As we all know, Vietnam is a country where tipping is customary. Tipping is a great sign of respect and recognition to service staff. If you think the other party’s service is good, you can leave a tip appropriately. But when does a tip need to be given? How much is appropriate? Today I will tell you the correct way to tip in Vietnam.


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The most common misunderstandings and disputes caused when traveling in Vietnam are “tips”! Because most Asians do not have the habit of tipping in their living culture. Only Vietnam, an emerging tourist country, has a tipping service culture. Therefore, when traveling to Vietnam, many people are often confused about which services require tipping? Or how much tip should be reasonable? I will answer the questions for you one by one below!


Is it necessary to tip in Vietnam?
Of course not. Unless it is a specific occasion, this will be mentioned later. From the most basic principle, it is the right of tourists to choose to tip or not. It's voluntary.

In fact, everyone (may) have this kind of trouble with tipping. In my opinion, the main reason is that the original meaning of tipping is not clear. Tip is simply a small amount of money outside the agreed transaction amount during the transaction process. It usually expresses the customer's actual gratitude for excellent service.

Therefore, you still have to return to its essence, that is, whether someone has provided you with a service that makes you particularly satisfied. To put it bluntly, it means whether you are comfortable with the service, and then decide whether you want to provide it or not. Whether to give and how much to give should not be a static approach, but should depend on the quality of the service. Therefore, if you feel that you are thin-skinned and feel sorry for not giving too much, and feel distressed if you give too much, you may wish to refer to the following ideas.


Under what circumstances should a tip be given, and how much should it be generally tipped?
We can first look at the exchange rate and feel how much US Dollars is worth for 20.000 ; 50.000, and 100.000 Vietnam Dong. The current exchange rate can be roughly calculated as 1 US Dollar to24.000 VND which is approximately 1, 2 and 4 USD. So do you think a tip of 1 to 5 USD is too much or too little? Varies from person to person. But that’s the approximate “amount” of tipping.

The denominations of Vietnam Dong from small to large are 1000, 2000, 5000, 10.000, 20.000 ; 50.000, 100.000, 200.000 and 500.000. So the general tip is 20.000 VND.

When traveling in Vietnam, the consumption scenarios with service nature that come into contact are nothing more than accommodation, eating in restaurants or street food shops, sitting in bars for a while, taking taxis, getting massages, playing some water and jungle sports with groups, watching performances... In addition, you may rent a car, go sightseeing, shoot a gun, go to a nightclub, etc.

As tourism in Vietnam is developing very fast and Vietnam is emerging as one of the best destinations in Asia. As more and more international visitors are coming to Vietnam and local people who work in the hospitality and travel business are getting used to the tipping culture.

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Common places to tip in Vietnam
Places like hotel, restaurant, massage parlour or when you travel on the road with drivers are common places to tip.

1. Tips in Vietnam – Hotel:
- When checking in or leaving, if the bellman helps you open the door and transport your luggage, you should give a tip of 1 USD as a thank you.
- If you stay for more than one day, please put 1 USD on the bedside from the second day.
- In the parking lot, if a security guard instructs you to back up, please pay 1 USD.
- Please pay 1-2 USD to the guy who opens the door for you in a love hotel.

2. Tips in Vietnam – Dining:
- When you go to a restaurant. If the service is good, you can give 1 USD. If you are very satisfied, you can give 2-5 USD. It does not need to exceed 10 USD. If it's a high-end restaurant, you can give 5 or 10 USD.
- If you are satisfied with the waiter, you can give it to her alone. Tell her that it is only for her. The amount depends on your mood.
- On rainy days, please pay 1 USD for the boy who carries you an umbrella to the car.
Note: This is not a street barbecue food stall or a hamburger and coffee buffet. There is no need to give these. And many restaurants have a 10% service charge, so it doesn’t matter if you don’t pay it.

3. Tips in Vietnam – Bars, nightclubs and other entertainment venues
- Tip at least 5 USD.
- In some restrooms, when a waiter hands you wet wipes or massages your shoulders, please pay 1 USD.
- There are different standards for escorts’ hourly fees and appearance fees, and tips can also be included.

4. Tips in Vietnam – Massage parlor
- In the parking lot, pay 1 USD to the security guard.
- When choosing a masseur, pay the waiter 1-2 USD.
- After entering the massage room, pay 1 USD to the guy who delivers the drinks.
- After the massage, pay 5 USD baht to the masseur, 10 USD for the large bathroom.
- If you are not satisfied with the masseur, you will be given 1 USD or waived, and you can change the place next time.
The most common services enjoyed by tourists in Vietnam are "massage" and "spa", and usually such staff only receive a meager basic salary, so tips are very important to them.

5. Tips in Vietnam – Grab/taxi
- Generally, no tip is required. If you help carry your luggage, please pay 1 USD.
- If there is a change below 1 USD, tell him not to look for it, it is considered a tip.
- If you have a bad attitude or deliberately take a detour, not only will you not tip, but you will also not be able to get the change even if the money is a one cent difference. If it's too much, file a complaint against him.

6. Tips in Vietnam – Traveling with a group or other sightseeing places
- The general itinerary is at least half a day or one day. At the end of the activity, it is more reasonable to tip the accompanying Vietnamese tour guide 5-10 USD. After all, they have been following you for a day.
- As for other activities such as "elephant riding" and "canoe riding" where there are assisted services, it is more common for tips to be given, and most of these types of tips are 1-2 USD.


What should you pay attention to when tipping?
- Do you think you will get change in tip? For example, if you take out a 100 USD bank note and then tell the service girl, "I'll give you a 20 tip, you can give me another 80." Isn't it embarrassing? Keep some small notes with you, otherwise you will have to give 100 or more in distress.
- Tipping is to "thank" others for the service they provide us, so the attitude when tipping is very important. Don't keep the feeling of charity and condescension, but need respect and gratitude. Moreover, the tip ratio must be mainly integer banknotes such as 20, 40, 50, 100, etc., because in Vietnam, if you give change or metal pennies, it means giving it to a beggar to "demean" others, so you must not do it out of convenience!

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