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Left the maid a tip, but she never came in!

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Old May 14, 2005, 6:55 am
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Left the maid a tip, but she never came in!

I was staying at the CP in Pleasanton, CA with my wife for ou anniversary last weekend. I left a couple of dollars under the pillow for the maid, but when we returned to the room at 7:30 pm, the room had not been cleaned, no new towels, soaps, nothing. They never entered the room at all.
Of course, I went downstairs to question why, getting no good answers at all, other than "there's nothing I can do". I called IC and complained, to the tune of 5000 points, but I'm still not happy with the response from the CP I was staying in.
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Old May 14, 2005, 7:11 am
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This has happened to me on the odd occasion; usually, but not always because I left the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door. It isn't the end of the world. For an RA on the other hand (assuming the mini bar gets stocked when the room is cleaned), it might be .
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Old May 14, 2005, 7:29 am
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What's with this US fetish of tipping everyone in (or out of) sight? Nobody gives me a tip for doing the job I'm contracted to do...no matter how well I do it.

Still..leaving that aside...I do not understand the relevance of the $2 under the pillow?

If it had gone and the room was still not serviced I would have been VERY upset...but it had not.

Perhaps a note on the door next time saying "$2 for the 1st maid to service this room" would be better?
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Old May 14, 2005, 8:01 am
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Originally Posted by JimmyTheJock
Perhaps a note on the door next time saying "$2 for the 1st maid to service this room" would be better?
Yeah I'm sure that maid's would have started a fist fight to get into the room to clean up with a note like that.
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Old May 14, 2005, 8:41 am
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Originally Posted by JimmyTheJock
What's with this US fetish of tipping everyone in (or out of) sight? Nobody gives me a tip for doing the job I'm contracted to do...no matter how well I do it.

Still..leaving that aside...I do not understand the relevance of the $2 under the pillow?

If it had gone and the room was still not serviced I would have been VERY upset...but it had not.

Perhaps a note on the door next time saying "$2 for the 1st maid to service this room" would be better?
I rarely tip the maid, but did this to ensure she do a nice job of it since my wife was with me for our anniversary. Otherwise, I don't tip, and usually leave the DND sign on the door if I'm by myself.
I left it under the pillow so only the maid would find it, not a supervisor.
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Old May 14, 2005, 8:42 am
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Originally Posted by JimmyTheJock
What's with this US fetish of tipping everyone in (or out of) sight? Nobody gives me a tip for doing the job I'm contracted to do...no matter how well I do it.
In some of the places I've stayed in Africa, you'd be amazed at how often an extra amenity (bottle of water, fruit and so on) magically appears on the correct application of a tip (usually in an envelope, left on the pillow and with "thanks" written in the local language).
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Old May 14, 2005, 8:58 am
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Originally Posted by Internaut
In some of the places I've stayed in Africa, you'd be amazed at how often an extra amenity (bottle of water, fruit and so on) magically appears on the correct application of a tip (usually in an envelope, left on the pillow and with "thanks" written in the local language).

That reminds me, has anyone seen the post in TraveBuzz forum about bribing to get a better experience?
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=429531
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Old May 14, 2005, 9:27 am
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Originally Posted by doctall41
Of course, I went downstairs to question why, getting no good answers at all, other than "there's nothing I can do".
This is one of my pet peeves. It's after 3 pm, and you need something from housekeeping, but you're told, "I'm sorry. Housekeeping is closed/gone for the day. I'll leave a note for the Housekeeping manager, and he/she'll get back to you tomorrow."
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Old May 14, 2005, 10:39 am
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Originally Posted by DoubleJ
This is one of my pet peeves. It's after 3 pm, and you need something from housekeeping, but you're told, "I'm sorry. Housekeeping is closed/gone for the day. I'll leave a note for the Housekeeping manager, and he/she'll get back to you tomorrow."
Guess I've been lucky - on the rare occassion when housekeeping has forgotten to clean my room I've called the front desk and they've gotten someone there as quickly as possible. But I haven't had this happen with an IC group hotel yet.
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Old May 15, 2005, 1:53 am
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Originally Posted by Internaut
In some of the places I've stayed in Africa, you'd be amazed at how often an extra amenity (bottle of water, fruit and so on) magically appears on the correct application of a tip (usually in an envelope, left on the pillow and with "thanks" written in the local language).
Oh, and I forgot to add that in certain parts of the world it also doubles as informal insurance against theft from the room!
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Old Oct 2, 2005, 1:21 pm
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Deleted, sorry, double post...

Last edited by smartassmurf; Oct 2, 2005 at 1:30 pm
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Old Oct 2, 2005, 1:28 pm
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I have never left cash for housekeeping. At times I have left gift certifictes for the complexes I manage or performance awards. I usually only tip servers or baggage handlers at hotels. I may change this attitude on my upcoming stay in Cancun (This week on awards, thanks FT! ^ ) since I hear the service grows exponentially with tipping!

On a side note, are the self expanding Marriott ads driving any one else crazy on here?!


Originally Posted by doctall41
I was staying at the CP in Pleasanton, CA with my wife for ou anniversary last weekend. I left a couple of dollars under the pillow for the maid, but when we returned to the room at 7:30 pm, the room had not been cleaned, no new towels, soaps, nothing. They never entered the room at all.
Of course, I went downstairs to question why, getting no good answers at all, other than "there's nothing I can do". I called IC and complained, to the tune of 5000 points, but I'm still not happy with the response from the CP I was staying in.

Last edited by smartassmurf; Oct 2, 2005 at 1:32 pm
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Old Oct 2, 2005, 1:45 pm
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Thumbs up

I've left a couple of bucks out for the maid on several occasions, but they have never taken it. Usually I'll leave it by itself away from any personal articles too. I'll try the under the pillow trick next time I'm feeling generous.
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Old Oct 2, 2005, 4:38 pm
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Originally Posted by 95 Z/28 LT1
I've left a couple of bucks out for the maid on several occasions, but they have never taken it. Usually I'll leave it by itself away from any personal articles too. I'll try the under the pillow trick next time I'm feeling generous.
I've never had tip money taken when I didn't leave a note. Probably intentional by the maids to prevent cries of "Theft!".

Now I always leave a small note:

"For Housekeeping, Thank you! "

Haven't had one turned down since I started this and I always have those little "extra" requests answered with a smile now.

^
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Old Oct 3, 2005, 8:58 am
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In the overall scheme of things, it is usally a tiny price to pay - $2 is less than your average Starbucks drink - to get better service, any extra amenities you want, a real eagerness to help, etc. I do this regularly when I have a multiple-night stay (US only) and it has been worth it every time. Plus, these folks are really not making much money (unlike the rest of the civilized world, they also likely don't have health insurance) and it means a lot to them.
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