Tipping in Greece is confusing for most visitors. Here's a simple guide that will let you return to any restaurant with confidence.
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: 5 min
Here's How:
- Tipping for Tourist-type restaurants: Ask for the bill - usually, it will not be brought until you request it.
- Check over the bill for obvious errors, and bring any substantial errors to the attention of your waiter. Minor error? Decide if it's worth trying to sort it out.
- Confirm that a 'service charge' has been included. If it has, follow suggestion below.
- Pay the bill.
- To reward warm service from your waiter, leave a few Euro, preferably in bills, on the tray. If service has been poor, skip this step, as the waiter generally shares in the revenues from the meal and from the service charge.
- Regardless of the general service, unless it has been memorably abysmal, ease the burden of the busboy, who often receives virtually nothing for his work, by leaving coins totaling up to about a Euro on the table.
- If appropriate, thank the owner or person in charge for the great meal.
- Tipping for Traditional Eating Places: Ask for the bill. Check for obvious errors, and bring any to the attention of your waiter. If it's minor, forget it.
- Note if a 'service charge' has been included - it probably won't be.
- Tip your waiter between 10 and 20 percent of the total. Leave this on the tray, or give it to him directly.
- Leave some small change totaling about a Euro on the table for the busboy.
- Thank the owner or person in charge for the great meal.
- Tipping Taxi Drivers: Generally don't expect tips (but won't turn them down).
- There is a minor charge by the taxi driver for handling each piece of luggage - this is not a tip, but an official charge.
- Tipping Public Toilet Attendants: Tip small change and bless them, since without them, there would be no toilet paper or soap there.
Tips:
- The'cover charge' on the bill is literally the cost to cover the table when you sit down, and includes your bread and non-bottled water.
- The cover charge is cannot be removed, even if you don't drink the water or eat the bread. Don't argue it.
- Had a horrible experience and feel ripped off? Contact the local 'Tourist Police' office. They exist to handle complaints and assist tourists - not to arrest them!
- Don't stress over tipping - get it close to the guidelines above, but don't break out your calculators.
- Greeks aren't expected to tip as often as tourists are. And the more remote the location, the less likely it is that a tip is expected.
