tips for palo and the concierge?

[dursin]

OK let’s say I did that then my spouse gets up and walks out due to the embarrassment what do you suggest I do next?

find a new spouse.

Seriously, nobody should be embarrassed because they stand up to a pushy server. If the server was insinuating that I was cheap or unrefined because I didn't want to buy an overpriced bottle of wine, I would think my spouse would be more upset if I caved into the pressure and bought something we didn't really want to buy.

 

[Presentation]

find a new spouse.

Seriously, nobody should be embarrassed because they stand up to a pushy server. If the server was insinuating that I was cheap or unrefined because I didn't want to buy an overpriced bottle of wine, I would think my spouse would be more upset if I caved into the pressure and bought something we didn't really want to buy.

In concept I agree with you.

Honestly, in the past, on the few times when I did speak up due to a issue my spouse would not continue with dinner and I’m not about to get a divorce over this.

The server was very smooth at it and I was caught unprepared and off guard.

This is why I will do the flanking maneuver as described above; it eliminates the possibility of a reoccurrence.

 

[dursin]

In concept I agree with you.

Honestly, in the past, on the few times when I did speak up due to a issue my spouse would not continue with dinner and I’m not about to get a divorce over this.

The server was very smooth at it and I was caught unprepared and off guard.

This is why I will do the flanking maneuver as described above; it eliminates the possibility of a reoccurrence.

Now that you know that they play those games...at least some of them, you could just be very firm and say something "Thank you for the suggestion, but we've made our selection. We would like the <whatever affordable wine you choose>". Of course if there is nothing of interest on the menu, then bringing your own bottle is probably best. I wonder what would happen if you had ordered one of the wine packages at dinner on the first night. Will they bring those to Palo and serve them to you? That could be another solution without having to carry your own bottles on board.

Anyway...let us know how that works out...I would not at all be surprised to see the server try to talk you into saving your bottle for a regular dinner and buying an expensive one from him.

 

[Presentation]

Now that you know that they play those games...at least some of them, you could just be very firm and say something "Thank you for the suggestion, but we've made our selection. We would like the <whatever affordable wine you choose>". Of course if there is nothing of interest on the menu, then bringing your own bottle is probably best. I wonder what would happen if you had ordered one of the wine packages at dinner on the first night. Will they bring those to Palo and serve them to you? That could be another solution without having to carry your own bottles on board.

Anyway...let us know how that works out...I would not at all be surprised to see the server try to talk you into saving your bottle for a regular dinner and buying an expensive one from him.

Again, I agree with you and your suggestion is spot on.

I was put in a bad situation by the server. I was boxed into a corner and chose to not ruin the dinner, which ended up causing a situation that went on far longer than the dinner itself.

I was caught off guard and handled it wrong. I was not thinking I needed to be in the mode of being put into bad situations. My guard was down and I got sucker punched.

Still, I should not have been put in this situation in the first place. I feel I was set up.

I now have plan. If it does not work I will create a big scene and walk out.

 

[Silverfox97]

Hey everyone,

Here's a thought - if you do indeed drink wine, bring in your own glass with your own wine in it. We do this. That way, they say, "Oh, I see you have brought your own wine." That way, we don't have to buy theirs, and, we aren't charged a corking fee.

Of note, on our last cruise, we did add on $5 extra tip per person.

 

[jenvin]

Again, I agree with you and your suggestion is spot on.

I was put in a bad situation by the server. I was boxed into a corner and chose to not ruin the dinner, which ended up causing a situation that went on far longer than the dinner itself.

I was caught off guard and handled it wrong. I was not thinking I needed to be in then mode of being put into bad situations. My guard was down and I got sucker punched.

Still, I should not have been put in this situation in the first place. I feel I was set up.

I now have plan. If it does not work I will create a big scene and walk out.

Gee, sorry you had to go through that - thanks for sharing your experience, we have Palo dinner reservations on our cruise and I'll know what to expect now. I'm usually the one to say yes or no to things, so I'll have no problem with that I'm assuming the corking fee is the same in Palo as in the other dining rooms? We don't drink much during dinner so I am planning for us to each bring in a nice big glass of wine, trying to avoid both the wine recommendation/pushing and the corking fee

 

[mytripsandraces]

How does everyone handle tipping the concierge?

 

[Gigi22]

Presentation--I am a DCL cruiser, and I am taking a Sommelier certificate in my retirement.

Of course, the pushy server was entirely out of line in trying to upsell you an expensive bottle of wine. May I suggest that, faced with similar circumstances, you say that you have been advised that the only right wine is the one you like? That is what the instructors in several of my classes have told all we future sommeliers. So true!

I'm so sorry this person adversely affected your dining experience in Palo.

 

[Gigi22]

Mytripandraces--DH and I tipped the concierge for our 7 day trip $75. She was good, but we didn't have any outstanding requests that needed an extra high tip.

IMHO DCL has yet to work out a satisfactory way for concierge passengers to tip the concierge, as we were given the tips form with the instructions to hand it to the concierge who would pass it to Guest Services. So the concierge would read the amount of their own tip, along with all the others. How awkward is that? I took our tips form down to Guest Services myself, which may have unnerved our concierge, but I felt it maintained confidentiality--and the concierge's dignity.

 

[gomagic]

IMHO DCL has yet to work out a satisfactory way for concierge passengers to tip the concierge, as we were given the tips form with the instructions to hand it to the concierge who would pass it to Guest Services. So the concierge would read the amount of their own tip, along with all the others. How awkward is that? I took our tips form down to Guest Services myself, which may have unnerved our concierge, but I felt it maintained confidentiality--and the concierge's dignity.

I agree completely as I also found the whole idea of having the concierge taking care of the tips for us to be awkward too. We also took care of them ourselves.

 

[MomsOf2boys]

Presentation I am sorry you had to go through that and I can really appreciate that you didn't embarass your spouse with any confrontation. My spouse is also very sensitive and would have rather just ordered the pushed wine instead as well. I had read a similar situation prior to our first Palo visit so I had time to plan and prepare my spouse with that. (We didn't however realize how pushy the spa would be and were not prepared there!)

We ordered the wine package on our first night and our regular servers made sure our bottle was sent to Palo for our visit as we told them we would not be dining with them.

 

[musicgirl]

Possible upcoming change on the charge to $20.

If you go to the DCL site and specifically choose the Dream ship, then go to Palo and scroll down you will see that both brunch and dinner are $20. I wonder if this is only on the new ship or will it change for all.

 

[mytripsandraces]

Mytripandraces--DH and I tipped the concierge for our 7 day trip $75. She was good, but we didn't have any outstanding requests that needed an extra high tip.

IMHO DCL has yet to work out a satisfactory way for concierge passengers to tip the concierge, as we were given the tips form with the instructions to hand it to the concierge who would pass it to Guest Services. So the concierge would read the amount of their own tip, along with all the others. How awkward is that? I took our tips form down to Guest Services myself, which may have unnerved our concierge, but I felt it maintained confidentiality--and the concierge's dignity.

That's in line with what we tipped. Our concierge had a tough job, because we had a terrible sewage stench in our suites (2 side-by-side) that had apparently been there for the past few cruises. The engineers kept saying they couldn't smell anything, but our concierge could. We didn't take it out on him, but are less than satisfied with how DCL handled it. I had to go to Guest Services to ask for the concierge tip envelope and then couldn't find him to give him the tip and had to leave it with Guest Services anyway. I felt bad that I didn't get a last chance to thank our concierge for the efforts he made on our behalf.

 

[kcashner]

Palo tip--it has been consistently reported for years that the server gets a portion of the $15 charge; whether you work it out to 44 cents for each guest who dines in Palo or $4 for each guest they are assigned, it works out the same. They also get a portion of the automatic gratuity charged on any bar items you may choose to order. That said, we have always left an additional tip; not because we have to, but because they are worth it.

We have 2 "friends" who work in Palo. I asked one what they could tell me what they consider a good tip (without violating any rules). I was told that they consider anything $5 or over (in addition to the $15 charge) to be good. Since I've typically left $10 per person, I was in the right ball park......

Now, one thing I have never been able to get an answer to. As a platinum cruiser, I get the Palo fee comped. Does my server lose a portion of what he/she would have received as a result of that?

Concierge--early on this was not considered a tipped position, it has evolved into a "your discretion" as so many guests asked about tipping. I would base this on the service received. If all they did was host you at the reception(s) and make sure that you had all the reservations you wanted then they have done their job and no more. If they've met special requests or addressed any special needs, tip accordingly.

Another point in suites--the suggested tip for the stateroom host in a suite is the same as in a standard cabin. However, in a suite the host is cleaning more bathrooms, more space, dining area, ...in short, doing a lot more work. I would hope that most guests in suites would take that into consideration when tipping this person.

 

[mrsnesbit]

We are wine drinkers and know most of the prices of the wine on the list so we can figure the mark up as well. I hate paying a huge markup so I tend to chose a wine I like with the least markup.

I hate when servers, who are serving you, try to make you feel inferior. We never found this to be the case in Palo, thankfully. I would love to know the name of your server so I'm sure never to get them.

We were just onboard for the Christmas cruise and I ordered an inexpensive bottle of Proseco and loved it. Our server was very gracious.

Also, we found it interesting that the price of a bottle of sparking wine we drank in the regular dining room was $4 more per bottle in Palo. I wonder if that is the case with other wines on the list?

We have brought our own bottle to the regular dining room sometimes and sometimes we order off the list. Our server this past cruise didn't even charge us the corkage fee. Love that!