Tipping in Thailand

[White Christmas13]

Just read an article about tipping and according to the Travel Advisor

it is considered being rude in Thailand ?

What is your opinion ?

Can't copy link for some reasons but I remember it was on www.news.com.au

[yourauntbob]

I have never had someone put their nose up or otherwise show disinterest in the few extra baht I offered them.

[Jingthing]

There are different tipping customs in Thailand like in any country.

So you tip some types of services, not others.

In expat and tourist oriented areas, the traditional standards have been corrupted. BADLY.

For restaurant meals, more traditionally people often just leave the extra small change to be "polite" and also when tipping it is not based on a percentage of the total bill.

[krisb]

Tipping those who work hard for minimum wage is a nice thing to do I think ,hotel room cleaners always get a tip from me.

[Swiss1960]

In restaurants, I normally leave small change / 20 Baht as tip, was informed by Thai people to do so. I leave more if I am very happy and if I know I will return and want them to remember me for even better service...

In massage shops, I normally tip 100 Baht, if I am happy with the service - and happy does NOT mean "happy ending", it means massage in the strength I requested, no talking with all the other girls, no SMS and telephone calls...

In hotels, I leave around 300 Baht per week for the cleaning staff, if they do their job to my satisfaction (which not all do)

From what I hear from friends, most do the same.

[zeichen]

Not rude in Thailand. However Korea don't tip.

Thailand it is expected in tourist areas for certain services as Jingthing stated.

You don't ever need to tip though and those that ask for a tip are being greedy. Most of the time you are paying more for services and products already so why tip being charged more than locals?

Tipping is a hot bed topic on this forum and gets as much traction as how much do I need to live a month?

Tip or not is entirely up to you and you will never offend someone by tipping. You might get it handed back to you though.

Personally, if I pay for a service, I don't want to pay extra after the fact. Tipping has always seemed like a stupid concept to me. However, I do tip when I think someone is charging too little, did things faster/better than planned.

I do not tip a waitress for bringing me a soda, but if serving a whole table of thirsty pirates, then yes a tip is fine.

I love the quote by Mr Pink "you want a tip, get a different job" I am not that bad, but hate when people ask for tips.

A lot of hotel rest. and resorts will already charge a service fee 10-15% so look at your bills.

[Wavefloater]

I've never really thought about what's proper for Thailand in comparison to other places. I tip if the circumstances are right, but here's when I won't tip.

First, if there's a built in service charge -- no tip because they've already decided that regardless of how good or bad the food and/or service was I MUST tip anyway. I'm certainly not going to double tip.

Second, If the service sucks -- no tip because that's the whole idea of a tip -- it's a gratuity (to show that you;re grateful for the good or extra service you've received).

Also, if the price is highly disproportionate to the quality or quantity of food -- no tip because I'm probably pissed off about being ripped off, and I'm not going to help that type of restaurant subsidize their staff's wage. (I feel bad for the server, but I don't want to send a message to management that everything is okay when I feel it isn't. In this case, I'll explain to the server why I'm not tipping. Also, if the price is disproportionately high, I'm assuming a hefty service charge is buried in the price.)

Edited August 21, 2013 by Wavefloater

[hanno]

Let's see if this thread heads downhill as quickly as it does on forums such as the Thorntree.

[rene123]

By all means don't tip any Thai person. We don't want those Thai workers earning 300 baht a day to get uppity ideas that they are worth any more and as good as us. Just bicker and haggle over every baht, and pick up those fallen satangs off the street.

[TheSpade]

Some Thai people I know never tip and some do. I just go with the flow. If there's change left over and service was OK I'll leave up to 10%. I've found an increasing number of people asking for a tip these days which pisses me off, I find it very rude and it makes me not tip and not want to go back there again.

I've had a few occasions where the left over change was a few satang and because I've had no other small change I've just left that. More because I didn't want them than as a tip and had the server rudely throw them back at me and say they didn't want them either.

Hotel maids often get a good tip. I will save up all my small change over the course of a stay and leave it there. In my current apartment my maid will get a pint glass full of change when I move out. I tip laundry and hairdressers. In restaurants and bars if the service was decent.

[Berkshire]

In Japan, it would certainly be an insult. In the US, it's pretty much mandatory in restaurants with wait staff. It's a little more complicated in Thailand, but Thais who work in tourist areas expect it (courtesy of the western tipping culture). The problem is Thai restaurants divide their work differently. In the US, one waiter/waitress takes all responsibility for your table and your tip goes directly to him/her. In Thailand, all the wait help assists one another so the tip can't go to one person (unless you put it in their hand directly). My understanding is tips (if the owner doesn't keep it) is shared amongst not only the wait help, but cooks, dishwashers, busboys....everyone.

[Jasun]

Common name for a child, uncommon to leave one.

[Spoonman]

In Thailand always leave a 25% tip no matter where I go and not once has anyone given the slightest inkling that they were offended.

[theblether]

Tipping is a private matter. Disclosing said details will result in flaming from the members that think you tipped too much, and those that think you didn't tip enough.

Said flaming then degenerates into accusations along the line of " How dare you come here as a sex tourist and cause tipping inflation for we that live here on 8,000 grand a month / how dare you insult the populace with such small tips ".

Insults can be even worse than that though, some cruel members even resort to saying " your nothing but a tourist " A quite grievous insult is that.

When the first mob get going it usually ends up as " your nothing but a fat lying skirt wearing jock sex tourist over here using big fancy words, pretending that your dating a fancy Hi So Mercedes Girl when in reality, your just the town punch bag douche bag that couldn't pull a bird in a pet shop ".

Please note I broke up that rant with commas, to get the full effect think of a bitter and twisted little no mark tosser going purple with rage as he spits saliva of hatred all over the computer screen.

All that cos you said you tipped 20 baht in some places, 200 baht in another. So my new policy is to not comment on these threads. Except to say this of course.

Just sayin'

[Rob8891]

Tipping is a private matter. Disclosing said details will result in flaming from the members that think you tipped too much, and those that think you didn't tip enough.

Said flaming then degenerates into accusations along the line of " How dare you come here as a sex tourist and cause tipping inflation for we that live here on 8,000 grand a month / how dare you insult the populace with such small tips ".

Insults can be even worse than that though, some cruel members even resort to saying " your nothing but a tourist " A quite grievous insult is that.

When the first mob get going it usually ends up as " your nothing but a fat lying skirt wearing jock sex tourist over here using big fancy words, pretending that your dating a fancy Hi So Mercedes Girl when in reality, your just the town punch bag douche bag that couldn't pull a bird in a pet shop ".

Please note I broke up that rant with commas, to get the full effect think of a bitter and twisted little no mark tosser going purple with rage as he spits saliva of hatred all over the computer screen.

All that cos you said you tipped 20 baht in some places, 200 baht in another. So my new policy is to not comment on these threads. Except to say this of course.

Just sayin'

Please note that I have NEVER called you a skirt-wearing jock......

[White Christmas13]

So if I say I tip to much I am bad If I say I don't tip at all I am bad also

Just for example I get a haircut done that price is 30 bath but the

hairdresser is really good and I pay him 50 bath is that wrong?

[Bender]

a funny story,

few years ago, i did go dinner with few 6 thais friends and 2 another americans friends.

We know each others for many years, and all of them have great job.

One of my thai friend, Khun W. is quite sucessful and wealthy. So he invited all of us to a nice restaurant.

At the end of the dinner Khun W checked the bills. The waiter bring him his change.

And because i was looking at him, because of the 2 anothers US guy were there also, i dont know why, but he felt obliged

to do like caucasian people, he felt obliged to give a tip.

You should have seen his face, it was like he was suffocating when he give 100 baht tip to the waiter who was bowed down.

By the way the total bill for the night was nearly 20 K baht.

(over-)Tipping is the most stupid thing that tourist do in Thailand, trust me.

[Spoonman]

So if I say I tip to much I am bad If I say I don't tip at all I am bad also

Just for example I get a haircut done that price is 30 bath but the

hairdresser is really good and I pay him 50 bath is that wrong?

Incredibly wrong, 7.5b would be more than enough.

[yourauntbob]

So if I say I tip to much I am bad If I say I don't tip at all I am bad also

Just for example I get a haircut done that price is 30 bath but the

hairdresser is really good and I pay him 50 bath is that wrong?

Not wrong, not manditory. My haircut is about 70 baht and i will give an extra 20 most of the time if they do a decent job and tell them to keep the 100 note if do a really good job of it.

I put in an extra 20-30 baht per hour after a massage for good service.

For taxis and waitstaff i will leave the coins or an extra 20 for good service.

Personally I tip for just about everything i would back home just a much smaller percentage.

[David48]

Humm ... White Christmas13 ... since you have been married to a Thai girl now for over 10 years now ...

Posted 2013-06-01 16:07:16

I wholy agree with the poster i am happily married to a Thai girl for over 10 years now

and every time i look up TV i get a bad look from my wife and some nasty comments

"are you looking for some one else now"

... and have 30 million (Dollars) to invest in Thailand ...

I waited all night to gety an answer but never mind I just tell you I have 30 mill to invest in Thailand

this is AUD this is what I inqired for in the first place I just like to have an onpinioin

so case closed

I am surprised that the issue of 'tipping' is both unfamiliar to you or given your fiscal fortuitousness ... of any significance.

Carry on ...

.

[Waterloo]

Tipping those who work hard for minimum wage is a nice thing to do I think ,hotel room cleaners always get a tip from me.

+1

[britgent]

By all means don't tip any Thai person. We don't want those Thai workers earning 300 baht a day to get uppity ideas that they are worth any more and as good as us. Just bicker and haggle over every baht, and pick up those fallen satangs off the street.

What a horrendously racist rant.

Shame on you!

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6A using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[frankold]

I think the rude bit would be aimed @ the tw@ts who go around with a wad of 20's dishing them out as tips almost randomly in a manner that there handing over a 10kg bar of gold to the recipient, telling them to spend it wisely etc.

[krisb]

By all means don't tip any Thai person. We don't want those Thai workers earning 300 baht a day to get uppity ideas that they are worth any more and as good as us. Just bicker and haggle over every baht, and pick up those fallen satangs off the street.

What a horrendously racist rant.

Shame on you!

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6A using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Think you've taken that the wrong way. I don't think Renes racist at all.

[MB1]

a funny story,

few years ago, i did go dinner with few 6 thais friends and 2 another americans friends.

We know each others for many years, and all of them have great job.

One of my thai friend, Khun W. is quite sucessful and wealthy. So he invited all of us to a nice restaurant.

At the end of the dinner Khun W checked the bills. The waiter bring him his change.

And because i was looking at him, because of the 2 anothers US guy were there also, i dont know why, but he felt obliged

to do like caucasian people, he felt obliged to give a tip.

You should have seen his face, it was like he was suffocating when he give 100 baht tip to the waiter who was bowed down.

By the way the total bill for the night was nearly 20 K baht.

(over-)Tipping is the most stupid thing that tourist do in Thailand, trust me.

Having been out many times with Thai's for meals etc, regardless of their wealth i've noticed that the tip they usually give is 20baht regardless of what the total of the bill/check is, I've also noticed that if they feel the service was bad in any way, then NO tip..

I'm not suprised Khun W loooked as he was suffocating when he gave the 100 baht, he'd probably have only given 20 or nothing at all, but he probably felt obliged being with you lot as he'll probably know that some westerners tend to tip more..

As for what I personally tip when out and about is my buisness but I certainly don't overtip and if I do tip then I expect the service to have been to a certain standard.

OP, IMO tipping is not rude.

Edited August 21, 2013 by MB1

[Naam]

a funny story,

few years ago, i did go dinner with few 6 thais friends and 2 another americans friends.

We know each others for many years, and all of them have great job.

One of my thai friend, Khun W. is quite sucessful and wealthy. So he invited all of us to a nice restaurant.

At the end of the dinner Khun W checked the bills. The waiter bring him his change.

And because i was looking at him, because of the 2 anothers US guy were there also, i dont know why, but he felt obliged

to do like caucasian people, he felt obliged to give a tip.

You should have seen his face, it was like he was suffocating when he give 100 baht tip to the waiter who was bowed down.

By the way the total bill for the night was nearly 20 K baht.

(over-)Tipping is the most stupid thing that tourist do in Thailand, trust me.

for your "friend" Khun W. three cheers

[cobra]

This old chestnut again,

The successful, the generous, always tip large, it's how they roll,

The under-funded pensioners and the pathologically cheap will always rationalize tipping is never a good idea or warranted,

and those who give to inflate their ego's, short of requiring recipients to genuflect after receiving,

Yes, the Good, the Bad and the Ugly, they're all here when it comes to tipping..

[hanno]

By all means don't tip any Thai person. We don't want those Thai workers earning 300 baht a day to get uppity ideas that they are worth any more and as good as us. Just bicker and haggle over every baht, and pick up those fallen satangs off the street.

What a horrendously racist rant.

Shame on you!

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6A using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I think you misunderstood rene......

[Naam]

By all means don't tip any Thai person. We don't want those Thai workers earning 300 baht a day to get uppity ideas that they are worth any more and as good as us. Just bicker and haggle over every baht, and pick up those fallen satangs off the street.

What a horrendously racist rant.

Shame on you!

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6A using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I think you misunderstood rene......

some people need footnotes "attention irony!"

sent on encrypted subspace variable frequency channel from the Gamma Quadrant.

[chrisinth]

By all means don't tip any Thai person. We don't want those Thai workers earning 300 baht a day to get uppity ideas that they are worth any more and as good as us. Just bicker and haggle over every baht, and pick up those fallen satangs off the street.

What a horrendously racist rant.

Shame on you!

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6A using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I notice some comments travel at an extremely high altitude over some people's heads.

Or is this a funny reply to the sarcasm I think it was meant to be. Oh dear...............