Tips on Carnival Cruises?

[emma'smom]

Had dinner with some friends who just came back from a Carnival Cruise. They told us that they didn't have to tip anything extra for their servers/stateroom attendant-- that it was all included in the price of their fare.

She did say the received envelopes at the end in case they wanted to give anything extra, but that it came with a note saying how much each employee already received from their fare.

I thought this was an interesting way to handle tips that seemed a lot more convenient than the way DCL has us tip so much at the end instead of building the tips into the original cruise cost. It assures that the employees get a reasonable tip from everyone.

Unless....of course...she misunderstood....

 

[msmayor]

Carnival does NOT build gratuities into their fares...they allow pre-payment of gratuities before you embark, however, and that may be what your friends did.

Many cruise lines now offer you the opportunity to either pay ahead of time for the gratuities or charge them fully to your on-board account (providing slips for you to give to your servers/attendants).

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We haven't sailed on Carnival since 2/06 (and never will again but that's another story...) At that time, they automatically added the standard tip amount for each person in your stateroom. You are completely free to increase or decrease that amount as you desire but you need to go to guest services to do this.

Did your friends read the bill slipped under their door the last morning? That's where the tip amounts would be detailed.

We've never pre paid tips on any cruise line so I can't comment there.

 

[clten]

I think your friend misunderstood. As others have said, Carnival doesn't build tips into their cruisefare. Like most of the mass market cruiselines (NCL, RCCL, Princess), they automatically add the base tips (most are at $10 per person per day) to your onboard account. They say that you may adjust them if you want. But we did have occasion that we wanted to remove them from our shipboard account and handle them individually (as we did have some problems with some servers) and it turned into a real hassle to get them to do that. So for me, I prefer the Disney way.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I think your friend misunderstood. As others have said, Carnival doesn't build tips into their cruisefare. Like most of the mass market cruiselines (NCL, RCCL, Princess), they automatically add the base tips (most are at $10 per person per day) to your onboard account. They say that you may adjust them if you want. But we did have occasion that we wanted to remove them from our shipboard account and handle them individually (as we did have some problems with some servers) and it turned into a real hassle to get them to do that. So for me, I prefer the Disney way.

Sorry to nitpick.... I can't say for NCL or Princess but RC definitely doesn't add tips on automatically. They work like DCL that you can if you want to but must go to guest services to do so.

We did lower the amount on our 1st cruise on Carnival cruise and weren't given a hard time. Maybe your crew member was having a bad day?

 

[dylan'smom]

Yep, have to agree! You are offered an option to preypay tips but otherwise they are added each day to accounts. But remember, you can opt to prepay DCL's too! :]

 

[dylan'smom]

Sorry to nitpick.... I can't say for NCL or Princess but RC definitely doesn't add tips on automatically. They work like DCL that you can if you want to but must go to guest services to do so.

Yep, yep...RCCL is till "voluntary" tipping. The company that owns Carnival, Princess, etc. does the auto tipping. I think it is also reflected in the service in that there is less of it IMHO.

bev

 

[stlkeeler]

I just got off the ship last Sat in Barcelona. I prepaid my tips before I left home. When I received my coupons, the paper that they were stapled to said something like, "Your tips have been included in your package." I have never had that happen before. When I received my docs, on one page it did say that I had prepaid my tips. So, DCL knew I prepaid yet said they were "included."