Chuck

I routinely tip the bartender, waiter, maitre de in a discreet fashion so he
will not get into trouble with his superiors. This will usually ensure that
you get superior service. At a Jamaica resort I tipped the waiter $10 on the
first evening there and each evening thereafter I was ensured my choice of
table with fresh cut flowers and unequaled attention. On my last evening I
tipped the same waiter another $10 for the superior service I'd received.
This comes to less than $3 per night for the top-notch treatment. I was
seated and dining while others had to wait for a table. I always had my wine
glass filled when it became empty and furthermore when I returned to the
hotel the following year I was remembered by the man and treated royally
once more. A little goes a long way. If you can't afford to look after your
waiter to the tune of $20 per week I don't think you should be vacationing
at all. The same thing applies to the bar tenders although this is slightly
different as they seem to move from bar to bar. If you are spending the
evening at a bar it doesn't hurt to shoot the man a couple of dollars on
occasion. I found this will place you in the preferred customer ranks. When
there are 30 people standing at the bar and you make an appearance the other
29 non-tippers are faceless in the crowd. Yours will be the face that is
remembered and attended to first. People say that this only goes to reduce
the standard of service for the people who play by the rules and don't tip.
I say if you're cheap in a country where your typical waiter makes about $50
per week while you probably take home 15 to 20 times that amount in the same
amount of time, you should be ashamed of yourself. At a resort in Cuba it
was obvious that everyone was tipping the barman $1 for each round and I did
likewise. This didn't improve my level of service but it sure improved the
level of the barman's lifestyle and that of his family. After all that's why
we really tip these people. The occasional perks you receive from doing this
are just a fringe benefit you get for doing the right thing.
"Mark" <nothoing@Qno.com> wrote in message
news:86pGc.32038$WB5.22001@pd7tw2no...
> What is everyone's feeling on the subject when tips/gratuities are
> included in the price?
>
>