Tipping porters at uk Hotels
 

Any idea what the going rate is ? Is it by bag ?

As you can see, I dont get out much; well not to UK hotels anyway :)

How posh is the hotel? If its moderately posh I bung them a fiver, very posh and they get a tenner. If its not posh they can whistle dixie for it! ;)

lol.
Thanks for that.

Tell them to p* off & carry your own bag! :p


Mean? Me? ;)

fiver or tenner seems excessive , even in the "tip mad" US $1 a bag is considered the norm

No tipping in the UK for me, its not in the culture, we pay over the normal rate so workers get a higher wage. Therefore tipping in this country unnessecary IMO, unless someone has gone out their way to help me (i.e...do more than what their job entitles).

Exactly.

Would you tip your local car dealer each time you had the car serviced? Certainly not, unless they did a top notch job, valeted, polished and waxed the car, were very courteous etc. over and above what you expect.

In a restaurant, if (and only if) the service is good and the food too I'll tip a little.

If they brought your bags up, unpacked them, laid everything out neatly etc. then that'd be worth a tip. Or if they were exceptionally pleasant etc.

Remember tipping should be a bonus for high quality service.

I always carry my own bags. I feel weird letting someone else do it tbh.

Never a porter at the Travel Lodge anyway :D

Indeed :D :D

I get 'mules' to carry my bags.

Feckin expensive though.

It annoys me when I have a small roll-along and I fight over the handle with a porter after check in. I often tell them 'there is nothing wrong with my arms' and 'I am not a geriatric yet' - mostly to no avail!

Needless to say they dont get a tip unless I request and WANT the service. Hopefully the penny will drop one day! Doesnt make me feel good though (which is the plan of course) - but I wont be blackmailed for a service I dont want - they are no better than legalised street hustlers!

Tipping, it's an interesting thing. I'll tip at restuarants, but not other places. In my opinion the UK is not a tip-centric culture, unlike North America where it is the norm.

I tend to agree with Mr Pink's views on tipping.

I always remember when I went to some pizza place (Bitz n Pizza I think) in Bluewater. Service was ok, but nothing special. The bill came over and the waitress had put a nice big circle round the "gratuity not included" item on the bill. Suffice to say that I was not at all impressed by this and had a quick word with the manager, who was a little embarrased by this, and had a word with the waitress.

Who is Mr Pink Marcus?.....

My recollection of Reservoir Dogs is a little hazy ;)

Since working in two 5* star Hotels in the UK, I wouldn't recommend anyone tip the porter unless you feel like he/she really deserves it!

My ex used to be a porter at one of the hotels I worked at & they get paid enough in the big hotels, admittidly not as much as some other jobs but they never expect to get tips!

I fact, the only tip I would ever give a porter/concierge is - get outta the Leisure & Tourism Trade!

Bex

I'd give him a tip. Take your pick:

- Don't run whilst holding a pair of scissors
- Lucky Boy in the 2:30 at Kempton Park
- Get another job

Cheers
Kav

I don't expect to tip porters but my front of house staff work extremely hard for minimum wage and a few pounds off customers is a good incentive to deliver good service and the money is nice for them as well. Personally if I go out for a meal and spend a bit on wine and have a good night I like to reward the staff as I know how hard restauront and hotel work can be. The industry by nature cannot afford to pay big wages so its a choice of adding the service charge onto the bill or hopeing the staff get tips.

I never tip taxi drivers. Some seem to expect it. You can see them grumbling to themselves when they have to find change out of a tenner.....

Sorry, but the price on the meter is the price you pay. As many have said, I would only tip if there has been an exceptional service provided, above & beyond the call of duty.

I don't get a tip at my work.....

Actually I know someone who always gives £20 into the hand of the mechanic servicing his motor bike before they start to make sure they do "a good job" and treat his pride and joy as carefully as possible. Probably not too much extra on the small fortune you hand over to the dealership anyway, he tells the guy to enjoy a few pints on him at the weekend with it.