Tipping on the Camino

[Pilgrim2022]

Is there tipping on the Camino? I will be doing the Camino Frances in April.

 

[oursonpolaire]

There's lots written on this--- enjoy! https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/tipping.47282/

 

[trecile]

There is some tipping, but nothing like you are used to in the US. Usually just the extra change from your meal.

 

[naplesdon]

If you get bill for 8,50 euros then leave a 10. For God's sake how can any one be so.....

 

[wayfarer]

Is there tipping on the Camino? I will be doing the Camino Frances in April.

Yes, be generous, those businesses have had it tough for the past two years.

 

[Texas Walker]

If you get bill for 8,50 euros then leave a 10. For God's sake how can any one be so.....

The tipping customs in different places are different. The Europeans have a service charge included in your restaurant tab. Also, where in the US the expected average tips are often part of the minimum wage computation, I think in European countries it's different and the tips aren't actually expected unless an unusual circumstance applies.

If you want to support the business, instead of treating them like a charity case which is demeaning, spend more on the stuff you're buying. IMHO, YMMV, etc.

 

[wayfarer]

I think in European countries it's different and the tips aren't actually expected unless an unusual circumstance applies.

I don't know where you got this idea, tips are much appreciated in Spain, I'm just back and go there regularly and I can tell you that the staff are very happy to be tipped and I don't think it's treating them as a charity case, its showing appreciation for good service.

 

[Robo]

Tipping is always an interesting topic, and the approach to it varies around the world.

The US seems to stand out though, in that tipping is 'expected', and as I understand it, forms part of the regular income of the staff. Due to low wages I'm told.

Elsewhere, in my experience at least, it is regarded as a 'thank you' for good service, not an obligation on the part of the customer.

Do I tip? Usually, Yes. At least by rounding up, or adding a bit extra. Or quite a bit extra for great service. Though for poor service I feel no compulsion.

 

[good_old_shoes]

I grew up (in a EU country) being told that usually you tip ~10% if the service is good. If it is really good, you can give more. If service is bad, less. If it was exceptionally bad, none. Usually the rule is to at least round up.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

The tipping customs in different places are different. The Europeans have a service charge included in your restaurant tab. Also, where in the US the expected average tips are often part of the minimum wage computation, I think in European countries it's different and the tips aren't actually expected unless an unusual circumstance applies.

If you want to support the business, instead of treating them like a charity case which is demeaning, spend more on the stuff you're buying. IMHO, YMMV, etc.

Thank you. I have probably given a "tip" less than ten times in my life, excepting of course, those times when it is automatically added to the bill as a type of "tax".

In my customary culture it is insulting to "tip" and for most of my life I was embarrassed to do so. These days very little embarrasses me but I still don't like to "tip".

I will, however, gladly give praise and show appreciation for great service and hospitality.

 

[peregrina2000]

I have noticed a few restaurants in Spain where you are asked if you want to add a tip to a CC bill. A few years ago, this would have been unthinkable.

Of course wait-staff are very happy to receive tips, but I know a lot of Spaniards who are not at all happy about the spreading of the tip culture throughout Spain. In the US, we tip because the hourly wages are so low and come with no benefits. In Spain, it’s been explained to me, wait-staff earn a real wage and have benefits. Some of my friends worry that the more the tipping culture takes hold, the easier it will be for employers to move their employees onto non-contract jobs. So not everyone who is against tipping is a cheapskate curmudgeon.

(But it can be a bit uncomfortable to be taken out to dinner by a visiting Spanish friend in the US — I have had to run back on the pretense that I left something on the table to slip some cash to the poor waitress.)

 

[trecile]

But it can be a bit uncomfortable to be taken out to dinner by a visiting Spanish friend in the US — I have had to run back on the pretense that I left something on the table to slip some cash to the poor waitress.)

In Spain I was treating some Spanish friends to dinner, the bill arrived, I paid it, and set out about a 10-15% tip, then excused myself to the ladies room. The meal hadn't been particularly good, but that was no fault of the waiter (his performance wasn't stellar either, but...). When I returned to the table one of my Spanish friends handed me the money that I was leaving for a tip, and said that NO tip should be left because of the quality of the food. I think that I did sneak back and leave a smaller tip.

 

[wayfarer]

Just to be clear, tipping is not automatic, I tip when the service is good, if it's not then I don't.
We have been round the houses many times here on this subject and the result is always pretty much the same, those who tip and those who give reasons why you shouldn't.
To the OP: if you feel like tipping then do, if you don't then don't. Getting a clear answer to your question here will always be confusing but that's the beauty of a forum.

 

[Pilgrim2022]

Yes, be generous, those businesses have had it tough for the past two years.

That's exactly what I was thinking....

 

[The Austrian]

Ah the tipping discussion. Been on both sides of if for most of my adult life as a server as well as a guest.
Decades ago it was a profession to be a waiter in Europe, tips were scarce. Things are changing and a somewhat American habit starts to creep in. I always tip, but more out of habit than gratitude?

 

[Robi Diaz De Vivar]

Is there tipping on the Camino? I will be doing the Camino Frances in April.

Hi there. I live in Andalucia, 100 km north west of Seville. The culture here is to leave only small tips. It can be difficult to suss out but generally if you are in a family-run place then the tendency is NOT to tip. If you assume that the waiter/waitress is just an employee (probably minimum wage) and the service has been good then tip as generously as you feel that they deserve.

 

[Lisakline]

Is there tipping on the Camino? I will be doing the Camino Frances in April.

I had the same question when i did my first camino so i asked various Spanish people along the way if it is customary. Most folks told me it is not necessary but appreciated. So i tipped, about the same amount someone earlier mentioned (leave 10 for a 8.50 bill) and it always felt like a good thing.

 

[KYPolloFrito]

Seldom expected ; always appreciated.

 

[oursonpolaire]

If you get bill for 8,50 euros then leave a 10. For God's sake how can any one be so.....

There can be a reluctance to disturb local practice, and end up disadvantaging a local population which does not practise tipping. I prefer to be generous in such matters, but here I would be thoughtful-- I follow my Spanish friends' advice to do what I feel like and follow my inclination at the time.

 

[lt56ny]

I am always confused about what to do with tips. I have left tips at restaurants and I have even been given a tip back from a few waiters who told me it was not necessary.

 

[Ad van Brunschot]

If you get bill for 8,50 euros then leave a 10. For God's sake how can any one be so.....

I don't know what you mean: be so...
Be so what?

 

[Marbe2]

If you can afford to stay at a place with cleaning ladies, please leave them something!

 

[Kathy F.]

I also leave a "tip" when I duck into a bar while walking just to use their restroom. They're kind enough to let me use it without buying anything, I can leave a "thank you."

 

[oursonpolaire]

@Marbe2 and @Kathy F. both make useful points, sort of related to the OP. I always leave a euro for the camerera, usually with a scrap of paper saying Gracias. As well, when visiting a bar to use the WC, I normally order a coffee but, when I don't I put a 50c coin on the counter when I ask where the aseos might be-- almost always, they push it back to me, but I want the establishment to know that I am aware that toilets, cleaning, etc, cost money, and that I am not trying to take thoughtless advantage.

As well, I have had tips returned to me, but never in larger cities or towns, and only occasionally. My Australian friends understand, but my US friends live in a tipping culture, and find this astonishing. Everywhere is different. A Spanish friend told me that a smile and a thank-you is the most important thing (but a shilling or too is rarely unwelcome).

 

[DoughnutANZ]

I had the same question when i did my first camino so i asked various Spanish people along the way if it is customary. Most folks told me it is not necessary but appreciated. So i tipped, about the same amount someone earlier mentioned (leave 10 for a 8.50 bill) and it always felt like a good thing.

Thank you for your honesty.

 

[DoughnutANZ]

Tipping is a way of feeling superior, of separating oneself from the more common people.

It is a cheap way of bolstering an ego.

 

[wayfarer]

Tipping is a way of feeling superior, of separating oneself from the more common people.

It is a cheap way of bolstering an ego.

BS

 

[C clearly]

I think we have answered the OP's questions adequately, and covered the topic in a similar fashion to the last go-round!