Tipping Culture When you Travel

Before you read: some questions to help you think about the topic and the words you might need.

What do you know about tipping in other countries and cultures?

Do people tip in your country? When and where and why?

If you come from a country like Korea or England, then you may not be used to tipping. However, if you visit the United States, then you will be expected to tip in some places and situations. Knowing when to tip and how much can seem confusing if you’re not accustomed to it, but it is an important part of American culture that you need to get up to speed before going there.

In America, people who serve in restaurants tend to make very little money, so they rely on the tips they receive from customers. The tip is a reward for good service and you are usually expected to add about 15% to 20% to the price of the meal. If you use a credit card, then you will see a place at the bottom before you sign where you can write the amount of the tip. Maybe what you don’t know is that the minimum hourly wage in America is $7.25, but in a restaurant that has tipping (i.e. Not like McDonalds), then the minimum is $2.13 an hour. This is definitely not enough money for anyone to get by. And so the restaurant is expected to make up the difference if the employee doesn’t earn enough to equal $7.25 an hour.

Actually, in America you are expected to tip anyone who gives you service. Taxis might expect a tip, the bus driver who takes you to the airport, the waiter at the hotel. If you go into a pastry store you will see a tip jar. If you buy a drink at a bar, you should leave a dollar or so each time you buy a drink at the bar. A drink at that bar might cost about $4 depending on where you are. Although you would not be expected to tip in a place where you serve yourself such as a fast food restaurant.

But in Europe it’s a different story. There, people in restaurants earn a normal hourly wage, and so tipping is just an extra or modest ‘thank you’ for good service. In Germany when you pay the bill, then you would just say, “the change is for you.” If you leave a big tip in Europe they may actually think it is demeaning, because servers will think of themselves as professional and are just doing their jobs.

In Australia and New Zealand tipping is not normal, however you might leave a few bucks after a meal for extra good service and the full price in those countries is advertised in the menu, including tax.

Contrast this to Japan where tipping is unheard of. In fact if you tip they will be embarrassed by it.

The tipping culture can be confusing, but it pays to find out before you travel to another country so that you can leave a good impression of you and your country and make your visit more pleasant.

Try to guess the meaning of the words in bold and match them with their closest meaning from the choices in the right. Some of the answers are very close and have similar meaning.

 The answers are below the table.