Tipping Housekeeping...

[SalandJeff]

When you're staying at your home resort as DVC member, how do you tip for "trash & towel" service?

Do you tip as though you were receiving housekeeping every night of your stay?

 

[wdwnut]

hi: we usually leave $4-5 on t & t day and $15-20 on the last day. we usually have a 1br or larger unit.

 

[Werner Weiss]

There's been a recent thread on this subject:

http://www.disboards.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=101972

I think wdwnut is very generous. My guess is that most DVC members don't tip housekeeping at all, and that others leave $2-5 on the morning of checkout.

When staying multiple nights at a regular hotel with dailiy housekeeping, we always tip housekeeping each day by leaving some dollar bills on a pillow on the master bed. The number of bills that we leave varies by the type of hotel room, location, and service level.

But a timeshare condo isn't a regular hotel. It's clean at check-in. And you typically don't get housekeeping during your stay. Obviously, someone cleans up after you check out to get the unit ready for the next guests.

Yes, my wife and I leave a tip on the morning of checkout, but I've never even considered leaving a tip for the Trash & towel service. It's such a minimal service.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I must agree with werner.

In fact, my husband's business discourages thier employees from tipping housekeeping in hotels. Some hotel establishments also discourage it. It leads to hosekeepers "looking" for money that may not have been intended for them.

 

[rbuzzotta]

We left a tip on T & T day at OKW last July. I thought it was a BIG mistake because they never emptied our trash (we had too) and they left the dirty towels and just put the clean one's on the sofa. We left an envelope for "Housekeeping" on the T.V. Island in the living room (on T & T day), they took it but didn't do what they were suppose to!!! We didn't stay long enough for a full cleaning. If I do in the future, I will not leave a tip ahead of time!!! I will tip according to the type of service I get.

 

[CarolMN]

We never tip for Trash & Towel. So far, I am not very impressed with that service anyway. We've never yet gotten the correct number of towels for our unit size and sometimes they forget to empty the waste baskets in the bathrooms.

We do leave a minimal tip at the end of our stay ($2-3/person/stay), but we also leave the room in very good condition. I know I could have our vacated room sparkling clean and ready for the next guest in about 45 minutes (and I am by no means a professional! LOL)

 

[PamOKW]

I tip along the same lines as WDWNut. I balance it against what I would tip in a hotel room vs. staying in larger accomodations at DVC. I would hate for the DVC resorts to not attract the top housekeeping staff because they would get better tips elsewhere at WDW.

 

[KNWVIKING]

.... then I am for poor service. We have never had what I would consider good house keeping at OKW or BWV.Like others have stated- trash cans not emptied,not enough towels,etc. Also, show of hands, how many enjoy the early morning phone calls & door knocks on check out day ?? We really don't like anyone entering our room when we're not there. For the work they actually do on T&T day,I'd rather carry my own trash out and pick up Fresh towels at the front desk. If when we check into our room we find the maid had done an excellent job getting it prepared for us,then we leave a tip when we check out. But for the small amount of work they do on T&T day we don't tip.

 

[PamOKW]

then I am for poor service

Maybe I've been lucky but I've had very good service from Housekeeping ranging from adequate to excellent but never poor. I've also found them to be willing to go the extra mile when asked for something.

If I received poor service, I wouldn't tip. However, I feel that maybe tipping helps to maintain a higher calibre of employee at the resorts.

 

[ceejay13]

We also have had very good luck with housekeeping and tipped $10 both at T&T day and on full housekeeping. On the full housekeeping, we asked for additonal towels as we were having visitors for the weekend. We had a 2 bdr and were left more towels than we ever needed. They did any excellent job cleaning and left a note thanking us for the tip. This was all on our last trip in December to OKW. I feel that the housekeepers work very hard for the money they receive and always feel good about leaving a tip.

 

[SalandJeff]

Thanks everyone for your input. Apparently opinions on this are quite varied.

When staying at any Disney resort we've always tipped about $4 per nite, leaving the tip at the end of our stay.

We got back from our 1st DVC trip in September and I hadn't thought to ask about this before going. We stayed in a one bedroom and when we arrived room was in good shape, but had the bare minimum of towels (I'm sorry but 2 washcloths for 2 adults for 4 days is just ridiculous!), tissues (an almost empty box) and toilet tissue. My husband had to actually go to the housekeeping cart in the hall in the morning for toilet tissue.

Surprisingly, on our trash & towel day, we were left with an overabundance of towels. I think this was to ensure a good tip. The trash was all taken care of as well as the used towels. When we left that room the next night, we left $10, but I felt like it wasn't enough.

Our last night, we moved to a studio which had a dirty microwave. No tip for that night.

 

[Dean]

I think it's unreasonable to tip for service that is not provided to you. I can see tipping for T & T as long as they do a good job. I would certainly tip appropriately for daily or interim cleanings where you actually get the benefit. If you leave a larger than usual mess, then one certainly should tip. We usually strip the beds and pile the sheets and towels in separate piles near the door at check out.

I personally draw a line between whether the housekeeping staff is cleaning up my mess or just doing what they were hired to do. For T & T and a final cleaning at the end, their only doing their job. Now if they do something extra for you, that's another matter. One issue I'd be careful about is if they give you something that's outside the rules. Lets say they give you extra towels but don't charge you and you tip them. That could be seen as essentially a bribe or under the table transaction and could put their job in jeopardy.

DVC has never encouraged tipping and have actualy discouraged it at times. By this I mean that I've asked about it several times and always been told it wasn't needed, necessary and that is was actually inappropriate. Our dues go to pay for this service and I wonder if in the long run, it's not detrimental.

 

[wdwnut]

hi: just to add this little note- i've always had great housekeeping service at bwv- AND they don't always take the tip on t &t day. i will always stop and chat or at least say hello to housekeeping when we are in the halls together and haven't ever had to worry about just getting the bare minimum of towels, tisssues, etc. last may, i stopped back at the room for something during the middle of the day, and found the head of housekeeping guarding my door. when they did t & t, the housekeeper noticed the door wasn't locking correctly. they watched the room until maintainance had the lock fixed and it worked properly. most of these people work just as hard(if not harder) than we do, and deserve a little extra. this is just my opinion.

 

[Disnydad]

We do not tip while at a DVC resort. Heck, we are the one's making the beds, washing the towels, picking up, taking out trash and vacuming most days.

 

[Tiggeriffic]

I realize that they aren't cleaning while most people are staying there. However, housekeeping does clean the room before you get there and after you leave. I figure that they should at least be tipped for cleaning up one of these times. When I stay in a hotel for only one night I still leave a tip for housekeeping even though they haven't cleaned up while I was staying there. Given that I think they deserve to be tipped, I also adjust the amount of the tip based on the size of the unit. The last time we stayed 6 nights in a 2 bedroom I left $20 at the end of the stay. Maybe I'm just generous, but I felt that they had done a good job cleaning before I checked in and wanted to make sure that they knew it was appreciated.

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

I usually don't tip at hotels for a single nights stay. When in a timeshare I tip based upon the size mess I've made. For a studio...sorry you aren't getting much. I'd rather not get T&T and in fact I cancelled it on my first trip home. Just leave a bundle of towels at my door.

For a unit with a kitchen I'll leave a tip that would equate to staying in a Holiday Inn for that number of nights. For a unit that has a kitchen & a half something a bit larger.

I also strip & heap the linens in easily accessible piles & generally seek to make sure the staff has ample time to clean the bath & kitchens.

 

[ducklite]

Maybe I've just been really lucky...

But I've always gotten great service on trash n towel. They leave the towels situated where the fresh ones were on check in day, sometimes they even leave a few extra! They also have in the past put dishes in the dishwasher, wiped down the bathroom sink and vanity, tidied up a tad.

For a 1br I usually leave $4-5 on tnt day, and $10-15 on check out day.

Anne

 

[Dean]

The housekeeping staff are paid for the job they perform and tips should only be for extra or exceptional service. This is unlike the restaurant business or cruise ships that have built tips into the pay structure. Obviously anyone can tip if they want but it shouldn't be expected for performing the basic job they are paid to do.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I agree, Dean. I have never had housekeeping do anything other than what was an ordinary part of their job, and I too usually do every thing I can to make it easy for them. I feel that is my tip.

 

[jcodespoti]

Dean I respectively disagree with your statement. I use to have a paper route as a kid about 200 papers and yes I got paid to deliver those papers and I always did my best to make sure they got the paper where and when the wanted it. But, If everybody tipped me just $1 per week I would make an extra $200.00 per week and that would make me WANT to continue to accomadate people beyond what was normal. Yes we as "owners" do pay housekeeping salaries, but do you think that these people really make that much?
I am not being critical of anybody who has and does tip different than me ( I know I am biased). I just like to tip people who can make my life a little bit easier while I'm at my happy place. I also feel that tips are part of the pay structure but thats me.



Joe in CT