We booked a couples SPA treatment at MGM for next week.....on our email conformation it says: MGM Grand Spa A 20% service charge will be added to all spa services. Is this a mandatory tip being added or are we expected to add a tip on top of this 20% ? ? ?
That's the tip. Include more if you want, but I rarely do at places where the service charge is included like that.
WOW, they don't trust that you'll tip them huh! Never seen that at any of the vegas spa's i've been to.
THANKS I considered a mandatory tip the way I read it too....I probably would have tip a little bit more, but like you said, in this case I will not.......unless I get the special message.....LOL
I would say most of the spas in Vegas I've been to have a service charge included Luxor, GN, Elemis & Mandara at aladdin/ Planet Hollywood..... Bars, restaurants, room service - lots of places throw on these charges, which is why it's always a good idea to read receipts carefully. And the fine print on menus & lists of services - they should notify you ahead of time that the charge will be added....
just so you know, that's not really the tip. we've been to the MGM spa many times and always wondered about this charge. we use the same therapist every trip, so last time we asked her about it. the therapst gets less than half of that fee. most of it goes to the spa as just another fee. so if you were happy with your treatment you should tip another 10% on top of that at least. my wife always tips another 20% on top of it.
Shifter, do you know if Bellagio and Aria are doing the same thing? If they are, I won't tip as much as I used to. Thanks!
Something tells me a Service Charge & a Gratuity Charge are 2 different things. I'd ask before receiving the treatment just to be clear.
If I'm already paying for the SPA treatment, then what the hell could the "service charge" be for other then a tip ? ! ? ! ?
the same thing a service charge is on room service and other stuff. similar to a resort fee. just another way to get more of your money in a semi-hidden way. you don't have to tip on top of that if you don't want to - i'm sure most people don't - but all the money is not going to the therapist. i will say the one thing i really like about the way MGM does it is that the service charge and the tip (if you add one) all go onto the bill as "spa service". which means if your host comps it or you use express comps on it, the service charge and tip are comped off. much better than every other spa which lists the tip separately and it's never comped.
Not sure about in Vegas but the 18% service charge added to most Toronto clubs goes 7% server, 11% house. The service charge should just be added to the base cost, even though it clearly spells out that 20% is going to be tact on. In my opinion if it's not a direct tip it should be added directly instead of forcing the customer to calculate what their actual bill will be. I'm really starting to appreciate how in Australia everything has tax and tip included upfront and if you want to tip extra you can go right ahead but you're never surprised.
yep, i was just in Europe last week and that's how it is. everything includes VAT and tip. what you see is what you get. it's great and then, like you said, you can tip some extra if you want, but you don't have to. even though the prices seem higher, when you realize that it includes everything, it's not so bad.