected me tactfully, I thank you very much.
LisaCA/CA Cruiser

 

[kcatoir]

Well said CACruiser..........my heart goes out to you after the many flames you recieved.
I understand your planning....we too have no cc debt and would never consider using it for a vacation. We are saving for 2 1/2 years to take a 7day Western in Sept 05 and I was taken aback regarding to amount for tipping (we have only been on a 3 day),
but added that into our budget.
I know the feeling of unexpected stuff that comes up when you are trying to save.....

Take Heart, and have a great trip
A well earned trip is much more rewarding,
KC

 

[CAMICKEY]

Just wanted to point out that not all of those people who do not show up at the last night are non-tippers. On our first cruise we did not show up to the last meal but our servers were still tipped. On out last cruise we showed up at our last dinner and gave the staff their envelopes. Our server, Alex, had extra in his. - Mike

 

[DreaminDisney]

Well said Lisa! I'm on the same page as you

Have a awesome, great, everything you dreamed of vacation!

-Debbie