Rockets star found 8,000 ways to say ‘thank you’ to hotel staff

It’s not every day that hotel housekeeping receives a generous tip of $8,000. But then again, it’s not every day that a hotel housekeeper is assigned to a threemonth shift with an entire professional sports league within a social bubble.

Houston Rockets player Russell Westbrook reportedly left the tip for hotel housekeeping at Disney World’s Grand Floridian Resort when he departed the threemonth National Basketball Association bubble at Walt Disney World, according to the Dallas Morning News reporter Brad Townsend. The Rockets were among multiple NBA teams staying at the hotel, which exclusively housed NBA players during this basketball season.

Westbrook confirmed he left a generous tip to Bleacher Report’s Taylor Rooks, but he did not disclose the amount, saying he also left a thank-you note for the staff. “They took great care of us,” Westbrook reportedly told Rooks. “Took the time and energy to do their job at a high level. That was the right thing. I like to do the right thing.”

And in By The Way’s 2019 tipping quiz, all the experts featured agreed.

“They work really hard. They work long hours,” said Ben Pundole, vice president of brand experience at Edition Hotels. “There’s a level of expectation that they do an exemplary job. They deserve it.”

If you’re unsure how much, exactly, you should tip your housekeeping for keeping you comfortable and healthy, it could depend on your length of stay and level of service. But you should absolutely be leaving a tip, and perhaps not only at the end of your stay. Pundole recommends tipping $10 per day of your visit.

And in case you’re wondering, after staying at the property for roughly three months, Westbrook’s $8,000 tip would break out to tipping about $89 per night.