Tipping in Hotels

[HollyAD]

We tip at the end of our trip. I have read on here that we should be tipping each day but I don't know that I agree with that. I tip at the end based on how much mousekeeping has to do for us. If we stay two nights and never asked for anything or made a mess, we tip less. If we stay longer we tip more.

 

[G8rchamps]

We were just there Thurs night to Sun morning. Tipped 5 Fri am and no special treatment. No tip Sat (only had 20's) and we came back to the kids animals arranged in the beds as well as a towel basket with stickers all over it. Needless to say we left another 5 upon Sun checkout. I don't think tipping necessarily gets you anything extra, I just think it a nice thing to do on a longer stay.

 

[slappy magoo]

We tip at the end of our trip. I have read on here that we should be tipping each day but I don't know that I agree with that. I tip at the end based on how much mousekeeping has to do for us. If we stay two nights and never asked for anything or made a mess, we tip less. If we stay longer we tip more.

Well the notion behind a daily tip is that you won't necessarily get the same person cleaning your room every day. If you're there for 6 nights, and each night Alice is your Mousekeeper and does a phenomenal job so you decide to leave a big tip on checkout but now Ariel is your Mousekeeper, Alice never knows you appreciated the job unless Ariel lets Alice know.

On the flip side I believe Mouskeeping pools tips anyway. Sure it benefits those that do a lackluster job but I would think their annual review would weed out most of the bad fruit. But it also means that superlative CMs who go through a string of guests who decide tipping is for suckers don't go home empty handed either.

 

[Laura]

People I tip:
Restaurant servers
People who do hair/nails/etc.
Cruise staff
Valet parking
Bellmen

I do it because it's expected in those industries to leave a gratuity, so not leaving a gratuity is like saying "you suck at your job and I hate you".

I don't tip people in other professions where it's not expected (like housekeeping) just because I feel bad for the amount of wages that I presume the person earns. If I had that mindset, I'd have to tip the person behind the counter at McDonalds and the cashier at Walmart, just because I feel sorry for them. I find that somewhat demeaning and arrogant. It's none of my business what someone else makes and I'm not going to treat a person like a charity case because of my preconceived notions about their income.

I think the best way to pay back someone for good service when they are in a non-tipped position is to fill out a comment card, write a letter, or recognize them in some other way that gets them noticed by their supervisors.

 

[Hakunamatata]

People I tip:
Restaurant servers
People who do hair/nails/etc.
Cruise staff
Valet parking
Bellmen

I do it because it's expected in those industries to leave a gratuity, so not leaving a gratuity is like saying "you suck at your job and I hate you".

I don't tip people in other professions where it's not expected (like housekeeping) just because I feel bad for the amount of wages that I presume the person earns. If I had that mindset, I'd have to tip the person behind the counter at McDonalds and the cashier at Walmart, just because I feel sorry for them. I find that somewhat demeaning and arrogant. It's none of my business what someone else makes and I'm not going to treat a person like a charity case because of my preconceived notions about their income.

I think the best way to pay back someone for good service when they are in a non-tipped position is to fill out a comment card, write a letter, or recognize them in some other way that gets them noticed by their supervisors.

Well said.

 

[psukardi]

I can only relate what we do... about $2.50 US per day, per person. In the US, tips tend to be the major source of income for service personnel - their base salaries alone would not get them out of our defined poverty zone .

Then why doesn't the hotel raise the rate of the room & not have me subsidize their income? Do you tip the person at McDonalds for getting your food? Do you tip the guy @ the mall that helped you with your purchase? I tip, because if I didn't - the wrath of God would come down on me. But tipping is a way for big corporate to legitimize their not paying a true wage to employees

 

[docdebbi]

when my son in law used to drive a limo (working his way through school), the company added a 20% gratutity to every bill. of which he got zip. i didn't think this was legal, but it was the way it was done. only time he got a real tip was when they would tip extra over that.
i never tipped the limo guy extra before, now i know to.
what a racket the owners have.

and i wish @slappy magoo could confirm for me that they pool the tips, because it sure would be easier to leave one just at the end. but i don't want lady B to get the tip that lady A earned all week, so i do it. but if you are sure, man, no more cute little envelopes for me!

 

[eeyoremum]

We don't generally tip but we also don't generally use room service when we travel.

 

[slappy magoo]

So is manual labor, but I don't see people going and tipping the Department Of Transit guy

1: "The Department of Transit guy (whoever he is)" tend to be paid better than Mousekeeping. Many of them might even be union. I know there are private hotel housekeeping/custodial unions, but I also know how muted their presence and effect has become over the years.

2: If "The Department of Transit guy (whoever he is) guy had to do his manual labor in restraints, I'd tip him too. Of course, that would probably mean he's working on a chain gang...may have to rethink that one.

Thanks for adding to the found humor.

 

[fugawe09]

Tipping is a messed up custom in this country, no doubt. The bottom line is that you should tip based on service received where customarily appropriate, not based on how much you think the employee makes. Tipping only because you believe the employee to be poor might even be offensive. Likewise, some of your full-time servers in signature restaurants own multiple homes and roll up in a 7-series. Doesn't mean you shouldn't tip at California Grill.

 

[rob0519]

Tipping is a messed up custom in this country, no doubt. The bottom line is that you should tip based on service received where customarily appropriate, not based on how much you think the employee makes. Tipping only because you believe the employee to be poor might even be offensive. Likewise, some of your full-time servers in signature restaurants own multiple homes and roll up in a 7-series. Doesn't mean you shouldn't tip at California Grill.

In my opinion, I should not be expected to tip a server at California Grill based on food prices for doing the same amount of work as a server at Dennys .

 

[Dwarful]

The only thing that has always baffled me is the way we tip in restaurants. I am not against tipping. But at hotels most people seem to be in agreement that we tip based on the number of people in the room. So, a family of four would leave $4 per night regardless of whether they are staying at a value room (which only has one sink so less to clean) or a moderate which has more floor space and a possible 5th bed at POR (so more to clean) or a deluxe with larger beds, larger rooms, double sinks, larger tables etc., so much more to clean ....Pop vs. Grand Floridian.

But then we go to dining and we say we tip based on the cost of the meal the chef prepares for us, yet the chef isn't getting the tip. If my family of four goes to Location X and has no appetizers, a $18 entrée, drinks ice water only and gets dessert and our bill is $100 I should leave $18 - $20. for that money the waiter brings our drinks, takes our order, brings our food, refills our drinks, checks on us, clears dishes, asks about dessert, brings dessert and refills drinks.

My sister's family of four goes to Location X and has no appetizers, a $25 entrée, drinks soda and gets dessert and her bill is $150 so she should leave $28 - $30. for that money the waiter brings her drinks, takes her order, brings her food, refills her drinks, checks on the family, clears dishes, asks about dessert, brings dessert and refills drinks.

So, in a hotel we place no emphasis on how much guests are spending to determine the tip. But in a dining location the cost of meal determines the cost of the tip and yet the cost of the meal doesn't necessarily relate to service and the wait staff has no control over the cost of the meals.

OK rant is over. I am not saying I agree or disagree with tipping...just saying the whole difference between who and how we tip has always baffled me...even when I was a struggling college student working in a restaurant.

 

[disney4life2008]

I travel a lot for business. I generally will not tip because I generally will have my room refreshed very infrequently and only if the staff of the hotel has been overly courteous or has provided a service above and beyond what I consider expected. Now that being said, I do not have daily room refresh. I can make my own bed and when I need new towels, I just get them from the staff when I need them. I really do not understand the need to tip someone whose job it is to clean my room when I leave that I may never interact with. Its like being expected to tip the person that changes your oil or delivers the mail.

Wait staff in restraints is a different story. You go out of your way to be positive and interact with me, the food is good, and i don't have to hunt you down to get a refill, you probably are going to get close to 30%, but that being said, wait staff don't make the same minimum as that person cleaning the room .

I am with you 100% on everything you said.

 

[Mouse_Trap]

Thanks for all the different views. I'm finding it really interesting to find out about the differences in how people do tip etc and the different culture we have on this.

As a kind of side question, do you find that you give tips frequently on a daily basis and do you find it costs you a lot of money?

I just kind of find myself thinking that some people must give out a lot of money in tips if they leave money every-time to everyone who does something for them.

Just to make my view clear, I find it perfectly normal to tip for above average service. I just find it hard to reconcile tips for standard or even sub-standard service.

I also find knowing who expects tips difficult also - outside the more regular ones and those who only provide a very short minor service which is clearly part of their job.
For instance, the doorman at a busy hotel. Calls a waiting cab forward for you a holds the door open for you.
The server at the supermarket.
Or even

In the UK we have no small value notes, the smallest would be the equivalent of about $8. I think that means we are less likely to tip also, as coins are a little clumsy unless in a restaurant etc where you have a place to leave them. You also rarely see tip boxes left out and even then it probably is only your loose change that people would throw in, a charity box next to a cash register I would say is more common by a thousand times.

 

[BuddyThomas]

Just FYI, I just googled "who to tip" and pretty much every thread that comes up tells you that it is absolutely customary to tip housekeeping.

 

[EOD K9]

Another oddball thing about restraint tipping. I have noticed a trend in some places where the server takes your drink and food order, but someone else brings out your meal. They will ask about dessert and someone else brings it to you. But here we are still tipping the person who basically just asked for your order. Anyone's thoughts on that?

EDIT - This is my 1,500th post.

 

[unkadug]

Another oddball thing about restraint tipping. I have noticed a trend in some places where the server takes your drink and food order, but someone else brings out your meal. They will ask about dessert and someone else brings it to you. But here we are still tipping the person who basically just asked for your order. Anyone's thoughts on that?

EDIT - This is my 1,500th post.

Happy 1,500th post.

Pardon me for asking again...but many people keep referring to restraint tipping.....what is restraint tipping?

Did I miss something somewhere?

 

[BuddyThomas]

Happy 1,500th post.

Pardon me for asking again...but many people keep referring to restraint tipping.....what is restraint tipping?

Did I miss something somewhere?

I have a feeling it is an auto correct thing on their phones.

 

[EOD K9]

Happy 1,500th post.

Pardon me for asking again...but many people keep referring to restraint tipping.....what is restraint tipping?

Did I miss something somewhere?

Someone made mention of servers in restraints (it was typed as restraints when they meant restaurants) and it went off on its own tangent.

 

[unkadug]

Someone made mention of servers in restraints (it was typed as restraints when they meant restaurants) and it went off on its own tangent.

Thanks... so it has become it's own little inside joke on this thread. There must be a dozen references to restraint tipping on this thread.