[josteink]

For those who doubt this statement or find it odd, I can offer an explanation.

First of all, tipping someone implicitly puts them in a servile position and says you're off better than them. Secondly, and this is probably the killer, it says that you don't think they would manage without your help.

Which just goes to show that everywhere you go, you learn something new which can be different ;)

[solicode]

It's good knowledge to have before going to Japan, but encountering a Japanese person who would actually be offended if you were to offer a tip would be quite rare, I think. They're well aware tipping exists in other cultures. And they don't expect you to know the Japanese way of doing things. It could be interesting to see how they react if a Japanese person were to attempt it though. :)

Also, you could say a form of tipping does exist in Japan (kokorozuke), though it's quite different than what we usually think of tipping. The biggest differences being: 1. It's sort of a way of saying, "Sorry for the trouble" rather than "rating" their service. 2. You give the "tip" beforehand rather than afterwards. And it's likely you'll have to insist that they take it.

You can see this custom in high-end ryokans for example, but even then, it's not required or anything.

[damian2000]

I've tipped taxi drivers in Tokyo before and they're pretty appreciative, so maybe they just got used to foreign tourists tipping them and put up with it.

[kristofferR]

I've never heard about anyone tipping taxi drivers before, seems like a weird thing to do. Is that actually common in the US?

[ghshephard]

I could never convince my US colleagues that you don't have to tip taxi drivers in Singapore 20%. They were actually incapable of not tipping, so ingrained was the habit in the US.

[idiot900]

Very common. In NYC for example there is a social institution that taxi drivers are tipped.

[DominikR]

In Austria (Europe) this is common too.

[tormeh]

But not in Germany, though. In norway, tipping is something you only do at restaurants (not in taxis or other places).

[syntheticnature]

Interesting. I had a taxi driver in Hamburg bitch at me for the whole ride that Americans don't tip and why don't they tip?

So, that was the one taxi ride in Germany I took and didn't tip. (It was not the first taxi ride in Germany.)

[tormeh]

Maybe there's an east-west divide? My experience is with Berlin.

[staunch]

There's no truth to the idea that it is considered offensive in anyway.

[6t6t6]

People in Japan know that Americans do tip and they will not be so surprised. Specially if you look like a "gaijin" tourist.

Some will even consider it fun to be tipped for first time in their life, others will find it offensive and will think that you are looking down to them. But, in any case, tipping is a faux pas in Japan.

[staunch]

Have you ever actually experienced this or are you repeating the same myth? No one will be offended unless you're some kind of jerk about it.

"Do as the Romans do" is always the correct behavior, but in this case the potential for offense is entirely overblown.

[6t6t6]

I live in Japan and my wife is Japanese. Also, I had this conversation with several Japanese people.

I can tell you that most Japanese I know hate the concept of tipping and it makes them uncomfortable. They also hate giving tips. Not because of the money, but because they think that tipping is a way of looking down the other person.

Of course, when I say offensive I don't mean that they will curse and hate you forever. But probably some will think: "I already have a salary, I don't need you give me your coins".

If there's an scale of socially awkward situations, I guess tipping would be slightly under asking ketchup for your sashimi. But definitely not as bad as going into someone's house with your shoes on.

[josteink]

I don't know. Before I was made aware of this, I tried tipping while in Japan. Several places people were very dismissive about it. Eventually I just stopped, because it seemed like people didn't want tips.

[staunch]

It's correct to say that in Japan one should not tip. It's not correct to say that it's considered offensive.

To seriously offend some Japanese people you'll have to do something crazy like stick your chopsticks straight up in your rice bowl. Then you'll see them really wince ;-)

[DominikR]

> "First of all, tipping someone implicitly puts them in a servile position and says you're off better than them. Secondly, and this is probably the killer, it says that you don't think they would manage without your help."

How do you come to this conclusion? When I tip someone I express my gratitude for the good service to the specific employee of some company that did a great job.

I never thought of it as the person receiving a tip is below me or anything like that and I doubt that this is how most people think about it.

It might be true that people in Japan feel this way about tipping, but your statement was very general as if it is an observation about the very nature of tipping itself.

[_delirium]

That was traditionally the view in parts of Europe as well, although nowadays many people will be happy to accept a tip, especially since there are so many foreign tourists willing to offer one. Some people used to perceive it as an implication that you were in need of charity, i.e. that the reason you'd offer a tip to a waiter but not to an architect for rendering good service is that you didn't respect the waiter as a professional in the same sense that you respected the architect.

Sometimes it's contextual, e.g. in Greece the traditional norms were that tipping young people working at a restaurant as employees was fine, but tipping an owner-operator of a family-run restaurant could offend them, being taken as an implication that you thought they couldn't manage as an independent businessman, and needed a gift. Instead if you particularly liked their service, the socially acceptable way to show it was to either order more things, or return for another meal later; that way you gave them more money but in the form of more business, rather than an outright gift. (Nowadays this is only really an issue if you're Greek, especially a Greek from the same town, where tips, especially large ones, might be taken as having some kind of odd social implication. If you're a foreigner, tips aren't going to offend anyone, and are perceived basically the way North Americans would expect, as a thank-you for particularly good service.)

[6d0debc071]

> How do you come to this conclusion? When I tip someone I express my gratitude for the good service to the specific employee of some company that did a great job.

Maybe so, but presumably you don't tip your doctor regardless of how well they do their job.

[DominikR]

I don't tip a doctor with money (because it is strictly forbidden in Austria), but it's not unusual to give him a small gift (fine chocolate and similar things) and I would definitely do that after an operation if I had one.

[6t6t6]

Add that people working as waiters (and Serving Workers in general) do have an actual salary.