To Tip or Not to Tip

You know how it is these days, you check into a luxury hotel or resort and there's a whole laundry list of folks whose job it is to serve you and every one of your whims.  Oh sure, they massage you, set your bath, get that fire in the fireplace blazing, schlep your bags, etc. but there's so many of them that it's hard to keep straight how much tip you should be giving.  Luckily, Forbes, has got the dope on how much to shell out when you're being pampered - they took a survey of hotel industry consultants and service people and came up with an idea of how much it should cost you to say "thank you." Here's a brief rundown-

• chambermaids - a minimum of $3, daily
• bath butler - varies (real helpful, right?)
• doorman - two bucks an errand, a dollar a bag
• hotel concierge - $5-10 a service or $50-200 at the end of your stay
• front desk staff - $2 an errand
• limo driver - 15% of the bill
• personal shopper - 10% of your purchases
• pool attendant - between $5-20 per tanning application (depends on how cute they are)
• room service - 15-20% of the bill
• ski valet - $2-5 per person, per day
• spa technician - 18% of your bill is standard
• computer technician - not necessary but nice to tip
• valet parking - a few bucks
• bellman - $1-2 per bag

Basically, if you can afford to be staying in a place that provides you with a personal shopper, you should be tipping generously.  The basic rule: share the wealth with those who serve you and you will be rewarded in kind.

(thanks a luxury travel blog)

Comments

[Paul Johnson]

Hi there... thanks for linking to A Luxury Travel Blog. Good luck with your blog...

Paul

[Hotelguru]

Nice post...read this article too on Forbes - note though, that tipping amounts vary considerably out of the US (sometimes the differences can range upto 100-200%, even in luxury hotels, esp depending on the attitude towards white/blue collar work in these countries)