Tipping

[Yellowtail]

Here's a tip kid, don't play with matches. 

[Chris Daley]

Leave it to the yanks.

[SpaceKadet]

I never tip in restaurants. It's a bad habit instituted by the Americans. Unfortunately they brought it with them when they started traveling to Europe and Asia. I understand that in the America there are TIP APPS that will let you calculate how much you should tip. And anything below 25% is a NO-NO. So what? The restaurants in the States do not pay their staff?

 

I can understand where is comes from, where long time ago, the low level employees in the hotels and restaurants and other service establishments  were supposed to live of their tips, but nowadays?

 

In Thailand, nobody in the service industry expects tips. However, my wife still leaves the coins change in the restaurants. Sometimes, it gets really stupid, and where there is only 1 baht coin in the change, I just say "Take it!"
 

[SpaceKadet]

On 4/5/2025 at 3:07 PM, bkk6060 said:

I tip all the time. A lot of these people make about one dollar an hour.  Leaving something especially for good service I think is a nice thing to do.  

I think your mind is still in your home country. A dollar an hour is a standard minimum wage here, that can make you survive for a month and feed your family. 

We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto...

[still kicking]

On 4/22/2025 at 11:00 PM, Chris Daley said:

Leave it to the yanks.

Why? I tip in every country. And I am not a Yank 

[DonniePeverley]

Bangkok has a 'service charge' and VAT charge added ... some sneaky places even adding it that you doubt are even paying any VAT. 

 

DOes this service charge even go to the staff? Unlikely. 

 

What you all paying for massage tips ?

[Denim]

A friend of mine who had not been here for a decade made a reprise visit. The porter took him to his room, opened the curtains and turned on the air.

 

My friend pressed a ten baht coin into his hand. The guy looked at it then gave it back saying 

' you need this more me ' then left the room.

 

Tipping is very much an ingrained requirement in the USA so Americans assume it is everywhere else which it isn't.  Tipping outside of tourist towns is much less common and only given for better than expected service.

 

Do Americans  tip in KFC or McDonald's?

Do they tip the cashiers at Big C etc. If not why not ? They have served you with a smile, why not tip them too ?

 

I left a tip at the steakhouse we use on our first visit . The owner ran out after us and returned  the tip saying ' please don't  tip ,we prefer you to be a regular customer '  But this is not in a tourist town so they don't expect it.

 

The usual practice  is just to leave the small change regardless of how much it is.

[save the frogs]

11 hours ago, Denim said:

' please don't  tip ,we prefer you to be a regular customer ' 

 

I mentioned this earlier. My way of tipping is repeat business. 

 

But I did go to a place that had a 10% service charge automatically added to the bill. 

 

[cdemundo]

On 4/5/2025 at 3:10 PM, rough diamond said:

If you want the "server", who you believe deserves a tip to keep to themself, I suggest that you put it discreetly directly into their hand and NOT onto the tray or into the Tip box.

Right.

I believe this is called the "hand tip".

If you give it directly to the person it's all theirs.

If you put in tip box etc. it has to be shared.

Also, since this custom exists in Thailand it seems that the statement that Thailand is a "non -tipping country" cannot be 100% true.