$20 tip enough for housekeeping? [Poll Added.]

Ron98GT said:

I haven't stayed in a TS where services weren't provided, are there any?

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I think that is meant to mean you only get a clean room when you check in and nothing else during your stay, unless you have a special request. I've only been to 2 resorts that did that, both were Marriotts.

Ron98GT said:

I noticed that some people responded Yes to the following:

"NO, because services are not provided during a stay. "

I haven't stayed in a TS where services weren't provided, are there any?

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Many TSs do not provied housekeeping service during your stay. They all of course provide it after each stay.

Blues said:

It's well known that laws with very low compliance rates typically are not only impossible to enforce, they also tend to foster greater disdain for laws in general. Therefore, most legislatures will try to avoid very unpopular laws. I believe that the current trend toward trying to collect sales taxes across state lines and from internet purchases is doomed and misguided. These efforts will eventually be repealed.

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Once it is in place for out of state merchants to collect they have as much chance of being repealed as the sales tax as a whole. Which is to say, not a chance. Companies with nexus in the state already have to collect. This is any company that has any presence in the state whether it is an employee, assets, or a traveling salesman or technician that may only occasionally visit the state. It will take some state to state cooperation in order to properly enforce it but it is only a matter of time.

Look at it this way, when you order something on Amazon and you are charged tax, you accept it and complete the order. Once all online orders are charged tax I don't think the voting public is going to care too much. It will just be accepted as part of life.

As far as your tax return goes, how is it any more unjust than any other type of tax? To me it just seems that if someone knows that there is zero chance of repercussions, then not paying extra is the easy choice. If we were given a consequence free choice on all the other taxes I think most of us would chuckle and say "no thanks" on those as well.

csxjohn said:

Many TSs do not provied housekeeping service during your stay. They all of course provide it after each stay.

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Guess I haven't been to any of those, yet, that I know of. House keeping/maids have always been very helpful. Even when we stay at TS's that are only suppose to provide a midweek tidy, they still ask every day if we need any thing: towels soap, etc.

Saintsfanfl said:

As far as your tax return goes, how is it any more unjust than any other type of tax?

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For me the annoying part is that if I buy something from another state online, it would cost me less if I paid their sales tax than my own. So, I would rather be charged sales tax for Georgia or wherever than be expected to pay California sales tax. It feels like a punishment for buying something from out of state.

We do

I always leave $20 after a time share stay as long as the unit was clean when we checked in. They are cleaning after we have stayed a week, and I assure you they are not being paid high wages

We do as well

mbh said:

I always leave $20 after a time share stay as long as the unit was clean when we checked in. They are cleaning after we have stayed a week, and I assure you they are not being paid high wages

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We've been TS'ing for about 10years now and we've (almost) always left a tip for housekeeping, usually $20 per week. There is only 1 time that we didn't, but that was because we were rushing to leave to catch a flight. I finally remembered when we were on the plane and felt guilty. That particular time the housekeeping staff had been very responsive in bringing extra towels and had also done a mid-week tidy.

When we were in NYC this past spring, we tipped everyone (or just about) - the limo service greeter at the airport, the porters, a daily tip for housekeeping, the doorman who whistled down cabs for us, the tour guides. The only ones we didn't tip were the limo drivers themselves since the service already had a gratuity built-in when I arranged for it.

And speaking of built-in gratuities, the spa at the Westin automatically adds a 20% gratuity for all services.

I'm a bigger cheapskate than I thought. To me $20 is excessive. The room is only cleaned once in advance of my stay and takes probably an hour to 90 minutes. I don't think I should be subsidizing wages to the extent of $13 - $20 per hour.

I was told at MFC that the 3 bedrooms take 5 hours to clean. You're dealing with 3 full baths plus the appliances, granite, not to mention 5 beds to change. When I had a mid week full cleaning done, the maid was there for 3 hours but she didn't have to do the thorough frig cleaning that is done with a turnover.

suzannesimon said:

I was told at MFC that the 3 bedrooms take 5 hours to clean. You're dealing with 3 full baths plus the appliances, granite, not to mention 5 beds to change. When I had a mid week full cleaning done, the maid was there for 3 hours but she didn't have to do the thorough frig cleaning that is done with a turnover.

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Size definitely matters and for me, the larger the unit the larger the tip.

In high school I was a waitress during the summers, so maybe that influences me a bit--it was hard work (as is cleaning rooms), and the pay was pathetic. The bright spot was meeting all those people and I really appreciated the tips.

When I was working and had an expense account, I normally left ~$3 a day in hotels for housekeeping. I've always done the same outside of work, sans expense account, and I leave a $3-$5 tip a day, depending on quality of service. In MX, we receive daily cleaning and a turn-down service at night--I always leave a tip on the kitchen counter before we leave for the day. I appreciate their hard work, and I know tips are a significant part of their livelihood.

Regarding the policy of employers making up for the shortfall of tips to make minimum wage for employees--sure seems to conjure up some questions. How do they know how much employees make in tips? Obviously an honor system, LOL. Also seems to penalize those employees who really give top-notch service--some of their tips are used to 'top off' the required minimum wage.

At Christmas Mountain, you pay 80 cleaning fee upon check in to the cottages, they are 600 square feet, I would bet that most people do not leave an additional tip upon checking out. I find it hard to believe that a resort is taking 5 hours to clean a unit, that would mean an entire crew per unit to get it done in time for the next check in.

muranojo said:

In high school I was a waitress during the summers, so maybe that influences me a bit--it was hard work (as is cleaning rooms), and the pay was pathetic. .....

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From those I actually know it's the people who have actually done the job that I know who are the best tippers, or their parents who have heard the stories. It's because they know/understand so tip better.

It has been embarrassing to be with poor tippers, we have checked after everyone leaves the table and left more in the folder. My mother told me of those who thought someone in the party left too much tip so took part of the tip $ left on the table! This was someone who could well afford to tip better then they actually did. After that her tip was always handed to the wait person.

For those of you who travel to Mexico, the minimum wage for maids is approximately 88 pesos per day. (I googled to find this info.)

Tia said:

From those I actually know it's the people who have actually done the job that I know who are the best tippers, or their parents who have heard the stories. It's because they know/understand so tip better.

It has been embarrassing to be with poor tippers, we have checked after everyone leaves the table and left more in the folder. My mother told me of those who thought someone in the party left too much tip so took part of the tip $ left on the table! This was someone who could well afford to tip better then they actually did. After that her tip was always handed to the wait person.

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I have a family member who still thinks that 10% is a generous tip. One of us goes back after we've left the restaurant to "get something we left at the table". We fix the tip then. It is not worth arguing about it with them. It is just a generational thing.

I used to clean houses and office buildings during high school and college. That has definitely altered my thinking about tipping. I had to deal with some pretty weird things. People can be gross.

Tia said:

From those I actually know it's the people who have actually done the job that I know who are the best tippers, or their parents who have heard the stories. It's because they know/understand so tip better.

It has been embarrassing to be with poor tippers, we have checked after everyone leaves the table and left more in the folder. My mother told me of those who thought someone in the party left too much tip so took part of the tip $ left on the table! This was someone who could well afford to tip better then they actually did. After that her tip was always handed to the wait person.

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klpca said:

I have a family member who still thinks that 10% is a generous tip. One of us goes back after we've left the restaurant to "get something we left at the table". We fix the tip then. It is not worth arguing about it with them. It is just a generational thing.

I used to clean houses and office buildings during high school and college. That has definitely altered my thinking about tipping. I had to deal with some pretty weird things. People can be gross.

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Oh boy, we must be related.

This is my M.O., too...... "I just want to check to see if I dropped something at the table..... be right back". I always carry an array of paper money when I go out with certain people. You're right, it's just not worth having the discussion with them.



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Whenever I travel, I bring $100 in singles and fives for the explicit purpose of tipping because it seems everytime you turn around you have to tip someone. I mean, after parking in the long-term airport parking lot, we tip the parking lot shuttle driver for handling our bags, then the porter at the airport (if we use one), then the car rental shuttle driver when we arrive, then the valet, then the bellman...then I invariably have to tip housekeeping for something that should have been stocked in the room that wasn't (e.g. towels*), then of course, the bartender when I finally pony up to the bar to get my first Painkiller...And that's just on the first day!

As far as TS housekeeping, I usually tip $20 for the week, unless I leave without tidying up or emptying the dishwasher, etc., in which case I'll leave an extra $10. If we bring another couple, the maid also gets whatever they leave.

*I tip $5 for special trips, such as extra towels, but the last few times I've been at TSs, it wasn't because they went above and beyond the call of duty so much as the TS wasn't stocked properly. And I have to say, that I do wonder at the wisdom of doing this, because it rather encourages the staff to not stock the rooms adequately.

For instance, the first time I was at Westin St John, I tipped $5 to the housekeeper who brought up light bulbs... because the bathroom had no working lights at all, a second $5 for maintenance guy to come fix the broken ice maker, then another $5 (twice) for ice to be brought up because the "fixed" ice maker started to leak all over the place.

At WKORV, I paid $5 to 2 separate housekeepers to bring up a working iron, but refused to pay again when on trip #3, when they brought us back the one we returned in Round 1.

1950bing said:

$20 is half a tank of gas!!!!!!!!

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I can only wish....... Where do you get your gas?

LisaRex said:

For instance, the first time I was at Westin St John, I tipped $5 to the housekeeper who brought up light bulbs... because the bathroom had no working lights at all, a second $5 for maintenance guy to come fix the broken ice maker, then another $5 (twice) for ice to be brought up because the "fixed" ice maker started to leak all over the place.

At WKORV, I paid $5 to 2 separate housekeepers to bring up a working iron, but refused to pay again when on trip #3, when they brought us back the one we returned in Round 1.

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I would not have accepted those tips/charity. If you are okay with that great but to me it just encourages poor initial service which you caution.

The OP enquired about the Marriott at surfwatch so I'm assuming most people are answering the poll based on Marriott timeshares in the USA??

What do you do when you go to a Marriott timeshare abroad? Do you follow American customs because it is an American branded hotel or do you acknowledge local customs and adjust your behaviour to accommodate local culture and norms?

I tip the same way whether I'm in Aruba, St. Thomas, the Bahamas, Mexico or mainland US. I never considered doing anything else. All those areas have a majority of Americans as their customers and I rarely go anywhere that is more exotic.

CarolF said:

The OP enquired about the Marriott at surfwatch so I'm assuming most people are answering the poll based on Marriott timeshares in the USA??

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Since this thread is in the "travel info" forum I'm pretty sure your assumptions are not correct. The poll is not Marriott specific.

I tip a minimum of 20 percent in food and drink situations.

I don't tip at all in hotels and timeshares unless I receive exceptional service.

Why the disparity? Because wait staff are specifically paid less in hourly wages under our laws with the assumption they will be tipped. There is no similar expectation with cleaning staff. The suggestions that one is somehow obligated to raise a cleaning staff's pay because they're not paid "enough" strikes me as quite odd. There are a lot of people in my life who I think should be paid more. Teachers, for example, are ridiculously underpaid, but we don't tip them.

ondeadlin said:

I tip a minimum of 20 percent in food and drink situations.

I don't tip at all in hotels and timeshares unless I receive exceptional service.

Why the disparity? Because wait staff are specifically paid less in hourly wages under our laws with the assumption they will be tipped. There is no similar expectation with cleaning staff. The suggestions that one is somehow obligated to raise a cleaning staff's pay because they're not paid "enough" strikes me as quite odd. There are a lot of people in my life who I think should be paid more. Teachers, for example, are ridiculously underpaid, but we don't tip them.

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I think I agree with this statement, I do leave something for a mid week cleaning, which I don't get very often.

Tipping

Not sure about others, but I would prefer if employers of these service staff would pay livable wages and increase their prices accordingly. I don't feel these people should have to rely on tips to pay for thie groceries and other living expenses. Tips could go back to being a special thank you for great service and considered a bonus. Just think of all the other places where you are provided a service and don't think about tipping.

Some restaurants seem to be taking advantage of the tipping. Some friends of ours have children working in chain restaurants while going to university. Apparently the servers are charged 45% of a standard 15% tip. This money is kept by the house. The remaining 55% is split by the server! busboy, cooks, etc. if the customer doesn't tip 15%, then the server needs to subsidize the houses portion. I understand that the house has some costs related to the credit card charges related to the tips, but taking 45% is excessive.y