I struggle with tipping in general, especially restaurants. (How much tip do you give when you're at a smorgasboard? Why should the server bringing me steak get a bigger tip than the server bringing me a salad?).

If I'm on a per-diem, I'll leave a few bucks in appreciation but I've come up with a clever solution for the ol' expense account situation. I often stop by a grocery store and pick up a salad for supper. It never comes close to the budgeted amount, so I also pick up some good quality chocolate or cookies. I leave these for the cleaning staff and, if I visit the hotel frequently, the desk staff.

Just to put my two cents in this disscussion; I tip the housekeeper daily, putting the couple of dollars on the pillow. This way, the person cleaning the room that day, gets the tip.

However, I have wondered if the "Supervisors" that come through and knock on the door to check the room, take the tip befor the housekeeper gets in to clean the room.

I tip because I am thankful for the housekeeper and I assume they are making minimum wage or below. When on business, I just consider this part of my daily per diem and do not add it as an extra reimbursable amount.

I have had experiences like other posters here, that when doing international travel, they are VERY VERY appreciative of the tip.

So is that like inverse turndown service? Do they leave a tip for you? @:-)

Like most people here, I usually leave $2-$3 daily. I usually leave it on the bathroom vanity.

i am self-employed, so all of my travel is on my own dime, and i tip in a hotel 95 % of the time, and i must say, that i always ask for something, towels, shampoos, etc...,etc..., and sometimes, the room can get messy, and i usually leave 2-5 dollars per night. and in asia, i always tip, have been to philippines, thailand, hong kong, etc..., and it seems that wherever one goes at a hotel, that everyone has their hand out, lol lol..... and i think that housekeeping is a very tough job, being a maid, cleaning up after people all day every day, etc..., etc... and i think that being a doorman, is certainly, in my own opinion, a much easier job to do..

the maids work very hard, and they should be paid a living wage as should everyone. oh, yes back to asia, i have never had a tip refused, and in manila, when you leave customs at naia airport, there are the "cart guys". guys that will help you with the luggage, put it into the cab,etc...etc... , so last time i was there, one guy helps me, and i give him 35-80 pesos, or so, 1 or 2 bucks, then he says, how about some for the "boys" here, lol lol so i gave him another 20 or 30 pesos, and to me an american, that i have what i want and need and can pay my bills and all, and travel, in the grand scheme of things to help someone else out, what is 1 or 2 dollars...

as a side note, my gf and i were in cebu, her hometown, a beautiful city, we were at either shakey's pizza or pizza hut, cant remember which one, and it is in january so after the x-mas holidays, and we were visiting with the waitress and she said she served a family of 3 or 4, i think , right before x-mas this was a couple of years ago, and when dinner was done, they left her like a 20.00 dollar tip, this was about when one would get 50 pesos to 1 dollar, so like 1,000 pesos, a nice sum of money in pi, she went after the family thinking that it was a mistake and no, they dad said that it was his family's holiday or x-mas gift to her, she said she cried and was so happy, that she could help her family out more, etc...etc.., i guess it kind of put me in my place as our bill was 10 or 12 dollars and i left i think like 7 or 8 dollars, i am translating from pesos to us dollars, i leave and use pesos there, but she was so happy, and will that man miss that 20 dollars? i do not think so, but it helped someone out, that was less fortuntate than him....

that is my 2 cents,

yes, and p.s. i leave my hotel tip on the table, with the phone next to the tv, with a note that says for the maid or housekeeper, with a thank you, or sometimes if i see maid in hall, i will ask her if she is cleaning my room and directly give it to her, i have a traveling partner, who will not tip a maid, and he is somewhat messy, although i am more, but i leave his part and mine to the maids, but it works out well as he is paying half the room and i get to keep all of the hotel benefits, yeah yeah.... thanks for your time.

Most of the 4 and 5 star hotels I got to in Asia include a 10% service charge, that is supposed to go the employees. If I'm already paying $15-$30 a day for this charge, why would I want to tip any more? Only if I've requested something special, like body disposal, or getting blood off the walls and carpet do I tip them.

Tipping is way overboard around the world.

I've caught them doing that from time to time when I have to return to the room before the maid gets there and I notice the tip missing, but usually at stand-alone hotels. Haven't experienced it at a Marriott. (I'd think management would take action against the supervisor if it happened - sounds in theft, since the tip is clearly intended for the maid.)

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So as not to be off topic, I typically leave a tip at the end of a stay, usually a total of $1 to $2 per day.

But I rather much resent the tipping culture. By and large, it smacks of a surcharge that subsidizes not the recipients, but the employer who does not otherwise pay a suitable wage. And, yes, I know, higher wages would get passed through. But it has come to the point (think of the "tip jar" at Starbucks, fishing charters, etc.) that the employers all but solicit tips for their employees, which I consider a meaningful breach of etiquette.

I understand that only 27% of guests leave a tip - although that figure may be higher in higher caliber hotels. But it seems that when the figure is this low, the generous amongst us essentially pick up the slack for the stingy. This cannot be a good outcome, as even the most kindhearted folks will eventually conclude that they are chumps. Hotels are particularly problematic in that the guest seldom sees the housekeeping staff, and may enjoy relative anonimity, insulating the guest from disappointed looks from stiffed employees. I suppose it remiinds one of the saying that what you do when no one is watching defines the kind of person you are.

I agree on the "breach of etiquette" feeling - when I feel it, the tip is adjusted downwards! With regards to "a living wage" - what is that? Seems to me even the richest in the world live to their wealth - so how does one determine a "living wage"?

But I do think there is a difference between tipping someone who is merely doing their job - and tipping someone who does more than their job. I can think of no occassion I have tipped at Starbucks, as I can think of no way they could do more than make my latte. I do tip the housekeeper as I always ask for extra stuff, which she has to take care of. I tip serving staff at a 5star restaurant 20%; but a smorgasboard only 5 to 10%. The 5 star has to provide detailed service - the smogasboard usually brings me a refill of tea.

Cab drivers are my sticky point - if I have no luggage, how can a cabbie go above and beyond - clean cab? No crazy driving? Thin line.

"Expected" tipping - no.

I can live with earned tipping.

As someone who used to work at a hotel (years ago, right out of college) it works different ways at different hotels. Here are the different options:

1) Paid out on a per-room basis
2) Paid out an hourly wage - usually above minimum wage, but not more than a couple of dollars above minimum wage (sometimes works in teams of two, sometimes works by themselves)
3) Unionized (i.e. SFO, LAS, NYC - major cities, not so much in smaller cities) making decent money, paid hourly.

Most hotel employees get pretty good benefits. The hospitality industry doesn't pay well (in Harrisonburg, VA, where I went to school, I applied for a job at the Courtyard there & they offered my $6.25/hr to be a cook & the front desk agents made a little more, but not much more). I recall the benefits were dirt cheap relatively speaking (I didn't use benefits because I was still young enough back then to be on my parents insurance). Because the industry wants to retain quality workers and because everyone knows the pay isn't great, they make up for it in benefits (travel discounts & health benefits & retirement savings plans, etc).

I never heard of such a thing. I can't even imagine getting reimbursed for tipping! That is unheard of. Good for you though, I guess. I guess I have worked for the gov't too long--they would laugh for days if someone tried to get reimbursed for tipping!

I'm sorry that you don't tip because you don't get reimbursed though....to me that seems odd....like one should have nothing to do with the other. I wonder if that would include your shuttle service, or taxi or the conceirge lounge....? Whatever....to each his own.

I typically leave $2 a day and yes, I always leave it on my pillow because there never seems to be an issue with them wondering if that was meant for them.

When we are on vacation, my husband being the very generous tipper, he leaves $5 a day with a piece of his coveted See's Chocolate on top! These are resort style properties though so that is not unusual at a place like that.

I think the practice of tipping the housekeeping staff is more the norm than the other way around. Everyone I know tips the housekeeping staff, both professional folks and personal friends. I thought it was a given.

Dawn

My company reimburses us for tipping as well. I almost always forget to expense it though...

It is wishful thinking to assume that the hotels will eat the extra cost of labor if tipping were to disappear. Instead, they would institute a service charge, separate from the room bill, which does not earn any points. This service charge would be a percentage of the daily room rate, and it would be enough so the hotel can take a cut as well.

A service charge has the advantage of not being included in the amount where the hotel has to pay a traveler's commission if you book through a travel agent or another third party. It would change tipping into a mandatory fee that would be a hassle to reverse in case of poor service.

So should we implement a service charge since the front desk staff don't receive tips and in my experience they only make $1.00 or so premium over housekeeping staff?

My firm uses the GSA M&IE (meals and incidental expense) rates for travel-related expense reimbursement issues, which break-down per diem by breakfast/lunch/dinner as well as incidentals (it's a flat $3 per day regardless of locality) - according to the GSA site:

Chapter 300, Part 300-3, in the Federal Travel Regulation (www.gsa.gov/ftr), under Per Diem Allowance, describes Incidental Expenses as: A. Fees and tips given to porters, baggage carriers, bellhops, hotel maids, stewards or stewardesses and others on ships, and hotel servants in foreign countries. B. Transportation between places of lodging or business and places where meals are taken, it suitable meals cannot be obtained at the temporary duty site. C. Mailing cost associated with filing travel vouchers and payment of Government charge card billings.