Davybe 529 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 Taken from there web site. *A service charge of £6 per guest per day will be chargeable to cruises departing before the 22 March 2018. For cruises departing the 23 March and thereafter, the charge will be £7 per guest per day. Fred Olson increasing their tip's as well? Still both cheaper than the cruise industry average.....Davybe Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pesky Pirate 172 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 How many increases is that within the last 18 months or so. They just be loosing revenue with the reduction of prices and want us to make up wage increases again! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
afcandrew 369 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 I agree that the rise has been rapid - way above the rate of inflation! Having said that I guess they are coming into line with other UK operators. CMV already charge £7pppd. The only info I can find on Fred Olsen suggests they charge £4pppd. Surely that will rise to at least £5... Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Furby 441 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 2 hours ago, Davybe said: Taken from there web site. *A service charge of £6 per guest per day will be chargeable to cruises departing before the 22 March 2018. For cruises departing the 23 March and thereafter, the charge will be £7 per guest per day. Fred Olson increasing their tip's as well? Still both cheaper than the cruise industry average.....Davybe fred olsen are still cheaper than avergae, but P&O latest increase puts them in line with most cruise lines, certainly not cheaper any more Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sinbad10 757 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 Princess currently for those in inside/balcony cabins charge $13.50pppd (approx £10) and also includes children who pay full price. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Davybe 529 Posted February 15, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 Celebrity are now $14-50 pppd,not effecting those who prepaid? Cunard were not cheap from what I remember.....Davybe Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cruise addict 164 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 Yet another increase from P & O. Is this because so many people stop the automatic tips? It would appear that all the cruise lines are increasing their tips. I just wish they included them in with the price of the cruise. Chris J 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Pesky Pirate 172 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 If service is getting as bad as some folk make out then there’s sufficient reason to remove tips. However I still maintain that a tip is for good service and not a service charge which this seems to be. It used to be a suggested amount now it’s a few hundred pounds added to your account before you even get on board. Captain Kidd II, Chris J, Bumble Bee and 1 other 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mitch 325 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 personally i think they should just pay their staff a living wage and put it in the cost of the cruise it would save all this hassle. at least that way the tight wads that refuse to tip at all will have to pay their share. and dont tell me all those that are queing the minute they get on board to get tips removed from their account all pay cash. also it may mean the staff get paid enough to put up with the moaning and downright ignorance/rudeness of some ive seen as passengers on p&0. someone should tell them the raj died a long time ago. personally i leave it on the onboard account and if someone excells i will add something in cash. but at the endof the day ive better things to worry about. Bumble Bee, Sailaway, *Dancing Queen* and 3 others 6 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jinky 96 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 1 hour ago, mitch said: personally i think they should just pay their staff a living wage and put it in the cost of the cruise it would save all this hassle. at least that way the tight wads that refuse to tip at all will have to pay their share. and dont tell me all those that are queing the minute they get on board to get tips removed from their account all pay cash. also it may mean the staff get paid enough to put up with the moaning and downright ignorance/rudeness of some ive seen as passengers on p&0. someone should tell them the raj died a long time ago. personally i leave it on the onboard account and if someone excells i will add something in cash. but at the endof the day ive better things to worry about. I quite agree. Seeing the numbers queue to remove tips on boarding I think the rise must be to meet the shortfall. Pay them the wage and chargeus all the same - even if it is more without these additions that some get removed. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HLM 519 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 My personal opinion is that P&O are way over priced for the product they sell, yes the die hardship won't agree but so be it. This is about the fourth increase in two years, bet it doesn't go to the crew. And by the way Mitch that old "Tightwad" quote is getting a bit boring now, just accept people can do as they choose, if they've increased the gratuity because people opt out then so be it, accept it and move on. HLM hayseed, Captain Kidd II and sinbad10 3 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
angel 121 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 They should keep the cost of the tips low and then they would probably find more people would pay them instead of removing them Captain Kidd II and HLM 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
loveholidays53 21 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 Have just returned from the Canaries on the Oriana (the cheap black Friday deal) and the service was brilliant therefore had no reason not to pay the gratuities up front and when we worked it out we would have paid the same amount in cash for the service of cabin steward and restaurant waiting staff. We did notice on the last night for those passengers who paid the staff direct in the dining room that the staff opened the envelopes and the cash went into a specific drawer possibly to be shared out at the end of the night - but who knows. We said the only time we would go to reception and change the amount would be on a long cruise (over 16 days) because the amount just becomes too high to warrant an acceptable amount to us. It would be far better to add an amount onto the holiday and tell everyone that gratuities are included- it would stop all the hassle. Captain Kidd II 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Kidd II 798 Posted February 15, 2018 Report Share Posted February 15, 2018 For the he first time I cancelled my auto service charge on a 30 night cruise and paid, in cash, what I considered right for the service we received. I will be doing the same this year as service levels are now so variable that it just is not right to "tip" everyone for the work they have done. On our last cruise we had to ask our steward to change our bedding after 7 days and never did see him using a vaccum cleaner. We also had to ask for tables to be cleared in the buffet area and we fetched our own tea, not that it was onerous. We did talk to Aurora's reception staff about the above but it does make you think about what you are giving for such service. Jenjen 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mitch 325 Posted February 16, 2018 Report Share Posted February 16, 2018 i do think they should include it in the price of the cruise that way everyone pays the same and it should work out less as i am sure the current increase in part at least is to make up for those that dont pay the full amount or anything at all and i am sure theres a few who dont. Davybe 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Davybe 529 Posted February 16, 2018 Author Report Share Posted February 16, 2018 2 hours ago, mitch said: i do think they should include it in the price of the cruise that way everyone pays the same and it should work out less as i am sure the current increase in part at least is to make up for those that dont pay the full amount or anything at all and i am sure theres a few who dont. Hopefully we will see this in the future , Celebrity have offered "Tip's Paid on some cruise deals,If they can work out the right amount to add ,I think they may do it. I cannot think why the cruise lines insist on using this increasingly unpopular way collect tip's. A bar waiter on P&O was telling me that he got a very low basic wage plus on Average 6.5% of what he sold ,some drinks (Water) he got nothing and some drinks he got more, he got nothing from the tip's P&O take from our accounts....Davybe Quote Link to post Share on other sites
cruise chef 866 Posted February 16, 2018 Report Share Posted February 16, 2018 It sounds like Fred Olsen are increasing theirs Gratuities from the 7th of March to £5 per person per night, but are giving passengers the opportunity to pre pay them before that date at the lower rate, so at least they have the chance to take them at the lower rate Quote Link to post Share on other sites
afcandrew 369 Posted February 16, 2018 Report Share Posted February 16, 2018 I will say what I have just said on another thread on this forum. Most of us agree that it should be included in the fare but 95% of mainstream cruise lines operate the same or similar systems. We all have a choice with P&O - pay the suggested tips in the suggested way, remove them and do your own thing, stop cruising. The constant whingeing by so many pax is now getting very boring. You have a choice folks . Captain Kidd II, cruise addict, HLM and 1 other 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oldworldtraveller 2225 Posted February 17, 2018 Report Share Posted February 17, 2018 Well said afcandrew. You can remove the gratuities on most cruise lines so the choice is yours. HLM 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HLM 519 Posted February 17, 2018 Report Share Posted February 17, 2018 On 16 February 2018 at 7:01 AM, mitch said: i do think they should include it in the price of the cruise that way everyone pays the same and it should work out less as i am sure the current increase in part at least is to make up for those that dont pay the full amount or anything at all and i am sure theres a few who dont. I disagree, in my opinion P&O have increased the gratuity to increase their profit margins, about 4 years ago they were £3.50pppd, now they are £7pppd not bad hey? I wish my wages went up like that, but we all know it's not going to the hard working crew don't we? Also if you really believe you are subsidising others who opt out, why not opt out yourself, the more people take a stand against this rip off system the more likely you are to get you wish of having gratuities built in to the cruise fare. HLM. sinbad10 and hayseed 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Jenjen 232 Posted February 17, 2018 Report Share Posted February 17, 2018 How people tip/reward good service in my opinion is up to them, I am so fed up with a, the posts who claim they pay by auto grays. Or reward in cash. Is nothing to do with others. I do have a couple of friends who worked on. Cruise ships they say they did not a cash bonus at the end of each cruise, they also had to pool money given to them on the last evening of each cruise. They had a bonus at the end of the contract usually about £1000 so that was over a nine month stint. We pay our tips in Cash the day befor the last sea day, so none of the senior staff know anything about it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HLM 519 Posted February 17, 2018 Report Share Posted February 17, 2018 16 minutes ago, Jenjen said: How people tip/reward good service in my opinion is up to them, I am so fed up with a, the posts who claim they pay by auto grays. Or reward in cash. Is nothing to do with others. I do have a couple of friends who worked on. Cruise ships they say they did not a cash bonus at the end of each cruise, they also had to pool money given to them on the last evening of each cruise. They had a bonus at the end of the contract usually about £1000 so that was over a nine month stint. We pay our tips in Cash the day befor the last sea day, so none of the senior staff know anything about it. Here, here Jenjen why people get so upset is beyond me. We pay the way we choose, no one subsidises us like some claim. The simple fact is we could probably save money by paying autograts, but we prefer to pay the way we do, a personal token of our appreciation to those individuals who served us well during our cruise. HLM. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sinbad10 757 Posted February 17, 2018 Report Share Posted February 17, 2018 2 hours ago, Jenjen said: How people tip/reward good service in my opinion is up to them, I am so fed up with a, the posts who claim they pay by auto grays. Or reward in cash. Is nothing to do with others. I do have a couple of friends who worked on. Cruise ships they say they did not a cash bonus at the end of each cruise, they also had to pool money given to them on the last evening of each cruise. They had a bonus at the end of the contract usually about £1000 so that was over a nine month stint. We pay our tips in Cash the day befor the last sea day, so none of the senior staff know anything about it. Do you honestly think or believe that they keep the cash that you give them. The last time I gave cash to waiter and assistant waiter on a P&O cruise I gave them both envelopes and the assistant waiter said thank you very much and then gave it straight away in full view of us to the waiter. If he is allowed to keep any money given to him in cash why did he hand it over to the waiter without even knowing what amount was inside. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HLM 519 Posted February 17, 2018 Report Share Posted February 17, 2018 3 minutes ago, sinbad10 said: Do you honestly think or believe that they keep the cash that you give them. That's another one of those puzzlers which no one really knows what happens to the monies after they receive it. I can only say about my own experiences, and I can honestly say that on every occasion I've handed over my money it's gone straight into the persons pocket, but I can't say what happened to it after that. The way I see it is that once it's gone from my pocket to theirs I don't care what they do with it, if I worried about it I'd probably give up cruising. HLM. hayseed 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Oldworldtraveller 2225 Posted February 17, 2018 Report Share Posted February 17, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, sinbad10 said: Do you honestly think or believe that they keep the cash that you give them. As far as I am aware any cash given to crew members has to be handed in and added to the pool. This I believe they comply with as they of course do not know if the person handing the cash is a member of the cruise lines staff who could report back their actions plus it could be a 'Test Case'. I would add however that an increase from £6-£7 equals a 'pay rise' of almost 17% and for this I would expect the service to be exemplary. Edited February 17, 2018 by Oldworldtraveller HLM 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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