“It’s not tipping I believe in. It’s over-tipping.” ~ Vincent ‘Vinnie’ Antonelli (from the movie “My Blue Heaven”)
To tip or not to tip, that is the question. The answer – tip! Even the most seasoned of travelers, however, do not have a good comfy feel on what to tip the people that keep their room in a comfy state.
According to a recent article on CNN, surveys reveal that only about 30% of travelers tip the housekeeping staff. This probably has more to do with the fact that the housekeepers, unlike the bellman, are not standing right in front of you. The housekeepers are the room fairies; you leave your room in the morning and upon your return find that it has been magically transformed back to its fresh, clean, ordered state. If only these fairies existed in our daily lives back home – a girl can dream can’t she?
So here is the scoop according the CNN article. Follow these guidelines and you can add some extra seasoning to your already seasoned traveler self:
- Tip every day to ensure your tip gets to the person who actually cleaned your room.
- Leave a note in your room with the money indicating it is for housekeeping.
- Tip $1 or $2 per person, per night in most hotels. In higher-end hotels, $3 to $5 per person per night is typical.
- In a motel, tips are generally not necessary for a one-night stay. The $1 or $2 standard is appropriate for multiday stays.
Here are a few other ideas that may make the whole leaving a housekeeping tip (and remembering to do so) a bit easier:
- Pack a few small, tip-sized envelopes and write “For Housekeeping – Thank You!” on the front of each.
- Those of you super organized people (ie, meeting planners) may even choose to pre-pack the envelopes with a bit of cash.
- Hoteliers, help your staff out by purchasing tip envelopes that can be left as a gentle reminder to the guests that the housekeeping staff does exist, even if they do not see them.
- Meeting planners, consider providing your attendees with tip envelopes along with a small sheet of paper outlining guidelines on “Best Tipping Practices.”
- Remember that a few extra dollars goes a long way to someone whose pay hovers in the $10 per hour range.
Tipping is a considerate practice that encourages good karma. Each time you tip, know that it will come back to you in a lovely way. Just another tip for you!
Share with us your “tipping policies” below.
