Kristen's October 2012 F&W Trip

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Tue, 10/09/2012 - 16:54

Kristen K.

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Kristen's October 2012 F&W Trip ** **

16 days ticking on the clock and my trip just keeps getting closer and closer.

With all of the bumps in the road I've had a really difficult time even thinking about this one. It's been a struggle to get motivated or be excited, but as things get closer and closer I'm beginning to get that spark. My traveling companion is leaving in 9 days for a conference in Jacksonville. He'll meet up with me on my arrival day.

-----------------
Travelers: Kristen & Erik (our roommate)
Hotel: Art of Animation
Length of Stay: 4 Nights
Extras: Disney Dining Plan & Length of Stay Parkhoppers

Day 1 10/25 " (leave for airport 5am) Arrival at MCO, Magical Express to the Art of Animation. Dinner at OHana. Cocktails and Hallowishes from Top of the World Lounge.

Day 2 10/26 " Magic Kingdom Day, Unknown Breakfast, Pecos Bills for Lunch, WDWFG Dole Whip Meet up, Liberty Tree Tavern for Dinner. Leave park at 7pm for cocktails and sushi at the Polynesian Kona Island.

Day 3 10/27 " Epcot, Breakfast at Akershus, Food & Wine Festival Booth crawl, Dinner at Via Napoli w/ Becks534

Day 4 10/28 " Kouzinna for Breakfast, Epcot, Rose & Crown Pub for Dinner w/ Becks534, EMH at Hollywood Studios, Fantasmic!

Day 5 10/29 " Zero planned for this morning. Breakfast and Lunch on Counter Service credits, all parks open at 9am, Magical Express back to MCO about 1pm

------------------

So that's about all I've got right now! I just found out this morning I have more friends that will be there, so I'm going to plan another meet up with them for coffee. We're really going to play it by ear on everything but where we have ADRs. Just try to take this vacation at a leisurely pace and soak up as much magic as I can before returning home. I'll be doing lots of research and photography as we make our way through the parks, hoping to get lots of ideas for new blog posts here.

I'm going to do my best to get through this trip without using an ECV. It's a short trip so my chance are high. We can head back to the room fairly early on Friday/Saturday, or take a mid-day break. I may have to break down and get one by Saturday though.

Normally by this time I'm packing and doing tip envelope. Yea, none of that is done. I'm taking solace in the knowledge that a lot of people here don't pack until the last minute, I figure if you all can do it, so can I. I figure that by the night before I'll either be in total freak out mode or super excited and ready to go. Hopefully a little of both.

There are a couple of things that I'm really looking forward to, like seeing my friends, trying the new cocktail menu, watching Hallowishes form Top of the World, Fantasmic! eating at Kouzinna and Rose & Crown.

Tue, 10/09/2012 - 17:42

Magic Mirror

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This all sounds superb!!!! and it's almost here ~~~ yeahhhhhh!!!!! When I walked by Pecos Bills it smelled heavenly.. I wanted to grab a margarita and some salsa and chips right at that moment! I did do the tip envelopes ahead of time, but thats the crafter in me wanting to play with stickers and such...but packing..I'm a last minute packer..I have in my head about what I want to take and am throwing it in just before we walk out the door. It's always worked for me and if I forget something? It's just an excuse to shop! You're going to have a blast!

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Tue, 10/09/2012 - 18:03

Kristen K.

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Magic Mirror wrote:

This all sounds superb!!!! and it's almost here ~~~ yeahhhhhh!!!!! You're going to have a blast!

Oh, thank you so much! Now that I've started talking about it I haven't stopped thinking Disney and that's a really great sign! Your encouraging response made me feel the pixie dust even more. :

I usually plan what I wear on paper first and I went ahead and did that today! I want to pack as light as possible so this will be a trip with comfy, casual attire. We don't have any signature restaurants planned so there's no requirement anywhere to dress up. My only concern right now about clothing is that I don't have a sweater for the evening and I get cold easily so I need to get one.

I think I'm going to go take a look at the food booth menus and see what my "must eat" list has on it.

Tue, 10/09/2012 - 19:04

nikkirugby13

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I can't wait to hear your thoughts on Art of Animation. I'll be arriving there on the 1st of November!
Have you checked out the food reviews of Ladscape of Flavors?? I was drooling when the Disney Food Blog posted that review!
It sounds like you have so much fund stuff planned!!!

Question for you... How do you prepare your tip envelopes? Do you do this before for your meals also? How do you figure out how much to put in if you don't know what your bill is? Is there a system you have?

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Tue, 10/09/2012 - 20:11

Allie

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Hopefully this will be a nice, relaxing trip for you, Kristen! You deserve one after all the stress that came with this trip!

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Tue, 10/09/2012 - 23:29

Kristen K.

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nikkirugby13 wrote:

How do you prepare your tip envelopes? Do you do this before for your meals also? How do you figure out how much to put in if you don't know what your bill is? Is there a system you have?

There is a method to my tipping madness!

About 2 weeks before I leave I sit down with a stack of dollar sized envelopes and labels from the office store. I create some sort of pretty label that says something along the lines of "Thank you for your service, our trip wouldn't have been as magical without you. Tip inside" with our family name and the trip dates. I like to make then fun and pretty.

Assuming I am traveling with 2 people here's my tip breakdown:

$5 x2 for Magical Express (one coming and one going)

$5 xNights I'm staying for Mousekeeping (that gets left in the room each day)

One envelope with assorted $1s and $5s (that stays in my purse for unforseen tips - such as if I use valet or bell services)

For table service meals I read the menus of the restaurants that we have ADRs at and take a guess of what people will order. I grab that from here http://allears.net/din/dining.htm Then I add it up and figure out 20%, then stick that in it's envelope and write on the back the name of the restaurant in pencil. Over the years I've found that I usually need $10 for breakfast, $20 for dinner at a regular table service restaurant, and $30-40 for signature dining. I do tip on the high side though, so you might need to adjust down a little to be comfortable.

I also do an envelope with about $60 just in case I want to take a couple of cabs.

After everything is inside it's envelope and the labels are on them I put them into piles by day and paper clip it together. While on vacation I grab the correct days worth of envelopes and stick them in my purse, leaving the rest in my room safe. That way I'm not carrying a ton of cash with me. If I have left over envelopes because I didn't take a cab or use bell staff that becomes "extra" spending money for last minute souvenirs before we leave.

Tue, 10/09/2012 - 23:32

Kristen K.

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nikkirugby13 wrote:

Have you checked out the food reviews of Ladscape of Flavors?? I was drooling when the Disney Food Blog posted that review!

I have! We'll probably do a couple of breakfasts there, and perhaps lunch on our departure day. I'll take lots of pictures!

Tue, 10/09/2012 - 23:44

Magic Mirror

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Ditto on what Kristen K said about tipping...I did pretty much the same thing! I wrote on envelopes the name of the place we were eating and in red ink on the bottom wrote :tip inside: ... on the back in the upper corner I wrote the day of the week just to help me stay organized. I left them in our safe & just took the one we needed for the day...on the back I wrote "thanks for making our dinner so magical" and found Mickey Mouse stickers at the dollar store to decorate with ... At least two waiters made a personal comment about the envelopes to me before i left. I looked at the menu ahead of time and knew about what we'd probably order and added drinks & dessert averages. Tipping 20% in my area is the norm so that is the amount I used also.

It was just us 2 adults and we are both pretty neat.. I won't even dirty 2 wastebaskets and will only put trash in one (yes I might be a little extreme) so there really isn't a whole lot of tidying up to do in our room.. for Mousekeeping I left $3 daily tip....they did 1 bedding change while we were there and linens daily.

I also took an extra $30 in my purse for emergency cab money which turned into spend money at the airport on way home , yippety!

I feel bad now about reading the tipping for the Magical Express driver. I had read to tip him/her if they were putting luggage on the bus for you..such we had nothing but our purses I didn't tip the driver on the way to Disney...he basically turned on the TV and that was it. On the way back we did tip the driver to the airport $2 a person..just because he really went out of the way to be happy and make jokes and kept our spirits up as vacation was ending..he really impressed us so we wanted to show our appreciation..... Next time I go I will re-evaluate this and probably tip the drivers both ways!

*Also, when we were in line for one of the attractions there were two people talking about the Art of Animation..they were both staying there and were gushing about how wonderful it is and they were so pleased, so I think you are in for a delightful room!*

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Wed, 10/10/2012 - 19:39

nikkirugby13

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Kristen K. wrote:

nikkirugby13 wrote:
How do you prepare your tip envelopes? Do you do this before for your meals also? How do you figure out how much to put in if you don't know what your bill is? Is there a system you have?

There is a method to my tipping madness!

About 2 weeks before I leave I sit down with a stack of dollar sized envelopes and labels from the office store. I create some sort of pretty label that says something along the lines of "Thank you for your service, our trip wouldn't have been as magical without you. Tip inside" with our family name and the trip dates. I like to make then fun and pretty.

Assuming I am traveling with 2 people here's my tip breakdown:

$5 x2 for Magical Express (one coming and one going)

$5 xNights I'm staying for Mousekeeping (that gets left in the room each day)

One envelope with assorted $1s and $5s (that stays in my purse for unforseen tips - such as if I use valet or bell services)

For table service meals I read the menus of the restaurants that we have ADRs at and take a guess of what people will order. I grab that from here http://allears.net/din/dining.htm Then I add it up and figure out 20%, then stick that in it's envelope and write on the back the name of the restaurant in pencil. Over the years I've found that I usually need $10 for breakfast, $20 for dinner at a regular table service restaurant, and $30-40 for signature dining. I do tip on the high side though, so you might need to adjust down a little to be comfortable.

I also do an envelope with about $60 just in case I want to take a couple of cabs.

After everything is inside it's envelope and the labels are on them I put them into piles by day and paper clip it together. While on vacation I grab the correct days worth of envelopes and stick them in my purse, leaving the rest in my room safe. That way I'm not carrying a ton of cash with me. If I have left over envelopes because I didn't take a cab or use bell staff that becomes "extra" spending money for last minute souvenirs before we leave.

Kristin -- This is so helpful and informative! Thank you so much!!! I too (MM) never thought to tip the bus drivers.....I feel really bad now.... .... Figuring out 20% gratuties should help pass the time ast work today & tomorrow...wohooo!!

Thanks again ladies!!! and MM get back to your post trip report!! hahaha

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Wed, 10/10/2012 - 19:46

Kristen K.

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nikkirugby13 wrote:

Kristin -- This is so helpful and informative! Thank you so much!!! I too (MM) never thought to tip the bus drivers.

Nothing to feel bad about. I've noticed that a lot of people don't. I look at it this way, you tip a cab driver, limo driver, and shuttle driver, you should probably tip the Magical Express Driver too *especially* if he is handling your bags.

I had one recent trip where the ME driver refused to touch my electronics bag or let it ride beneath the bus. I was not real happy to have to sit with it on my lap (full bus and heavy bag) he did NOT get tipped.

Wed, 10/10/2012 - 20:50

The Cookie Crumbler

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Kristen K. wrote:

Nothing to feel bad about. I've noticed that a lot of people don't. I look at it this way, you tip a cab driver, limo driver, and shuttle driver, you should probably tip the Magical Express Driver too *especially* if he is handling your bags.

Our college group had the ME practically to ourselves when arriving in Orlando. I don't know how much the group leader tipped the driver, but it was a good amount since he was dealing with a bus full of excited new graduates at 10am.

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Thu, 10/11/2012 - 01:02

twilightsparrow

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Yay!!...time for the Mickey dance!

I hope that you have a magical time Kristen...sending you lots of pixie dust. I can't wait for the trip report.

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Thu, 10/11/2012 - 01:07

scrappy

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Kristen, sounds like you have a great trip planned. I am like at least a few others here. I pack the morning we leave. As far as tips go, I do usually have them ready for mouse keeping and I save $5 bills to cover our valet tips. As far as our meals go we do not usually have any idea what we will eat so I can not do that ahead of time. I just put what we usually end up spending in tips in an envelope in different bills and take out daily what I think we will need. Now all of you really need to educate me with this one. We usually tip the bell staff $20 to carry in and then again to carry out. Are we way over tipping with that?

Thu, 10/11/2012 - 01:10

twilightsparrow

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scrappy wrote:

We usually tip the bell staff $20 to carry in and then again to carry out. Are we way over tipping with that?

We tip the bell staff $10 to carry in and then carry out.

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Thu, 10/11/2012 - 01:23

Vettelover

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scrappy wrote:

We usually tip the bell staff $20 to carry in and then again to carry out. Are we way over tipping with that?

For that tip I'll go down and carry your bags in. However if I remember correctly you really pack a lot of luggage so it may not be too far out of line.

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Thu, 10/11/2012 - 02:11

MrHub

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Vettelover wrote:

scrappy wrote:
We usually tip the bell staff $20 to carry in and then again to carry out. Are we way over tipping with that?

For that tip I'll go down and carry your bags in. However if I remember correctly you really pack a lot of luggage so it may not be too far out of line.

You are quite correct there VL, last trip we counted 12 bags going into the room and I think it was 17 bags going home. One large suite case, 1 medium suite case, one small suite case, a cosmetic bag, a shoe duffle bag (Mickey or course), 1 or 2 lap tops, 1 netbook, 1 Ipad, a camera backpack with: 6 cameras, video camera, 3 webcams, all wiring for same, 2 other bags with dog knows what in them, Judy's "must have bag" for the ride down, a sling bag (with more wiring, chargers, extra batteries), case of water, case of Diet Pepsi, six pack of Sam Adams Black Lager of Kona Long Board. I know there is more, but I cant remember now.

Thu, 10/11/2012 - 04:14

Magic Mirror

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Thu, 10/11/2012 - 19:02

angels444

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Magic Mirror wrote:

This all sounds superb!!!! and it's almost here ~~~ yeahhhhhh!!!!! When I walked by Pecos Bills it smelled heavenly.. I wanted to grab a margarita and some salsa and chips right at that moment! I did do the tip envelopes ahead of time, but thats the crafter in me wanting to play with stickers and such...but packing..I'm a last minute packer..I have in my head about what I want to take and am throwing it in just before we walk out the door. It's always worked for me and if I forget something? It's just an excuse to shop! You're going to have a blast!

Where did you get the idea of tip envelopes? I know I have heard of them on another forum but I can't remember which one.

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Thu, 10/11/2012 - 19:38

Kristen K.

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I got the idea years ago from The Mouse for Less. Their envelope project is actually a folded paper envelope that you create and secure. I changed that into a cool label design on a standard office envelope because it was faster for me.

Thu, 10/11/2012 - 19:39

MrHub

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Here are the ones scrappy made:

Preview	Attachment	Size
	017.jpg	187.48 KB
	018.jpg	188.61 KB

Thu, 10/11/2012 - 19:43

Kristen K.

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So adorable! LOVE THEM!

Thu, 10/11/2012 - 19:46

nikkirugby13

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Oh Mr Hub Scrappy did a wonderful job..... I want to copy her creativity!! LOL

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Thu, 10/11/2012 - 19:53

MrHub

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nikkirugby13 wrote:

Oh Mr Hub Scrappy did a wonderful job..... I want to copy her creativity!! LOL

Well you just go girl! You need a better picture?

Thu, 10/11/2012 - 20:35

nikkirugby13

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Oh really?!?! Yes pretty please!

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Fri, 10/12/2012 - 01:51

angels444

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nikkirugby13 wrote:

Kristen K. wrote:
nikkirugby13 wrote:
How do you prepare your tip envelopes? Do you do this before for your meals also? How do you figure out how much to put in if you don't know what your bill is? Is there a system you have?

There is a method to my tipping madness!

About 2 weeks before I leave I sit down with a stack of dollar sized envelopes and labels from the office store. I create some sort of pretty label that says something along the lines of "Thank you for your service, our trip wouldn't have been as magical without you. Tip inside" with our family name and the trip dates. I like to make then fun and pretty.

Assuming I am traveling with 2 people here's my tip breakdown:

$5 x2 for Magical Express (one coming and one going)

$5 xNights I'm staying for Mousekeeping (that gets left in the room each day)

One envelope with assorted $1s and $5s (that stays in my purse for unforseen tips - such as if I use valet or bell services)

For table service meals I read the menus of the restaurants that we have ADRs at and take a guess of what people will order. I grab that from here http://allears.net/din/dining.htm Then I add it up and figure out 20%, then stick that in it's envelope and write on the back the name of the restaurant in pencil. Over the years I've found that I usually need $10 for breakfast, $20 for dinner at a regular table service restaurant, and $30-40 for signature dining. I do tip on the high side though, so you might need to adjust down a little to be comfortable.

I also do an envelope with about $60 just in case I want to take a couple of cabs.

After everything is inside it's envelope and the labels are on them I put them into piles by day and paper clip it together. While on vacation I grab the correct days worth of envelopes and stick them in my purse, leaving the rest in my room safe. That way I'm not carrying a ton of cash with me. If I have left over envelopes because I didn't take a cab or use bell staff that becomes "extra" spending money for last minute souvenirs before we leave.

Kristin -- This is so helpful and informative! Thank you so much!!! I too (MM) never thought to tip the bus drivers.....I feel really bad now.... .... Figuring out 20% gratuties should help pass the time ast work today & tomorrow...wohooo!!

Thanks again ladies!!! and MM get back to your post trip report!! hahaha

I make tip envelopes but I dont decorate mine I just make up envelopes for mousekeeping, restaurants (one per meal) and drivers tips. I tip ME both ways, taxi's and bell services. Once again Kristen's system is almost exactly like mine but when it comes to restaurants I put in a 10 and two fives. If the service was good I will go with 20% if the service average or poor I will go with 15%. I leave 10 for buffets, usually 10.00 for breakfast , but that is based cost also. For lunch and dinner I take the 2 fives. I can always take one of the fives out. I always have a few extra ones on me to make up the difference if I have to ,but if the tip is 18 dollars at 18% I might leave the 20 for great service, 15 for average service. Personally the 2 five system works for me. Any left over money goes home I guess. Last trip we brought home a lot of money because we just couldn't find a must have souvenir. It was sad really.

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Fri, 10/12/2012 - 01:57

angels444

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mrhub wrote:

Here are the ones scrappy made:

those are too cute for words.

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Fri, 10/12/2012 - 02:03

angels444

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mrhub wrote:

Here are the ones scrappy made:

Mine were just ever day envelopes you get at walmart. I prefer to think as 'it is what's on the inside that counts".

Joking aside. I love the mickeys I might do something like that.

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Fri, 10/12/2012 - 02:18

angels444

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mrhub wrote:

Vettelover wrote:
scrappy wrote:
We usually tip the bell staff $20 to carry in and then again to carry out. Are we way over tipping with that?

For that tip I'll go down and carry your bags in. However if I remember correctly you really pack a lot of luggage so it may not be too far out of line.

You are quite correct there VL, last trip we counted 12 bags going into the room and I think it was 17 bags going home. One large suite case, 1 medium suite case, one small suite case, a cosmetic bag, a shoe duffle bag (Mickey or course), 1 or 2 lap tops, 1 netbook, 1 Ipad, a camera backpack with: 6 cameras, video camera, 3 webcams, all wiring for same, 2 other bags with dog knows what in them, Judy's "must have bag" for the ride down, a sling bag (with more wiring, chargers, extra batteries), case of water, case of Diet Pepsi, six pack of Sam Adams Black Lager of Kona Long Board. I know there is more, but I cant remember now.

I was thinking 20.00, 10.00 wow these people are awful generous. If I even see the porter I give them 5.00 but we usually only have 2 duffles OR our BIG 4 wheel suitcase. What can I say we travel light even for 10 days at a time. We don't change clothes during the day either. Only one or two things for signature. Ok I left out J's camera bag that carries his laptop too but he never parts from that so it is still only 1 or 2 bags.
But when I read the 12 or 17bags I thought ok that is a 20.00 each way tip. We never see the person that brings in our bags. They are always in our room when we arrive, wait one time we had to go to lunch before they arrived. The Disney elves must have been busy that day.

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Fri, 10/12/2012 - 12:17

Kristen K.

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angels444 wrote:

I was thinking 20.00, 10.00 wow these people are awful generous. If I even see the porter I give them 5.00 but we usually only have 2 duffles OR our BIG 4 wheel suitcase.

According to travel etiquette sources the appropriate amount to tip for baggage handling is $1-$2 per bag. So with 1 or 2 bags $5 would be a generous tip as well.

Fri, 10/12/2012 - 13:01

Mase

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Kristen K. wrote:

angels444 wrote:
I was thinking 20.00, 10.00 wow these people are awful generous. If I even see the porter I give them 5.00 but we usually only have 2 duffles OR our BIG 4 wheel suitcase.

According to travel etiquette sources the appropriate amount to tip for baggage handling is $1-$2 per bag. So with 1 or 2 bags $5 would be a generous tip as well.

Yeah.... thats pretty much right. My Dad sometimes goes overboard... but yeah. lol

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Sun, 10/14/2012 - 02:38

angels444

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I knew it was was within tipping standards I was basically trying to say wow 12 bags. How many people? How long do you stay?
I can't wait 46 more days. It just ocurred to me that monday would have been my pay off date but I am already paid off. I just looked at the calendar I will be in St Louis when my Mickey Mail is due to arrive.

Sorry I am a little ADD. Back to tipping. I cant wait to start tipping in Disney lol

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