Originally Posted by
DWFI
What's the point of the free breakfast if you tip what the cost would have been? I'm sorry, but if the breakfast is free, it's free. Maybe if the service is exceptional I'd leave a tip but the hotel staff is not restaurant waitstaff and they do not make below minimum wage (at least in the US).
As a Brit (albeit from the North East, where being mean is considered something that may indicate dodgy Scottish tendencies) it has taken me years to get weaned off this stance. But in those hotels where you get a free breakfast, one of the pushbacks from the staff is over the tipping issue. It's only a minority of guests that get the free breakfast, the staff aren't paid any more, and given that the staff are typically only able to dream about having a decent holiday, it's churlish not dip into your wallet for a few dollars. The hospitality business is not well paid - so when in Rome...