Tipping?

[PamOKW]

I know if I'm sitting on a bar stool at a crowded pub,that first tip for the first round pays huge dividends the rest of the night

I've found the same principle to work with housekeeping.

 

[ralphd]

Again Pam and burnsoc- I think you have expressed my feelings.
I do not believe housekeepers are overpaid at any hotel chain(including Marriott, Hyatt or Hilton), therefore I also feel like it is proper to tip when we expect to receive/or do receive good service.
We have always been satisfied with the service we have received at the DVC resorts.

ralphd

 

[DVCgrace]

Originally posted by ReneeQ
I have never tipped housekeeping, DVC or otherwise, for cleaning. I do tip if I REQUEST an item that isn't usually in the room, like a toaster, a larger coffee maker, etc. But if something is supposed to be in the room and is missing, I do not tip when they bring it, as it should have been there in the first place.

I agree -

I have never tipped while staying at any of the DVC resorts and we've been members for almost 11 years now. DVC housekeepers are paid very nicely especially when, as owners, we are the daily housekeepers!

 

[eva]

It is very interesting to see a number of people talk about how much houskeeping at a DVC resort is paid. As of yet I have not read where anyone has posted how musch a houskeeper there even makes. How do we know it is substantial? Does someone have an inside scoop? They may not be cleaning your room every day, but they did get your room cleaned before you checked-in. And I am sure that they are cleaning rooms every day. I bet that it takes as much time and trouble to clean a 2-bedroom one time as it does to clean a regular hotel room for an entire week. I still think that it is a personal decision to tip or not. Just like it is a personal decision whether to tip the waiter at restaurant or not.

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by eva
It is very interesting to see a number of people talk about how much houskeeping at a DVC resort is paid. As of yet I have not read where anyone has posted how musch a houskeeper there even makes. How do we know it is substantial? Does someone have an inside scoop? They may not be cleaning your room every day, but they did get your room cleaned before you checked-in. And I am sure that they are cleaning rooms every day. I bet that it takes as much time and trouble to clean a 2-bedroom one time as it does to clean a regular hotel room for an entire week. I still think that it is a personal decision to tip or not. Just like it is a personal decision whether to tip the waiter at restaurant or not.

True Eva, it is a personal decision, but there is a difference in tipping someone who's employers assumes they will be tipped and pays them according vs the opposite. I don't know what the housekeeping staff makes nor is it my business. WDW in general tends to pay on the low side and give great benefits but I'm sure there are a lot of exceptions to this as well. If one wants to tip, that's fine. I will not be tipping for normal service but will continue to clean up at the end and tip for any special service the same as I would tip "extra" for a waiter, etc who did an outstanding job. I will also tip accordingly if what I've done will cause them extra work beyond the usual regular cleanings required.

 

[Lyndarella]

I've worked several places in housekeeping and never expected or received a tip. We were always paid minimum wage or more. Of course that was a long time ago. . .

Also, when waitressing at Pizza Hut (in the '80s) we were paid WAY less than minimum wage. The employer was expected to make up for absent tips so that you would not take home less than minimum wage each day. Therefore, we were watched and questioned relentlessly for how much we made in tips. As we did not have to share our tips with anyone, I thought it was no one's business how much I made in tips, so I always reported very little. My employer and I did not like the way each other did business, so we parted company in a short time.

Tipping is for good service that has been performed. If you leave a tip for a housekeeper when you check out, you don't know if she does a good job cleaning after you leave or not. You are not leaving the tip for the person you liked so well a few days ago, as she is not likely to be the one coming in after you're gone. There is a large staff, different each day, and they circulate among rooms. At least that's the way it was everywhere I worked.

 

[Homesick]

I usually leave a tip for housekeeping on checkout day also, but on our last visit to OKW if Feb., when we arrived at our room, the bellhop came in with us, and did a walk thru. It was a 2 bdrm, and he walked into each room. I assumed this was to check the condition of the room, or see if anything was missing. But on checkout day I left my tip for housekeeping in the master bathroom. We happened to get the same bellhop, and this time he did his walk thru, after we had exited the room, and were waiting outside. I had to wonder if he left the tip for the housekeeper, or helped himself to it. Is this standard procedure for bellhops now? This is the first time its happened to us.

 

[BobH]

To quote my 2001 edition of Birnbaum's WDW Guide "Tips are no less valued at Walt Disney World Resorts than any other hotel -
...$1 to $2 per night for housekeeping services... I can't imagine the staff would not appreciate a gesture of appreciation. My opinion.

 

[mistermouse]

We routinely tip housekeeping wherever we stay - generally it is in recognition of the reailty that we are being served on a personal level by workers less fortunate than ourselves. Housekeeping at Disney has always been well above average and we appreciate it. But I must admit our tipping averages only about $1-2 per day, we haven't graduated to the $5/day level

I had not of thought of it, but Joecodepoti's recognition of the housekeepers service sounds like a great idea;

Call me stupid but... I always tip the maid that takes care of my room WHEN I CHECK IN. I ask the front desk the maids name and when I find her (this whole process takes 5 minutes) I give her a $20.00 bill and tell her my room number..You would not believe the service I get

.

We have a hard time understanding some people's relunctance to tip in many situations, but have learned not to really question it. We are always happy to tip for both common and good service; resort and hotel housekeeping is no exception.

 

[bicker]

I think the true distinction is being missed by many in this thread:

In the United States, it is expected that restaurant servers will get tips, unless the restaurant posts a policy to the contrary.

In the United States, there is NO reliable expectation as it pertains to the tipping of housekeepers. Unlike restaurant servers, (roughly) half of housekeepers are paid in expectation of tips, while the other (roughly) half are not. Disney's housekeepers fall into the latter category.

In either case, restaurant servers or housekeepers, it is STILL up to the patron whether and how much to tip. The difference is that in the case of restaurant servers, the social expectation is always there, while with housekeepers it isn't always there.

IMHO, with respect to restaurant servers, mistermouse's interest in the cause of the "reluctance" to tip is warranted, while with respect to housekeepers (at Marriott and Disney hotels, at least) that interest isn't warranted -- the answer is simple: They're not supposed to be tipped.

One last thing: Given that there are housekeepers that are paid less based on an expectation that they will receive tips and there are housekeepers who are paid more based on the expectation that they won't be tipped, if you tip regardless, do you tip the former MORE than you tip the latter? Shouldn't you? Don't the two work just as hard? Shouldn't they end up getting the same amount of money for the same work?

 

[Nanajo1]

I look at my stay at my"home away home" as a different category for tipping housekeeping.
If on T+T day I ask for something extra, towels, soap etc. I would leave a tip. Last trip the housekeeper was very attentive and I gave her $3 on T+T. She acted surprised to get it. On check out I usually leave $20 or so depending on room size and LOS. My unit was clean when I arrived and needs to be cleaned when I leave.
If we are staying in a HOTEL I tip $1/pp per night. If it is a short stay I tip at the end but if it is more than 3 days I tip in the middle and at the end. I don't worry about it being the same person, I figure it all works out for the housekeepers in the end.

 

[PamOKW]

In the United States, there is NO reliable expectation as it pertains to the tipping of housekeepers.

We can go round and round on this question. I respectfully disagree with the notion that it is unusual to tip housekeeping. All my life my father has always left a tip for the maid in any hotel where we have stayed just as a tip was left for the servers in restaurants. Maybe experiences in other parts of the country are different but I have always considered the tip as part of travel expenses just as I know if I use a valet or a bellhop a tip would also be expected.

I do not ask the base salary of any housekeeper or waiter before I leave their tip. That is a far-fetched notion. Don't the waitstaffs at Rainforest Cafe and at California Grill do roughly the same amount of work? However, my bill at CG will probably be higher than at RF and the tip left will be higher because it is based on a percentage of the bill. They are paid differently for the same work.

 

[BobH]

It seems to me that this lengthy discussion of "tipping rules" just confirms the fact that there are many ways of looking at this issue. My feeling is that it is completely appropriate to tip if you have a good experience. It doesn't matter whether you are a regular "hotel guest" or a DVC owner.

 

[POLLY ANN]

Well, we stayed in a GV last year and on T&T day, we left $10, when we left at the end of our vacation we left $20.

I like my place CLEAN!

 

[KNWVIKING]

Amazing. Four pages of posts based on a 23 word question about tipping. I guess we've all got WAYYYY too much time on our hands.

 

[bicker]

Originally posted by PamOKW
We can go round and round on this question. I respectfully disagree with the notion that it is unusual to tip housekeeping.

Just re-read this thread: It is uncontrovertible that there are a significant number of people who were totally unaware that tipping is appropriate for hotel housekeepers; that's vastly different from restaurant servers where just about everyone knows that they're supposed to be tipped, even if the poster elects not to. I was as surprised about it as you are when I participated in my first few online discusssions about this.

All my life my father has always left a tip for the maid in any hotel where we have stayed just as a tip was left for the servers in restaurants.

As did I.

Maybe experiences in other parts of the country are different

Precisely... that's the point.

 

[ohiominnie]

Originally posted by bicker
It is uncontrovertible that there are a significant number of people who were totally unaware that tipping is appropriate for hotel housekeepers

Uncontrovertible? Looked it up at m-w.com and can't find it. help!


Tipping for a job well done is completely understandable. I don't understand the tipping IN ADVANCE. By doing that are you then expecting BETTER service than anyone else gets? Shouldn't everyone get the same great service? Then what happens if you tip in advance and then get "regular" service? Are you disappointed? Long for a refund of part of your tip?

 

[KNWVIKING]

Try INcontrovertable.

 

[ohiominnie]

Thx. Your spelling was a little off, but m-w got close and I got the rest of the way.

 

[deerh]

Interesting thread. We as a family usually do not tip. HOWEVER, we make the maid/housekeeping staff do less. Before we leave, we pile all the dirty linen in a corner in the bathroom, and clean up before we leave. We do not use the vac or etc, but we will load the dishwasher and start it, clean the kitchen (if so equipped), etc. We try to make their lives a little easier for them anyway. I DO tip for extra things we may need, or things of that nature above and beyond the "normal' housekeeping duties.
Just my .02 cents worth......
deerh