Originally Posted by
sedubby
How do you figure what to tip (if at all), who to tip, and how much when traveling abroad? Is it something you actually take the time to research or just kind of figure out on the fly?
It isn't something I even think about before I go abroad, but have made a few embarrassing mistakes over the years (i.e. trying to tip a taxi driver in Singapore). Still something I am often confused about (esp. in global hotel brands abroad).
One thing I would say: people in few countries, if any, are as worked up about tipping as people in the US seem to be. People in most places adopt much more of a "take it as it comes" approach than people in the US do. I for example have tipped Singapore taxi drivers (is that not done?), and the country hasn't collapsed.
Another odd thing I have noticed about some Americans: when they ask a local person what the appropriate approach is to tipping in a particular situation, if the answer they get indicates something different from what they would do in the US, then they don't believe the answer. This obviously doesn't apply to all Americans, but I've seen on a number of occasions and it has always struck me as odd - if you're not going to believe the answer why ask the question?