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Caribbean Cruise - To Tip or Not To Tip
Tipping is a custom that varies greatly from country to country and continent to continent, with some viewing it as a nicety whilst others consider it mandatory. Due to its geographic nomadic the tipping etiquette on a Caribbean cruise is more difficult to predict than other vacation types or destinations.
Unfortunately there is no simple answer to the question of tipping on a Caribbean cruise; some require added service charge for all areas of on-board service, whilst others require none what so ever. Most organizers will have a policy regarding on-board tipping and this is something that should be inquired about on booking; mandatory tipping will increase your onboard expenses considerably. Once you get on the liner you will find information both published and from the director regarding how much and who you should be tipping; this information should be understood and employed so as not to make a faux par and potentially alienate the service sector of the cruise staff.
Caribbean cruise providers, like other cruise providers, often use the standard added service charge as a means of providing staff wages. This means that if you argue against the added service charge it may be the individual staff members that lose out. Conversely, if you really want to give an individual staff member a tip you should add something on top of the standard added service and try to give it to the person directly in cash. On some liners it is still the case, as it was in the old days, that envelopes would be distributed on the final night of the cruise for cash tips that would then be given to the cabin stewards, and distributed to the appropriate waiting staff, however this is a dying tradition, and most modern cruise providers will simply add on a flat charge for each day of your cruise.
President of All Aboard Cruises Corp - Caribbean Cruise
Source: www.articledashboard.com