Tipping In Phuket

[kav]

Whats the average for tipping in Phuket, after a meal or a few beers in a bar ?

[BillR]

If the service is good, 10-20%. In fact, here your generosity goes a lot further as a lot of people never tip. Cashiers and bartenders make maybe 5-6k/mo so they rely on tips/drinks. If you're at a nicer restaurant, they often add a service charge, so watch for that, but whether or not that money ends up with the staff is another story.

Edited September 28, 2010 by BillR

[keeniau96]

About 10%. Many Thais tip less or none.

[petercallen]

When you are tipping 10% more or less they are happy with.

If you go to a restaurant which is plus 10% service charge plus 7.5 tax do not bother, the 10% is a tip anyway even if the service and food is shocking

If you do tip make sure the tip can be taken from the amount you pay without the person having to change the money with the management.

Example bill 300 baht give 340 baht the person who has looked after you and gives good service sticks the 40 baht in there pocket and the management does not know.

[thaigerd]

10-20% for me.

[thrilled]

10% is good,you don't want to over due it.Now if the waitress really does A good job,well then thats another story

[kav]

Thank you all, I was allowing it around 10%, as the food or drink is not expensive here anyway, to be honest we havent had a bad meal or bad service once since we have been here and have fell in love with the place and the coulture. Even the rain is not bothering us

[kav]

Sorry I also meant to say the people are really nice here also, except for the very annoying suit sellers, but I get that as they are only trying to make a living, rather them than me !

[LivinLOS]

I tip, but I am unreliable.. Like if the change is tip friendly they can get a lot, but if the change comes out all 100's the tip might be low. I also tip in ways I wouldnt back home.. Tip the postman for example..

Also if the service is good leave 2 lots, one handed direct to the server for them alone and another for the house.

[Rickster]

I tip, but I am unreliable.. Like if the change is tip friendly they can get a lot, but if the change comes out all 100's the tip might be low. I also tip in ways I wouldnt back home.. Tip the postman for example..

Also if the service is good leave 2 lots, one handed direct to the server for them alone and another for the house.

There are places where this doesn't actually work LiL. For example the Blue Coral bar, even if a customer directly out of sight puts 1000B into the hand of one of the ladies, there policy is that it has to go in the tip box. Which is all well and good so long as all the girls comply TiT.... why i think it stinks is because out of say 7 girls you can guarantee there will be a couple of miserable lazy ones who are still going to reap the tip bonus from maybe because a couple of girls are being proactive and working the customers, they are the ones that should be rewarded for hard work.

Contrary to the above i would say the BC is in the minority regarding this, most tips given directly to a BG go in the pocket, maybe best to ask first before you give..

[LivinLOS]

As with everything its not 100%.. Theres many bars that pocket a portion of staff tips.. Some follow the given to the server tip etc..

I was more thinking restaurants than brass bars anyway and often if direct tipping the missus will have checked the server gets it. I always do this in big chicken Kathu as the staff there keep directly given ones.

Surprised BC runs that way, hes an OK bloke and its a fairly well run place.. Wonder what his reasoning is.

[LivinLOS]

Also the old really bad service 1 baht (or satangs if you have a coin) tip..

[ozymandious]

No specific rule of thumb but i go 20-50THB at lunch and generally 100 THB at dinner. (100 baht is not that much in the big scheme of things and can really make a good difference to a food server) also I always give the gas station attendant pumping my gas 10baht i figure if he/she gets a few of those their lunch for the day is payed for.

cheers

[steelepulse]

If the bill is less than 500 baht, I tip 20-40 baht depending. This is for the normal every day places like pizza takeaway, local watering holes etc.

[Thules]

My TGF usually pays the bill when we go out (as, invariably I can't read it). She tips anywhere between 20 and 60 baht regardless of the total bill amount. In that sense, she doesn't use the % type rule that we are more used to. I don't tip the postman, but funnily enough I do tip the petrol pump attendants - don't know why

[SamKong]

some great answers so far. i tip 15-20% but that's probably do to the fact i was a barman for 10 years.

i tip where tips are appropriate but never at places like subway, woody's or any other counter service joint. it's not the same as table-side service. even when tending bar, i wouldn't expect a tip from a guy who ordered a bottled beer and walked away. all i did was open the bottle and take the money. monkeys could do that.

i'd like to add that if the service is poor, there's no reason to tip. i get really frustrated with friends that come over and want to tip when the service is undeserving. they wouldn't leave a good tip at home so why would they here? as well, when i catch someone over charging me, it's an automatic stiff done the thai way: calmly asking for the correct amount, paying the correct amount with a big smile while bitching all the way to the car.

a good tip for bad service sends the wrong message. but remember that food taking too long is not your server's fault. nine times out of ten it's the kitchen or owner's fault and the server shouldn't have to pay the price for that.

[Rickster]

Surprised BC runs that way, hes an OK bloke and its a fairly well run place.. Wonder what his reasoning is.

Martin certainly won't have anything to do with it, he doesn't get involved in that side of the business. Its most likely the night shift manager who does very little and yet still gets her share of the tips at the end of the night. Don't get me wrong i'm all for splitting the pot at the end of the night with money thats left in the change tray but girls having to put personal tips in there too is absolute nonsense, not exactly giving the girls the incentive to work had with the customers.

One of the evening staff of whom i'm very freindly with told me the other day an older couple from Oz gave her 1000B for being nice company and looking after them, i was really happy for her until she said have to go tip box.....i was disgusted, very poor form IMO. As i said the lazy, can't be bothered staff still get a nice hand out for what????

Edited September 29, 2010 by Rickster

[LivinLOS]

i tip where tips are appropriate but never at places like subway

I always drop a 20 in the tip box there.. Means no griping when getting extra salad..

[69690jay]

Thais do tip more than falangs, in restaurants/bars, though in falang owned bars maybe not as often.

Ex-pats tend to be the cheap charlies, just my experience; I own a restaurant/bar.

I tip based on service before food, and then a combination of both. 10% is a small tip, 20% plus is thank you.

This could be interesting: what nations are the cheap charlies and who are the big tippers...

[LivinLOS]

Thais do tip more than falangs, in restaurants/bars, though in falang owned bars maybe not as often.

That surprises me.. When I see Thais paying very often they only leave coins even on a 500 baht - 1000 baht meal..

I cant think of a time when I have seen Thais tip with 100 baht notes.

[69690jay]

Thais do tip more than falangs, in restaurants/bars, though in falang owned bars maybe not as often.

That surprises me.. When I see Thais paying very often they only leave coins even on a 500 baht - 1000 baht meal..

I cant think of a time when I have seen Thais tip with 100 baht notes.

quite right, i made my comment based on my wife pointing out to me in Thai restaurants we often see the Thai customers leave a tip.

I asked her about how much the Thai's generally tip and it appears that 5 to 10 percent is the norm. For example after a good night of F/B the bill is 3500B the tip will be 200+-.... I guess that my remark could of been more clear; Thais tend to leave tips more often than falangs but falangs tend to tip 'more' based on the amount of the bill, quality of service/food~

[Thules]

I was advised by a good friend and very successful falang restraunteur / hotelier here, that tips were invariably used to cover staffs food expenses on a day to day level, while their salary was used to re-pay house/bike repayments and the monthly sending home of a little to mum. Thus, for every 40 Baht tip a basic Thai meal could be bought.

Personally, I find tipping distastfull, and derogatory towards the recipient. Why don't those bosses in the Service Industries just pay a salary comensurate with the service being provided ? For example, do we ever think we have need to tip the surgeon who has just operated on us ?

[petercallen]

I was advised by a good friend and very successful falang restraunteur / hotelier here, that tips were invariably used to cover staffs food expenses on a day to day level, while their salary was used to re-pay house/bike repayments and the monthly sending home of a little to mum. Thus, for every 40 Baht tip a basic Thai meal could be bought.

Personally, I find tipping distastfull, and derogatory towards the recipient. Why don't those bosses in the Service Industries just pay a salary comensurate with the service being provided ? For example, do we ever think we have need to tip the surgeon who has just operated on us ?

Most people in most country's who work in the service industry ( waiters, cleaners etc ) are paid the minimum legal wage.

The minimum legal wage in Phuket last time i checked is approx 6000 baht a month and that's what a lot of business owners pay

.

A lot of people working here in bars, restaurants etc here send money home to support there families, it is quite expensive to live

here compared to most places in Thailand and without the tips they have no money to send home

The minimum wage set by the government varies throughout Thailand, Bangkok and Phuket have the highest

As a comparison, the minimum wage in Australia is approx 60000 baht a month and that's what most employers pay.

Its a lot more expensive to live in Australia but the wage paid you can live on and people tip a lot less in Australia

People do tip in Australia usually in a tipping glass and this is shared equally among the employed staff

In most cases i know of if the staff eat at work it is free

Your business friend must be really stingy if he keeps the tips to pay for staff meals

I know of low people but that's about as low as you can go.

[LivinLOS]

I read it as the tips allowed the staff to buy their daily meals.. Not that the owner took the tips and fed them.

[petercallen]

I read it as the tips allowed the staff to buy their daily meals.. Not that the owner took the tips and fed them.

It says tips are used to cover staff food expenses, which means the cost of food where they work.

If the staff were given the tips i am sure they could buy there food elsewhere and have money left over.

[BillR]

Im trying to remember the exact law in the the states, but I know for certain wait staff in the states are paid below minimum wage and then it is factored your earn 10% of your tickets on top of that. I was a waiter and I remember most of the time not getting any paycheck as my taxable tip earning deduction exceeded my actual paycheck.

[LivinLOS]

I read it as the tips allowed the staff to buy their daily meals.. Not that the owner took the tips and fed them.

It says tips are used to cover staff food expenses, which means the cost of food where they work.

If the staff were given the tips i am sure they could buy there food elsewhere and have money left over.

Well we read it differently.. I see him saying if staff get tips they can use those to buy day to day 40 baht meals, keeping their salary for a bike payment / to send some home.

But its ambiguous.

[ozymandious]

another variation to the tipping, when i get a massage I pay the bill and then give the girl 100thb tip

[petercallen]

Well we read it differently.. I see him saying if staff get tips they can use those to buy day to day 40 baht meals, keeping their salary for a bike payment / to send some home.

But its ambiguous.

Yes we do think differently.

Tell me whats your opinion of how large a Box jellyfish grows to now.

[LivinLOS]

Yes we do think differently.

Tell me whats your opinion of how large a Box jellyfish grows to now.

Readily admit.. I was totally wrong on that.. Thought they grew larger than they do. Have no problem with admitting it when incorrect.

Is that really all you have ??

Edited September 30, 2010 by LivinLOS