PO tips increase

[towny44]

Just received my e-mails from my TA for my 2 Azura cruises, one in May the other in Sept 2018, they must be issuing these alphabetically, by ship, as my 2 Ventura cruises in between these dates are still to arrive.
Only a badly run organisation would decide not to issue these e-mails in chronological order.

Yes John any know at P&O will do that's two posts and two knocks. Not bad. You are not forced to book with them.

BTW I have not had any email at all so my tips must still be £5.50.

Still about half the price of Princess or the ever so special Celebrity.

Yes I am Dai, as you know that, like you, we do not fly and P&O are the only suitable cruise line sailing year round from the UK. Even in summer the US cruise lines concentrate their UK sailings on northern cruises to the Baltic, Fjords and British Isles, because they are catering for their American passengers, most of their interesting Med cruises sail out of Med ports.
Which is why we are stuck with P&O if we want to cruise, which we do, but that does not mean that we have to be satisfied with their inferior service, which is why I comment on it when I see it, and why I will continue to do so.

[daib GC]

Just received my e-mails from my TA for my 2 Azura cruises, one in May the other in Sept 2018, they must be issuing these alphabetically, by ship, as my 2 Ventura cruises in between these dates are still to arrive.
Only a badly run organisation would decide not to issue these e-mails in chronological order.

Yes John any know at P&O will do that's two posts and two knocks. Not bad. You are not forced to book with them.

BTW I have not had any email at all so my tips must still be £5.50.

Still about half the price of Princess or the ever so special Celebrity.

For a 14 night cruise Princess would come out at £321 and Celebrity £391. With the increase P&O will be £168.

[Happydays]

We have three cruises booked the first in June on Arcadia and have not had any emails about the increased tipping charge, like daib GC mine must still be £5.50. After all that's what I agreed to pay when I booked;)
It was the same time last year that they increased the tipping.

[Kenmo1]

After all that's what I agreed to pay when I booked;)

I think that statement is very fair - you booked the cruise knowing the tips were £5.50 pppd so perhaps it would be better if PO honoured that fact and only introduced the increase for new bookings made from 27/03/17.

Maureen.

[Stephen]

£336 for 4 is not at all excessive, sorry about that, but if it is then either don't take the kids on a cruise else take a holiday in a Welsh cottage like wot we did.

P&O staff will have to work hard for the mess all four of you make surely, so they therefore deserve the tip from the four of you regardless of the final total.

Out of interest Celebrity would charge up to three times that amount on their cruises.

Moby my old friend, that is the job they signed up for and what they are paid to do. If you don't like guns and bullets then don't join the army. And if prices increase to include tipping charges then that is still at my discretion whether I book or not. Cruising isn't the be all and end all of holidaying.

[qbman1]

Tips are always such an emotive issue and invariably the threads turn nasty. I think the topic should be added to politics and religion on the banned list !!

[towny44]

Just received my e-mails from my TA for my 2 Azura cruises, one in May the other in Sept 2018, they must be issuing these alphabetically, by ship, as my 2 Ventura cruises in between these dates are still to arrive.
Only a badly run organisation would decide not to issue these e-mails in chronological order.

Yes John any know at P&O will do that's two posts and two knocks. Not bad. You are not forced to book with them.

BTW I have not had any email at all so my tips must still be £5.50.

Still about half the price of Princess or the ever so special Celebrity.

For a 14 night cruise Princess would come out at £321 and Celebrity £391. With the increase P&O will be £168.

Dai, not certain what relevance that comment has to my post, I have not complained about the increase, nor the level of the gratuity. In fact I am surprised it is not more with Sterling's devaluation, since most of the staff will possibly be paid in dollars, or at least they will use dollars as a comparator against other cruise line pay.

[CaroleF]

How did I know when I saw the first post that this thread would develop in the way it has? Tipping will always be controversial, especially with British cruisers. Away from cruising the only people I tip are taxi drivers - not sure why. We have always tipped the suggested amount - in envelopes before auto tipping was introduced - and since then have just left the auto tips on. We have a long cruise booked for next year - 65 nights - and haven't worked out how much that will cost in tips. I expect we will just leave them on. However, if I were cruising with children I don't know what I'd do. I can understand that a family may well save up so they can afford to go on a cruise and then have to include the tipping amount too, and I can also understand that such a family may well feel that the extra tipping is a step too far for them. Should they then decide not to go? That seems very hard. I'm not sure what I'd do in such a position. It's too easy, and rather harsh I think, to say "Oh well if you can't afford the tips then don't go". Not an easy decision.

Carole

[Stephen]

Tips are always such an emotive issue and invariably the threads turn nasty. I think the topic should be added to politics and religion on the banned list !!

I agree.

[qbman1]

How did I know when I saw the first post that this thread would develop in the way it has? Tipping will always be controversial, especially with British cruisers. Away from cruising the only people I tip are taxi drivers - not sure why. We have always tipped the suggested amount - in envelopes before auto tipping was introduced - and since then have just left the auto tips on. We have a long cruise booked for next year - 65 nights - and haven't worked out how much that will cost in tips. I expect we will just leave them on. However, if I were cruising with children I don't know what I'd do. I can understand that a family may well save up so they can afford to go on a cruise and then have to include the tipping amount too, and I can also understand that such a family may well feel that the extra tipping is a step too far for them. Should they then decide not to go? That seems very hard. I'm not sure what I'd do in such a position. It's too easy, and rather harsh I think, to say "Oh well if you can't afford the tips then don't go". Not an easy decision.

Carole

Just to cheer you up, Carole, it's £780 for the two of you !!

[Mervyn and Trish]

Tips are always such an emotive issue and invariably the threads turn nasty. I think the topic should be added to politics and religion on the banned list !!

I agree.

Me too. I think that's a quorum.

[qbman1]

Who are you calling a quorum, Jimmy ?!

[Manoverboard]

Tips are always such an emotive issue and invariably the threads turn nasty. I think the topic should be added to politics and religion on the banned list !!

I agree.

It is certainly a subject where people can be offended or indeed ' elect to be offended '. If it were to get genuinely nasty then the Topic would of course be ' Locked '. At the end of the day we are all fully grown and should be able to take onboard ANY opinion about tipping, it's hardly life of death for goodness sake.

As for banning something that we don't like .... no chance as there would be nothing left to chat about.

[poole boy]

At the end of the day we are all fully grown and should be able to take onboard ANY opinion about tipping, it's hardly life of death for goodness sake.

I really agree with manoverboard on his comment above

[david63]

Part of the "assumed" argument for the increase is that there are more removing the auto tip and then not tipping at all or tipping at a lower rate - whether this is true or not I do not know and it is highly unlikely that P&O will confirm this one way or the other.

But what this does beg the question is whether the problem is across the fleet or on certain ships. For instance does Ventura and Britannia, who target the "new" younger market, perhaps have a bigger problem in this area than, say, the likes of Oriana and Arcadia where there is probably a greater number of "traditional" cruisers who are used to the concept of tipping.

And if that is the case then how are the tips evened out across the fleet?

Just a thought!

[qbman1]

Part of the "assumed" argument for the increase is that there are more removing the auto tip and then not tipping at all or tipping at a lower rate - whether this is true or not I do not know and it is highly unlikely that P&O will confirm this one way or the other.

Don't beat about the bush - you mean Stephen !!

I suspect it is highly likely that the total tips on, say, Ventura would scarcely buy a round at your local village disco !

[daib GC]

Part of the "assumed" argument for the increase is that there are more removing the auto tip and then not tipping at all or tipping at a lower rate - whether this is true or not I do not know and it is highly unlikely that P&O will confirm this one way or the other.

But what this does beg the question is whether the problem is across the fleet or on certain ships. For instance does Ventura and Britannia, who target the "new" younger market, perhaps have a bigger problem in this area than, say, the likes of Oriana and Arcadia where there is probably a greater number of "traditional" cruisers who are used to the concept of tipping.

And if that is the case then how are the tips evened out across the fleet?

Just a thought!

David this was a hot topic when I started to look at the internet when they used hand signals. I started in 2001 and people went missing on the last night to avoid handing over the envelope. As soon as I joined forums e.g. The old P&O one. It was a hot topic. There have always been people who would not pay. Is it worse now, I don't know I have seen the queues on all ships on the first day. Not so much on Aurora as it is some time since we sailed on her only once in the Auto tip era. I have seen them on Arcadia and Oceana.

[Stephen]

Part of the "assumed" argument for the increase is that there are more removing the auto tip and then not tipping at all or tipping at a lower rate - whether this is true or not I do not know and it is highly unlikely that P&O will confirm this one way or the other.

Don't beat about the bush - you mean Stephen !!

I suspect it is highly likely that the total tips on, say, Ventura would scarcely buy a round at your local village disco !

Yes yes, I'm the one. Hands up, guilty as charged. Shoot me know. At least I've got the balls to admit it.
The only person which gets a tip from me is the cabin steward, and only then if he or she does a good job.

[Mervyn and Trish]

I really think it's time for all cruise lines to increase wages and put it on the basic price. It's a disgrace that stewards are driven to practically begging passengers to mark them excellent in the feedback questionnaires so they get their share of the pot. That also makes a nonsense of the questionnaire. There are more modern ways of managing staff performance than bribery through tips and punishment by withholding them.

[Ray Scully]

I really think it's time for all cruise lines to increase wages and put it on the basic price. It's a disgrace that stewards are driven to practically begging passengers to mark them excellent in the feedback questionnaires so they get their share of the pot. That also makes a nonsense of the questionnaire. There are more modern ways of managing staff performance than bribery through tips and punishment by withholding them.

[Whynd1]

Quite agree with you Mervyn .


Lindsey

[kaymar]

Part of the "assumed" argument for the increase is that there are more removing the auto tip and then not tipping at all or tipping at a lower rate - whether this is true or not I do not know and it is highly unlikely that P&O will confirm this one way or the other.

"Daily Mail reading knuckle-draggers", is a description I seem to remember from somewhere

[Meg 50]

Still haven't had notification - have they got to O yet?

[towny44]

Part of the "assumed" argument for the increase is that there are more removing the auto tip and then not tipping at all or tipping at a lower rate - whether this is true or not I do not know and it is highly unlikely that P&O will confirm this one way or the other.

"Daily Mail reading knuckle-draggers", is a description I seem to remember from somewhere

Hey Kaymar, I'm a Daily Mail knuckle dragger, or at least a DM reader, and I don't remove the auto tips.
I think its more likely to be Guardian mincing left whingers who queue up at passenger services to delete the auto tip, then go missing for the last evening, despite telling everyone they do it because they like to tip in person.

[bassman67]

I've heard of people giving the cabin steward a fiver and think they've been really generous !

That must be me; I always do that on Day 1 when I ask for ice and lemon slices at 5.00pm. Of course, I still always autotip as well!