Using a GC to tip at sit down restaurant

[rwhistler92]

We have loaded up on Target Disney Gift Cards- We really don't want to carry around cash-
Is there anyway to tip using the GC at BB or Carnation Cafe?
I have been getting conflicting information-
Does anyone have any experience with this?
Thanks

 

[Malcon10t]

We have loaded up on Target Disney Gift Cards- We really don't want to carry around cash-
Is there anyway to tip using the GC at BB or Carnation Cafe?
I have been getting conflicting information-
Does anyone have any experience with this?
Thanks

I have plenty of experience, and you cannot put a tip on a gift card. I usually use a gift card for less than the amount and put the extra on my credit card. For example, if the bill is $27, I would give a $25 credit card and put the $2 and tip on my CC. Or leave cash.

When you get the bill, you will put the gift card in the holder. They will take it and bring back the receipt, GC, and a tag that has the balance remaining on the GC. There is no spot to add a tip.

THIS SAID, the character meals that have the tip included (Goofy's, Ariels) should work with the GC.

 

[rwhistler92]

I have plenty of experience, and you cannot put a tip on a gift card. I usually use a gift card for less than the amount and put the extra on my credit card. For example, if the bill is $27, I would give a $25 credit card and put the $2 and tip on my CC. Or leave cash.

When you get the bill, you will put the gift card in the holder. They will take it and bring back the receipt, GC, and a tag that has the balance remaining on the GC. There is no spot to add a tip.

THIS SAID, the character meals that have the tip included (Goofy's, Ariels) should work with the GC.

That is what we are going to do.
Thanks so much

 

[ParkHopper1]

I could see why you could not use it for the traditional payment method of get the check, give server card, server returns card, guest enters tip.

It would seem that you should be able to tell the server to include the tip amount you want and just have them run the card for the total amount when they take the card the first time.

Downside is that you better be leaving a pretty good tip!

 

[aliceindisneyland]

Yes you can put a tip on a Disney gift card; I have done it dozens of times. It shows up with the total+tip amount on the disneygiftcard.com site as well so I know for sure I haven't been stiffing my servers!
Just make sure you don't accidentally use the card again right away and go over the amount you just tipped. For instance, you have a $50 gc, bill is $40, you tip $10 and that's the $50 - but you then take the card and buy a churro - when the server reconciles his tips - oops. Although if I were a DL server you bet I'd run that tip right away! Honestly I'm not sure if that's even possible but I'm always careful not to use the cards I tip on until the next day to be on the safe side.
I just put a little sticker on each GC so it's easy to write the amount left on the card after each transaction - including tips I've entered! And yes there is a spot to enter the tip when the server brings back your receipt for swiping the gc!

 

[Escape2Disney]

We weren't able to put the tip on gift cards at most DLR restaurants. Now I'll take the GC to cover the meal, and cash for the tip.

 

[Malcon10t]

Yes you can put a tip on a Disney gift card; I have done it dozens of times. It shows up with the total+tip amount on the disneygiftcard.com site as well so I know for sure I haven't been stiffing my servers!
Just make sure you don't accidentally use the card again right away and go over the amount you just tipped. For instance, you have a $50 gc, bill is $40, you tip $10 and that's the $50 - but you then take the card and buy a churro - when the server reconciles his tips - oops. Although if I were a DL server you bet I'd run that tip right away! Honestly I'm not sure if that's even possible but I'm always careful not to use the cards I tip on until the next day to be on the safe side.
I just put a little sticker on each GC so it's easy to write the amount left on the card after each transaction - including tips I've entered! And yes there is a spot to enter the tip when the server brings back your receipt for swiping the gc!

Interesting. The times we have asked they have said no.

 

[lana772]

I, also have never been able to pay a tip with a GC.
The PP may know something the rest of us don't, but you had better have an alternative payment method just in case.

 

[aliceindisneyland]

I'm not sure why it would even be a question, or how several folks were misinformed by staff. Your gift card(s) is run through and the server comes back with 3 receipts: 2 credit card style receipts that have a spot to enter a tip (one for you and one for the restaurant) and the third receipt is your itemized bill that will show your method of payment, and that is the receipt that will tell you the balance left on your gift card, and other gift cards you used up fully (most table service will be over $50 and that's the gc denomination I carry.)
If you are worried about dealing with this (though really it has never once been even a hiccup for me) and are staying onsite just pay and tip with your room key, then pay your room balance at the hotel with your gift cards.
Unless DL changed something in their system since May 2013 which is the last visit we went to table service restaurants, you can indeed tip on a gift card. Servers want tips - there's no way anyone is working at a restaurant where one of the main forms of payment doesn't allow them to be tipped unless the guest can scrounge up some cash!

 

[sonnyjane]

I'm not sure why it would even be a question, or how several folks were misinformed by staff. Your gift card(s) is run through and the server comes back with 3 receipts: 2 credit card style receipts that have a spot to enter a tip (one for you and one for the restaurant) and the third receipt is your itemized bill that will show your method of payment, and that is the receipt that will tell you the balance left on your gift card, and other gift cards you used up fully (most table service will be over $50 and that's the gc denomination I carry.)
If you are worried about dealing with this (though really it has never once been even a hiccup for me) and are staying onsite just pay and tip with your room key, then pay your room balance at the hotel with your gift cards.
Unless DL changed something in their system since May 2013 which is the last visit we went to table service restaurants, you can indeed tip on a gift card. Servers want tips - there's no way anyone is working at a restaurant where one of the main forms of payment doesn't allow them to be tipped unless the guest can scrounge up some cash!

I have no experience at Disney, but I can firsthand say that there are other restaurants that don't allow tips on gift cards. Outback is one where I recently encountered this. On the Border is another. I ended up having to order dessert to put us over the amount of the card so that I could put down my debit card and pay the difference and leave a tip on that. In both cases the servers came back after ringing us up to let us know that.

 

[belle10]

My experience at WDW has always allowed me to tip using GC. Now I'm really interested. Anyone know for sure?

 

[tlovesdis]

I do it all the time at Disneyland! I use gift cards for my meals and always leave the tip that way!

 

[aliceindisneyland]

I do it all the time at Disneyland! I use gift cards for my meals and always leave the tip that way!

Thank you! I was starting to think I was crazy! We'll be at GCH for Dapper Days early Sept. and I'll be happy to confirm that you can indeed tip at table service on a Disney gift card; I'll be equally happy to eat my words if I'm wrong. Which I'm not.

 

[cel_disney]

I have no experience at Disney, but I can firsthand say that there are other restaurants that don't allow tips on gift cards. Outback is one where I recently encountered this. On the Border is another. I ended up having to order dessert to put us over the amount of the card so that I could put down my debit card and pay the difference and leave a tip on that. In both cases the servers came back after ringing us up to let us know that.

We use gift cards at these places all the time (we buy the deals at christmas) and Have never had an issue using them for tips??? As long as its not the promotional free extra card thats more like a coupon it's never a problem???

OP - If you are staying on property, you can also just charge everything to your room and pay with your gift cards there - you just need to do it before the last night credit is rung up! We are paying with a Disney rewards card and this will be how I handle our bill. I already have the card so I don't call to transfer the money over until we have 1 day left in our trip and know how much to transfer to cover the bill!

 

[starry_solo]

Last day at DLR was late June 2013 and I was able to put the tip on the gift card. It was the remaining amount on the gift card (like $10) on a $30-ish meal so I just left the gift card with the completed portion of the bill.

 

[Cheshirecatty]

I do it all the time at Disneyland! I use gift cards for my meals and always leave the tip that way!

This has been our experience as well!

 

[aliceindisneyland]

Thank you! I was starting to think I was crazy! We'll be at GCH for Dapper Days early Sept. and I'll be happy to confirm that you can indeed tip at table service on a Disney gift card; I'll be equally happy to eat my words if I'm wrong. Which I'm not.

Quoting myself, and this is a very old thread, but I just came across a gift card on which I wrote the amount I paid for the food, and noted the tip amount as well.
I looked up the info on disneygiftcard.com and it does show that the food total was charged, and 20 minutes later the tip amount was charged. Date was 2/22/14. Can't recall which restaurant - because of the small amount my best guess is Carnation Cafe at breakfast.
So yes, you can leave a tip on a Disney Gift Card!

 

[MommyJKM]

I have never been able to tip on a Gift Card. We always bring $100 cash on our trip's (don't rob us ) in fives and ones for the purpose of tipping. As a former waitress I'm sure it's harder to get your tip at the end of the shift.

If you can afford it - it's nice to leave cash and not worry whether your server is getting it or not.

 

[aliceindisneyland]

I have never been able to tip on a Gift Card. We always bring $100 cash on our trip's (don't rob us ) in fives and ones for the purpose of tipping. As a former waitress I'm sure it's harder to get your tip at the end of the shift.

If you can afford it - it's nice to leave cash and not worry whether your server is getting it or not.

There is no question of whether this works. You add the tip, and the server gets the tip. The only way there could be a problem is if you had a $30 food total and left a $10 tip, then went directly to another store and spent $20 before the server had time to enter the tip. [And clearly they do this ASAP as my tip was entered 20 min after checkout.] It's really not hard to keep track of though. I just carry a Sharpie in my bag and write on the card.
I'm also a former waitress and I used to get tips on gift cards all the time. The point here though is that people have asked whether they can add a tip to a Disney Gift Card. They can.

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

Quoting myself, and this is a very old thread, but I just came across a gift card on which I wrote the amount I paid for the food, and noted the tip amount as well. I looked up the info on disneygiftcard.com and it does show that the food total was charged, and 20 minutes later the tip amount was charged. Date was 2/22/14. Can't recall which restaurant - because of the small amount my best guess is Carnation Cafe at breakfast. So yes, you can leave a tip on a Disney Gift Card!

I realize this is an older thread, but just wanted to confirm that our recent experience has been the same as yours. We were able to do this at BB, CCR & Ariel's. At BB the server asked that we stay until it all rang through (the bill, not his tip), which of course we were going to do. There wasn't a problem with it at all.