The tipping guide
A tip is always nice but remember to give your feedback if you have any. Everyone values feedback if you are respectful and try to be constructive.
Why are we tipping
Where was tipping invented? It started as a way of showing gratitude in the 17th century in Tudor, England but has in some countries evolved into a substantial part of the hostility personnel’s wage. In some cases the bartender or similar has no normal salary but is instead expected to live from their tips.
When should you consider tipping and, more importantly, when should you not?
Well, in some countries every time you get service. It is almost easier to list when you should not tip then the other way around. You are not expected to tip your lawyer, store clerk and absolutely not the police or the taxman, that is a bribe and something you can go to jail for.
The rule is always to tip…
Well, in all fairness there is not a universal rule for tipping. To make it really simple you can divide the world into different “hospitality universes”. One where personnel need your tip to pay their rent and one that doesn't. Some say that there are countries where people get offended by a tip but it is getting rarer and rarer (East Asia and Japan). For countries like the US where people need tips to survive you should tip at least 15% as a rule. In countries like Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Holland you can tip if you want, people often round up to the nearest “neat” figure.
Tipping together
This becomes a little more complicated. First of all if you are in for example the US, treat the required tip of 15% almost as tax. The recommendation is that everyone takes an equal part. For example if the bill is 100 USD and you are 4. Let everyone pay 4 USD extra to cover the tip. And then, everyone that feels that they want to show more gratitude add extra. If you are in a non default tipping country you and your friends can decide on your own how much you want to tip.
Please remember that using someone else’s tip to cover your meal is a death sin and basically means that you are stealing money from your waiter, not cool.
