onobond

Updated the wiki regarding Panama

esp

Apologies if I overread it ITT but I still have a few questions on tipping etiquette in the US.

1) Housekeeping. Googling gives conflicting info. How much per day in (i) an economy hotel and (ii) a business hotel? With multi-day stays, do I tip daily or upon check-out?

2) I'm sort of familiar with tipping at normal and upscale restaurants but what about budget and family restaurants (think IHOP/denny's/red Robin etc.)

Sometimes, the waitress casually drops the check on my table but I can see a cash register near the entrance. So I figure, I take my bill to the register and pay there. But what about the tip, do I leave it at the register or on the table? Does it make a difference whether I pay cash or with CC?

3) I play a table game like BJ at a casino (I'm doing it rarely, it's a losing proposition after all). Do I tip whenever I win or whenever I play (i.e., each hand)?

Confused European here

User Name

1) Tipping housekeeping in the US is a practice that is commonly exercised but is far from being a norm (unlike tipping in restaurants for example). There are from time to time polls on travel blogs, where 40-50% of respondents do not tip, and others do only for longer stays or if they make a bit more of a mess than usual. Therefore you won't get the same type of negative response if you choose not to leave a tip than you might from a server in a restaurant. Here's an example from a Boarding Area blog that I just found on Google.

http://roadwarriorette.boardingarea....-housekeeping/

These types of numbers are about in-line with the experiences of Mrs User Name, who has worked in housekeeping departments in a number of chain hotels in the 2*-4* range.

2) Same principles apply. Where payment is taken at a register at the door there's no difference, apart from is you are using cash to tip then it's left on the table.

3) Can't help you I'm afraid. Maybe a little out of scope for a travel forum? Although I appreciate that there will be others who gamble while traveling who might like to know.

JY1024

Please remember that this thread is for tipping information throughout the world. It is NOT a commentary thread.

All discussion regarding tipping and one's feelings about the subject will be removed. Repeat offenders will be subject to discipline as outlined by FT Rules.

Thank you for your cooperation & understanding.

/JY1024, TravelBuzz co-moderator

jackal

Ditto everything User Name said.

I personally rarely tip at hotels of any sort. Perhaps the fact that probably 90% of my hotel stays are single-night stays plays into that; I do feel a slight compulsion to leave a couple bucks if I'm staying a few nights (and especially if I've made a mess or have my crap strewn throughout the room, which I'm sure annoys the housekeeper), but like User Name said, it's not a universal practice and you will totally not even be looked at askew if you don't tip. That said, if you do choose to tip, I think it's slightly better to tip each day, since you may not have the same maid every day and they may not pool their tips.

I think anywhere from $2-5 is acceptable at any type of hotel, perhaps trending a little higher on the end of that spectrum the nicer the property is and the clearer it is that housekeeping has paid attention to detail in your room, but anything in that range is fine, I think. You might up it a bit more at a five-star property (especially where you may interact periodically with housekeeping for special requests), but otherwise, I don't think it really matters much.

The rule is basically 15-20% for any type of restaurant except counter service and (gasp) buffets. Whether it's IHOP or Per Se doesn't matter.

Each American has his/her own standard of what he or she tips. Personally, I do a quick rough calculation of what 20% is and round up to the nearest higher dollar if service was very good and round down to the nearest lower dollar if service was decent. If service was mediocre, I'll aim for something closer to 15%. My grandmother used to carry a tip calculation card in her purse and always tipped exactly 15%, no matter what. Some friends of mine tip 15%, some 20%, some in between. Anything in that range at any restaurant will be acceptable, though some friends of mine who have waited tables do say they appreciate those who tip on the higher end of the spectrum.

Exceptions to the rule:
-Fast food (especially chains): typically no tipping at all
-Counter service/take out: if there's a tip jar out or a tip line on your credit card receipt, feel free to put a buck or two on, but it's not obligatory and you won't be frowned at for not tipping.
-Buffets: You do serve yourself, but typically servers take care of refilling drinks as well as clearing your dishes, so I've heard 10% is a reasonable figure here
-New York: I've seen some references that the tipping range in NYC is more like 20-25%, and my New York friends do seem to be more generous tippers than normal. You might consider 20% in NYC, though I'm not quite sure if tipping 15% in NYC is quite the equivalent of tipping 10% (i.e. showing you to be a cheapskate) outside NYC.

Perhaps the folks over here have some idea about tipping casino staff? http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/gamin...-programs-651/

DavidVenuto

In Japan I have had staff return my tips on my first trip. It was seen as greatly disrespectful.

joshwex90

Just went to a sit-down bar in Zurich, and rounded up as per the wiki (round up) and left half a franc. The waittress shouted (not in a mean way!) that I left my change. I told her she could keep. She looked at me strangely and felt uncomfortable and offered it back. I said she could keep it, and she said, "no, don't worry about it, no need, here." So I took it back and gave it to a poor person. But has this changed in Switzerland? Is tipping, even the change, less common in restaurants now, or was it different because this was a nice bar, but not a fancy restaurant?

mmff

Why would you insist?

joshwex90

It wasn't really insisting. It was letting her know that I didn't forget change, but was letting her keep what I left there as a thank you.

TravelinWilly

Is there any reason Qatar isn't covered in the list? Is it assumed to be rolled up to the UAE? I only ask because technically Qatar isn't a member of the UAE, and I'm trying to understand the tipping culture there (if there even is one)...

joshwex90

The reason no Qatar is because it wasn't in the OP. OP created this thread awhile ago with info from some Magellan's piece. I then copied it into a wiki to be editable. If someone here has info on Qatar, they should update the wiki (if you find out, please update for us all!).

As for being "rolled into UAE," I don't know much about the different cultures there, but is there any logical reason to do so? Do people generally do that in other aspects?

nas6034

I've seen recently in NYC restaurant that they are adding 4% "surcharge" that is automatically included on bills as a means of providing a living wage to the staff and that this should not be construed or taken as tipping them.

LearningToFly

When pressured that way, I do a math: The bill before taxes and everything, less 4%, plus what I think could be fair considering the service.

HerbyArthur

Thanks a lots for share this.

muji

This is actually not true about Japan.
No Japanese would consider a non-Japanese leaving a tip to be disrespectful or rude.
They would understand that the person was applying a foreign tipping custom that does not exist in Japan.