A CRUISE passenger sparked a heated debate with his thank you gift to staff with many bashing the gesture as “demeaning for the crew.”

John Heald, Carnival Cruise Lines’ Brand Ambassador, asked his followers on Facebook how they felt about one passenger spelling out “thank you” with money on the bed for staff to find as a tip.

He shared a photo of money laid out on a bed reading, “Thanks Ketut.”

Heald created a Facebook poll, containing the voting option: “Please tell people to stop spreading money out on the bed spelling thank to the cabin cleaners. They may think it’s cool but it’s demeaning for the crew.”

While only the 4% of voters selected this option, most people in the comments agreed with the sentiment.

One Facebook user called the gesture “pretty self-serving”, saying that the person who took and posted the picture simply “wants the accolades for leaving a tip.”

She added: “Just hand them the money with a handshake and a thank you rather than this display.”

Another person wrote: “I like putting it in an envelope with a thank you note, just seems classier,” adding that in this way, the cruise ship attendant does not have to “bend all over to collect the money.”

But while some expressed distaste at the gesture, others took to defend the passenger’s creative idea.

In the poll, 30% of people voted that they “have no problem with people doing that. Let them do what they want. It’s just nice to give the crew an extra tip.”

One person wrote: “We have tipped this way before. I see nothing wrong with it other than it being creative.”

Another person even praised the move: “I think this is wonderful! Would have made his day!”