What is the general rule for tipping?

[Fairynuff]

47 minutes ago, VBF said:

Tipping is NOT required, anywhere, any time...UNLESS.......

YOU think the service or favour you have received  deserves a "thank you" gesture.

That's IT - no exceptions. 

 

I think the Thai word for it is  Prah̄yạd (ประหยัด) - or in English - parsimonious - correct me if I'm wrong on that

 

And if you don't like that, call me Charles........Cheap Charles! ?

Fine, if you want to play with words...play with yourself 

[dotpoom]

Not again!

[Jingjock]

In bars more than 2 drinks 20baht, restaurants normally 30 baht, my room cleaner 40 baht every week. Been here 7 years and this seems to work, however poor service or trying to short change you which happens often, zilch nothing

[Laza 45]

4 hours ago, ezzra said:

In Thailand no tipping is required thanks god for that not having to go thru this awkward phase every time you finish a meal or check in and out from a hotel, of course that there are mainly tourists that spoil this for everyone else, but if you must give, anywhere from 2% to 5% is advised...

2 to 5%.. CHEAP Charlie!!  Use your head and think about what these people are living on.. If you get good service show your appreciation by being generous.. it doesn't cost much.  Keep your satangs in your pocket... 2 to 5 % is an insult.. 

[stropper]

VERY EASY, DON,T

[murraynz]

4 hours ago, Boy Wonder said:

Haha sorry to spoil it for you ? I've been conditioned to tip by being raised in the USA.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

please dont encourage this terrible habbit  into thailand--tipping is  NOT  necessary. there is enough corruption in thailand already....

[Milrem]

How can you not tip people in Thaïland ? You are not in the US. Do you know that most people rely mainly on tips to make a living ? Do you know how painful it is to make a massage ? How can you not tip people who hardly make $10 a day ? Are you cheap charlies ?

I always give 100 bahts for a massage whether good or bad, 400 bahts for a caddy at golf whether good or bad, 10% at restaurant or bar. 50 to 100 to barber, etc... And I feel bad because i know that these people generaly do not have enough to buy food the next day and sometimes even fast because no money ! And i am not speaking about the bribes police steal them down to ruin them!

Edited August 23, 2018 by Milrem
my opinion

[crab]

There are some real ki niaao types posting here, shit so hard they could use it for bowling. It's true that tipping in local casual Thai restaurants is not expected, although odd coins are always welcome. Elsewhere the point is that there are no clear standards, not like in Europe and America. Some Thais are very generous, some not, and it's absolutely not always about face. Personally, I get confused, particularly in farang-owned western-style restaurants, where tips are clearly expected, and I don't claim any set system for tipping. I tip what feels right to me, all things considered. And not over-generously, because I'm on a very tight budget.

 

This is all for restaurants. For personal services like massage the Thais are inclined to tip more generously than farangs. I've never seen a Thai tip less than 100 baht after a 200 baht foot massage. Delivery men? Oddjob workers? "Up to you" but the issue is nam jai, kindness.

 

Perhaps the issue always is nam jai, kindness.

[55Jay]

Really liked the one bloke here who said he bolts out of his hotel room straight away to avoid giving the poor schlub 20 Baht. 

 

Generally, I don't tip at small places, market stalls, shop house noodle joints and other places where it's not expected or anticipated - fast food, food courts, etc.  

 

I always tip in my local pub(s) and sit down restaurants as long as the service is good, which is usually is.  Don't think it's "expected" but I'm sure it's appreciated among the staff who aren't on high wages to begin with, and as far as I know, they pool the tips and share them at CoP/CoB, especially if the cook/chef does a nice job behind the scenes.

 

Typical amount for me is 40 Baht, usually easy to separate from the check bin change given and/or from my wallet.   Could be 30, on rare occasions only 20.  But most of the time I leave 40.

 

[thaiguzzi]

4 hours ago, Boy Wonder said:

Haha sorry to spoil it for you ? I've been conditioned to tip by being raised in the USA.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

Oh dear.

Ever heard of the phrase "when in Rome"?

Have you actually noticed the locals ie Thais tipping?

Especially street food?

What about wai-ing to the maids, waiters and kids because that's just good manners being raised in the USA?

Deary me.

 

[kannot]

3 hours ago, Fairynuff said:

.....by a certain type of person

one with a bit of sense, I agree

[kannot]

21 minutes ago, crab said:

but the issue is nam jai, kindness.

 

utter BS

[maximillian]

When I was studying I drove a taxi to earn some money. The pay was lousy then, but the tips often very generous. It's more about appreciation than money. That's why I tip.

My wife's daughter worked in a restaurant where the tips were shared. When she came home, the first thing she mentioned with a big smile was how much tip she received that day. She was so happy about it. BTW, that restaurant had almost 100 % Thai customers.

Recently I was about to give a 40 Baht tip to a car mechanic who balanced and aligned tires and  wheels. There was no way he would accept it, but I could feel he was happy that I appreciated his work. There is a saying in German: "Give with warm hands."

[NoshowJones]

4 hours ago, ezzra said:

In Thailand no tipping is required thanks god for that not having to go thru this awkward phase every time you finish a meal or check in and out from a hotel, of course that there are mainly tourists that spoil this for everyone else, but if you must give, anywhere from 2% to 5% is advised...

People do spoil things for everyone else by giving too much, then they expect it all the time. I blame the Americans for this, the only time I will tip is if I like a restaurant that much I want to go back, but that has not been for a while as that restaurant went a bit daft with their prices.

[NoshowJones]

4 hours ago, Boy Wonder said:

Haha sorry to spoil it for you ? I've been conditioned to tip by being raised in the USA.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

So you let other people run your'e life for you by " being conditioned", can't you think for yourself?

[NoshowJones]

3 hours ago, kannot said:

no it isnt "required"

I bet there are even people who tip even after they have also paid a service charge. you

know in the small print.

[seancbk]

5 hours ago, Boy Wonder said:

Haha sorry to spoil it for you ? I've been conditioned to tip by being raised in the USA.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

Tipping is stupid.   Do you tip the person at the supermarket checkout?  Do you tip the sales staff in a department store?  

If someone wants to employ people they should be willing to pay them a proper salary, there is no excuse for restaurants and some other service jobs to rely on tips.   In fact it should be make illegal.

[NoshowJones]

3 hours ago, ChiangMaiLightning2143 said:

I tip what Thais tip.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I tip what Indians tip.

[2008bangkok]

Why would anybody take the fact somebody won't let them tip personally.

[tropo]

5 hours ago, Boy Wonder said:

Haha sorry to spoil it for you ? I've been conditioned to tip by being raised in the USA.


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

You guys like to call it a tip (in the USA), but I'd call it a compulsory surcharge or tax that is necessary to pay the salaries of service staff, who are on very low hourly wages. Tipping there improves the profitability of businesses while making it more expensive for customers. I don't know if they have service charges in US restaurants, but they do in Thailand. Tipping at a restaurant that is slugging you with 10% service charge would seem a bit over the top... and many add 7% VAT too. A tip is something you give for good service if it not required. Americans certainly do give the rest of us a bad name in Thailand though, with their ridiculously high tips. Tip if you want, don't tip if you don't want to - but most of all, don't stress out about it.

 

The idea of tipping as a percentage is absurd IMO. If a waiter has to serve you an expensive dish or fried rice, they're making the same effort. Let's compare the percentage tip on a very expensive bottle of wine vs a cheap bottle of wine. The tip as a percentage could be double or triple for the same effort.

Edited August 23, 2018 by tropo

[oldrunner]

I guess I'm an indoctrinated tipper as I appreciated a tip when I worked as a busboy and later as a bartender. I usually tip 40 to 60 Baht when the bill is over 800 baht. My wife will sometimes leave a "next to nothing" tip but then she will "palm" a tip to the primary waitress.

[Laza 45]

54 minutes ago, Milrem said:

How can you not tip people in Thaïland ? You are not in the US. Do you know that most people rely mainly on tips to make a living ? Do you know how painful it is to make a massage ? How can you not tip people who hardly make $10 a day ? Are you cheap charlies ?

I always give 100 bahts for a massage whether good or bad, 400 bahts for a caddy at golf whether good or bad, 10% at restaurant or bar. 50 to 100 to barber, etc... And I feel bad because i know that these people generaly do not have enough to buy food the next day and sometimes even fast because no money ! And i am not speaking about the bribes police steal them down to ruin them!

Well said.. thank you..  Tipping isn't about meeting a formula.. it comes from the heart.. shows appreciation for the service you have received and a desire to help a bit where you can.  If you resent tipping don't bother...

 

[Tchooptip]

2 hours ago, VBF said:

Tipping is NOT required, anywhere, any time...UNLESS.......

YOU think the service or favour you have received  deserves a "thank you" gesture.

That's IT - no exceptions. 

 

I think the Thai word for it is  Prah̄yạd (ประหยัด) - or in English - parsimonious - correct me if I'm wrong on that

 

And if you don't like that, call me Charles........Cheap Charles! ?

 

The term for tip in Thai is tiip ทีป  or ngeun tip เงินทีปม no offence but I would really like to know where did you find 

prahyat is the Thai word for tip or who is the person who told you that?  

[tropo]

15 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

3 hours ago, kannot said:

no it isnt "required"

I bet there are even people who tip even after they have also paid a service charge. you

know in the small print.

The service charge and VAT are in big print when your bill comes out though...

 

In Thailand, they do make it a bit easier at most places though. They use "net" to indicate no extra surcharges and "+ +" to indicate extra service charge and VAT and "+" if only service charge is added.

[Burma Bill]

Where I live in the rural North East near Khon Kaen tipping is not expected but when I get good service I do give a tip and the local people are very grateful as many are not so well off compared to those in the popular seaside resorts and Bangkok down south.    

[amexpat]

24 minutes ago, tropo said:

You guys like to call it a tip (in the USA), but I'd call it a compulsory surcharge or tax that is necessary to pay the salaries of service staff, who are on very low hourly wages. Tipping there improves the profitability of businesses while making it more expensive for customers. I don't know if they have service charges in US restaurants, but they do in Thailand. Tipping at a restaurant that is slugging you with 10% service charge would seem a bit over the top... and many add 7% VAT too. A tip is something you give for good service if it not required. Americans certainly do give the rest of us a bad name in Thailand though, with their ridiculously high tips. Tip if you want, don't tip if you don't want to - but most of all, don't stress out about it.

 

The idea of tipping as a percentage is absurd IMO. If a waiter has to serve you an expensive dish or fried rice, they're making the same effort. Let's compare the percentage tip on a very expensive bottle of wine vs a cheap bottle of wine. The tip as a percentage could be double or triple for the same effort.

Yank bashing aside, (the most outrageous tipper I know is a Brit) I've always shared your opinion that tipping as a percentage is absurd.  Sometimes my date and I would max out the menu prices and have wine so I was expected to tip much more than the couple who ordered the cheapest possible while their kid trashed the place. Nonsense. 

[baansgr]

I made the concious decision 3 years ago to not tip. Never nada, nothing. 

[Laza 45]

6 minutes ago, baansgr said:

I made the concious decision 3 years ago to not tip. Never nada, nothing. 

...live with your Karma...

[Kadilo]

Drop it anywhere you like. 

[Fairynuff]

1 hour ago, kannot said:

one with a bit of sense, I agree

So not you then