Gratuity for hotel Maid/Housekeeping Staff?

[SleepyPuppy]

Some years ago the Disney resort hotels left a card in your room that said something like, “Do not tip the housekeeping/maid staff. Fill out the card for recommendation of good service. Disney will provide them with compensation”. Does this still happen?

I know that in Vegas we usually leave some gratuity cash in an envelope with a thank you for the maid on our pillow.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Some years ago the Disney resort hotels left a card in your room that said something like, “Do not tip the housekeeping/maid staff. Fill out the card for recommendation of good service. Disney will provide them with compensation”. Does this still happen?

I know that in Vegas we usually leave some gratuity cash in an envelope with a thank you for the maid on our pillow.

I don't recall seeing such a card in the last 10 years or so.

 

[The Mom]

I don't recall seeing such a card in the last 10 years or so.

I don't recall seeing one in the last 25 years or so.

 

[Squigglove]

I have a question to add if the OP doesn't mind...
What is an acceptable gratuity for the maid/housekeeping?

 

[SleepyPuppy]

I don't recall seeing one in the last 25 years or so.

Gee thanks for making me feel really OLD!

I guess now I am classified as collectable and soon moving right on into antique status.

 

[SleepyPuppy]

I have a question to add if the OP doesn't mind...
What is an acceptable gratuity for the maid/housekeeping?

Actually that was my next question.

Last in Vegas was a while back as well but I think it was $3 - $5 per day. Ran into a glitch when the maid who got the total $ in an envelope only did the room for one day and the maid other got stiffed. I was advised later to leave envelope daily. It did improve our greeting in the hallway from the staff. A few more towels and small bottles of toiletries and soaps seemed to increase somewhat.

 

[Squigglove]

That's exactly what happened to us on one of our last vacations. My husband said to leave the tip at the end of the week but I said no, and wasn't the maid a different person on our very last day!!

 

[Hakunamatata]

 

[HolleBolleGijs]

Building on this (although my intention is to not open a can of worms).

My family has never tipped housekeeping ANYWHERE, not out of spite or anything, but because I don't think my parents knew it was something that people do. Heck, I wanted to leave a little thank-you card for housekeeping one time (not even considering the fact that we should have been leaving a tip), and they thought it was totally inappropriate.

I understand why tipping waitstaff at a restaurant is expected, due to their low wages in comparison to the minimum (although their employer is required to pay the difference if wages+tips are less than minimum wage). Is it the same with housekeeping staff? Do their wages reflect expected tips?

 

[seafoodbuffet]

Actually that was my next question.

Last in Vegas was a while back as well but I think it was $3 - $5 per day. Ran into a glitch when the maid who got the total $ in an envelope only did the room for one day and the maid other got stiffed. I was advised later to leave envelope daily. It did improve our greeting in the hallway from the staff. A few more towels and small bottles of toiletries and soaps seemed to increase somewhat.

Oh boy, tipping. If you want to show your appreciation for housekeeping, there's one thing I'd suggest:
Hang your do not disturb sign, you're literally cutting them a bunch of slack as housekeeping have to average a certain number of minutes per room across a block of rooms. Every room that has the DND sign hanging all day increases the amount of time they have to deal with all the rest of the rooms. (see this confessions of a housekeeper article from many years ago). When I travel alone, I hang the sign for my entire stay since I'm quite happy to not have people entering my room everyday and willing to pick up after myself.

As far as tipping, our habit has been to tip somewhere between $3-$10 for each day we DO request housekeeping (depending on how nice the property is). We leave the money under a note that says "For housekeeping, thank you". Someone once said, it's not so much out of obligation as it is a sign of respect and appreciation. If it pains you to leave a tip, don't do it. For anyone interested, there's a great podcast where this very issue is discussed: Tipping the Scales of Justice, Judge John Hodgman

 

[stevehousse]

If you want to go ahead, throw a couple bucks their way every day. However, housekeeping wage is a normal hourly wage, unlike waiters. Personally, I do not tip housekeeping.

 

[SleepyPuppy]

My apologies for this post. I now get the Monty Python response. I didn’t want to open the worm jar. I now recall the “tipping” issues on Vegas websites. Yes, run away. I didn’t consider it here.

 

[DisneyPrincess5]

Wow this thread has been eye opening. Growing up, my mom always left something and now DH and I do too. We now stay in my moms DVC so housekeeping basically does nothing (no daily help-4th day of our week long stay they made the bed, took garbage, and gave fresh towels). We do appreciate it, but it's minimal.
Maybe we should save a few bucks and not do it??

 

[Weather_Lady]

We leave about a dollar per person, per day ($5 for my family of four, and $10 on the last day for the person who will be "flipping" the room). We do it every day because we typically don't have the same housekeeper every day. When we rent DVC points and are only getting trash and towel service one day, we only leave a tip on that day, and on the day we leave.

We are very tidy and generally clean up after ourselves, so our housekeeper really is only making beds and refreshing toiletries until we leave, but there's no reason for us to be stingy when the daily tip costs less than a Dole Whip. According to the web, the average Disney World housekeeper makes only $9/hour.

 

[216bruce]

We always tip. The 'normal' hourly wage is pretty low (I'll bet minimum wage or near it). We usually leave 5 bucks a night and now leave that for every night so everyone gets what they earned (we used to leave it at the end of stay until we realized that it's different folks over time)- obviously if you are staying in a DVC room as a member the rules are different. My spin is that if you can afford to stay at a Disney on-site hotel and the host/hostess is doing a decent job, you can sure afford 5 bucks (not much more than a soda). Yeah, they make per hour more than a waiter does but they are trying to earn a living and it isn't exactly a fun job. If you leave the place a disaster on a daily basis, tip more.

 

[BrittanyRose428]

I always tip housekeeping. We usually do $2-3 per person per day. Even though they make at least minimum wage, they're still providing you a service, just like a hairdresser or nail tech who also make at least minimum wage, so I never quite understood why some people don't tip (totally not trying to cause drama with that statement, just never thought of not tipping housekeeping as a regular thing that happens until I read it on the internet lol).

I don't remember seeing those cards ever, but we also do put up the do not disturb sign as to help housekeeping out, and if we go anywhere that has a way of indicating whether you'd need new towels or can use the same ones, or go without new sheets we always go with the easier option.