Tipping guidelines differ from cruise line to cruise line

If tipping etiquette baffles you, you’re not alone. Just how much do you tip in order “to insure prompt service” (the meaning of the acronym TIPS)?

Even the worst waiter shoreside expects that we’ll leave between 15 percent and 20 percent of the bill as a gratuity. But on a cruise vacation, it can seem that everyone — from airport porters and cabin stewards to waiters, room service staff and masseuses — have their hands out.

Most cruise lines offer guidelines for whom to tip and how much. Usually, you’ll find yourself stuffing crisp currency into envelopes provided at the end of your cruise. But in a trend that seems to be catching on, many lines include the gratuities in your shipboard bill, posting them automatically to your account.

On a few lines — Silversea, among them — gratuities are included in the cost of your fare. Having sailed with a few luxury lines that include tips in fares, I can tell you it’s an immense pleasure not to have to deal with the issue. In fact, on a Seabourn sailing some years ago, the service was so stellar that even when we offered our waiter an additional tip, he refused it. “I’m happy just to serve you, and there’s no need for anything more,” he said.

Nevertheless, custom prescribes that you tip and, in fairness, tip appropriately. The staff on most cruise ships depends heavily on gratuities for their income. Few of us would want to shortchange them, especially when they work arduously and well for our pleasure.

Cruise Lines International Association, the marketing organization for 19 major cruise lines, offers its own tipping recommendations, which can serve as useful guidelines, particularly for a first-time cruiser:

“Tipping is a matter of individual preference. A general rule of thumb is to plan for about $3 per person per day for your cabin steward and dining room waiter, and about half that amount for your busboy. Other shipboard personnel can be tipped for special services at your discretion.”

Use your own judgment, of course, but if someone provides you extra service, a gratuity might not only be expected but also warranted.

“Deck personnel usually work their tails off scurrying about trying to help. If they assist you with deck chairs and towels and free beverages, giving them a small amount is a very nice way of saying thanks,” Art Sbarsky, former senior vice president of marketing for Celebrity, notes on CruiseMates.com

“With deck bar personnel, when the tip is added to the price of the drink, it’s not as critical,” Sbarsky says.

For those of you who are forever grateful that your captain has navigated into port after port without incident and use of lifeboat, a tip is not necessary.

As Sbarsky notes: “Whatever you do, don’t try to tip the ship’s captain. That’s a huge no-no.”