Arriving - Tipping in Vegas

Tipping is different in America.....

Attitudes to tipping in Vegas - and America in general - are different to those in the UK and other parts of the world.  Here in the UK, you go out for a meal and expect to tip, usually in the region of 10%.  In Vegas tipping extends beyond just leaving a few dollars behind when you’ve had a meal. 

As a general rule, if you’re received any kind of service, a tip will be expected.

Before going into detail my first 'tip' would be to ensure that you have plenty of dollar bills available for when you arrive in Vegas.  You’ll soon need them for taxi drivers, left luggage / bell boys, check in assistants etc.

Now, onto tipping information in general.

In a lot of instances tipping makes perfect sense.  You receive a ‘free’ service from someone who’s doing their job, so why would you not offer some kind of monetary reward?  Let’s say you’re sat at a slot machine in a casino, the cocktail waitress asks if you’d like a drink, you order a beer and within 5 minutes she’s brought you a nice cold bevy without you having to move from your chair.  Now in my view the waitress has more than earned a tip so I’m more than happy to give her a dollar or two (as an aside to this, if you're planning to stay at that slot machine or blackjack table for a while, it's worth tipping a few dollars per drink as she's likely to return that bit quicker).  Oh and if you're wondering why drinks are 'free' in this scenario, well let's just say that the casinos know that their customers are likely to be more liberal with the cash they're spending on their gambling once they've had a few drinks to settle their nerves. 

In other instances the implied need to tip really is a bug bearer of mine.  For example, I’m now standing at the bar queuing to be served.  The busy bar tender eventually turns to me after leaving me waiting for a few minutes and asks what I’d like; “A bottle of Coors Light please” I reply (virtually all beer is 'light' in the US).  Once the formalities of showing my photo ID are out of the way, the bar tender quickly turns, grabs a bottle of beer, pops the top and places it in front of me before informing me; “That’ll be $7”.  Ouch, not only is the drink not cheap, but once my change has been left on the counter (always in small bills so there’s no excuse not to tip), if I don’t leave a dollar or two I’m likely to get a ‘rolling eyes’ look for being part of the ‘cheap-skate Brit’ brigade.  And therein lies my bugbear.  Why should I feel obliged to tip when in reality I’ve had to wait to be served before asking for a straight forward choice of drink that the bar tender is employed to provide to me and does so within 10 seconds?  I’ve received no real personal interaction, no help or advice, yet I'm still obliged to leave a tip.  It's not like I've even asked for a complicated cocktail to be made up.

Ok, so now here is my confession.  As a seasoned US and Vegas traveller I’m more than aware of the tipping situation and do now leave a dollar per drink even when I’ve queued at the bar.  You may call me a mug for going against my principles, whereas I’d say I’m trying to go along with the customs of the country and don’t was ‘us Brits’ to get a bad reputation.

Anyway, the moral of this little tale (rant) is to be prepared to tip for almost every little service, which in turn can lead to you burning through dollar bills like they’re confetti.

To balance the debate I will say, however, that when it comes to other tipping scenarios where you do actually receive genuine service, as a rule, the service you receive in America far exceeds that which you’re likely to receive in the UK and other parts of Europe, and if that means leaving a few extra dollars, well, I think that’s a price worth paying.  For example, if you go for a meal the chances are the waiter or waitress will greet you with a smile on their face, be pleasant, properly introduce themselves, take you through the specials, ask if you’d like a drink, any advice on the wine list etc, all with a genuine enthusiasm – it’s almost as if they know that the quality of their service will impact the tip they’re likely to receive!  But think about it; how often do you really receive service in the UK that actually enhances the enjoyment of eating out?  Yes, the waiter in Vegas is playing along, acting almost, but to quote a saying I once heard; “I’d rather be greeted by someone with an insincere smile than by someone with a genuine frown”.

Of course, it should be noted that this excellent customer service comes with an expected price.  Whilst in the UK a 10% tip is seen as the going rate, in the US, a ‘good tip’ is considered to be in the region of 18-20% so please do bear that in mind.

Having covered cocktail waitresses, bar men and restaurant service, it’s worth pointing out that tipping does not stop there.  Left luggage, bell boys, tax drivers, limo drivers, shuttle buses, tour guides, concierges, shoe polishers – you name it, they all appreciate (read expect) a tip.

For a full in depth summary of tipping etiquette and example rates, this link provides some useful information.