ucking:
My dad used to travel 300 days a year on business, and the best advice he ever gave me is this: if you're going to be in a hotel for a few days or more, on the day after your first night--in other words, when the maids clean up the room for the first time--you leave a decent sized tip. $5 will do the trick, though if you can afford it go for $10. Along with this, leave a simple--but special--request: extra towels, extra glasses, or whatever. You'll not only get enough towels to open your own car wash, but for the rest of your stay your room will be immaculate and if you have any special needs they'll get taken care of. After that leave a buck or two a day and when you leave another good sized tip--particularly if you stay at the hotel regularly or plan on coming back. If you're doing anything sleazy in your room it also buys the silence of the housekeeping staff--my dad also used to say that a properly tipped maid could find a corpse in the bed and she'd just move it so she could remake the bed and fluff the pillows...
Obviously if your idea of proper accomodations is a Motel 6 by the Interstate this probably won't work, but if you're higher up on the food chain a small toke for the help will be one of the best investments you'll ever make. A well placed tip is one of the best lubricants you'll find to ease your way through the hassles of day-to-day life...
Obviously if your idea of proper accomodations is a Motel 6 by the Interstate this probably won't work, but if you're higher up on the food chain a small toke for the help will be one of the best investments you'll ever make. A well placed tip is one of the best lubricants you'll find to ease your way through the hassles of day-to-day life...
Having worked at a hotel for over a year now... yes, you should tip hotel maids (I'm being serious, not this Youtube thing), especially in higher end hotels. Those ladies only make slightly above minimum wage if they're lucky and get no benefits, yet they work really hard for their money. If you're spending $200/night for your room, you can afford to tip the valet who deals with your car and the maid(s) that clean your room.
Yes I heard you're suppose to tip maids. I read an article awhile ago that followed a maid for a day. Rarely did guests leave a tip but it's just like any other service business. If you tip your Starbucks person to make your coffee you can tip your maid. But I think you're suppose to make a note that it's a tip so they'll know it's for them.
I don't think Kiss is too far off. The wage is close to $10/hour because they are unionized. Most people I know tip a couple bucks a night so if they get to 4 rooms an hour they clear around that amount, give or take a few bucks depending on how many stiff jobs they get.
As for Mexico, I was in a middle of the road hotel in a city in the center of the country. First day all I had was a 20 peso note, about $2, so I left it as a tip for my first night in the hotel instead of my usual 8-10 pesos in spare change. Next day I get up early and go out for a coffee and come back. There are 3 girls cleaning my room! Add up their ages and you might have gotten to 45. At that point I realized my tip wasn't just generosity, it was probably feeding a few families who couldn't afford to send kids through school like we all take for granted. Sad, but true.
As for Mexico, I was in a middle of the road hotel in a city in the center of the country. First day all I had was a 20 peso note, about $2, so I left it as a tip for my first night in the hotel instead of my usual 8-10 pesos in spare change. Next day I get up early and go out for a coffee and come back. There are 3 girls cleaning my room! Add up their ages and you might have gotten to 45. At that point I realized my tip wasn't just generosity, it was probably feeding a few families who couldn't afford to send kids through school like we all take for granted. Sad, but true.
