Guidelines to tipping on your holiday

Whether to tip your waiter in France or the taxi driver in Greece and exactly how much, still leaves people confused on their holiday. No one can give a 100 percent accurate assessment, but some guidelines can be good to bring along on your vacation. In some countries a tip is part of the pay and it is therefore almost mandatory to give a tip, while in other countries it is an almost unknown concept. One should also adjust the tip to the economic level of the individual country. For example, when a waiter in a fine restaurant in Thailand earns around 100 pounds, he will most probably be surprised if his tip is the same as what is expected in New York. Therefore you can find a quick guideline to giving tips in some of the most popular destinations around the world.

Spain
Hotel Cleaning Service: approx. 5 Euro per week
Piccolo: approx. 1 Euro
Waiter: see comment below
Taxi Driver: none
Hairdresser: 1 Euro
Comment: People give less and less tips in Spain - the locals even less or no tip. If one only drinks a cup of coffee, no tip is necessary. However, with a larger restaurant bill, it is expected to give a few Euros and often round up, depending on the size of the bill.

Portugal
Hotel Cleaning Service: approx. 5 Euro per week
Piccolo: approx. 0,5 Euro per piece of luggage
Waiter: 5-10 percent of bill
Taxi Driver: round up the total amount
Hairdresser: 1 Euro
Comment: everyone who provides a service, expects a tip.

Greece
Hotel Cleaning Service: 5-10 Euro per week (typically 2,50 Euro per person)
Piccolo: approx. 1 Euro per suitcase
Waiter: approx. 10 percent of the bill
Taxi Driver: you can give 1-2 Euros but it is not expected
Hairdresser: none

United States of America
Hotel Cleaning Service: 1 dollar per day
Piccolo: 1 dollar per piece of luggage
Waiter: 12-15 percent of the bill, unless the service was terrible
Taxi Driver: approx. 10 percent of the bill
Hairdresser: 5-10 dollars

Thailand
Hotel Cleaning Service: 20-40 Baht per day
Piccolo: 20-40 Baht per piece of luggage
Waiter: see comment
Taxi Driver: see comment
Hairdresser: 5-10 percent, depending on the standard of the salon
Comment: most restaurants include a 10 percent tip in the bill, which is the shared in between the employees. However, you can easily round up to the next 100 Baht. A tuk-tuk driver usually includes a 10 percent tip in the bill, while you should give a 5-10 percent tip to the taxi driver with a taximeter.