Royal Caribbean reviewing tips policy after Brits reluctancy to pay

[PropShaft, Palatine of Lancashire]

Virgin hols

So they are a bit sneaky Eh, where did I put mi gun!!

[Jossers, Maidstone]

[Jossers, Maidstone]

Yes it is a bit of a drive but good roads and great if you go down the West Coast as some lovely seaside places. Have done this a number of occasions on flights from Miami.
The speed limits over there also mean one has to drive at a lower speed.
Also well worth driving to have a look at Fort Lauderdale canals and Palm Beach as some very expensive houses plus very clean areas. ALso a great shopping mail near the everglades worth checking out as prices unbelievable.

[Neil Down, Southampton]

Small print

We are not saying do do it but we are saying read the small print and the large print because they often exclude some of the more obvious things that others include and this helps lower their price but you will still have to cough up for the exclusions.

Sawgrass Mills is probably the name you were thinking of, a Mall near the Everglades in Fort Lauderdale Regards . ....Neil

[Linda's Man, Stanford-le-Hope]

I simply don't get the problem.

Fine, all you end up doing is paying more for the cruise in the first place ! And the advantage of that is what ? Other than the crew don't get stiffed by some who don't pay.

TommyTV in Stockport - you are surely not suggesting that the crew earn to much ?

Mike,
Just think about 'All Inclusive' land (and some cruise) holidays. Some people prefer to pay up front and not have to worry about having to make sure they have enough spare cash to pay out for all the extras and tips. Most people who go on 'All Inclusive' holidays usally tip their waiters and waitresses very well because they haven't been constantly running up large bar bills etc. That is the benefit of paying the usually higher up front 'all inclusive' price. I am not saying all cruise lines should adopt the 'All Inclusive' system which includes drinks as this would probably lead to more drunkenness on board, but if they all included tips in the price of the cruise and kept drink prices to a sensible level I think everyone would be happy and they wouldn't have to almost give the cruises away to get people on board. The other thing the cruise lines should bear in mind is what I have been reading in the reviews, and that is people are buying the discounted cruises and then not frequenting the bars because of the prices. Surely the cruise lines must realise they are losing money both ways here.

[Isshe, Ireland]

Hello, we went on the same cruise in 2011, and the price of drink was a rip off, my husband drinks red wine and asked for a glass of good standard wine for about $7.00 without the services charges and what he got in his glass was less than half a glass of wine, it was miserable for what he paid for. I hated the dining time with 8 other couples its horrible, I would personally prefer to dine alone with my husband. Only thing is we decided our tips not RC because I booked in January and went in September the same year.

[Fizban, Rhyl]

So pay the crew a proper wage in the first place.
Problem solved.

[Fizban, Rhyl]

My husband and me enjoy cruising with Royal Caribbean very much but have to say what happened on our last cruise left us feeling very annoyed. As I said we love cruising and decided to treat the whole family to a cruise last May on The Independance of the Seas. Me & hubby, son, partner & 2 children, daughter, hubby & 1 child, in total 6 adults & 3 children. We had a marvellous time, everyone loved the cruise. Near to the end of the holiday we decided to tip our stateroom staff individually (they were all very good) and when it came to the dining room waiters (4 of them ) me and hubby would tip them ( as it was our treat ) accordingly on behalf of all the family, (we did tip a lot more than was recommended). On the last morning we all took breakfast together in the main dining room. My daughter was helping herself to the breakfast buffet when she was approached by one of our evening waiters who said to her that she did not leave any tips for them. My daughter explained that mum & dad had tipped on behalf of everyone but he was adamant that everyone should tip. She returned to the table very upset and asked us should she give him some more. We replied a very definate no. As I understand a tip is something extra, the cruise didn't come cheap and we thought we had tipped fairly. It put a dampener on what was a brilliant holiday.

It's a bloody good job that arrogant ******* didn't encounter me. His attitude would have earned me a night in the brig. And him a few nights in the sick bay.