Tipping Characters?

[montblanc]

It seems that there is no system for tipping characters in WDW. Given the lower end salaries they make would it be a good idea?

Obviously it would be awkward to give them money directly but perhaps there could be some way to contribute to a general fund? I just feel bad for them standing in very hot conditions and sometimes having to put up with less than ideal children.

I believe it would motivate them and keep the enthusiasm going longer. We tip bellhops, waitors/waitresses, valet parking staff and people who clean our rooms, maybe I'm going too far?

Thanks..

 

[GeekChic]

hmmm, in my family's 44 trips i've never seen anyone tip a character...i don't think they'd be allowed to accept it, would they? wonder if anyone knows for sure.

i would think that maybe it would mean a lot to them to get a note from you after the fact; if there was a character who went out of their way, i would ask the hotel manager where to send it; put on it the date and time and exact location of the character interaction; i have heard that messages like that do get to the cast and it means a lot to them to know they're doing a good job.

just a thought!
geek

 

[skiwee1]

LOL! I could just see Minnie with an apron on with big pockets and little kids stuffing dollar bills in it. Characters will never be a tipped position.

 

[montblanc]

Gahh...please read my thread more carefully. I am not suggesting tipping directly to the characters! Lol.....

 

[The Sweetness]

Just tuck the $$ into the costume, like an adult would do a stripper

 

[LisaZoe]

Sorry, when I saw the thread title, my first thought was
"Character Tipping" like "Cow tipping"... much different than your intent.

 

[TDC Nala]

I can't believe we're talking about tipping the characters. Just the thought of seeing someone handing cash to Mickey in the park is pretty funny.

Although I did once see someone stick a Disney Dollar into dashing aviator Hathaway Browne's boot during an Adventurers Club show.

He laughed and gave it back.

Seriously, I think even the park "fuzzy head" characters make at least minimum wage.

 

[montblanc]

You guys are funny lol...

 

[The Sweetness]

I totally understand! But I just got the funniest image in my mind

 

[AngieBelle]

Characters aren't allowed to accept anything of monetary value, but greatly appreciate notes and other little tokens of appreciation.

 

[FatCow]

Originally posted by AngieBelle
...and other little tokens of appreciation.

Such as? Any "little token" will have somekind of monetary value.

 

[HugsForEeyore]

Actually, I had two characters imply that they wanted money from me for their autographs! Both Sheriff of Nottingham did that, and also Scrooge McDuck!

OK, OK - I know they were just "in character" since the characters they play are very greedy! They both eventually signed without monetary incentive! My nephew thought it was very funny!

 

[FatCow]

Originally posted by HugsForEeyore
Actually, I had two characters imply that they wanted money from me for their autographs! Both Sheriff of Nottingham did that, and also Scrooge McDuck!

Where did you meet Scrooge and Sheriff? I've never seen them all my life.

 

[HugsForEeyore]

Fatcow said:

Where did you meet Scrooge and Sheriff? I've never seen them all my life.

I seen Sheriff of Nottingham many times at Magic Kingdom. We usually see him right when we enter Magic Kingdom, and occassionally at the ToonTown Train Station.

Scrooge, on other hand, we only met at the Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom. I don't think he makes many appearances on "normal" park days. He is super rare!
We were pretty surprised to find him!

 

[trola2]

why not just hand my money directly to Mickey? He ends up with a big chunk of it anyway!!

~~Beth

 

[AngieBelle]

I meant like postcards, pictures, drawings, fruitsnacks (yes, Suzy and Perla once got fruitsnacks!), simple homemade items...etc

 

[dvcfamily41801]

We had amazing character experiences in April when we were there. So many of them went above and beyond any expectations for us. We apprectiated them so much. We bought 10 dozen flowers for the Princesses and a balloon for Aladdin. It was so incredible what they did and how special we felt. We can not wait to see all of our friends in October.

 

[tjkraz]

Originally posted by montblanc
It seems that there is no system for tipping characters in WDW. Given the lower end salaries they make would it be a good idea?

I don't think it is necessarily accurate to assume that the characters are low-paying positions. We took the Keys to the Kingdom tour back in May and one of the people in our group started asking questions about salaries. Without going into details (thankfully!) our tour guide indicated that there are compensation guidelines in place for the performers, and that it's based upon things like the duration of the appearance, level of interaction with guests, and so on.

Additionally, each perfomer must meet specific physical characteristics (height, weight) appropriate to their part.

I would venture to guess that the character performers--particularly the "face" characters--are among the best compensated Cast Member positions at the theme parks.

 

[detroitdad]

I would venture to guess that the character performers--particularly the "face" characters--are among the best compensated Cast Member positions at the theme parks. [/B][/QUOTE]


Perhaps it depends on if you are in a parade/show vs just meet and greets. My neice is a face character at Disneyland (Snow White/Cinderella) and if memory serves she gets paid about $10-12/hr. Disneyworld pays less.. She was paid extremely well though when she worked at Disney Tokyo.

 

[tink44]

Originally posted by LisaZoe
Sorry, when I saw the thread title, my first thought was
"Character Tipping" like "Cow tipping"... much different than your intent.

Oops, me too!
:space: