A number of Australian cruisers are tipping their favourite staff on board personally – even though gratuities are already included in their fares.
A survey of Cruise Passenger’s Facebook group found confusion on whether gratuities are a compulsory charge or something that can be removed from bills.
Some members claimed that they take gratuities off on the first day on board as they prefer to tip staff personally. Being unable to do so would also discourage them from sailing with certain cruise lines.
“A lot of cruise lines won’t take them off at the end. I always go first day to get it done,” said Graham Mitchell.
“We cruised with P&O, Cunard and have taken the gratuities off and soon with Princess and they allow as well. Much prefer to tip ourselves. Agree would never cruise with NCL if could not deduct,” says Margaret Munro.
Is there an industry standard?
Gratuities are big business. A ship with 3,000 passengers where guests paid $20 a day in gratuities would accumulate $60,000 a day or $840,000 on a 14-day sailing. So a crew of 1,800 would receive $466 in gratuities a fortnight if all the money was divided equally.
Cruise Passenger found that the lines themselves are divided on how they should charge gratuities.
And in some cases, Australian guests might be unwittingly paying gratuities twice on cruises.
Royal Caribbean Cruises and Celebrity Cruises have gratuities included in the fare for Australians and New Zealanders, wherever in the world they sail.
Most lines with homeported ships like P&O Cruises Australia, Carnival Cruise Line Australia and Princess Cruises in Australia don’t charge gratuities at all. These lines also don’t expect guests to tip, but say they are welcome to give cash to crew or amend their bill to include gratuities at the end of their holiday.
Others like Norwegian Cruise Line make it a compulsory charge. Guests can choose to pre-pay in their local currency (the currency the booking was made in) or pay on board in USD equivalent. It is added to the on board bill and paid at end of cruise.
Read our ultimate gratuities guide to learn more.
https://cruisepassenger.com.au/cruise-gratuities-tipping-guide/
What do passengers prefer?
The Cruise Passenger Facebook group is equally divided on how they want to pay gratuities.
Half would like to see gratuities included in their fare while others would like to keep it separate, so they can tip staff personally.
But many who opted for gratuities to be included in their fare also mentioned that they still give additional tips to their cabin staff and waiters.
“Included is best, so you know the amount you’re up for and so the behind the scenes staff who still work hard to make your holiday amazing also get their fair share,” says Lisa Presley.
“I have only cruised where it’s absorbed but each time I have left something for the cabin attendant,” says Sonia Cattley.
Meanwhile, some cruisers are conflicted about having to pay gratuities twice.
“On RCI they include the gratuity. But my sisters still want to tip the wait staff and cabin boy. I don’t mind putting in for the cabin boy. But why pay out extra when you’re already paying around AUD$20 a day gratuity. On a two week cruise that’s $280 each..,” says Kerry Kandelas.
Cruisers who would rather keep gratuities separate from their fare also chimed in.
“Not included but with an option to tip staff personally. I can’t see the point in gratuities if the staff don’t even get the money,” says Sandra Schultz.
“I would rather give to people personally who give me service,” says Kaye van Spaandonck.
Other cruisers also have interesting perspectives to add to the debate.
“I am surprised at the number of people who want the grats included up front. Why wouldn’t you want a chance to reduce them if you got poor service? Include them in the price and you have no choice but to pay for what might be poor service,” says Gary Niedorfer.
“I didn’t pay gratuities on last cruise because as a solo passenger I had to pay 2 x fare. They could have distributed the additional fare to staff,” says Mary Blowers.
So how would you like cruise lines to handle your gratuities? Join the discussion and tell us in the comments below.
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I don’t see why someone should be tipped for simply doing their job. If there is a problem there, and I bet there is (only because companies don’t always pay their staff appropriately because they hope & assume that they’ll be given tips) that problem should be solved at the source, ie they must pay staff properly. If patrons then want to tip, so be it, but staff should not expect or need it.
Taking money off the books is prone to serious problems and exploitation by management including when it comes to marketing of fares and their knowledge that some overly kind (mis-intentioned) patrons are ruled by their hearts instead of their heads. Fix the problem at its source. Tipping is a bandaid at best.
No Leanne – I am australian and i believe in fair pay and tipping is the balance we pay when sailing on USA based ships , all I’m suggesting is aussies should stop whinging and just consider it part of the cruise cost.
I’m embarrassed when I see predominately australians at the customer service counters weaselling out of tips ,its an aussie thing with little regard for the staff from predominately third world countries.
When in Rome ………………………..
Hi
I prepaid gratuities on one cruise but when i got to the ship had a change of heart and approached desk on ship to withdraw the payment I had paid $1000 in advance but ship would only refund $500 since they assured me that was all they received from HQ in Sydney,
Eventually after exchanging emails and calls the other $500 was refunded,
This means that $500 was being added to profit in Sydney and not being transferred to ship’s crew where it was supposed to go!!
Needless to say I do not prepay gratuities now preferring to thank those who give me good service
I do not believe in Gratuities. They should be banned as they are distorting the advertised price. Just a typical dishonest American thing creeping in as a global standard.
It’s Australian law to advertise a price including all costs and taxes.
Pay your crew a living wage and advertise the end price to the consumer without any charges in the small print.
In regard to the US style tipping practise.
Are you aware that this practise was invented after the abolishment of slavery?
Nobody wanted to pay those free slaves so the train companies came up with this great idea to offer them a job without pay. They’d have to make a living off the tips.
Does it makes you feel better to have people around you that have to be nice to you just to make a living?
I don’t.
I tip as a genuine gesture of gratitude for a service I enjoyed. Ban gratuities is all I can say.
IF the gratuities were shared equally among all staff members everybody would get at least $25 a day as there are twice as manny passengers than staff
In the Philippines a domestic gets just under $100 per MONTH (google it)
I see it as paying their wages, the company should pay them a decent wage, Australians and Europeans don’t pay gratuitires, a typical American thing
Still tipping, but NOT through the ship
Tipping is controversial and has many arguments. No one should be tipped to do their job. We all have jobs and put in the extra effort to do it extremely well. No one tips me for doing a good job; I get a salary for that. However, tipping is a reward system and is meant to encourage staff to perform over and beyond their standard levels of performance. Additionally, there are many staff members in the background who also work extremely hard for the customer to be provided with great service, though they don’t get to meet the customer. Only the staffers that are in contact with customers get the tips. There should be no tipping on board nor and additional gratuities. Wages should encompass tips and no customer expected to give tips on board, in fact tipping should be discouraged. The service should be exemplary to please the customer for that is what every passenger and customer pays for.
I can’t believe how petty some of those commenting are. Assuming the cruise ship does the right thing and distributes the gratuities to the crew and the crew relies on these as a top up to their wage then travelers who cancel their gratuities and then dole some out to the chosen few they deal with then how does the crew who don’t meet passengers fare? Cooks engineers, kitchen hands, cleaners etc miss out.
What I hate is when extra gratuities are charged on drinks even though supposedly my fare includes gratuities!
Now that’s worth complaining about!!!!!
Gratuities can NOT be compulsory. NCL attempts to do so by calling it a Service Charge. Will never travel with them again.
Tipping is one of the USA’s worst exports!
Here is the NCL statement, it is called Discretionary Daily Service Charge.
Norwegian Cruise Line is making a nominal adjustment to its daily service charges, effective April 1, 2019. Norwegian’s discretionary daily service charges make it easy for guests to provide gratuities to the onboard staff dedicated to delivering superior guest service throughout the cruise.
discretionary adjective
dis·cre·tion·ary | \ di-ˈskre-shə-ˌner-ē \
Definition of discretionary
1: left to individual choice or judgment : exercised at one’s own discretion
discretionary powers
I don’t mind paying a tip to someone if they have genuinely enhanced my experience.
In Australia, workers in the service industry are generally paid a sustainable wage and therefore the public do not feel the need to tip unless the service has been exceptional.
I understand that in many other countries workers are low paid or even unpaid by the service providors and therefore rely on tips. Whilst this is understandable in third world countries, I struggle to understand the need for tipping in developed nations.
As to paying for Cruises, if the workers on the cruise are taken from countries or are under a jurisdiction where they are low paid, I don’t mind paying a gratuity so long it is included in the fare and is upfront.
I was recently alarmed to hear from a cruise company 3 months after I had paid the advertised fare, that an additional gratuity per person per day was expected … this represented a further 30% on top of the fare. I find this dishonest business practice. I would also be interested to know how the gratuity is distributed to the staff and if the cruise company retains any of the gratuity for itself or senior crew (who are presumably on a reasonable salary).
My understanding is that the word TIPS is an acronym for To Insure Prompt Service.
My preference is to tip those who l choose that have given me good service. So far no problem with Celebrity, Holland America and Princess.
I was informed by cabin staff on holland American line that they don’t receive extra from gratuities paid on a daily rate by passengers. So it makes one wonder where the money goes to. I was dissatisfied with many things during my latest cruise with them yet l could not reduce the rate paid as seemingly it was included in with the total fare before departure. Never again will l allow this to happen – l like to tip generously when good service has been given yet it hardly seems fair when other crew members receive nothing eg cooks maintenance staff etc.
gratuities
Save your gratuities and tips and donate them to needy people in Australia, a 21day cruise can cost you AUD$20 per day = $420 p.p. In gratuities. This would go a long way with the Smith Family in helping to provide food and clothing for poor and deprived Australian children. Not everyone in Australia can afford cruises .
I have only cruised with RCI and have always given an extra small tip to the cabin attendant and waiting staff (if using traditional dining, with my-time dining we did not have regular staff). I heard that one of the staff told someone else that any tips they receive personally are deducted from their wage, or go into a pool to be shared with others anyway. I don’t know if this is true, but if so, they are better off if not tipped personally.
Wow Barry Scott. Tell us Aussies how you really feel. I’m presuming your American and used to tipping. Do you still top it if or when you come to Australia? The exchange rate is shit so I figure I’m paying a lot more for a cruise anyway compared to the cost of a similar Australian cruise. And not everyone pays the same price. I’ve seen our cruise cheaper with gratuities included. I don’t mind tipping for exceptional service at all.
We usually travel on Princess and am of the understanding that cruises that leave Australian waters etc the Gratuities are built into the price. We still leave money for the cabin steward. On cruises that leave overseas ports I now go to the desk on the first day and say we will decide who we wish to tip. Speaking to a crew member on one of the ships I was informed , that they sign on for a certain amount and do not see money collected as Gratuities.To me, TIPPING IS A USA habit and as suggested by others if so called Tipping is a must include it in the fare.
I stop payment on the first day,,,,,and tip the room crew and one on the dinning area ,,,,,reason,,,,,i save very hard to go on holiday and not to supplement any one wages,,,,,,as the staff should negotiate their own wage packets, no on gave me a tip when i was working ,neither did i except one
I was informed by the room crew that they do not get those tips but it goes to another source ,some where
I’ve done 19 cruises with Princess and have always had the gratuities removed at the purser’s office on Day 1 and then tipped my cabin steward, dining room staff, tour guides and drivers etc quite generously from looking at your welcome guide lines for tipping.
In June I am going on a Globus trip from Boston which includes 7 days on Holland America.
Can I do as I do on Princess or will the gratuities be added to my bill regardless? I’d really appreciate your advice.
Thank you.
It is interesting as I have just been reading a book about the pitfalls of cruising and the do’s and dont’s and it was suggested that gratuities that are added to your bill are not being sent to everyone that they should anyway. Some of the cruise companies keep a percentage of this and then give the rest to the crew, so you are never sure who is actually getting what. As far as I am concerned, if a cruise line paid their employees a decent wage then tipping should not be necessary. I remove the built in gratuities and pay whom I want to tip.
Its time Australians got over their tipping hang ups.
On most cruises its an extra and it doesn’t take too much effort to work out the total cost of the cruise with tips included and just make a value judgement.
I know lots of friends who cruise ,some of them take the gratuities off and pay something to the cabin attendants and / or the wait staff.
the thing that they all have in common is that they pay less than they otherwise would pay and take no account of the other staff that would have benefitted from the tips included as a fare add on.
Most of the staff come from poorer countries or poorer economies, so do the right thing and pay the gratuities.
If you can afford to cruise Aussies you can afford the gratuities — get over it
Prefer to give gratuities directly to people personally as it shows our appreciation for their services,than paying through the cruise which looks like helping to pay for their salaries or wages.
I would prefer to pay tips direct, I realise that other staff on the ship do not get tips, but to me this looks to be supplementing wages, I usually stop payment on the first day of a cruise and have never had a problem with this.