No upgrade for a gold today, not even a room with a queen or king bed, but rather two double beds because say they are really busy.

We're thinking about going to NYC in June. Is this a better or worse time to be coming as far as avalibilty and "business" of the various Starwoods. My gut feel would be worse.

Westin New York Times Square [Master Thread]
 

This really ticks me off. A coworker and I were chatting about this horrible practice at the Westin TS. Many guests pay extra for the privilege of staying on the club floor with lounge access. When you enter the lounge you are expected to fill out a small slip of paper listing your name, signature and room number. There is also a line for tip. In and of itself I don't find this to be a bad thing. However right next to the blank slips are what appears to be slips that people have filled out. They are actually decoy slips because they are the same everyday. These slips contain tip amounts of $10 and $20!!! I see many tourist type people standing at the counter bewildered and believe that these slips are actually from staying guests and then feel obliged to tip that much as well. in the morning it is continental breakfast and if you just want a bagel and coffee it would be cheaper to eat in the restaurant than feel obligated to tip $20.

Has anyone else noticed this salacious practice at the Westin TS?

I noticed the same practice at Sheraton Commander in Boston. I did not fill out anything, I was so surprised by it! On our final bill, there was a 2$ charge (I think it said restaurant, but we did not go to rest.), I did not question it, because it was a small amount. I do not like being asked to tip!

I am not a person who is against tipping but no way am I tipping $10 or $20 at a club lounge.

Outrageous
 

I noticed the same thing. I typically tip and tip well. But I am against the decoys (which are obvious because they are all written using the same handwriting), and I am also against pre-tipping. I think tipping should occur after good service.. And I just came back from this property and was not impressed (probably my 4th stay). They didn't replenish things in the lounge frequently, were not extraordinarily pleasant, not to mention that the concierge didn't answer and called back 2 hour two late on both occasions. I'm still looking for a good NYC hotel!

Sheraton Centre Toronto does this as well.

They are even kind enough to hand deliver this tip-slip to your table once you sit down in the lounge!

$10 or $20 might be appropriate for an FT Bar Bill. :)

However, for normal people, those "bait" slips are just greedy re:the amount.

Yeah, I noticed that.

First of all, I was annoyed with the stupid form that I had to fill out at the entrance every single time I go to the lounge - just wanted to pick up a bagel and coffee. Why can't these attendants ask our room # instead? Then the tip thing! Why do I need to decide the tip amount even before receiving any service?

I would not mind leaving a few bucks after using the lounge - depends on the lounge service level. But $20, and asking up front? I don't think so. I even thought about leaving a memo to the GM about this practice, but I did not have a chance. Hope no one was trapped...

Slightly OT: A QA inspector of a hotel company I used to work for in Canada came across a bartender with a cup and sign saying: "Tipping is not just a city in China" .... I dont think the GM did to well on his inspection :D !

This is why I love always Asia in particular Japan, you have 10% service charge for your room and then you are off the hook everywhere. They treat you extremely well, are polite and heck if somebody is really providing an extraordinary service then you can still tip something extra, but nobody is expecting anything.

My feeling is that placing a few dollars in a jar is just fine since it demonstrates that should you wish to leave a tip, you may do so in the big jar with the dollars in it.

However, to have a pattern of employees' placing paper scrips with $10 - $20 tips on it for everyone to see is in very poor taste. I would hope that a dedicated GM of any quality property would catch this at once and disallow it.

Most recently, I was a guest in the Towers portion of the Sheraton Maria Isabel in Mexico City. The Towers Lounge there really is well done and the attentive service was extrordinary. Shortly after sitting, an attendant would pass by and ask that each guest sign a paper form so that the hotel could track who was in the lounge (essentially guaranteeing that no "outsiders" slipped in). On this sheet was a space for leaving tips that would then be charged to the room. I liked this format.

No wonder my international friends complain about the tipping mentality in the States. I have never seen this at any club I have used worldwide. To me, it takes away the serenity of the lounge and the feeling of it being an exclusive experience. It's bad enough that the US lounges rarely hold a candle to international ones; this reduces the experience still further.

Westin New York Times Square [Master Thread]
 

Hi, Can anyone help me please? I have booked this hotel for my husbands 40th birthday. It is going to be a suprise so cant discuss hotels etc with him. However I have read some disturbing facts recently about this hotel from previous sites and just wondering if I should try and change my hotel?

Don't worry
 

I'm from London and have stayed there on five separate occasions this year, and it's been fine. I wouldn't worry if I were you - just enjoy your time there in NY for your celebration!

Steve