To tip or not to tip that is the question

[Jim Brady]

The tipping situation here in Liverpool I would say whatever pub you are in,you tell the barmaid to "Take her own" and she takes 20pence,if she was to ask for a drink or take more than the standard 20pence she would'nt be asked again.I was in a pub the other day it was £2.30 a pint I gave her £2.50 and said keep that,she kept the 20pennce.The next round I gave her £3.00 I never told her to take her own but she did,next round gave her £2.50 no change.Ipulled her up about it she said quite casually I "take my own" with every drink I serve!!!.I pointed out that a person could come out with enough for three pints if she did that he could only have two and have to go home.If I am in any other part of the UK I never tip because i dont know what the tipping regime is.
Regards.
Jim.B.

[Lou Barron]

Well after reading all these posts on going for a cruise I will think about maybe if I try and get a job as galley boy on any ship it might do

[Peter F Chard]

In North America I think Canada is the worst place for tipping -- I have a cousin in Vancouver who carries a small calculator and uses this machine to work out a 15% tip on the account total less the GST ! Now how is that for being politically correct. We also have friends who live just outside Reno in Nevada and both the husband and wife refuse absolutely to tip and woe betide anyone who argues the point with them. Personally I have not been bothered much once they hear the NZ twang -- tipping here is virtually unknown although one guy on an ice cream stall tried by positioning a glass right in front of the buyers -- rumour has it that he went out of business !! Regards Peter in NZ.

[Charlie Hannah]

As far back as i remember you always had to tip in the States you go in a bar order a beer and dont tip you dont get no service.End of story.

[happy daze john in oz]

I was on the AMSTERDAM of Holland America this year,
The waiters in the Lido Cafe were on $500 a month for a 12 hour day, they were Javanese and Balinese, all first trippers, so I guess the BRs and Restraurant waiters were on more.
Tips were $11.50 per person per day. but you could sign a waiver to this by the mid cruise time.
In Cunards Queens I always signed the waiver, I did object to having my money given to some pig ignorant unhygenic arrogant eastern european waiter.
So I have stopped cruising with Cunard, Holland America is far better,
Now this trip I have just done, 38 days was over $400 so I paid up as I had been given a £2000 each upgrade for free, so I saved £4000 so I thought it was worth it.
.
Hi HD John, did you meet the Cyclone ITA on your trip?
Cheers
Brian

That is the whole point Brian, tipping is not compulsory and no shipping company has the legal right to charge you if you do not want to pay. I pay my way according to service which to date has never been bad. Wages contrary to some ideasare not at slve levels, ask any winger, BR and they will tell you the rates of pay. we in the west may consider them not so good to by the standards of the Philpines, and other countries they are millionaires. Had a head waietr at christmas from Bosnia, been at sea for many years and loved it. As he told me the pay alloed him to provide private medical cover for his family, send two children to university and buy his own house something he admits he could never have done othetwise.

As to the weather on this cruise, brilliant as we missed Ita but a bit blowy 40 knots, on the last two days coming home.

[Ivan Cloherty]

if I remember rightly in the bars in the States, you sat on your bar stool and every time you had a beer the bartender put a paper stub in a glass in front of your stool and you paid at the end of the night, if you had tried to leave without paying you would never have reached the door and 10% was always expected. If you got up for a dance your stool was never taken whilst dancing if it had a glass with paper stubs in it. Seemed a civilised way to me but you would be advised that someone else wanted your stool if the paper stubs didn't mount up, that's if you got served in the first place having to be 21 in most states and me looking about 16 when I was 21, thank god for the 'Aliens Landing Card'

[John Arton]

Virtually every restaurant you visit in the U.K. these days has "Gratuities not included" on the bottom of the bill or sometimes it states that a % gratuity has been added. When they bring the card machine to your table if you are paying by card, it always comes up on the screen asking you if you want to add a gratuity to the bill. I usually add 10% but only if the food and service has been excellent as this method of gaining tips seems almost like bullying you into giving one
rgds
JA

[Captain Kong]

In a restaurant I never add the tip to the check. It goes to the Management.
I tip the waiter/waitress instead.
.
. All my life I have never recieved a Tip.
The only Tip I ever got was "Get wise to yourself,"
,
Cheers
Brian

[Les Woodard]

Simple rule in Oz. If the pub has a tipping glass on the counter then the bloody beer is overpriced. If the management can not afford to pay decent wages then obviously they are running their business on a shoe string. Just can not get my head around as to why passengers on a cruise ship end up paying thousands collectively for a service that they had already paid for in the price of the cruise or is the price of the cruise just for the honour of being able to board the bloody floating motel. Just imagine paying for a ticket to get on the train then tipping the driver for getting you there. What a bloody con. Know that we went on a bus tour to the heart of Oz and could not get over the amount of passengers that where shelling out money to the crew at the end of the tour. Needless to say they ended up short with this little black duck. Pensioner saves for months to take a cruise then ends up giving out more money to someone that is earning more than they are. Bloody sickening. What gets me is those tipping do not realise that they are making these trips to expensive for many other people who think that they have to fork out this extra money without knowing that they can just refuse. Hence the catch 22. Shipping companies reduce wages to keep up profits because of lack of passengers. Passengers are reluctant to go on cruise not because of the cost of the cruise but the extras that not included in the price and do not want to be put in a position of embarassment at the end of the cruise by having to argue the point with some penis head.

[Charlie Hannah]

Ivan any bar i went into in the states,and i went in a hell of a lot of them, the only way i ever saw it done is you paid at the bar or to the waiter as you were served i never had a slip put in the glass ,new one on me. I am not saying it didn't happen just saying i never ever experianced it myself. Cheers.