Here's How Much You Should Tip on Vacation Based on Where You Are
A complete guide for tipping at restaurants, hotels, and in taxis across 163 different countries.
Until the world is a better place and all bosses compensate all workers fairly for their labor, you should be tipping. Skipping the tip is simply unacceptable—unless you are in one of the few countries on Earth where not tipping is the norm. Fortunately, vacation planning website Hawaiian Islands just compiled data so you know exactly how much to tip, no matter where you are, and has the suggested amount for 163 countries.
The below data is sorted by the three main categories for vacation tipping: hotels, restaurants, and taxis. There are some interesting topline findings, including that in one-third of countries you should give exactly 10% as a tip at restaurants. Countries where it is actually frowned upon to tip include Japan and South Korea. The United States is the only country where tips for taxi drivers are expected to be exactly 15%.
Here is what you can expect at restaurants around the world:
In some countries, like Brazil and Iceland, service is included in the bill and a tip is not expected. In most European countries, service is often included in the bill, and any additional tip (10% is the standard) is to express gratitude for great service. The United States is the only country where the tipping standard is at minimum 20%.
An area where you may not be tipping regularly but should definitely factor in for your next vacation, is for hotel service. The people who come to clean and maintain your hotel are service workers who are often underpaid––tipping is a way to ensure that the work they do to make you comfortable is more equitable.
In the US and Canada, a standard tip is between $2 and $5 in cash for each day of your stay. In countries like Australia and South Korea, no tip is expected for hotel service.
The final category in the big three vacation tipping sector is taxis. Tipping taxi drivers is actually the least common of all three categories. Hawaiian Islands found that at least 88 countries do not have customary tipping for taxi drivers. In many other countries, the tipping standard is that you simply round up.
Tipping is important, and if you're invested in seeming like a traveler who knows what they're doing, knowing the tipping practices of your destination can make trips more seamless and maybe even a bit more enjoyable. To look through all 162 countries, check out the full report here.
Opheli Garcia Lawler is a Staff Writer on the News team at Thrillist. Follow her on Twitter @opheligarcia and Instagram @opheligarcia.