Lucy Southerton spent almost a decade working on cruise ships and says one thing in particular really grinds the gears of the crew – and it’s something that passengers do all the time
A cruise expert has cautioned passengers that a certain penny-pinching tactic is viewed as a “slap in the face” to the hard-working crew members.
Lucy Southerton spent nearly 10 years working on cruise ships having started her career as a massage therapist as a teenager. But she noticed there are some things passengers do that risk the fury of crew members.
One specific action, she points out, is when passengers remove the gratuities from their bill. While it might make cruisers feel like they’re saving money, Lucy explains that it actually reduces the income of those working onboard.
Speaking on her Cruising as Crew YouTube channel, Lucy said: “Now a lot of people think that gratuities are additional to a crew member’s wage, as in the crew member gets a nice wage and the gratuities are something extra. But unfortunately, they’re not, the gratuities makeup the crew member’s basic wage.
“The reason that cruise lines get you to add gratuities on at the end to makeup the crew member’s wage is so that they can advertise cruises for less. You pay less for the cruise, which means you are more likely to come on and cruise.
“If the cruise lines upped the crew members’ wages to what they should be, cruising would be a lot more expensive. So it is really not okay to remove gratuities, like a really s*** move if you do that because this person has worked really hard for you all week, if they’re your housekeeper especially and you’re basically slapping them in the face if you remove gratuities.”
Lucy went on to explain that anyone wanting to show appreciation for the crew should add extra on top of the gratuities. She says people should consider factoring this into their holiday budget.
Cruise passengers can expect to shell out around £15 per day per passenger for gratuities, which can quickly add up. However, Lucy insists it’s “morally” right for holidaymakers to pay these charges.
Gary Bembridge, a fellow cruise expert who has spent years touring the world on ships, explains that gratuities used to be cash tips given directly to crew members. Over time, however, they’ve become something cruise lines expect passengers to pay.
In a 2022 video on his Tips for Travellers channel, he said: “Lines are giving up any pretense that gratuities are either voluntary or for added good service. When I first started cruising gratuities were just that, we all gave cash tips to crew we felt did an amazing job.
“We all assumed crew in every department were getting a fair wage and these were a bonus for passenger-facing crew. The lines eventually argued when autogratuities were introduced that it was a much fairer way to go as a pool of money would then be split and cascaded to all departments who had made my trip would benefit.”
Gary also suggests that gratuities are now used as a tactic to “entice” people into booking a cruise by advertising lower fares. He says he now budgets for “basic gratuities” and brings cash to tip crew members who go “above and beyond” to make his cruise “special”.
