Tipping In New York City

When traveling in New York City, (especially in your exotic car rental), you're likely to run into many people offering you service; some you'll need and some you definitely won't need! And when you look like a millionaire (driving an exotic car rental gives you that new found status), people are going to expect you to be a big spender and an even bigger tipper. But don't be fooled. There are perfectly acceptable rules to follow when tipping people who provide you with services, and it's most likely not the pricey amount that they're going to try and con you into paying.

Waiters/waitresses and bartenders
It is customary to tip 15% of the total bill. Some people even tip up to 20-25%. A good rule of thumb to follow is, the bigger the party, the bigger the tip. This makes sense because the waiter or waitress has to serve more people. This is better for you as well, as you can split the bill and the tip between everyone in your party. If you are with a party of 6 or more, you should tip 20%. Again, the quality of service is a factor. Some bigger restaurants automatically add the tip in to your bill (to make sure the staff gets the appropriate amount). In some restaurants the "bus boy", "bar tender" and others share tips. To make sure you don't over tip, check for this additional line on the bill.

ALSO: As most people now pay their food bills with credit and/or debit cards, more and more establishments give you the option to add the tip to your bill, allowing the restaurant to reprocess the card to take the extra monies off. In this case, you must write the amount of the tip on either the charge card slip or the house charge slip and enter a "total" amount at the bottom.

REMEMBER: It is the total amount that gets charged to your card, so print legibly. (ex. If your meal comes to $20, and you mean to give the 15% tip which is $3, if you enter $3 in the TIP line but your writing is sloppy and the TOTAL section reads $29, the amount charged becomes $29 instead of $23, and the server gets that extra $5!!)

Taxi services
Again the 15% rule applies, but also once again it is up to you. Use discretion when tipping. If the service was good (ex. Speed and safety are good factors to look at when assessing service), you can tip more. Consequently, if the service was poor (unsafe lane changes, swearing, road rage, taking the longest route possible in order to rack up the meter), you can tip less or even not at all.

Delivery people and bellboys
This is really up to you again. If you have more luggage and have to go up more floors; or if you have a lot of packages being delivered and if they are oddly shaped and awkward, a few extra bucks may be in order. Typically, $4 - $5 is a good starting point.

Valet
Most people tip around $1 -$2 per time the valet has to fetch your exotic car rental.

Parking Garage Attendants, Open Air Lot Attendants
As with Valet, $1 -$2 is customary.

Hotel Staff and Housekeeping
This is an area where people often skimp on tipping, or do not tip at all! A rule of thumb for tipping housekeeping staff is around $3 -$4 a day / time they clean your room. Sometimes it is easier to just leave a compounded tip when you check out. Leave it in an envelope on the nightstand or desk so the housekeeper can find it easily. Use discretion again: if your room doesn't seem to look clean at all after the maid has been in, leave less of a tip. If the beds are not made, the garbage is not taking out leave nothing!

TIP TRENDS
It is becoming more customary for businesses (pizzerias, cafes, coffee shops, delis, some corner stores and other establishments) to place Tip Cups on the counters next to the cash registers. This is for customers to throw loose change in as tips. A lot of people don't use these, but every penny counts! So raid the ashtray of your exotic rental car and leave the hard working people of NYC a tip as a show of your appreciation!!