Talk Tipping with me

[FlightMedic555]

We arrive in one week, spending a few days in Sydney before we fly to Brisbane to meet up with the Paul Gauguin for a cruise to Tahiti. With our short time in Sydney we will have meals out at restaurants. Should we tip? Is a tip ever added on to the bill at a restaurant??

 

Our last few cruises have been on all inclusive ships, such as the Paul Gauguin, where tips are included. This is different from many US cruise lines where they charge a per day amount for a tip.

[Aus Traveller]

We arrive in one week, spending a few days in Sydney before we fly to Brisbane to meet up with the Paul Gauguin for a cruise to Tahiti. With our short time in Sydney we will have meals out at restaurants. Should we tip? Is a tip ever added on to the bill at a restaurant??

 

Our last few cruises have been on all inclusive ships, such as the Paul Gauguin, where tips are included. This is different from many US cruise lines where they charge a per day amount for a tip.

In Australia tips are not expected, although the practice has been creeping in. Often with a taxi driver, if the charge is $47-$48 we would give $50 and say they should keep the change. It's simpler for everyone.

 

I suggest if you dine at a good restaurant, you should tip - maybe round the bill up or tip 10%. That would be quite generous in my opinion.:) No-one is going to get angry with you because they feel you didn't tip enough (or at all). Just relax and do what feels right to you.

[K-Roo-Zers]

Tipping is a very personal thing and no one should be slammed for choosing to tip or choosing not to do so. It is their choice as to what they want to do and we should respect that. I don't get the need for nastiness on the tipping threads - especially when it is along the - well if you don't tip, you should not travel lines - geez! :rolleyes:

 

We are Australians and we tip - that is our choice to do so. We have travelled quite a bit and we tip wherever we go. On our cruise in Jan 10, we left the service charge on our account and we tipped our cabin stewards at the end. For our last cruise, there was no service charge in place but we tipped. We factor this cost into the cost of our trip. We all have different personal and financial circumstances and that is fine - as I said, it is a choice only you can and should make. :)

 

Couldn't have said it better myself!! We do the same, and also tip cabin stewards, head waiters and dining room staff and anybody else we feel has provided a good service. We keep small change for room service staff.

 

Having said that, we are not big tippers at home - some places in Australia haven't yet worked out what customer service means!!

 

Enjoy your cruise and do what feels right!

 

Nicki