Questions Regarding Norwegian & Carnival's Tipping Policies

On Jan 28, 3:29*pm, Neal Eckhardt
wrote:
On Sun, 27 Jan 2008 16:45:35 -0800 (PST), number6
wrote:



On the Triumph - 2 years ago ... We got envelopes which had a card
inside indicating the tip was left on the account and we were free to
add more ...
On the Frredom they were added to the account but no envelopes ... So
they got extra in the final handshake ... That was European so I don't
know why else there was a difference between ships ..

You should have gotten one envelope for the Maitre'd.

and a couple of other management types too ... nothing added on the
bill for them though ... so they got only the cash that anyone may
have put in the envelope ...

On Carnival The moment you board the ship your tips are already posted
to your sail and sign account. You can have them removed but the
Pursers Desk will want an explanation as to why. I think too many
workers got stiffed in the past. What a shame. As hard as they all
work. I don't know if they will remove the tips for the reason of
tipping cash. Carnival no longer give the tip coupons to hand out on
the last night. Your tips just go right to the crew. They seem to like
the system better. I think because they don't get screwed over with
this new system.

Then again they don't have to "earn" their tips this way either. An
unfortunate side effect. Not sure what RCI's policy is but I will DEMAND no
tips be added to by shipboard account. I will tip according to the service
that is provided. Exactly what a "tip" is supposed to be.


"RICK DAVIS" wrote in message
...
On Carnival The moment you board the ship your tips are already posted
to your sail and sign account. You can have them removed but the
Pursers Desk will want an explanation as to why. I think too many
workers got stiffed in the past. What a shame. As hard as they all
work. I don't know if they will remove the tips for the reason of
tipping cash. Carnival no longer give the tip coupons to hand out on
the last night. Your tips just go right to the crew. They seem to like
the system better. I think because they don't get screwed over with
this new system.

"Tom K" wrote:


wrote in message
...
From what I've read you can't remove the automatic tips, or as NCL
calls it the "service charge" from your acount but Carnival's policy
is less clear. Due to this I'll no longer consider sailing with NCL.
Can a Carnival passenger insure up front that the tips are not added
to the account so they can tip in person? I did this on RCI several
years ago and prefer to tip based on service. If this is possible
what's the proper procedure?

Thanks in advance.

RCI has tip envelopes. We were told that we had to go to the purser's
desk to put the automatic tips ON and I did that. I also inquired as
to whether I could change the amounts and was told that I could not,
and that once I went for the tip envelopes, it didn't matter whether I
actually gave them out or not. The people would still get the tip.

It seems to be that it would be better to be honest about the whole
thing and just have an automatic tip and then you give extra to people
that give you extra service. We've often given an extra tip at the
end of a cruise to the cabin steward for instance.

On NCL (not NCL America), we ware told that we could remove the tips
from the account and then tip in person, but if we did, that all the
tips would have to be turned in to the tip pool. It was the same on
HAL. I can't speak to Carnival, as I have not sailed with them.

You can, of course, hand cash out to various people during the cruise,
and you can put an extra tip on the bar bill type items. Some people
do that in the expectation that they will get better subsequent
service. I don't know if works or not.

From the perceived tone in your message (though I could be completely
wrong)... the only reason that I can figure you want to remove the automatic
tips is because you intend to either reduce the tips or stiff them
completely.

Why do I say that?

Simple. The service you get will not be any different one way of the other.
Unless you tell them, the people will not know that you've removed their
tips. So they will give you service expecting that the tips will be paid.
Removing the tips will not get them to give you better service.

And if you choose to tell them, my guess is that they would expect you to
reduce their tips or stiff them completely. Why else would you do it????

Personally... if I were the waiter, and someone removed the auto tips or
told me they were going to do it... I'd assume they were going to stiff me
for service provided. At that point I'd pay less attention to them. I'd
take better care of others that I knew were going to take care of me.

And if you suddenly claim that you want to tip more if the service is great,
you can always add to the tip. So that scenario doesn't hold water... at
least not with me. Removing auto tops is only important if you want to
stiff the crew for their service.

If I'm the waiter... I'd rather you avoid the cruise line I work for...
because instead they'll fill your spot on the ship with someone who doesn't
intend to stiff me.

But if that wasn't your intent, and I'm totally off base... you might want
to at least consider what I've written, and simply to go along with the
program. And if the service is that outstanding, then add to it.

--Tom

"Just A Cruiser" wrote

Then again they don't have to "earn" their tips this way either. An
unfortunate side effect. Not sure what RCI's policy is but I will DEMAND
no tips be added to by shipboard account.

Never let lack of information prevent you from making DEMANDS that aren't
necessary.

FWIW, you can add tips to your onboard account on Royal Caribbean if you
wish... it is optional. Or, you can tip the usual people in cash.

Carnival adds tips to your onboard account, but you can easily have them
adjusted or removed. Princess does the same.

NCL tells you upfront they are going to charge you this "service fee" and it
is not removeable. If you don't like this policy, NCL is not the cruise
line for you.

14 years reading this group and I am still amazed by how people react to the
subject of tipping.


--
George Leppla http://www.CruiseMaster.com


May 12, 2008 - 5 nt New Orleans http://www.cruisemaster.com/fantasy.htm
October 26, 2008 Sleazy 5 http://www.cruisemaster.com/sleazy5.htm
Feb. 8, 2009 Solstice Valentine http://www.cruisemaster.com/solstice.htm

On Sun, 27 Jan 2008 23:59:51 GMT, Bill wrote:

Yes, I was going to say that they refused to remove them from my
bill on NCLA last summer. I had overtipped our excellent server
at the Mexican restaurant the first night on the expectation
that I could get the base tips removed from the bill and pay as
I went. Once I found out they would not, I stopped tipping at
the no-charge restaurants, since it was already included.

Bill

Hi Everyone,

Some folks seem unclear on what is and is not included in the service
charge. As a clarification, NCL does not consider the service charge
as a substitute for a gratuity. That being said, NCL does not give a
recommended suggested amount of gratuity. Here is the exact verbiage
from their web site:

What about tipping?

SERVICE CHARGE
A fixed service charge of $10 per person, per day will be added to
your onboard account. For children ages 3-12, a $5 per person per day
charge will be added to your onboard account; there is no charge for
children under the age of three. Our crew is encouraged to work
together as a service team and is compensated by a combination of
salary and incentive programs that the service charge supports. It is
our earnest wish that you enjoy your Freestyle Cruising experience and
that our entire crew in all areas of the ship will provide you with
the standard of service for which NCL is known. Therefore, if you have
any concerns about the service you receive during your cruise, please
bring them to the immediate attention of our reception desk staff on
board so that we can address any issues in a timely manner before the
cruise is over.

Both NCL and NCL America have a structured guest satisfaction program
on board designed to handle any concerns raised by our guests relating
to the service or on board product quickly and efficiently. In almost
all cases we are able to come up with a satisfactory solution to any
issues which are raised and make sure our guests can focus on enjoying
their cruise vacation. In the unlikely event we cannot satisfactorily
resolve the issue through our guest satisfaction program, guests will
be able to adjust the service charge according to the level of
inconvenience they feel they have experienced. Our clear priority is
to have the opportunity of resolving the issue, when it happens, to
everyone's complete satisfaction.

GRATUITIES
Unlike most other ships in the cruise industry, there is no required
or recommended tipping on NCL America or Norwegian Cruise Line ships.
Guests should not feel obliged to offer a gratuity for service that is
generally rendered to all guests.

However, all of our staff are encouraged to "go the extra mile", and
so they are permitted to accept cash gratuities entirely at the
discretion of our guests who wish to acknowledge particular staff
members for exceptional or outstanding service. In other words, there
is genuinely no need to tip but you should feel free to do so if you
have a desire to acknowledge particular individuals.

Also, certain staff positions provide service on an individual basis
to only some guests. We encourage those guests to acknowledge good
service from these staff members with appropriate gratuities. For
example, for guests purchasing bar drinks the recommended gratuity is
15 percent. For guests purchasing spa treatments the recommended
gratuity is 18 percent. Similarly, for guests using concierge and
butler services, we recommend they consider offering a gratuity
commensurate with services rendered.



Best regards,
Ray
LIGHTHOUSE TRAVEL
800-719-9917 or 805-566-3905
http://www.lighthousetravel.com
--

"George Leppla" wrote in message
...

"Just A Cruiser" wrote

Then again they don't have to "earn" their tips this way either. An
unfortunate side effect. Not sure what RCI's policy is but I will DEMAND
no tips be added to by shipboard account.

Never let lack of information prevent you from making DEMANDS that aren't
necessary.

FWIW, you can add tips to your onboard account on Royal Caribbean if you
wish... it is optional. Or, you can tip the usual people in cash.

Carnival adds tips to your onboard account, but you can easily have them
adjusted or removed. Princess does the same.

NCL tells you upfront they are going to charge you this "service fee" and
it is not removeable. If you don't like this policy, NCL is not the
cruise line for you.

14 years reading this group and I am still amazed by how people react to
the subject of tipping.


--
George Leppla http://www.CruiseMaster.com


May 12, 2008 - 5 nt New Orleans http://www.cruisemaster.com/fantasy.htm
October 26, 2008 Sleazy 5 http://www.cruisemaster.com/sleazy5.htm
Feb. 8, 2009 Solstice Valentine http://www.cruisemaster.com/solstice.htm

Also FWIW, I have NOT seen a decline of service with prepaid tips. All the
crew know that it doesn't take too many complaints before they find
themselves on their way home. That is plenty of incentive.

--
Greg

On Jan 29, 1:05*pm, "Gregory C. Read" wrote:


Also FWIW, I have NOT seen a decline of service with prepaid tips. *All the
crew know that it doesn't take too many complaints before they find
themselves on their way home. *That is plenty of incentive.


I'm with you here ... One's personal cabin attendant and wait staff
are as attentive and service oriented as ever ... but I've noticed
that others are more attentive than before ...
If I needed something for my room ... another steward would always be
more than glad to find our steward to get it ... now I find that they
are inclined to getting it for you themselves ... due to pooled
tips ??? who knows ... but is a change I've noticed ...

On Tue, 29 Jan 2008 11:07:05 -0600, George Leppla wrote:

14 years reading this group and I am still amazed by how people react to the
subject of tipping.

Start a topic on slavery, you'll prolly get equal interest.

Some of these poor slobs here are just not as sophisticated as you.
Here's a thought, don't open the message and you will not be amazed....
"

Never let lack of information prevent you from making DEMANDS that aren't
necessary.


14 years reading this group and I am still amazed by how people react to
the subject of tipping.


--
George Leppla