Help with tipping

[ChuckinSC]

We are sailing from Southampton to the Norweigean fjords at the end of this month and would appreciate some advice and input. We are from the U.S. and will be arriving in London several days ahead of embarkation. Our questions are about tipping; what is appropriate in terms of who to tip and how much? Should we tip doormen, bellboy, etc.? What about the luggage handlers at the pier? Also, we are totally unfamiliar with the pound and Euro and exchange rates. What should we use for currency there, and is it customary to leave 15-20% for the waiter as it is here in America? What is appropriate? Any advice is appreciated and thank you.

[John Bull]

Hi Chuck,

 

First of all, tipping in the UK is no big deal. There's a basic minimum wage, so tips are the jam, not the bread & butter. If you get it wrong, nobody's gonna get upset.

 

Airport luggage handlers charge a fat fee. But most folk use airport trolleys, freely available at baggage re-claim.

 

At your hotel, £1, or 1 or two $ or € if the bellhop carries your luggage to the room. Chambermaid mebbe the same per day by leaving it when you vacate, though under £5 might be inappropriate. The doorman only if he proves extra-helpful.

 

We don't normally tip bar staff. With a friendly & chatty barman in a quiet pub or hotel bar, mebbe include him in a round of drinks.

 

Taxi drivers (short journey) - rounding up by about £1.

 

Restaurants. This is where it gets complicated. By law, priced menus must be displayed outside the premises, taxes are included in the prices, and if there's a service charge it must be mentioned on that menu.

Many restaurants in central London & other tourist areas add a service charge, anywhere from 10% to 15%. Unless service is truly exceptional, that's good enough.

In a full-service restaurant with no added service charge, around 10% of the bill is about average, feel free to tip higher or lower or not at all, depending on the standard of service.

But in many pubs etc you order & pay for food at the bar, so feel free to discount your tip accordingly or not tip at all.

Serviced coffee shops, tearooms etc mebbe 10%, but some folk don't tip.

Self-serve railway station buffets, cafes etc - well, the clue is in the title ;)

 

Private transfer eg airport to central London £5 tip (if you're planning to take a taxi, book on the 'net for around £35 to £40, don't just take one from the rank at £60+).

London to Southampton, typical tip for a private transfer driver is £5 to £10. £15 tops if it's a tour/transfer.

 

Port luggage handlers? I doubt you'll see them. If you do, you'll only see the one at the front of the chain, no need to tip.

 

This just gives you a general idea, and it's not gospel. Doubtless others will disagree, but nobody's right & nobody's wrong.

 

Currency is sterling, you will need sterling for most purchases, cc for larger purchases.

Best get yourself some sterling, before you leave home (no notes bigger than £20 & plenty of fives) or at an airport ATM.

 

Some places in tourist areas will accept $ or €. Most will give you a poor exchange rate as a matter of course.

Some will try to rip you off, not for pennies but ten-fold - they just love folk who don't know the exchange rates.

In very round figures, you'll get £2 for $3.

£1 is a coin, ask the first suitable place (your hotel?) to change-down for you so that you have a few coins for tips.

John Bull :)

[insidecabin]

In very round figures, you'll get £2 for $3.

 

current rate is 1.6 so £5~=$8

 

I use http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/currencies/converter/?amt=8&from=USD&to=GBP#from=USD;to=GBP;amt=8

 

to play with exchange rates to find good matches.

 

For Norway you also need to check out norwegian KR.

 

Norway will make the UK seem cheap, beer about £10 in Oslo last week.

[ChuckinSC]

Thank you both for your responses. They are very helpful and I know it took some time and effort to respond. We didn't have a clue and this helps a lot. I just checked to see if we could do a currency exchange here rather than dealing with it at Heathrow. Unfortunately, the minimum amount to exchange seems to be $250 U.S. (pre-exhange here in the United States ahead of the trip) and that is more than we think we'll need for just 2 nights since so much has already been prepaid. We'll use our credit card for any significant purchase, but only need basic GBP for tips, etc.. So, I suppose we'll get ripped off at the airport. :)

[John Bull]

So, I suppose we'll get ripped off at the airport. :)

 

At the booths certainly.They seem to take a great pride in it :rolleyes:

But hopefully not at the ATMs. If they are a rip-off, unless there's stuff you have to pay cash (tips in USD are fine), hold fire til you get to your hotel - they can advise where will give you a decent rate.

 

Never been to Norway, but I frequently hear laments by the likes of Inside Cabin about alcohol prices in Norway.

For everywhere else, cc is full of threads about how to smuggle booze onto a ship.

For Norway, mebbe folk should concentrate on how to smuggle it off :D

 

Have a good one

 

JB :)

[ChuckinSC]

....But hopefully not at the ATMs. If they are a rip-off, unless there's stuff you have to pay cash (tips in USD are fine), hold fire til you get to your hotel - they can advise where will give you a decent rate.

 

 

JB :)

Is it really acceptable to use USD's in London? If so, that would save a great deal of trouble... :)

[SteveH2508]

Is it really acceptable to use USD's in London? If so, that would save a great deal of trouble... :)

 

Not really - a few shops might take them (at a rip-off exchange rate) but I would love to see a cabbie's reaction if you tried to pay him in USD (unless he was about to go on holiday to the US)! :D

 

Most pubs nowadays will take plastic (Chip and Pin) for drinks/food (often subject to a minimum spend) but USD or Euros - no chance!

[insidecabin]

IN the past I have read that travelex prebooked exchange gets OK rates.

 

I think the main UK option have buy pages so you can check what rate you get

 

eg postoffice

http://www.postoffice.co.uk/portal/po/foreignexchange?type=sell&pageId=fex_main&catId=96300783

post office say $200 will get you £112.36

 

travelex UK says £113 buys $174

 

travelex US says $200 buys £118

 

Might be worth juts chagning the $250 at home £150 over a few days could be spent fairly easily on the odd meal.

 

Check you roll call and see if there is someone you can share the money with or swap later perhaps someone from the UK has some spare $ and would buy your excess £ off you at the end of the trip.

 

You could use them to tip extra on board if you do that, if the ship is still sailing in the UK the crew can spend it.

[John Bull]

I would love to see a cabbie's reaction if you tried to pay him in USD (unless he was about to go on holiday to the US)! :D

 

 

Sorry, Chuck, but I said that tips in USD aren't a problem. The cabbie, like the waitress or the bellhop, will be pleased to accept tips in any mainstream currency. They'll be used to receiving bungs in USD or euros.

But, as Steve's post, they'll expect the bill to be paid in sterling, with the exceptions mentioned on the thread.

 

Nice try, but no cigar :D

 

JB :)

[Host Sharon]

Re. luggage handlers at the port - I usually tip a £1 or so for getting the bags out of the car (mine are usually VERY heavy) and on return I use a porter to take cases from the luggage hall to my car and load it for me - £1 per case.

 

In Norway you will need some Norwegian Krone unless you use a credit card for everything - at Norway prices even for a coffee - you may as well :)

[TheWaterDoc]

You might want to take a look here and prebook if that is an option to you?