How Much To Tip Traditional Masseuses ?

[manuchaomk]

Neeranam you said: I agree that 60b is more than fair, but why tip for one that is not good?

Well, I know that 20 THB can't change my life.

But I know that could make the masseuse's working day more sunny !

Ko'jai mai krap ! Dee mai ?

Sawasdee krapp

MK

[paulsmithson]

Why tip?most thais earn less than 200 aht per day!Would they tip?I do not think so

[jdinasia]

Why tip?most thais earn less than 200 aht per day!Would they tip?I do not think so

oi ... most Thais would not go to a Massage place and spend a day's wages (1/2 a day on Onnut )

The This that go ... tip!

[boxingbeauty]

I must be honest and say that I'm slightly confused now ... I have always read that tipping is not expected in Thailand, and to be careful not to offend.

On an overall note, I never tip for bad service, but I always generally tip for good service.

In the past, when having massages, I have often given a 20 Baht tip ... I thought this was a fair amount ... now I'm not so sure? Some of you here give 20, some give 200. What is the norm?

What do Thais' expect? What's the difference in tourist and non-tourist places?

[jdinasia]

I don't think I have ever tipped less than 50 baht on an hour ... sometimes more if was was more like a spa than a massage place.

The inexpensive places ... the employees are not on salary .. they are on a %'age commission ... no business means no income at all. They often go hours on end with no business. Part-timers make a lower %'age than full time employees.

There are several places like that I frequent in BKK ... 100 baht an hour .. the full time employees get 50% So yes ... on days they get 4 or more customers they make more than 200 baht a day. The days it rains ... or is too hot ... or is a weekday during the day etc .. they make next to nothing.

Like I said ... I WATCHED the Thai customers tipping and there the average was 40 baht for an hour ... so yes I tip 50 baht. After all it is harder working on a 6'2" 100kg man than a Thai guy

BTW --- I know what they earn because they had a sign out front looking for employees .. it was in Thai not English (I think it serves a dual purpose of helping the locals know they should/are expected to tip

[retiredusn]

You're NOT expected to tip anything for a traditional massage - it's a Western thing.

Would you tip the dentist or the doctor?

I agree. Far too many Western's tip ! most of the time the folks try to give it back. We try to bring our tips ect. to another country and then sit around bitching about the prices going up;

[Ijustwannateach]

Usually tip 100B an hour if the service is normal & good. If I find an exceptionally good masseur & strong worker, even 150B- there's one guy I know who is really strong & winds up exhausted after pummelling me (much to my benefit).

[jimmym40]

If all you people tip so much for a massage, what percentage do you leave for a tip when you go out to a restaurant???

You people are tipping way too much! Is 20 percent not enough? Sure on certain occassions a bit more would be nice, but all the time. We all know the thais don't tip. Are "farangs" expected to tip, and also make up for those thais that don't tip.

I tip 20-40 baht an hour, most of the time 20 baht. That's 20%. And they are happy...

[Trevor]

I don't think I have ever tipped less than 50 baht on an hour ... sometimes more if was was more like a spa than a massage place.

The inexpensive places ... the employees are not on salary .. they are on a %'age commission ... no business means no income at all. They often go hours on end with no business. Part-timers make a lower %'age than full time employees.

There are several places like that I frequent in BKK ... 100 baht an hour .. the full time employees get 50% So yes ... on days they get 4 or more customers they make more than 200 baht a day. The days it rains ... or is too hot ... or is a weekday during the day etc .. they make next to nothing.

Like I said ... I WATCHED the Thai customers tipping and there the average was 40 baht for an hour ... so yes I tip 50 baht. After all it is harder working on a 6'2" 100kg man than a Thai guy

BTW --- I know what they earn because they had a sign out front looking for employees .. it was in Thai not English (I think it serves a dual purpose of helping the locals know they should/are expected to tip

Where do you find the provincial price of B100 per hour in Bangkok? Must be well out in the suburbs. Central / tourist areas charge B200 ph. Even Krabi charges 150 to 200 ph for farang, which the backpackers are happy to pay as being a pittance in their own land (we got the Thai price of 100 ph -- for myself and GF -- by speaking Thai politely, but the manager was not a happy bunny).

As the starter of this thread I realise I probably over-tip in Thai terms, but I always make sure I avoid the tourist traps (B300 ph in back-street Patong, Phuket for instance). The masseuses do sit around most of the time but have to be present on pain of a fine; docking of B500 for a no-show day happens in Bangkok. Physical presence on site is required 12-14 hours a day.

Thanks for all the replies.

[jdinasia]

Trevor ...

scroll up Onnut ... hardly out in the burbs ... one place is across from CarreFour and the other is just past CarreFour

[Ulysses G.]

Why tip?most thais earn less than 200 aht per day!Would they tip?I do not think so

I know a LOT of massage ladies and they have to sit at work for many hours everyday and only get paid 50 baht by the shop when they DO get a customer.

They DEPEND on those tips!

[JimmyCA]

Farang

1 hour massage 50 - 100 baht

2 hour 100 baht

Jap

1 hour massage 200-300 baht

2 hour 300-500 baht

[zink]

I usually give 5-10% tip IF the service was good and I am paying the list price. This applies to traditional massage, not so traditional massage, restaurants, taxis, etc...

If the service has been really, really good, then I might give more, like 15-20%. If the price is negotiated beforehand, I don't give a tip (unless the service has been really, really good).

I recall that a minimum wage in Bangkok is about 180B per day, many Thais are working at least 9 hours in a typical working day. Thus, the minimum wage is about 20b/hour, something to keep in mind when giving tips....

[DragonQuest]

I never tip lol(Well I do sometimes @20 baht), if i did i wouldnt have a savings, If I did tip at the end of the year I could of lost thousands of baht. I guess it all depends how rich you are as well, my cousin seems to be a BIG tipper be he still aint got jack! lol

[canuckamuck]

I tip in countries where it is expected and factored into the income of the worker. In Thailand tipping is becoming more standard because a bunch of you do-gooders love the way it feels to give a 5 dollar tip for an 8 dollar service.

Those of you who tip every time, why don’t you just ask to be charged more before you start, which would make it easier for you. Tipping should be a reward for above average service, not for doing your job correctly.

A benefit of Thailand is that with most things you can pay less than the asking price. This is a good thing! Do you wish it it to be more like Tokyo or London?

Are you 200 baht tippers the same guys that will spend 10 extra minutes haggling to save 20 baht, I’ll bet you are? Do you brag about what a great deal you got? Do you see a paradox? The guy selling handmade furniture probably works harder than your massage girl. Nobody ever sends a tip his way.

[Ijustwannateach]

Why tip?most thais earn less than 200 aht per day!Would they tip?I do not think so

I know a LOT of massage ladies and they have to sit at work for many hours everyday and only get paid 50 baht by the shop when they DO get a customer.

They DEPEND on those tips!

This is my way of looking at it. Not a matter of percentage of the service, but imagining what the worker gets, and how often he/she gets a customer- sometimes it's not often, and not much. Of course I don't approach restaurants the same way.

[November Rain]

most farang are way too stingy when it comes to tips. if i pay 250 baht for the massage, i will usually tip the girl 200 baht if she did a good job.

Just curious but would you give an 80% tip to a hairdresser/barber in the West for doing the job they're employed to do at a competence level that should be expected of them ?

I certainly wouldn't.

If the massage was 250 baht I'd round it up to 300 baht. This is in no way stingy as it's more than 90% of Thais would give.

This (keebone's post) is exactly the level of tipping I'd give. Nearly the same price again, as a tip? You have got to be kidding!

[mikalmus]

A friend of mine is a masseuse and earns roughly 10,000 a month plus accomodtaion plus rice. I remember once someone tipped her 700 baht and she refered to him as stupid farang and they all had a good laugh at how stupid he was. She appreciates tips but doesn't expect them and she just puts it down to farangs being stupid when they tip anywhere near the same as the massage cost. She can't understand why they wont go somewhere better or have a longer massage. She doesn't need tips to survive, if she did she wouldn't work there.

[TAWP]

Atleast this thread makes it easy for us to point out all farangs that is making it hard for us 'not living here on western money'-people to have a normal life without being expected to be very rich and happy to give all our money away for correctly done tasks...

[jdinasia]

Atleast this thread makes it easy for us to point out all farangs that is making it hard for us 'not living here on western money'-people to have a normal life without being expected to be very rich and happy to give all our money away for correctly done tasks...

Could be ... or then again it could be pointing out the farang that don't even tip as well as locals ... and are hence .... cheap!

[TAWP]

I have yet to meet a local that tips, and these people have more money than the average thai. I'm the one that tips the taxi-driver by rounding up and my wife give me dagger-looks.

But tipping 80% for a service is, excuse my french, borderline insane.

Or perhaps I just haven't gone to a thai masseuses here and have no idea what you are talking about or if it's worth it. I'm from the strange land of 'pay what the bill says'.

[jdinasia]

I have yet to meet a local that tips, and these people have more money than the average thai. I'm the one that tips the taxi-driver by rounding up and my wife give me dagger-looks.

But tipping 80% for a service is, excuse my french, borderline insane.

Or perhaps I just haven't gone to a thai masseuses here and have no idea what you are talking about or if it's worth it. I'm from the strange land of 'pay what the bill says'.

well if you read up higher on the thread you may see that Thais do indeed tip. I do not know if you go to Thai Massage places ... do you?

[TAWP]

Since it was a retorical question, no, I do indeed don't go the any massage parlours here. So I cannot say if any locals visiting such an establishment would be inclined to tip.

I just note that I cannot recall any others doing it in any other situations.

[jdinasia]

Since it was a retorical question, no, I do indeed don't go the any massage parlours here. So I cannot say if any locals visiting such an establishment would be inclined to tip.

I just note that I cannot recall any others doing it in any other situations.

OK! I understand ... you do not got to traditional Thai massage places yet do comment about them

As for Thai people not tipping ... I better tell my partner to stop such an unThai thing at once!

[calibanjr.]

I don't think I have ever tipped less than 50 baht on an hour ... sometimes more if was was more like a spa than a massage place.

The inexpensive places ... the employees are not on salary .. they are on a %'age commission ... no business means no income at all. They often go hours on end with no business. Part-timers make a lower %'age than full time employees.

There are several places like that I frequent in BKK ... 100 baht an hour .. the full time employees get 50% So yes ... on days they get 4 or more customers they make more than 200 baht a day. The days it rains ... or is too hot ... or is a weekday during the day etc .. they make next to nothing.

Like I said ... I WATCHED the Thai customers tipping and there the average was 40 baht for an hour ... so yes I tip 50 baht. After all it is harder working on a 6'2" 100kg man than a Thai guy

BTW --- I know what they earn because they had a sign out front looking for employees .. it was in Thai not English (I think it serves a dual purpose of helping the locals know they should/are expected to tip

I salute your observational diligence, watching Thais pay their massage tab and how much they tip, did you watch them count out the bills, or did you ask them how much they paid? Very culturally aware of you also! If the data set for your averaging is actually statistically significant enough to make a culture-wide generalization, then your statistical gathering method is, to use a technical term, a bit creepy.

[jdinasia]

I don't think I have ever tipped less than 50 baht on an hour ... sometimes more if was was more like a spa than a massage place.

The inexpensive places ... the employees are not on salary .. they are on a %'age commission ... no business means no income at all. They often go hours on end with no business. Part-timers make a lower %'age than full time employees.

There are several places like that I frequent in BKK ... 100 baht an hour .. the full time employees get 50% So yes ... on days they get 4 or more customers they make more than 200 baht a day. The days it rains ... or is too hot ... or is a weekday during the day etc .. they make next to nothing.

Like I said ... I WATCHED the Thai customers tipping and there the average was 40 baht for an hour ... so yes I tip 50 baht. After all it is harder working on a 6'2" 100kg man than a Thai guy

BTW --- I know what they earn because they had a sign out front looking for employees .. it was in Thai not English (I think it serves a dual purpose of helping the locals know they should/are expected to tip

I salute your observational diligence, watching Thais pay their massage tab and how much they tip, did you watch them count out the bills, or did you ask them how much they paid? Very culturally aware of you also! If the data set for your averaging is actually statistically significant enough to make a culture-wide generalization, then your statistical gathering method is, to use a technical term, a bit creepy.

Thanks ... as the foot massage section is next to the cashier ... and the Thai Massage is across from the cashier ... and I have been MANY times. Well it is not too hard to see them pay 100 to the cashier and 40 to the massuese

[TAWP]

Since it was a retorical question, no, I do indeed don't go the any massage parlours here. So I cannot say if any locals visiting such an establishment would be inclined to tip.

I just note that I cannot recall any others doing it in any other situations.

OK! I understand ... you do not got to traditional Thai massage places yet do comment about them

As for Thai people not tipping ... I better tell my partner to stop such an unThai thing at once!

No, I commented about the fact that some people give 80% in tip and think it should be the norm. Learn to understand the difference.

[jdinasia]

Since it was a retorical question, no, I do indeed don't go the any massage parlours here. So I cannot say if any locals visiting such an establishment would be inclined to tip.

I just note that I cannot recall any others doing it in any other situations.

OK! I understand ... you do not got to traditional Thai massage places yet do comment about them

As for Thai people not tipping ... I better tell my partner to stop such an unThai thing at once!

No, I commented about the fact that some people give 80% in tip and think it should be the norm. Learn to understand the difference.

I refer you to post 49

[TAWP]

Yes?

[jumnien]

Most golfers give a 200-500 baht tip to caddies in addition to the 200 baht caddy price.