I ordered room service last night and was a bit suprised by a line on the room service bill. The room service menu said that a $2.00 delivery charge and an 18% gratuity would be added to the bill automatically. This was properly recorded on the bill presented to me at delivery. There was also line labeled "Additional Tip" that was left for me to fill out. I was a bit put off by this and wasn't sure what to do. So I added an additional $2.00 to the already steep room service bill, since the guy was standing there. He was pleasant but didn't do anything special.

What do most people do regarding this additional tip line?



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Rachel
CO - Gold
Hilton - Diamond
SPG - Platinum

The 18% gratuity IS the tip. Additional tip should be zero.

I agree. The additional tip should be zero.
Remember, it is the server's interest to be vague when asked whether the tip has been included in the price.

I agree with JS. This is another example of some hotels nickel & diming us to death.

Yes, zero is what the additional tip should be. What some hotels even do is they add the room service surcharge first (a set amount like 2.0$) and then they take like 19% of the food AND the surcharge... Very strange math...

I see this all the time. I usually say something like "The gratuity is included, right?" as I mark through the tip area.

This is the most disingenuous charge that hotels try to get away with - it really ticks me off! We all know (hopefully) about the excessive phone charges, but this extra space to pen in an additional tip is outrageous.

The room service food is already highly priced; the $2.00 "delivery" charge added on to the price of room service food is ridiculous (why else would I order room service unless it was delivered???).

And then they leave an empty space for an additional tip to be written in. This obviously confuses and/or intimidates some clients, and I can't help but wonder if this is the intention of hotel management? Why else would this space be on the bill.

I am a good tipper. But I REFUSE to add a tip to this type of room service bill. I politley cross out the line and thank the server.

I agree that these mandatory tips are highly annoying.

I was once out on a business lunch with about 13 others. When it was noticed that there was a mandatory tip of 15% for a party of our size, I called the waitress over and explained to her (politely) that we finds the idea of a mandatory tip insulting.

She listened politely and promised to let the cashier know. The lunch was fine and when the check came, it did NOT include the mandatory tip.

The upshot was that she received a 20% tip, and the customer was happy. But you can be sure ONLY the absolute minimum would have been tipped had it been automatic.

Mandatory tipping is just an obnoxious practice, and I definitely make it my policy to NEVER give extra tip any time anybody tries to charge me a mandatory tip.

I hate this. I was not a frequent traveler until this year and ordered room service for the very first time. I had paid by credit card so the slip just said "tip", not "additional", so I left 20%. Then after they had left I reviewed the charge and saw that there was already gratuity on there. I was ticked!

Maybe there are some cheap people out there, but when there is mandatory gratuity, at least from me the server usually loses out on a few percent extra.

What is the $2.00 charge if not what the tip used to be? What do you tip Chinese food delivery where the driver sure has to do a lot more than this room service waiter?

Then you are changed another 15-18% service charge on top...supposedly the same amount as a normal tip for conventional in-restaurant sit down service when a staff of waiters serve you throughout the entire meal?

The whole thing is excessive, but I guess it's just part of the package. I wonder what would happen if, when you ordered a $200 bottle of champagne with your meal, racking up a $300 total dinner bill, onto which 18% is automatically added, you tried to manually reduce the tip to something commensurate with the effort? Say $10 or $20 instead of $60, since all the guy did was bring up a table and pop the cork? I guess they would allow it, but you'd feel like a chump.

If you want to save a few bucks, you can invariably call the restaurant and order your meal "to go" and then have them call you when it's ready, go down and pick it up, and bring it back to your room, complete with plastic plates, utensils, etc.

That would save you $2.00 plus the tip, so on a $40 meal, it's almost $10.

This is why I always make sure my hotel is within walking distance of someplace to eat.

Oh, I think everyone here should chill. If you're buying room service, and are staying at a hotel that offers it, you're probably not poor.

Most of the folks who slog the food up to your room, reverently, are. If they were reaping untold riches, the turnover wouldn't be so great.

Most spend 60% of their shifts waiting around (unless it's a good night), until they finally get an order. They bring it up to your room, are generally reasonably gracious, and then hope for the best. I've been there.

To re-cap: your hard-earned money is going to the hotel to the extent that the food charges are inflated. Delivery charges, the mandatory 18%, and whatever you offer in addition (I toss in a couple of bucks because I'm a nice guy), goes directly to those that try to make your trip more comfortable, while earning a living for themselves.

Best,

Abkar

I don't think any additional tip is necessary when gratuity is already applied, unless there is extra service over and above the simple delivery. Room-service food is usually over-priced that I try not to order it.

What I do remember to do is to tip the cleaning lady.

I think the point is that some of us find the entire idea of "mandatory gratuity" insulting. While I've never worked a food/drink service job, I have friends who do and I generally tip well.

It's just annoying to have the hotel or restaurant dictate how much I *must* tip, even if I receive bad service. I'm in complete agreement with FlyByMike in that a server probably ends up missing out on tip by forcing me to pay a fixed percentage.

Respectfully disagree.

My hard earned money "going to the hotel to the extent that the food charges are inflated" is also the amount upon which the 18% gratuity is based. So the inflated food prices only add to the servers' tips.

I'm a nice guy, too, and I've also "been there" (worked at the same restaurant all through high school and college for a little over minimum wage plus tips).

But I'm not a pushover. The issue being discussed here was the confusion prncess674 felt when presented with a room service bill that included 1) a $2.00 delivery charge 2) a 18% mandatory gratuity and 3) a space to fill in for an additional tip.

I am under the impression that prncess674 added another $2.00 because "the guy was standing there" and she wasn't sure how to handle the situation. Other posts here by FTers indicate the same confusion or annoyance.

Sorry, on this subject, I won't "chill out".