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Appropriate tipping / thank you gifts
I am just writing to inquire what other people perceive to be appropriate thank you gifts. I have been in the habit of doing the following:
1. Housekeeping ($5 /night $10/night in a suite)
2. Doorman ($5 / day) or $2-3 / cab he / she calls
3. Concierge $20 / dinner reservation
4. Hotel Manager (Hermes Tie or XMI Tie $170)
5. Business Sales Manager / etc. (box of french handmade chocolates (around $30-40)
Does this seem appropriate or am I the only crazy person who tips?
I am just writing to inquire what other people perceive to be appropriate thank you gifts. I have been in the habit of doing the following:
1. Housekeeping ($5 /night $10/night in a suite)
2. Doorman ($5 / day) or $2-3 / cab he / she calls
3. Concierge $20 / dinner reservation
4. Hotel Manager (Hermes Tie or XMI Tie $170)
5. Business Sales Manager / etc. (box of french handmade chocolates (around $30-40)
Does this seem appropriate or am I the only crazy person who tips?
These threads always invite controversy. I have always found that written guides, either online or in travel books, invariably overstate how many people you should tip and how much you should tip them.
For example, the hotel info guide at the Park Hyatt Melbourne, Australia, where I was about a week ago, suggested 10% as an appropriate tip for basically everything when, to the best of my knowledge, Australians hardly ever tip at all.
Programs: LH SEN, BA BLUE, AMEX PLAT, Leaders Club, FC St. Pauli
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Simple rule: Tip only on exceptional service!
Luxury hotels charge luxury rates.
In these rates, everything should be included.
Especially the salary of the staff.
It is completely disgusting to pay for every bag, for every waiter, or even for the concierge (sic!) additional money, to always finger around with dirty dollar notes!
When something really exceptional is done for you: Yes, than give a goodie.
But please don't teach the hotels to underpay their staff by paying additional money for standard service!
And please don't disgust normal guests who do not give tips for every standard by giving enormous tips for every standard.
We always struggle with the hotels that have a 10-15% service charge....who gets it? Who doesn't? We want to reward for good service but we're not inclined to tip people twice.
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I rarely tip in luxury hotels (beyond, say, hotel restaurants where service isn't included and you would tip normally). Often they do include service rates, and if not, a concierge who can get a dinner reservation is what I'm paying for. Sure, if it's an incredibly difficult reservation or they do something excellent, I'll give a small gift at the end of my stay (usually in the 8-10USD range), but I feel more is excessive.
Similarly, if the hotel manager did something extraordinary for us, we might give a gift. But just to give an (expensive) gift...probably not.
These threads always invite controversy. I have always found that written guides, either online or in travel books, invariably overstate how many people you should tip and how much you should tip them.
For example, the hotel info guide at the Park Hyatt Melbourne, Australia, where I was about a week ago, suggested 10% as an appropriate tip for basically everything when, to the best of my knowledge, Australians hardly ever tip at all.
The best of your knowledge is close to the mark RichardInSF. Typically we'll sometimes tip in restaurants (only if the service and quality of food warrants), but usually a round-up or around 10% whichever is lower. Cabs may also get a tip sometimes (also round-up/10%). Tips for anything else are as rare as hens' teeth.
Given that AFAIK tips make up a healthy part of, for example, a US waiter's wages, then I reckon that's a sly way of inflating the bill at the customer's expense rather than the restaurateur paying a decent wage.
Anyway, c'est la vie, it all works different ways in different places, and when travelling I usually adopt a 'when in Rome' attitude.
I am just writing to inquire what other people perceive to be appropriate thank you gifts. I have been in the habit of doing the following:
1. Housekeeping ($5 /night $10/night in a suite)
2. Doorman ($5 / day) or $2-3 / cab he / she calls
3. Concierge $20 / dinner reservation
4. Hotel Manager (Hermes Tie or XMI Tie $170)
5. Business Sales Manager / etc. (box of french handmade chocolates (around $30-40)
Does this seem appropriate or am I the only crazy person who tips?
Phil
i have never been accused of being cheap, but I think your tipping schedule is way too much! A agree with the housekeeping tip and the doorman for hailing a cab. Concierge, depends. As for the rest - no way! What exactly does the hotel manager do to deserve a Hermes tie from a guest? Sales manager? Unless, you actually live at the hotel it all seems a bit excessive.
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I think that part of it depends on the situation. While 4 & 5 do seem excessive, if you are planning on returning to the hotel many times in the near future, then it might be considered an investment in the future (especially if the hotels do not belong to a loyalty program). I generally only tip the concierge if it is a hard to get reservation or something very unique. If I know where and when I want to go, and all that person does is pick up the phone, I see little need to tip someone $20 to do their job.
My question to the OP is do you tip some of these people at the beginning of your stay or at the end?
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"To have been young and had a room at the Raffles was life at its best" - Michener
For anyone outside the US this will make very interesting reading - I'm amazed I don't see Dollar bills flying through the air when visiting the US
I don't know on what authority some of these are made - you should tip your teacher at christmas but you never tip a piano tuner
I particularly liked "Restaurants or bars
If you get awful service, talk to the manager. The manager cannot correct the situation if he doesn't know about it. Skipping the tip will not accomplish anything, and the next poor customer who gets that server will get the same service you did."
When someone tells you that in the event of awful service, skipping the tipping will not acomplish anything, you know that the plot has well and truly been lost
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Charge it to the Underhill's Account
Well I knew someone who worked as sales manager in a 5* and she actually got some gifts from guests - and quite decent ones - a Tiffany pen for
example - here and there - and mostly bec they thought it was her who gave them the upgrade or similar (while this was not the case).
She told me the GM also received gifts from guests but rather from biz
clients who held conventions at the hotel or similar. Those were gifts
even beyond Hermes ties ..
I for myself, however, do tip only at estabilishments where I visit often
or in case of really exemplary service. The hotels are expensive
enough in the rates IMO - i never understood why to tip housekeeping
for ex ?? I do tip them but again for exemplary services - last time in
a hotel the maid brought me a whole range of Zegna bath products instead
the standard ones - which was appreciated of crs by a tip however I do not see a reason to tip for daily standard service.
What do folks generally do about hotel limo chauffers? I was surprised when on departure from Hong Kong, the driver of the Peninsula Rolls blew a gasket when we started to walk away without tipping. He literally started throwing things.
I also remember getting the sense that our floor butler at the Oriental Bangkok was expecting something at the end of our stay. I had always thought that tips weren't generally expected in Asia ...
