Tipping......

[daveemtdave]

I know this has been talked about but I need something cleared up. We are checking in on Sunday and checking out on Saturday - will we have the same person cleaning our room that entire week or different ones. If, we have different ones, how do we make sure the person who is responsible for cleaning our room gets their tip? Do you tip daily??? -- I have never tipped before, in fact, I did not even think about it until I read it here. Also, are CM's who do the tours allowed to recieve tips??? Thank you.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Thank you for the information, BUT what about the people who do the tours. .

I did a fireworks cruise and the CM was unbelievable, made it a really special night. We were the first boat out and the last boat in. I tipped him and he was visibly shocked.

For me tipping is about receiving good service and is not done as a matter of course. Theres is nothing written in law that you have to tip, and I for one dont feel bad if I dont.

 

[SewIn2Disney]

Thank you for the information, BUT what about the people who do the tours. Also, what if you have a CM who goes out of their way to help you.

You are not allowed to tip CM's in the park, even if they go out of their way for you. A note to Guest Relations saying how nice and accomidating they were to you is fine.

 

[cherrynegra]

Before leaving for WDW, I always budget ahead of time and prepare two envelopes. One is for Mousekeeping tips and one is for valet service. I then keep them in the safe in the room and dip into them as needed for the day. That way I'm not scrounging around looking for singles or $5s.

Mousekeeping Tips

I tip a flat $5 per day for 1 to 2 people. If it's more than two people in the room, then I convert to $2 per person. I tip every day because I never know if I'm getting the same mousekeeper or not. If they go out of their way, like leaving towel animals, then I leave a little extra.

Valet Service

When checking in, I tip $2 for taking the car, and then $2 per bag. And then it's the regular $2 for parking the car, and $2 for retrieving the vehicle. However, if it's storming out and they have to run through the rain to get the vehicle, then I usually tip extra for the trouble. I had the fortunate experience of having the same guy handling my vehicle and he was always friendly and he'd ask if I needed directions to a certain park. Very helpful. So then I just doubled my usual tip whenever he would handle my vehicle.

I've been told by people I tend to overtip but I never listen to them. It's hard work working in any part of the service industry dealing with the public and especially cleaning up after them.

 

[djmatthews]

If a person was to tip housekeeping everyday i.e. the morning prior, doesn't it defeat the object of tipping for good service ?

 

[Yellow Shoes]

A note to Guest Relations saying how nice and accomidating they were to you is fine.

..and when you think about it, a complimentary note could be worth far more than the buck or two you might hand them. A file full of such notes could well lead to a promotion.

 

[Dwarful]

we never tip the cms in the park, but I gotta say when we were at WDW for Christmas, on Christmas Day we took in bags of prewrapped candy..minisnickers, skittles, m&m's, etc., and the kids passed them out to just about every CM we ran into! no one refused to take them, everyone seemed pleased and some gave the kids special treats, one gave a pin, at Haunted Mansion they got these little "gold" coins. stickers etc., The other thing that was a HUGE hit..incredibly, were the tupperware containers full of homebaked Christmas cookies. we put them in the basket of the stroller and as we went along the kids would dip into them and people would be like "oh, wow, they've got Christmas cookies" and so we would share w/ cms, other guests etc....it was our little way of keeping a bit of the tradition in our first Christmas at Disney.

question..do you think that the tipping varies at different resorts? I could imagine a big difference between the all stars or pop and say Yacht & Beach or Boardwalk. just wondering...

 

[longfamily]

question..do you think that the tipping varies at different resorts? I could imagine a big difference between the all stars or pop and say Yacht & Beach or Boardwalk. just wondering...

I don't see why it should be different. The employees at all of the resorts regardless of level, do their job with the same effiency. Just because they work at a more expensive/less expensive resort doesn't mean they are worth less/ more

 

[tigsmom]

I don't see why it should be different. The employees at all of the resorts regardless of level, do their job with the same effiency. Just because they work at a more expensive/less expensive resort doesn't mean they are worth less/ more

But maybe the people who stay in the more expensive resorts have a few extra $$ to pass around? Who knows. *shrugs*

 

[Dwarful]

I am thinking along the lines of tigsmom, now we almost always stay at the value resorts but generally tip along the lines of these boards. This trip in May the kids are putting together little goodie bags as well...things like lip balm, mints, lotion etc. along with the Sacajawea (spl??) golden dollars for the tip just to be different.

With that being said my question was because of three things
value guests are more likely to be on a budget
value guests get clean room at a good rate, but not the extras that the higher end resorts get...more towels, plusher towels, towel animals waiting for them when they return etc.,
value resorts get the most "groups" and those kids aren't going to part with their money for tips when it could go for a souvineer. (cheerleaders, baseball, band etc)

remember I tend to go with the value resorts & have been completely happy (if I wasn't I wouldn't come back from Illinois 3 times in one year!) I am just curious if the all stars/pop housekeepers are getting short changed tip wise.

 

[cherrynegra]

Well, I've stayed at the Pop Century and I kept my tipping policy the same there as I did staying at Boardwalk and Animal Kingdom Lodge. I liken it to eating at different restaurants. You have your base tipping rate, 15% to 20%, and then for extra good service you tip more.

 

[lamarvenoy]

Anyone ever seen Reservoir dogs....I like Mr.Pink's tipping logic. :animwink:

 

[longfamily]

I can see where it would be logical that people saying at a deluxe/moderate resort may not be on the same budget as those staying at the value resorts, but I wouldn't think that they feel any more obliged to tip more just becauset that they are staying at a more expensive resort. Why would they want to? Keep up with the Joneses?
The towels are the same at all resorts (if memory serves) and the maids leave little towel animals regardless of resort as well. The bellhops still carry baggage or store it for a later day check in no matter where you stay. I would personally tip everyone the same thing regardless of which resort they are working in.

I agree with the $1 per bag for bellhops and $1 per person per day for maid service regardless of resort.

 

[crazycalf]

The towels are just as bad at deluxe as they are at values. Disney needs to invest in some fabric softener. At least I'll be bringing my own towels next trip, DVC.

I also think that housekeeping gave me more towel animals at the values than the deluxes. But the cruise made the most.

All of the people that should be tipped, should be given a better hourly rate, so tipping isn't essentially required. You are already paying a lot for a hotel room, disney or any other hotel owner can afford to pay these people more.

Also, from what I understand, non tippable positions, such as a cashier, can accept a tip if the guest refuses to take no for an answer. However, they then have to give the money to their management. Hopefully it is then donated but i'm a little unsure about. Also, if they are tipped with a gift, they have to pay the management the value of the gift or give the gift to them.
Anyway, what i'm trying to say is that tipping non-tippable positions is not really helping that CM. Write a praise note at guest services or an email

 

[crazycalf]

I can see where it would be logical that people saying at a deluxe/moderate resort may not be on the same budget as those staying at the value resorts, but I wouldn't think that they feel any more obliged to tip more just becauset that they are staying at a more expensive resort. Why would they want to? Keep up with the Joneses?

I don't feel like I should tip more while staying at a deluxe instead of a value. But some people who stay deluxe have more disposable income, so $20 to them may be like $10 to me. Then again, you could have a very rich person staying at a deluxe that does not tip very well.

 

[crazycalf]

One more thing, everyone with DDE, the tip you give should be figured out by the original amount before discounts. So if you have a $100 bill that comes out to $80 after your discount, you should figure out your tip on the $100.

I've heard that some cast members have been getting low tips, it may be based on service, but who knows. Disney can always change the DDE to include an automatic tip or get rid of it alltogether.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Im sorry but Ill tip what I want when I want. Atthe end of the day it is the customers discresion. If their not happy with that add a service charge in the cost of the meal.


I mean tipping a bar tender for a beer get real!!

 

[crazycalf]

People can tip whatever they want, but it is custumary in the US to tip a waiter/waitress 15 to 20%.
You don't have to follow it, if you don't want to. You can always tip more or less.
Like I said before, they should be given a better hourly wage. But currently, they aren't.

 

[ClemsonTigger]

We were just having this conversation the other night...

While tipping should be the same, unfortunately with the overall cost of the vacation, I feel that many make up for it in tipping while at WDW. Likewise, at value restaurants at home (Red Lobster, Appleby's, Chili's etc) people looking for the less expensive menu's (and enduring hour or so waits) are likely to skimp on tips.

With that said, all I can control is what I do, and having done my stint in food service [many moons ago] I will always recognize service appropriately.

Thread drift, but everyone should be required to work at least six months in food service as part of their schooling, and I think there would be a lot more respect for the work these folks do! :zipit:

 

[djmatthews]

Thread drift, but everyone should be required to work at least six months in food service as part of their schooling, and I think there would be a lot more respect for the work these folks do! :zipit:

I like that idea.

I have worked in catering for a number of years to support myself as a student. It’s because of this that I don't tip unnecessarily. I will tip for good service, and I know what good service is. I wont tip for the sake of tipping, this defeats the whole object.

Tipping bar staff is an interesting one. In the US it is customary; however, would you tip someone who served you in McDonalds? Effectively the server is doing the same thing, you hand over money, and they give you a product.

 

[crazycalf]

While I don't know what bartenders make. Waiters/Waitress are paid below minimum wage because the resturant figures that they will be tipped to make it over min wage. and I assume that is the law with min wage.

A bartender does not always just hand you something. Some people do order mixed drinks.