Not on FlyerTalk it doesn't. Anyways, I've never heard of anybody in my life abbreviating Chinese New Years like that.

Maybe in Omaha but not on the FT Asia Forum and rest of the world.

Maybe you are right, maybe you are wrong

If CNY was a major hub, perhaps. Seeing that it's in the Asia forum, I'd just slink off and admit defeat. Otherwise, you just seem foolish.

We brought a stack of them to VN. While they were clearly appreciated, I can't imaginge a crisp $10 or $20 would have been appreciated less. $2-bills carry a premium there, but not 5-10 times the value, unless you have uncirculated notes from specific in-demand years.

Personally, I would reserve the $2 bills for extra special service, otherwise that's overtipping in most cases.

Tough call. We stayed in high-end hotels that cost $200 a night. Yes, I know that's expensive for VN, but that level of accommodations would have cost double elsewhere. In the states, I tend to tip about 5% on the room cost, plus or minus depending. I personally think it would have been unkind to lower that rate simply because VN's average wage is lower. We left 2-3 $2-bills a day. We didn't do it in order to get better treatment, but I can tell you we certainly were treated better, from goodies left in our rooms, to explicit thank yous. That's where we used the $2s, for the housekeeping staff at the hotels we stayed at.

Different strokes, of course, but when we travel, trying not to "overtip" the people who clean our bathrooms isn't really a concern.

I don't think it is about "lowering the rate". What might be appropriate in the US might not be appropriate in VN.

Would you feel it fair if I didn't "raise the rate" I pay in Taiwan (zero) when visiting the US?

I think it should be - but frankly in my 20 years of bumping into US travellers in Asia, I know you are not alone in this approach.

I think there's some middle ground. Yes, one should do what is appropriate in the country where you're visiting...but that doesn't mean you leave your own culture's sense of fairness and decency at home when you travel. Tipping $2 or $4 on a $200+ room can hardly be described as inappropriate.

I think I know what you're getting at, but let's clarify. Are you implying that my "overtipping" the natives makes life difficult for those who follow because I've contributed to the expectation of higher tips? While this topic is larger than can be -- or should be -- dealt with here, let's just say that I take a very dim view of this argument. Who is the arbiter of how much I, as an American visiting Vietnam, "should" or "shoudldn't" tip? (Or whether I should tip at all.) I've been travelling for 20+ years myself, and in al honestly, I don't think being a generous tipper has caused egregious social harms.

I just have a problem with that. Fairness and decency might be universal, but the kind of behaviour that constitutes fair/decent in a particular culture will depend on that culture. Particular behaviours shouldn't be exported. I'm sure a US waiter would very much like me to leave my tipping behaviour at home when visiting his restaurant. But my sense of fairness and decency would cause me to want to treat him in the same way that locals would. What is a fair and decent tip in London wouldn't be acceptable in New York.

I think it does. But either way, I just don't think it appropriate.

My father used to drive for a cab company near Heathrow. Drivers would compete for the US flights because of heavy tipping by Americans. In the end the cab company increased their cut of US flights to try and rebalance things. My father used to refuse oversized tips, but in the end he had to take them because of the increased amounts he had to pay over. It did make him very unhappy.

I feel as an American in Vietnam you should follow local customs. But in the end, as you're holding the folding, it is your decision.

Probably not. I think the culture is fairly robust. Also the tourism sector is relatively small and the influence of western business travellers not as great as it was. So I'm not losing sleep over it. The VN are pragmatic and no doubt just take what they get and carry on as normal.

As I'm sure you know, Vietnam does have its own tipping culture - eg li xi type money around lunar new year. In my regular hotel I got to know the staff by name and this kind of thing wins people over. My rooms were always clean. No need for daily tips. I gave a small gift when one of the receptionists got married (not to me, sadly) and give to the staff more generally around new year.

And there is, of course, the grey area between tipping and bribery [though for the avoidance of doubt I don't think this applies here].

Think I'll leave it there as I'm taking the thread off topic.

Tempting though it is, I will refrain from piling on to the above posting since it is going off topic.

Back on topic...the US will be debuting the new $100 bills later this fall. It will be interesting to see how fast these will be recognized/ accepted/ required in Asia. Usually most Asian countries switch over to the new currency very quickly as a requirement. I remember during the last major redesign when the US went from the old-style Ben Franklins to the "Big Heads," that it seemed to take only a matter of a few months before the old style were no longer accepted and only Big Heads were. I suspect this upcoming switchover will work out similarly.

Therefore, anybody traveling towards the end of 2013/first half of 2014 and normally carrying USD 100's as exchange medium in Asia, should keep apprised of the acceptance situation at their destination. And if necessary, before leaving home, switch out your Big Heads for the latest and greatest.

In Bangkok, money changers were offering higher rates for USD 100 bills over smaller denominations.

I never have any trouble getting as many as I want from my Bank, and they're always mint condition.

That said, they usually also have plenty of brand new 100s as well.

This has been the norm for years and was mentioned several times upthread.

I don't particularly feel the need to defend myself over giving $2-4 a night to the housekeeping staff at a 4-star hotel, but your little offhand comment about bribery goes too far. If you think my behavior is in that quote-unquote grey zone, then why not have the courage to come out and say it?