Next time you’re traveling, be sure to fill your wallet with some bills. Most folks, especially those from North America, are accustomed to tipping restaurant servers, taxi drivers, bartenders, and even their barbers. However, when people decide to travel, they usually seem to forget about their hotel’s housekeeping staff. Though they’re often overlooked because they prefer to keep a low profile so as to not disturb you, a hotel’s housekeeping staff also like to be treated for their service.
After all, housekeeping staff are responsible for cleaning, sanitizing, and preparing your room daily. It’s their job to make sure that your stay is comfortable and hygienic. With so much responsibility, shouldn’t they get tipped as well?
Key Strategies For Tipping Housekeeping
Let’s get one thing straight: you don’t have to tip hotel housekeeping if you don’t want to. While it’s recommended, it’s not mandatory, and you won’t get the side-eye from staff if you decide to not tip. Unlike restaurants or bars, tipping housekeeping staff is a bonus, not a requisite. Now, if you do decide to tip housekeeping, you can note the following strategies and recommendations to help you figure out your tipping regimen.
The American Hotel & Lodging Association recommends tipping housekeepers $1 to $5 per night. This range is flexible and it depends on the hotel’s service level and your room’s complexity. For budget hotels, $2 could very well suffice, while luxury resorts might warrant $5 or more.
When you’re figuring out how much to tip, consider the following factors:
- Room size and occupancy
- How many guests are staying
- The amount of cleaning required (be objective!)
- How long you’re staying
- The quality of service
When To Tip Housekeeping
If you’re staying multiple nights, tip daily rather than waiting until checkout. Housekeepers often work different shifts, so leaving a daily tip ensures the person who cleaned your room receives it directly. Plus, it’ll let staff know to take extra care of you. Like all workforces, hotel staff talk, and they’ll let their coworkers know that they should take extra special care of you.
If you’re tipping daily, be sure to leave the tip in a clearly marked envelope or directly on the pillow. Be sure to boldly write “Thank You” or “For Housekeeping,” to make it extremely clear that you’re leaving a gratuity for the staff.
Other Tips For Tipping
Now, if you’re a family or large group, you might want to seriously consider tipping if you’re a rowdy bunch. A room with children or hungover grown men typically requires more intensive cleaning, so be sure to be as flexible as possible with your budget.
Remember that tipping is always appreciated abroad and internationally, but customs may be different. Hotels and staff in Japan might not appreciate tips as it can be seen as rude. However, that mindset only applies to low-budget or mid-tier hotels. High-end, luxurious hotels will gladly accept tips. Think practically about the environment you’re staying in when you’re considering tipping. If you’re staying in Barcelona, Spain, there’s a chance that a modest tip of $1 or $2 will be seen as a welcome treat, while the same level of gratuity might be considered low on the tourist-heavy Las Vegas Strip.
