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Thread: Tipping at Disneyland Hotel

  1. #1
    The Queen of Room Service shawnarae's Avatar
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    Jul 2002
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    Tipping at Disneyland Hotel

    We just returned from the Disneyland hotel and was curious if I tipped right? I was not sure what is right to tip there vs. other hotels. I am sorry if this has been discussed before, I have never seen a thread about tipping, so I wanted to ask.

    My questions are first with the valet. We pulled up after our 6 hour drive and just let the vallet take the car for 1 night, then we park in self parking the next morning. The guy who came to get our bags from our car said 3 times that he is not the same guy that will take our bags to our room. So that prompted us to tip him for removing some of our bags from our car and placing them on a cart, then taking our car to park it. Normally you don't tip the vallet when you drop off the car, just when you pick up your car. So we tipped him, then the bellman who brought our luggage to our room, then again another vallet when we picked our car up to go to self parking the next morning.

    Also does anyone tip the room service waiter above the 18% (I think that's the percentage) in gratuitity they automatically add on. I added 10% on, but was not sure if I should have.

    And also the maid service. On the Disney Cruise we tipped the standard rate, but I figured that was because cruises set a standard to follow. For 3 nights at Disneyland Hotel I left $15 for the maid. Was that enough?

    I feel tipped out, but did a lot of this tipping because I was not sure what is customary at the Disneyland Hotel. I was not sure what they relyed on, or expected. Or if there is any other people I should have tipped that I did not. Everyone did a good job, don't get me wrong. We have stayed here before and at Paradise Pier, but never ordered room service or used the vallet either times. Thanks for any knowledge on this.


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  3. #2

    It sounds like you did just fine! We stayed at the DLH last year, and tipped $5 a night to housekeeping. We tipped the person who stored our bags (the room was't ready yet) $5, and tipped the person who brought the bags to our room $5. We also tipped about %15 extra on roomservice, which wasn't necessary but the service was prompt and the server was very nice. (He arranged for a coffeemaker to be brought to our room ). I agree- it seems like you're tipping every time you turn around, but the cm's work hard and they deserve it. If I could have afforded it, I would have tipped more!


  4. #3
    Hacker, nonmammaltarian, Warrior Andrew's Avatar
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    Apr 2001
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    Palo Alto, CA

    These notes apply to hotel tipping in general, not just at Disney resorts. There isn't really a difference aside from the premium price you pay for staying on Disney property.

    I'm only stating what I tip, based on various suggestions. YMMV...

    Bellhop (someone who unloads your luggage out of your car, brings them up to your room): $1 per bag.

    Maid service: $1 per person per day. Leave each morning when you leave as the maid staff may be different every day.

    Room service: Usually includes an 18% service charge. I've never been clear on whether this includes a tip for the person delivering, so I'll usually include an extra $1 per person eating (i.e. if I order room service for me and Jen, I'll give the delivery person an extra $2).

    I'm always willing to reconsider, but these are my general rules.

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    Andrew [

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  5. #4

    Gave $5.00 each to both the arriving valet person and the person who brought us our car. Also paid both bellhops $5.00 each for delivering the bags and picking them up... didn't figure a per item price would be appropriate, as I helped with several pieces of luggage myself.

    Housekeeping didn't get anything. We didn't appreciate the housekeeping person pounding on our door at 8:00am, waking us and our toddlers up, and trying to open up the door. (There was no "do not disturb" sign in our room to use).


  6. #5

    Tipping sucks. I don't think it should be considered a given but should be a earned bonus. I was a waiter and am compassionate, but just because 15% is the norm I don't necessarily believe is should be given for average service.

    And while I am on my soapbox have you noticed the quality of service and even food has gone down in the recent years? I am not just talking about DLR but for the most part a lot of the restaurants I frequent just aren't up to the standards of the good old days. I down frequent the most expensive restaurants either, but would expect the food to resemble the menu and "service with a smile".

    S


  7. #6

    Most of our restaurant service at DLR has been good. Some has been excellent. The Napa Rose stands out. Our waiter was excellent. His execution wasn't perfect, but when he made a mistake (he mixed up which wine with which course) he corrected it quickly and in our favor. Also, his overall attitude was excellent. He didn't act like he was a waiter in a high-class, expensive restaurant. He acted like a waiter who wanted to make sure that we got the best service he could provide. We weren't rushed, abandoned, looked down upon if we weren't sure which fork to use, or otherwise made to feel uncomfortable. Consequently, he received a tip in excess of 25%.

    The only hotel we've stayed at so far is the Pardise Pier and that has been a mixed bag. No one has ever offered to help us with our bags on the way in, but they've been very helpful storing and retrieving our things on the way out. The check-in desk has been a mixed bag -- good one time, not so good the other. The concierge lounge has been consistently poor, ranging from nice people who know nothing about the resort (and thus don't make for good concierge attendants) to those who are too busy with their personal conversations to actually perform any concierge duties. No service = no tip.
    We did tip the maids, of course. The rooms were nicely cleaned.

    We'll get to test out the service at the GC in a few weeks. I hope it's better than at PP!

    "Oook!"

  8. #7

    I read here at Mouseplanet that if you tip decently, housekeeping will leave extra soaps, shampoos,etc. We did, and we came home with enough to pass out among our many nieces and nephews, with some to spare. I don't know if they would have done so anyway, but they were pretty generous ! We really had great service at the hotel, at a time when they were very busy, so I felt they deserved all the tips we gave them. If the service had been bad, we would have tipped accordingly.


  9. #8
    Originally posted by shawnarae
    We just returned from the Disneyland hotel and was curious if I tipped right? I was not sure what is right to tip there vs. other hotels.
    I think tipping at the resort hotels follows pretty much the same standard as any other hotel. Based on what you listed, it seems perfectly fine to me. If there is an "automatic gratuity" I don't add more, but that's just me.

  10. #9

    Sounds like your tipping level was fine there. I don't think there's such a thing as too big a tip.

    I have a hard time with hotel housekeeping tipping. Restaurant workers are paid a ridiculously small wage, with the idea that tips will make up for it. Housekeepers, while not getting rich, are compensated at a higher level than wait folks, and as such I just don't feel a tip is required (unless of course they do something exceptional, or I ask them for something special).

    I also don't tip above the 18% service charge for room service (don't forget the $2 room fee that's tacked on as well!). This person doesn't really do the job of a waiter. They just deliver the food to the room. They don't check back on me, bring me more water, ask me about dessert, chat warmly with me. It's just a 2 minute delivery, and then it's over. If they can't live off the 18%, that ain't my problem. . . . .

    The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time.
    - James Taylor

  11. #10
    Originally posted by danyoung
    I have a hard time with hotel housekeeping tipping. Restaurant workers are paid a ridiculously small wage, with the idea that tips will make up for it. Housekeepers, while not getting rich, are compensated at a higher level than wait folks, and as such I just don't feel a tip is required (unless of course they do something exceptional, or I ask them for something special).
    I'm glad I'm not the only one that feels this way. I generally do not tip the housekeeping staff in hotels unless they specifically do something above and beyond the basic job that I feel warrants the extra attention. This just doesn't strike me as a specifically customer-service based role, but rather as a part of general maintenance/upkeep to the room.

    -Jeff
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  12. #11
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    So. California

    In general (not Disney Resort specific) regarding tipping housekeeping staff -- I've found it generally results in a cleaner room, better towels, and usually some extra toiletries (those little bottles of this and that). While tipping housekeeping for an extra bottle of shampoo does not make sense for me, a cleaner room and newer towels often do.

    Kevin


  13. #12
    Registered User
    Join Date
    May 2001
    Location
    Villa Park, CA
    Originally posted by prudence
    The only hotel we've stayed at so far is the Pardise Pier and that has been a mixed bag. No one has ever offered to help us with our bags on the way in, but they've been very helpful storing and retrieving our things on the way out. The check-in desk has been a mixed bag -- good one time, not so good the other. The concierge lounge has been consistently poor, ranging from nice people who know nothing about the resort (and thus don't make for good concierge attendants) to those who are too busy with their personal conversations to actually perform any concierge duties. No service = no tip.
    We did tip the maids, of course. The rooms were nicely cleaned.

    We'll get to test out the service at the GC in a few weeks. I hope it's better than at PP!
    I couldn't agree more with your assesment of the Paradise Pier Hotel. I had some family stay there last summer, and it was generally poor. A few times our interactions with CM's at that hotel bordered on the ridiculously bad. The concierge lounge is a joke, and the two young women working there last summer couldn't help someone out of a paper bag, let alone actually be a "concierge" at an expensive resort hotel.

    I'm hoping this new management change in TDA will help polish up the service provided at all three of the DLR hotels. I've said this before, but the Vice President of Lodging (or whomever is that type of TDA exec) needs to load all of the General Managers for the three DLR hotels into a van and drive them down to The Montage or the Ritz Carlton hotels in Laguna Beach. Just hang out in the lobby for a half hour and have lunch in the restaurant at either hotel, and you can see what 225 dollars a night should buy you when it comes to employee profesionalism and helpfulness

  14. #13
    Originally posted by kdrickard
    ...While tipping housekeeping for an extra bottle of shampoo does not make sense for me, a cleaner room and newer towels often do.
    I have to go back to my original sentiment, that these things should be included as part of the room charge. If my room isn't clean, then somebody isn't doing their job. I've just about lived in hotels for the past 7 years or so, and I know that maid service varies widely, so I've learned to deal with quite a bit. But why should I have to pay extra to get a decent level of service? Again, it ain't like a waiter who's getting 2 bucks an hour (or whatever it is these days), and needs the tip money just to make a living.
    The secret of life is enjoying the passage of time.
    - James Taylor

  15. #14

    I am not sure if Disneyland resorts are the same as those at WDW but mousekeeping/housekeeping is not considered a tipped position, meaning no tip is needed or should be expected. So tipping for mousekeeping/housekeeping IMO should be reserved for those mousekeepers/housekeepers that do something above and beyound "normal service."

    My rule of thumb is if they act like they want a tip, I do not tip.


  16. #15

    Whoa! to tip or not...

    You've forgotten the most important person to tip: the front desk clerk who is checking you in! Need a nice room, upgrade to a suite, free amenities to the room, odds are high that a tip will get you those. Furthermore, after you've tipped them, remember their name and if you have issues during your stay, call down for them specifically, you'll get excellent service. I do this in vegas all the time and have been upgraded on many occassions.

    Also, the restaurant wait staff gets paid more than Housekeeping. Housekeeping appreciates tips because they rarely get them.


  17. #16
    Registered User
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    So. California

    Re: to tip or not...

    Originally posted by WhenInRome
    You've forgotten the most important person to tip: the front desk clerk who is checking you in! Need a nice room, upgrade to a suite, free amenities to the room, odds are high that a tip will get you those. Furthermore, after you've tipped them, remember their name and if you have issues during your stay, call down for them specifically, you'll get excellent service. I do this in vegas all the time and have been upgraded on many occassions.
    WhenInRome...do say more.... How do you usually go about doing this? I can imagine it being easier to do in Vegas, but am still at a loss on how this "dance" is done. What is your experience with doing this?

    Curious,

    Kevin R.

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