there was a tip jar at the checkout counter at Marina Market in Red Hook. We had never seen a tip jar in a grocery store before. I felt this was out of line myself. Now, if they'd had a person to carry out our groceries for us, I would've been glad to tip!

Totally not related to tipping on STJ, interesting as I think about tipping at 6.00 in the morning with my coffee.

Starbucks folks do very well with tips. All that change really adds up and divided amongst the workers and adds up to about 150.00 a month per worker. My nephew works at one.

The interesting thing is that, that the folks leaving the tips probably have less benefits, ie. health, 401k and ability to buy shares then the baristas.

An observation and has no other meaning.

It is interesting that there was an article in the LA Time recently talking about how Americans that travel to Europe have changed the expectation of workers.

Now to some work.

Hi everyone. I have to figure out how to register. This is Bluwater...

Interesting thread and everyone seems to have valid points, IMO.

Tipping is one of those subjects that can really get me going. As mentioned previously, I don't know why I have to tip my hairstylists and her shampoo girl...but I do because it is customary. I pay a hefty fee for hair services and my stylist does a great job, but she doesn't do anything more than I would expect from anyone who does a good job. If she didn't do a good job, would I simply NOT tip her? No, I would use someone else. Ok, I'm digressing 🙂 But, I know you all get what I am saying here.

On tipping while traveling......I would tip my greeter if the greeter seemed to go above and beyond...or, if I asked my greeter to do anything extra. If my flight was late, i would tip. If my baggage took extra long to collect (seems to always take forever at STT), I would tip. If I asked a bunch of questions and got answers, I would tip. I do see the greeter/escort as kind of like the bellhop at a resort.....escorting me to my room, showing me how things work, offering advice on dining, etc. I would tip the bellhop....always. And the villa greeter/escort does so much more. Why not tip them? I also tip people on whom I think I'll need to rely at some future point.

Sherri's situation might be a little different because her villa's guests will call her on her cell if they are lost, or want to know where to dine, etc....I expect that most greeters are not giving out their cell phone numbers to be called for anything the guests need. If your greeter gives you a cell phone number, that's deserving of a tip, IMO.

Sometimes, when I travel, I feel like everyone had their hands in my pockets and I have to tip to get the basics that I should have anyway. Two weeks ago, i was in Las Vegas. I stayed at a nice hotel (The Venetian) and the room was supposed to have certain things. When I arrived, the room was missing a couple of items and was low on hangers. I called down to have these items brought up. I waited an hour for them to arrive and then tipped the person who brought them. Hmph! I tipped someone to bring me what should have been there in the first place. That's the kind of stuff that ticks me off. Whose fault was it? I don't know. Was housekeeping supposed to count the hangers and determine that I didn't have enough? Was housekeeping supposed to notice that a robe was missing? I think so. Anyway, it seemed like I was tipping someone every time I turned around....for things that I should have had anyway, but didn't.

I'm really torn on the issue. I do a nice job for my company and I never get tips. I get paid for doing a good job and I'm expected to treat the clients well and go above and beyond for them. When I do, they do more business with my company and I get to stay employed and get some kudos from my company. And, in my business, I would get fired for taking a tip. Gifts are not allowed. The tourism industry is different in practice. Is that because the pay is so low? Do the hotels, villa agents and restaurants get away with paying less and expecting the travelers to make up the difference by tipping? What would happen if travelers stopped tipping? Would service levels decrease? Would employers have to pay more? I wonder.

I'm sorry everyone, I'm still stuck on tipping the cleaning people when renting a villa/house. If during my villa stay I DON'T receive any maid service, why is it expected to tip someone I never saw or received services from. I expect the rental fee I pay should cover the clean up. If the maid comes midweek I would tip her at that time, once,if she did chores above her required chores. I'm talking about renting a house/villa. Not the daily maid service you get in a hotel.

We tip when someone performs a service above and behond their job. Tipping is out of hand and to tell you the truth, if I was to tip everyone that performed their job on vacation, I would not be able to afford a vacation.

Sorry, if I offended any one.

Thanks,
Grace

Grace, good point!!! Why would you tip anyone you didn't have any contact with. Who do you address the envelope to:

To Whomever Sees This Envelope And Makes the Bed

Wow Grace, you said precisely something I started in include in my first response. That is, if I tipped everyone I'm "supposed" to on vacation, it would increases the entire expense of my trip 15-20% since it seems to be the norm or at least reasonably expected by nearly everyone you come in contact with. Starting with the guy at my airport curbside check in, the guy who will inevitably grab my luggage from me in STT and start striding outside with it like it's a given I want him to, the taxi driver on way to ferry, the villa agency greeter, every bartender and waitress we encounter, the maids, the captain and staff on the (already quite expensive) day sail we're taking... My gosh. I realize STJ is pricey and if we couldn't afford it, we wouldn't go. But to tack on 15-20% when the overwhelming majority of these folks I feel have already been compensated in what we paid them for their service in general is ludicrous.

I'm with you, Grace and promoguy both, when it comes to the maids. They're paid by the owner or agency to clean the villa. Same with hotel maids. Why on earth tip them too? Because we got a clean villa/room for the multiple thousands of dollars we paid to use it for a week??? I would expect nothing less considering we paid...uh, thousands of dollars! Why should this cost me another $100 for the week?

I understand about folks who go above and beyond--the greeter who makes him/herself available 24/7 and returned to help you schlep all your luggage to the ferry or the maid who washed your dirty dishes rather than just give you new towels. I just wonder how this type of exemplary service turned into "pay them for it" service rather than "you just earned my repeat business for years to come" service. In my job, I'm expected to go out on a limb for my business clients so they'll stick with me and not go to a competitor in the future. Just like you said Blu-water. Nobody tips me for that; I do it to keep my bosses happy and my job intact.

During our first trip in 2005 the maid service came in on Wed. and did a great job of cleaning. They even picked up our dirty laundry that was laying around and washed and folded it. There were 5 couples on our trip and we each tipped them $20 because they did a great job. Although we never did see the maid(s) we did see the results of their work. I also recall that the villa guide did encourage us to tip the maid(s).

Our villa guide did a great job. He gave us a tour of STT in the morning of our first full day and gave us tips on the different routes around STT. A few days later he gave us a full day tour of STJ including several spots that others can't access. He also talked with the people on the car ferry and suddenly our two vehicles were being loaded on the ferry. He also made arrangements for our day sail and para sailing and would stop in and check on us each morning and evening (he lived on the premises). We felt that he did an outstanding job and we gave him a $200 tip between the group.

Our group is not normally what I would call big tippers but we felt that the service we received was top notch. I don't really have anything else to gauge this service to in the USVI but we will be finding out in 23 days when we make our trip to STJ. I agree that tipping, although expected, should be a voluntary act for what you see as excellent service.

Wow, a full day tour? I'd say he more than deserved his tip!

To Dreaming of STJ.......to quote Jay Leno "exactly"

To Ruprek,

You received service beyond "just doing their job" The cleaning people did your laundry, for goodness sake. I would tip them too. I'm talking about tipping the cleaning people (who I don't know or I even get to see what a good job they did) after I depart to go home. Your Villa guide gave you service beyond, not just taking you to your villa and showing you where the lights were. He gave you a tour of the island. You should tip him. Lets compare apples to apples not peanuts to watermelons. You did the right thing. I'm talking about tipping someone for doing their job. No extra beyond service.
Tipping is out of hand and I know when to do the right thing and give a tip to some one in appreciation.

I'm done with this topic. Sorry, if I insulted someone.

Grace

Ruprek,
Your kind of response to the service you got is exactly what I am talking about! You got well taken care of and you felt like you wanted to reciprocate! That's the way it should be!

As for my cell phone number, yes of course I encourage my guests to carry it with them wherever they go as to always have someone to contact when in need for any reason!! When I am greeting other guests, I sometimes give my cell phone number, but not always. If they ask for it, I certainly give it! I want to be of help if anyone needs it!!!! I also want all people who come to STT to have a positive experience and that is part of the reason I contribute to this forum!!!!! 🙂

I too, understand where Blu is coming from (missed your logo Blu). My honey builds houses and works at an hourly rate in which he could and should charge more than he does, but hasn't got it in him to charge. He complains that he never gets tips for doing what he does!!!! Who knows, how did tipping get started anyway? I can assure you if I am your greeter, I will always give you my best whether I get tipped or not and the same goes if I am doing your wedding. The maid thing is also mentioned in McLaughlin Anderson's Vacation Guest Guide. $2 per person, per day. Some houses provide mid service cleaning and some don't. Our houses are not cleaned during our guests stay unless requested. Maids do not make alot of money and I suppose this is why it is appropriate to tip. I think it was Grace who mentioned that she doesn't feel she should tip the maid if she only has a before and after cleaning. I think something to consider is: How did you leave the villa? Do you leave it neat and tidy? You would be surprised at how the houses are left. Tho I will say that most people are pretty good. Mind you, if a house is left extremely messy, you can count on being charged for the extra cleaning. Again, this doesn't happen often and only once for me in 7 years. There were times I should have charged and didn't tho.
If you don't want to tip- Don't.
What about Taxi's? When you are being greeted and taken to a villa, you are driving in most cases, but seems like when a taxi is involved people think nothing of tipping a taxi driver!

Ok, what about Connie's situation? Her greeter waited for them to get the luggage and helped carry it to the villa and then did his job of showing the villa. Do you feel she shouldn't have tipped? (obviously, the return trip was a special arranged trip, so this would require a fee). Answers anyone?

Sorry, but I just can’t wrap my head around the idea that tipping in a villa situation isn’t necessary because it would increase the cost of (an already expensive) vacation by 15 – 20%. I’m working hard thinking on that one but I’m not getting it just yet…

If you leave your villa or hotel room exceptionally messy, you should tip. I hope we can all agree on that.

Ahh yes Blu,
We would hope that we could agree on that, but those are also the guests that don't tip!!!!! lol! My suggestion would to tip well! 🙂
Still wondering how people feel about Connie's arrival with her greeter tho.

Hello Sherri,

I said I was done with this topic but I want you to understand what beyond "doing their job" means to me. The greeter in Connie's case didn't leave them stranded, he stayed with them till the luggage arrived and helped them carry the luggage to the villa. He deserved a tip.

We just came back from Mexico last week and you want to talk about service, I could go on for a hour. The staff at our hotel worked hard and they make very low wages. Every minute they go beyond "doing their job". When you tip and thank them they always answer with a smile and with "it's our pleasure" We stayed at an all-inclusive and we tipped when we got the "beyond service" We are not cheap.

I just feel when I rent a house/villa for thousands of dollars the cleaning should be included. No need to tip. No service was performed that I didn't already pay for.

BTW, my husband and I are very neat. In STJ, before we leave we strip the beds, gather all the dirty towels in one place, take the garbage to the dumpster and empty the frig of any any left over food from restaurants. Leave a note saying what is left in the freeze, we didn't use.

Thank you for letting explain myself. Now, I'm really done.
Grace

I agree with you, Blu. For myself, I'm a neat freak who can't seem to leave that malady behind when on vacation. So when we leave our rented villas, they look pretty close to how they did upon arrival. Only trouble with your suggestion is--are the folks who inconsiderate enough to leave their villa a disgrace typically the type of folks who would tip? Sadly, probably not. But that's where the deposit paid to the villa agency comes into play, so either way, hopefully the maids are compensated for the extra work that goes beyond what they're paid to do with a typical wage.

I don't think that a greeter should be given a tip for showing the way to the villa. For helping with the bags, yeah I'd throw them a bone. But wouldn't you be insulted if I gave you a couple of bucks a bag like I do the guy at the Venetian in LV. Difference is he gets a lot of those couple of bucks in an hour.

Folks if you're not making enough money as a greeter and must depend on tips then an occupational correction might be what is warranted. If I call you to report a pipe leaking and you come up to look at it, is that service above the call and deserve a tip??

Are you kidding about your honey wanting to make more money but he hates asking? And he complains he never gets tips from doing what he does? Really or are you kidding?

/Sorry for posting so much but it's kind of a slow day before a long weekend.

Yeah, I'd tip.

Promo,

laughing about the Venetian cus when i was there 2 wks ago, the bellhop showed me to room, turned up air, turned on 3 TVs (including the one in the bathroom), fluffed robe, used electronic remote control to raise electronic curtains, showed me how to use remote, showed me how to work TV channels and set to music channel, etc...and i tipped him.

And, after all that, he left and i noticed the ash trays on the coffee table. The room turned out to be a smoking room and I had to take all of my bags back down, schlep across from one tower to another, (you KNOW the Venetian is no joke to move around) get assigned another room and THEN take everything back up. So much for the tip. I had also tipped the front desk girl (the old $20 check-in tip) to get me a good room....and I got a good room, but it was a smoking room.

When I checked out, I made a comment about it all. The guy at the check-out desk argued with me and told me that I had NOT been in a smoking room. Funny, the other people thought I had been and the ASHTRAYS were everywhere and the furnishings smelled of smoke.

So much for Venetian. .

Sorry to digress.

No digression excuses necessary. I can't stand LV but basically make the 4 hour drive once a year for a trade show. This year they moved the show from the Sands to the LV Convention center. So we stayed at the Hilton.

The past three/four years we always stayed at the Venetian. I remember the first year when we got there my wife was amazed at the bathrooms. I told her she better enjoy the d**n thing cuz she ain't ever gonna have one back home. For those of you who haven't stayed at the Venetian, it's the size of a regular motel room, okay almost.

I have always found them accomodating and am surprised at the smoking/non smoking mixup comments.