Tips

[cruise kitten]

Back with another first timer silly question.

Reading P&O's brochure, I noticed that they say that a set amount will be added to your account each night to cover your tips.
Now my question is, how much is added each night and does this include all the staff or are there people you are expected to tip separately?

I would hate to think that I should have tipped our cabin steward, but because the brochure implies that this is covered, we didn't.

I know tipping can be an emotive subject, but we are in the camp that we like to do the norm unless we have received bad service.

Thanks.

[david63]

I think that the tips are currently £5 per person per day and that covers your cabin steward & assitant, butler(if you have a suite) and all the restaurant staff.

Bar stewards and wine waiters get a % of the bill.

If you feel that someone has "gone the extra mile" then by all means you can give them an "extra" tip.

I should add that you can have the automatic tips removed by going to reception and then you are free to tip as you wish.

[barney]

Forgive her, she knows not what she's done

[Meg 50]

Forgive her, she knows not what she's done

[Onelife]

Hello kitten....its not a silly question at all in fact it's one of my favourite topics so thank you for posting. To put it in a nutshell tipping is only emotive if you disagree with the way cruise lines exploit their staff and expose passengers to a double whmmy guilt trip. What is a double Whammy guilt trip you may ask.....well it works like this.....you pay your automatic gratuities then if you are as kind hearted as my wife you pay your tip at the end of the cruise...The 'tip' is what you pay your cabin steward whereas the gratuities are what are distributed to whom the cruise line sees fit, with cabin stewards proportion being dependent on passenger satisfaction ratings. I have long argued that gratuities should be included in the overall price of the cruise....This seems to be a much fairer way of ensuring staff get a consistent wage and would allow passengers to tip as they please. I've heard all the reasons why cruise lines don't want to do this but none of them will be in the interest of their passengers or their staff... trust me!

Let the battle begin.....l'm out of here.....squeak! squeak!

P.s welcome to the forum.

Regards

OL

[Happydays]

Forgive her, she knows not what she's done

I think I'll keep out of this one, let the fun begin

[cruise kitten]

I think I do know what I have done but in my defence I write on a couple of other forums about holidays that I know a fair bit about and I know that tipping is always a good way to start a heated debate, but I just couldn't find anything about how P&O worked the add on daily amount or what it is.
So in for a penny, in for a pound, I asked, as I know what a reputation that us Brits can have regarding tipping.

We have recently returned from a holiday where the tips are built into the price of the holiday and we did wonder if we would experience slower/poor service, but I'm pleased to say, it was probably the best service across the board that we have ever had.

So thank you for your replies, and my question has been answered.

[daib GC]

I think I do know what I have done but in my defence I write on a couple of other forums about holidays that I know a fair bit about and I know that tipping is always a good way to start a heated debate, but I just couldn't find anything about how P&O worked the add on daily amount or what it is.
So in for a penny, in for a pound, I asked, as I know what a reputation that us Brits can have regarding tipping.

We have recently returned from a holiday where the tips are built into the price of the holiday and we did wonder if we would experience slower/poor service, but I'm pleased to say, it was probably the best service across the board that we have ever had.

So thank you for your replies, and my question has been answered.

Well not quite.

Auto tips only go to Cabin steward, and waiters. + butler if you have one. 100% of the money goes to these groups. P&O say it clearly on the web site and have confirmed it last week on their FB site. If you tip on top of the Auto tip the staff involved can keep it all. If you have withdrawn from the auto tip and tipped in person the member of staff have to give that tip over to go into the pot. So removing auto tips and tipping in person is a waste of time.

Personally I came to the conclusion some time ago that tips should be part of the price you pay. Then everyone pays unlike now. With regard to getting a worse service, I do not think this would happen As the company would then extend the bonus scheme and the staff would still be looking for a good score from thier passengers. I have not read of any poor service in Australia where there is no tipping.

[Meg 50]

if you use the children's crew - they are not included in the auto-tip so are tipped separately

[towny44]

As far as I am aware cruise line tips go to those hotel staff who traditionally received tips in the good old cruise liner days, and whose pay and conditions are well below other hotel staff but generally end up with much higher overall pay because of tips or auto tips.
So if you leave the suggested auto tip in place these staff will end up with a generous (by 3rd world standards) remuneration and you need feel no obligation to pay extra, unless you feel that a particular individual has gone above and beyond what was expected and you want to give them a little extra.

[Stephen]

Back with another first timer silly question.

Reading P&O's brochure, I noticed that they say that a set amount will be added to your account each night to cover your tips.
Now my question is, how much is added each night and does this include all the staff or are there people you are expected to tip separately?

I would hate to think that I should have tipped our cabin steward, but because the brochure implies that this is covered, we didn't.

I know tipping can be an emotive subject, but we are in the camp that we like to do the norm unless we have received bad service.

Thanks.

Now you've done it cruise kitten. Big bag of worms opening time

[Dark Knight]

Tipping:
pretty straight forward really, leave the auto tips in place and if you feel you have had outstanding service then tip a bit more where you feel it is appropriate, favourite waiter, excellent cabin steward etc
if you feel that you have genuinely received poor service, real poor service, not the imaginary catastrophes you see on Facebook, then remove the tips at the desk
also the tin foil hat brigade will try to explain, the slave labour conditions of the crew and how tips are demeaning and no more than a scam etc but you have to trust that cruise lines pay a reasonable wage and distribute tips accordingly , otherwise nobody would work on a ship and there would be no cruise industry
for me, I pay the auto tips, plus a bit of a bung to the cabin steward at the end of the trip on receipt of towel animals, no towel animals, no extra tip
tips , whichever way you look at it ,are part of a cruise and for me, should be included in the price.

[qbman1]

I knew we could rely on you for a fair and balanced view!

We do exactly the same, but also tip extra to the Head Waiter (if appropriate - as Mrs C has a special diet), the Wine Steward (if she doesn't give me a black eye for chatting her up !) and the waiters.

What I do not agree with you about, however, is that tips are part of the cruise. The crew should be adequately paid by the cruise line without having to rely on top-up tipping and the tips should reflect good service. Otherwise, why not do away with the concept of tipping altogether and just charge extra for the cruise so the staff can be properly rewarded. In the real world, of course, that wouldn't be the case as the additional funds would simply go into the company coffers !

[Mervyn and Trish]

I agree with him. Occasionally.

The reason it's not in the overall price is easy. It's like airlines not including food, baggage, choosing your seat, check in fees, etc. in the price.

It makes the headline price look cheaper than it is. You commit. Then you find there's more to pay.

[qbman1]

I know that, but I quote:

"Tipping - give (someone) a sum of money as a reward for a service."

So including it in the overall price is not a tip but a price hike.

[Mervyn and Trish]

I know that, but I quote:

"Tipping - give (someone) a sum of money as a reward for a service."

So including it in the overall price is not a tip but a price hike.

Agreed again. But it would be honest and transparent.

[towny44]

I agree with him. Occasionally.

The reason it's not in the overall price is easy. It's like airlines not including food, baggage, choosing your seat, check in fees, etc. in the price.

It makes the headline price look cheaper than it is. You commit. Then you find there's more to pay.

Presumably Merv, like us you budget for the tips when you first book; I realise I am a bit nerdy but I keep a spreadsheet for our cruises which factors in everything, tips, parking, OBC etc and it calculates a cost for the cruise.
A balcony cabin from Southampton since 2012 has ranged from Pnds 97pppd - 137pppd(a pesky update seems to have snaffled my pound symbol), the high and low were both P&O cruises.

[Mervyn and Trish]

I do John. But many new to cruising will get caught by the headline deal.

A great example, nothing to do with tips, in the latest C&M campaign. Buy one, get one free. Yes, but the price for the first one is twice what you'd pay on other comparable lines. And of course, for single travellers without a free person to go with them it means the single supplement is always 100%.

It's all about marketing and while the astute will see through it, many people will just see the headline.

[david63]

Whilst I agree that tipping should be part of the price the reasons behind tipping go deeper - certainly with P&O.

In the early days all of P&O's crew came from Goa which, being part of India, had a culture of tipping, which still exists to this day. Now I know that many of the crew are not from the Indian sub-continent any more but a large percentage are and this is their way of life and I suspect that is the way that many of them still want it.

[Dark Knight]

I do John. But many new to cruising will get caught by the headline deal.

A great example, nothing to do with tips, in the latest C&M campaign. Buy one, get one free. Yes, but the price for the first one is twice what you'd pay on other comparable lines. And of course, for single travellers without a free person to go with them it means the single supplement is always 100%.

It's all about marketing and while the astute will see through it, many people will just see the headline.

Merv
we got a buy one get one free from CMV, however, I would be surprised if anyone is offering a 14 night Baltic cruise for what we paid per person for a deluxe inside or whatever they call it and tips and parking ??
and the price for the original wasn't close to twice the price of anyone, in fact it was substantially cheaper than Celebrity, I cant speak for Pile it cheap, as I didn't bother looking

[Mervyn and Trish]

Hi Batty. We were looking tentatively at their British Isles trips on Columbus (ex Arcadia) and while we couldn't compare directly with Pile it High or Calamity, who don't do those itineraries, it wasn't cheap, even with two people.

It depends what you want but we wouldn't do inside. We like our own space during the day so we like balconies. They want £4919 for two people for 9 days in the cheapest balcony. We can get 14 nights in a Superior Deluxe Balcony on Azura, Venture or Britannia on P&O for a less than that, with free parking, and a lot left over for tips and spending.

And insane for one person. What I meant was it only starts to become a reasonable deal once you have two people. The BOGOF is a marketing ploy, like all the other deals out there.

[Dark Knight]

just looked at Pile it cheap, a comparable itinerary and cabin is over £500 more expensive without £90 for tips and shoreside parking?
we reckon we saved over £2500 by cancelling with Celebrity even after tips, parking and the all inclusive drinks package, which paid for 2 weeks in Portugal all in plus a grand back in the bank?

back on to tips, CMV is the same as Pile it cheap, £5 pp per day

[qbman1]

just looked at Pile it cheap, a comparable itinerary and cabin is over £500 more expensive without £90 for tips and shoreside parking?
we reckon we saved over £2500 by cancelling with Celebrity even after tips, parking and the all inclusive drinks package, which paid for 2 weeks in Portugal all in plus a grand back in the bank?

back on to tips, CMV is the same as Pile it cheap, £5 pp per day

But at the end of the day, it is not really fair to call it a "tip" is it? It's a surcharge !

[Dark Knight]

you're right it isn't a tip, its a cost/surcharge and should be described as such, which is why it should be included

[qbman1]

That's fine, but then fair-minded people like us will still want to reward good service by tipping as appropriate so we will end up paying more on the basic price and still forking out for tips. No one wins except the cruise operator