By Peggy Epstein
Tipping the maid who cleans your hotel room has traditionally been done on a daily basis. The cash tip has typically gone directly to the maid. However, recently there has been a trend toward adding the tip for housekeeping onto the total hotel bill. Although there are no assurances that the tip will actually reach the particular maids who cleaned your room, you can take some steps to help insure this may happen.
Function
The way in which a tip is added to the bill is dependent somewhat on the method of payment. Generally with credit card charges, an explanation must be given in writing to the hotel billing office.
Benefits
The advantage in tacking the housekeeping tip onto the bill is that, since different maids will probably be cleaning your room on different nights, this will insure that the money doesn't all go to the last person who happened to clean your room.
Amount
The tip for housekeeping is usually directly related to both the quality of the service and the quality of the hotel. Amounts from $1 to $5 per day are the norm. More generosity is welcome, especially for fantastic service.
Considerations
If you decide to add the housekeeping tips onto the bill, it is important to speak personally with the billing office to receive personal assurance that the money will indeed be distributed promptly to the appropriate members of the cleaning staff.
Exceptions
The opportunity for quality service may be missed by not tipping daily; maids will not know that you plan to add their tips to the bill at the end of your stay.
Resources
About the Author:
Peggy Epstein is a freelance writer specializing in education and parenting. She has authored two books, "Great Ideas for Grandkids" and "Family Writes," and published more than 100 articles for various print and online publications. Epstein is also a former public school teacher with 25 years' experience. She received a Master of Arts in curriculum and instruction from the University of Missouri.
