A tip is not a tip if it is mandatory or coerced. In that case it is a passenger service fee and should be listed along with port charges, transfer fees and whatever as part of the total cost of the trip.
My own preference is for the cruise lines to pay competitive, living wages to their employees and then have tips reserved for extraordinary service beyond what would ordinarily be expected.
In the January ’04 “Boarding Pass,” the editor asked readers to comment on the trend among cruise lines to automatically add $10 per day for tips to shipboard staff.
I have traveled often to Europe, Southeast Asia, South America and even Borneo and have used a debit card in all those countries, finding it the best method of securing local currency. Until our last trip we encountered no problems and our bank charged us no fee for the transactions.
In the past, we never notified our bank or credit card companies that we were leaving the country. Occasionally, if we made a large purchase abroad, on our return we received a call from the credit card company to verify its legitimacy.
In the last few issues we’ve printed many letters from readers sharing advice on using Internet cafés while traveling. This is the last of four parts on the subject. We could not print all the mail we received, but we thank everyone who took the time to write. If there is something yet to add, send your remarks to Internet Cafés Info, c/o ITN, 2116 28th St., Sacramento, CA 95818, or e-mail editor@intltravelnews.com (please include your surface-mail address).