I read "upfront" tipping mentioned in a consumer review. What exactly is this and what would it be appropriate? At bars? Restaurants?
Upfront tipping is when you tip big when you get your frist drink. I've found it works really well in bars like Coco Bongos where a waiter can get lost for hours. $20 on the first drink and they keep coming back. Down side is that you have to skip them another $10 or so every hour or so to keep the illusion that you are a big spender. But if you have a table of folks it works out real well. Just have the same person keep giving the tip so that person looks really generous and rich. Jamie
When ever we don't go with the resort staff this is exactly what we do. We never go with out a drink the entire night. Everyone puts in a few bucks at first then we all take turns giving another $5 or so throughout the night.
Yes, this is definitely a worthwhile tactic for nights out in the clubs. Pre-tipping is not something you'd do in a restaurant or your hotel.
Pre-tipping the bartender may yield significant intoxication I think it's a good idea to pre-tip the poolbar guy given you're gonna be there for several hours. With various comments like the booze and drinks were watered down, and the fact they don't normally use premium alcohol, tipping him early may start his day off great and hopefully yours in return ! It's no guarantee of coarse (YMMV), but if you show him a $20 spot UPFRONT before you order your 1st round of PREMIUM drinks, he may continue using a more premium alcohol throughout the day. If he shoots you down right away, maybe the premium is strictly reserved for Premier members. Keep your $20. If it works, continue ordering your drinks the same way and with the brand; ie 2 Jim Beams & coke, 2 Smirnoff & OJ, 2 Barcardi pina coladas, etc. Just eyeball the bar to get a sense for what is considered a more premium brand; I forget what they had. Can't hurt to try. Just watch the bartender when he's making the drinks and if he continues to do it, SCORE !!!! Slip him another $5 or $10 before you leave for the day and thank him. The $25 or $30 you gave him was probably more than his payroll for the day. You might want to ask him if he's there tomorrow :lol: I'm sure he'll be looking forward to it also. If he doesn't reach for the premium when you asked for it, interupt him politely and tell him you want it made the same way as before. This way he knows what to expect from you. If he rejects the idea now, I'd let him know your disappointment, like "Amigo, que paso ? (What happened ?) I gave you $20 to take care of me ? Did everyone else give you $20 ? Yeah, I know, it's the guilt trip tactic but if you never ask, you'll never get. You wouldn't drop your pants in the Cancun flea market for their opening price, would you ? OK, so don't take NO for an answer the 1st time. If he's firm about it, then punch his lights out....just kidding. Then you know the $20 trick ain't gonna happen with him :cry: Doesn't hurt to try with someone else later. Give it a try guys and let us know if it worked out for you also. -DJ
Just keep in mind as you tip for upgraded liquor that if you were thinking of doing it at Temptations you may be putting the Bartender's job on the line. They make about $5 a day so yeah if you slipped them $35 a day they would be real happy and give you whatever they could. If they do take care of you once but not the second time it could be because their Manager is around. Making a big deal of it is a sure way to not see them tomorrow. Bottom-line is I don't really care about the bartenders I haven't met at other locations. At Temptations I do. So tip early, tip often, tip heavily, but do so understanding that they will give you the best service possible. But please, please do not push them into jeopardizing their jobs. And it's awful hard to turn down 7 to 10 times your daily salary in tips. DJ - know that I do not believe for a second that you were suggesting that people jeopardize bartender’s jobs. Just wanted to make sure everyone knew the score so they could make wise judgments. Jamie
Just test the waters I know Jamie. Yeah, I'd hate for those guys to lose their job over it. That's why I said if they say no, ask again politely. If they insist they can't, then you know it's off limits, nothing personal and that's OK. I wouldn't put the poor guy on the spot in a back n forth exchange with on-lookers. I'd keep it real quiet. -DJ PS. I just got hold on my Premier member friend and told him about the 2008 Premier rates going from $75 p/p p/n July 07 to $100 p/p p/n July 08, and he had heard the bad news. I kinda felt bad when I had to tell him that alpharooms was even cheaper.
I think every Cancun travel guide avoids this issue, or says not to do it, however I must admit that I have been guilty of tipping in advance. It is something I have done and will probably do in the future. That being said I recommend that you keep in mind that you can get an employee in trouble by doing this, so be extra careful. This is especially true when you are staying at an All Inclusive resort because the workers in many cases are not allowed to accept tips. Therefore you should be extra sensitive with the bartenders and waiters at All Inclusives. But definitely, as stated above, tipping up front at clubs will almost always assure that you will get better and quicker service. CANCUN TOP 100 212eric
