Mousekeeping Tips?

[Tiggerlovinggrandma]

Just was wondering:
Does everyone tip mousekeeping for cleaning their rooms? If you don't, why not?

What is the usual amount you give?

Do you tip daily or the day you leave?

Do you use tip envelopes?

Do you ever ask for special requests during your stay such as changing the sheets, daily vacuming, etc?

As for us. DH and I usually tip wherever we stay unless the sevice is really terrible. We tend to tip daily because the roomkeepers have been known to chang on us. I like the idea I have received on the boards about tip envelopes. It is a cute idea and adds a little something special which is alwasy nice. I think it also lets the mousekeepers know we have thought of them too and appreciate what they do in making sure we have a pleasent stay. So I will be making a few of these up later on.
Anyway was wondering what everyone else does concerning this?

 

[4-for-Disney]

When we went, I made up envelopes for each day we were there with different designs on them. I left a dollar for each family member so for example if there are 5 of you, you leave $5 per day. The kids always received the towel animals or characters. It was really nice.

 

[EnchantedPrincess]

yes, we usually tip mousekeeping each day, and during our last trip (couple weeks ago), I left the tip in a tip envelope the first day but when we came back to our room, we found the tip still in there. So I just started putting the money on top of the envelope. There are 4 of us, and we tip $10 per night.

 

[Zoo Keeper]

We leave a tip every morning. Usually $1 per person. I usually make up the tip envelopes and fill them prior to leaving home. Last year, I found Disney post-it's so I left them with a thank you every day along with the tip.

Occassionally I ask for extra towels (more often washcloths) and there has always been a pile waiting for us when we returned to the room.

I have never had a complaint about mousekeeping. It's a tough job and I appreciate their hard work to make our stays more magical.

 

[bcbmom]

We made our envelopes & have them filled already and our trip isn't until September! We added $5 per day, for a family of 5.

 

[OKW Lover]

We usually do not tip mousekeeping. Their job is not considered a tipped position by Disney so they get paid a higher wage than the tipped positions. However, if they do something special for us, then they do get a tip.

 

[disnut8]

We used to but lately have been finding the tips not taken. I don't know exactly why but have a pretty good idea so not going to say "because of this".

At any other hotel, we do tip every day. We have also tried, unsuccessfully, to not have any housekeeping services for the day (we are two people, there are four towels, we can make our own bed). It seemed to almost insult the housekeeping staff. Kind of like going to a restaurant and telling your server that, thank you very much, we'll get our own food from the kitchen.

 

[xbonnie38]

Okay I may be being mean about this but I have to reply to the above post about not tipping because this is not considered a tipped position at Disny. And as a Former House Keeper and as a Current Maintenance worker in a school (cleaning Rooms).
Do You realize how Thankless this job is, not only are these people changing your dirty sheets that you have done god knows what on , but they are also washing out the toliets,, sinks and showers that people also do God knows what On.
Do you think they are making 15.00 and hour for this ? Yes maybe they are making 8.50 and hour or so hopefully it is more than minimun wage there.

And yes in life we all have choices as to what we aspire to be and how much money we would like to make earning a living . But lets face it , if it wasnt for the people who clean the rooms , clean the parks, pick up garbage you know the Thankless Jobs , who would want to go on vacation if they had to do it themselves.

And why would you tip someone bringing you food but not someone Who Cleaned Your Room?

This makes no sense to me. I Tip leave 5.00 a day for whatever size family we are we are not above 3 people but if we were I would leave more. I tip the person who dries my car after I go through the car wash and I tip my server, and if someone helps me take something heavy to my car I will tip that person a dollar. And I am not a rich person hello I work in a school system I am just trying to be a courteous one who thinks the little person deserves there fare share also. NOW I WILL GET OFF MY SOAPBOX!

Sorry if I offended anyone.

 

[prettypixie]

I normally don't tip b/c I normally don't request housekeeping during my stay. If I need more towels I generally just call to ask for them or if I need my trash taken out I bag it myself and give it to housekeeping. It has been my experience that housekeeing would generally come around when we were taking our mid-day breaks anyway so it never would work out for us anyway.

 

[maxiesmom]

I usually tip each day, and then it is a dollar for each person in the room. On my last trip 6 of us were in an All-Star Suite, so I tipped $6 each day. My
7yr old niece decorated some envelopes, labeled them Mousekeeping, and we left those out each morning. The first day when we got back, my niece had been left some stickers, and a note thanking her.

 

[perla75]

Okay I may be being mean about this but I have to reply to the above post about not tipping because this is not considered a tipped position at Disny. And as a Former House Keeper and as a Current Maintenance worker in a school (cleaning Rooms).
Do You realize how Thankless this job is, not only are these people changing your dirty sheets that you have done god knows what on , but they are also washing out the toliets,, sinks and showers that people also do God knows what On.
Do you think they are making 15.00 and hour for this ? Yes maybe they are making 8.50 and hour or so hopefully it is more than minimun wage there.

And yes in life we all have choices as to what we aspire to be and how much money we would like to make earning a living . But lets face it , if it wasnt for the people who clean the rooms , clean the parks, pick up garbage you know the Thankless Jobs , who would want to go on vacation if they had to do it themselves.

And why would you tip someone bringing you food but not someone Who Cleaned Your Room?

This makes no sense to me. I Tip leave 5.00 a day for whatever size family we are we are not above 3 people but if we were I would leave more. I tip the person who dries my car after I go through the car wash and I tip my server, and if someone helps me take something heavy to my car I will tip that person a dollar. And I am not a rich person hello I work in a school system I am just trying to be a courteous one who thinks the little person deserves there fare share also. NOW I WILL GET OFF MY SOAPBOX!

Sorry if I offended anyone.

Well, I am usually the first to defend tipping, but I had to just post a response here. No offense taken by the way!

There are, unfortunately, plenty of thankless jobs in this world that go without tipping or any form of appreciation. For 4 years, I worked in a hospital school for students with severe physical and behavioral handicaps and got paid $8.00/hour to basically change diapers or students ages 4-21 years old, hook up g-tube feeds, clean up vomit, etc...It was a rewarding job in other ways, but we certainly received no tips, no Christmas bonuses-nor did we ask for or expect these things. My point here is there are plenty of jobs out there that are non-tipped positions that deserve plenty of thanks and applause, but a non-tipped position should not expect a tip. There's a show on tv called "Dirty Jobs" that showcases plenty of jobs that are not the most desirable and my guess is many of them don't receive or expect tips.

That said, the only time I would ever not tip a housekeeper at a hotel would be: a) if they clearly did not do their job or b) if I did not have enough money to pay a fair tip to the waiter at the restaurant I was eating at that night.

For people on a budget (like myself), my very first priority is making sure I have enough money to pay waiters & bellhops their appropriate tip because it's a tipped position & it's expected that I tip them. We always make sure we have enough to tip our housekeeper as well, but if we didn't have enough money to cover it every day, I wouldn't feel too terrible about it because it's a non-tipped position.

Just my 2 cents. I do think that housekeepers at any hotel have their hands full with their job & I appreciate their hard work!

ETA: Just a little note for any newbies-don't expect the cute towel animals regardless of the tips you leave. I don't think it necessarily has anything to do with the tip you are leaving. It's dependent upon which mousekeeper you get.
During our last trip, we left $5/day in the cute printed out WDW envelopes for just DF & myself, we left our rooms pretty clean, and only received the towel animals during our arrival at each resort we stayed at (we did a split-stay). Our mousekeeper still did a terrific job making sure our room was clean and well stocked and we were happy.
Sometimes I hear people on here complain that they left a tip but received no towel animals & they get angry. I don't think the two are necessarily always related-depends on the mousekeeper you get.

 

[kadesha]

My kids make cute envelopes for leaving tips. We leave a few dollars a day. On our last trip, we forgot one day because we were in a rush to get out of the room, and that was the only day we received a towel animal. (aside from the one that was in the room at check-in) Ironic huh?

 

[SwirlyGirly]

We tipped $5/night the first two days of our trip, but our room was so poorly taken care of that I finally called to say that our toilet had never been cleaned, our sheets were not changed, our toiletries were not replenished and the dead bugs that were in our room when we arrived were still there. They came and cleaned our room that day and did a better, but still pretty poor job. I reluctantly tipped the remaining days. We never received any towel animals and my kids' stuffed animals that they brought were unceremoniously dumped on the computer desk in a big lump everyday when mouse-keeping "made" the beds. The dead bugs were sill in place when we left. We stayed on the club level of the Contemporary (other than Mousekeeping, we were delighted w/ the hotel).

 

[PeterAll]

I always leave a generous tip an envelope but sometimes they refuse to take it because I find it where i left it and then i'm like oh yes another mickey bar for me!!

 

[PeterAll]

We never received any towel animals and my kids' stuffed animals that they brought were unceremoniously dumped on the computer desk in a big lump everyday when mouse-keeping "made" the beds.

I so hate that! If they are going to move them at least they can set them in a nice circle or something.

 

[lvvacation]

Where can I find these envelopes that you are all using?

 

[tiger4me2]

We have always had good service from Mousekeeping & always left good tips. I met a few that has done our rooms & became friends with them. Send cards each year at Christmas time When I go solo I normally don't want housekeeping other than having my bathroom clean or if it doesn't really need it I just ask for towels to replace my used ones. The day I checkout. They came up to me & gave me the biggest hug I could get. Thanking me for making their job go by faster. One less room to clean so to speak. They have a hard job maybe not to some but it is a hard job.

 

[jeffbear]

Here's a real tip ... don't shove 20 bucks halfway under a lamp. The last two times I've checked into a room at a Disney resort I've found money tucked away in such a manner and been forced to find somebody in Mousekeeping to off-load the cash.

Mark the envelope "TIP" or something.

 

[shaunaluvsdisney]

Just an FYI-unless you place your tip in something that has mousekeeping tip or tip written on it the mousekeepers are unable to take it. It must be clearly marked/designated for them.

 

[tiger4me2]

I just leave my tip on the bathroom counter with a note saying thanks. Always get a note back saying thanks !