Whether to tip or not to tip when you’re in an airline lounge is a question that must have crossed your mind at some point. In a country like the United States, where tipping everyone in sight is a fact of life, one does wonder where the line is drawn.
Other places such as much of Europe, Australia, Japan to name but a few, just don’t have a tipping culture, so the question doesn’t come up. These people do travel though and nothing is worse than not knowing the form.
To Tip Or Not To Tip
In the United States, it is customary to tip the bartender US$1 per drink. My American friends strongly advised me (“YOU HAVE TO TIP THE BARTENDER A DOLLAR PER DRINK!”) what to do. No problem, when in Rome (you don’t have to tip!) and all that.
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- At bars in the US, tip a dollar or else!
However, what happens when you have a drinks voucher? Outside the USA, airline lounges often feature pour your own alcohol, so when we go to the USA, we get one or two vouchers so we can still have free drinks despite there being a paid bar.
Do you go ahead and tip, even when you’re using a voucher? I have done it (in Charlotte) and not done it (in Denver) and the reaction was the same – there was no real reaction. The person tipped thanked me, the person who was not tipped was just as pleasant as before.
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- The food is free, so do you tip or not?
What about those lounges with table service? Obviously the food is all free in the lounge, but would you still leave something for your server? I have personally never done that. I mean, 20% of zero is zero, right?
Overall Thoughts
I am sure readers from the United States will be able to provide examples of the form on this. Personally, I am not sure whether I am offending people in lounges left, right and centre, or if I am pretty much following the form.
Clearly one doesn’t tip on board a flight, so I would expect that to extend to the ground experience. Having a think, I can’t honestly remember seeing people hand over cash in airport lounges, but I don’t really pay close attention to what everyone else is doing when I’m relaxing.
I’m looking forward to hearing what you think I should do. Thank you for reading and please leave any comments and questions below. Hopefully we can get to the bottom of this!
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Overall I think that tipping in airport lounges in the US is entirely optional. Lounge employees, even those waiting tables, are paid at standard wage levels, and not the lower wages that are allowed for tipped employees, so they don’t need the tips to make up for the lower wages paid by the employer. Bartenders may be the exception, as I think they are hired specifically for that position, but I’m not sure. That said, I do try to tip $1 per drink, regardless of how the drink itself is paid for, but quite often I don’t have cash, or… Read more »
Good to know about the lounge employees, as I have never tipped them anyway, so that’s good advice. Interestingly, some people have also said that the airport staff at bars are also paid a higher rate than standard bar staff, to compensate for the international passengers who are not from a tipping culture. I’d love to know their rates really. I agree, it is best just to pay the $1 a drink, and I was just saying that I generally use card only when I’m abroad, but need to carry cash in the US. I am always dubious about the… Read more »
I think that this is a grey area. Having waited tables in my younger days, I tend to tip, but it varies from place to place.
Yes, someone pointed out to me on Instagram that the Alaska Airlines lounges specifically state not to tip the bar staff, so it certainly does vary. Thanks for the comment!
[…] Flight Detective asked a very interesting question: Do you tip the servers and bar staff in an airline lounge? I was surprised that it wasn’t included in my link for appropriate tipping around the […]
Tipping in airport/hotel exec lounges … I’ve always wondered. My husband does, I don’t. Please share your advice with the rest of us neanderthals.
I think the comments here give a good flavour for what people do! Enjoy!
So many variables to tipping in the US. Full service, self service, partial self service, at least as restaurants go: Full service: 15% for good service, 20% for outstanding service. For lousy service its up to you…My Mom once left a tip less than a dollar for surly service when I was a kid and told me if you leave nothing, they’ll think you forgot. If you leave a really lousy tip it lets them know what you thought of their service. Self service: Nothing Partial, such as a buffet where severs clear your dirty plates and sometimes ask if… Read more »
That does make sense, to leave a tiny tip to indicate lousy service. I like it, though you’re still out a little bit of cash even if they are crap! Good to know when it comes to the buffet, I hadn’t considered that. I probably wouldn’t have tipped for that kind of thing. Nice tip on the cash versus electronic payment. I generally do use cash when in the States, so that’s good. Thanks for the comprehensive overview, I think that covers a good deal of the form! Appreciate that!
I’m an airport lounge tipper 🙂 I figure there are probably folks from places where tipping isn’t common, so maybe me tipping makes up for that a bit. Either way, it’s only a dollar here and there, and it makes me feel better.
Someone said something similar on Facebook – that you should tip airline lounge staff, however they get paid more then normal bar staff to make up for the fact that tipping is not a cultural thing in most of the rest of the world, so a lot of people don’t tip. I guess it comes down to personal preference and nice to hear you tip! Thanks for the comment!
Tip always
i have been told my bar staff in Atl they can get over $250 in tips a week!!!!
Looks like I’m in the wrong job then! Thanks for the comment!
I certainly do elsewhere in the USA 🙂
I carry about $15-$20 in $1 bills when I travel for this reason, simply to tip in lounges. I don’t usually like to overpay for a drink, so I’m always getting the free vodka when I’m in an AA lounge, but always tip $1 for each drink I have. Same with Amex lounges. If I have to mix my own, no tipping. International is a little different…since tipping is not customary in most places I go (and they pay their help normal wages for the most part). If there is a tip jar and I know US $’s are accepted,… Read more »
It’s really another thing that annoys me a little in the USA. I never use any cash in Europe, everything is by card, and things are rapidly moving away from having cash at all. In the States I have to have cash for tipping. It’s just unusual to me. I agree that you wouldn’t tip internationally, as they do get wages that are livable. You are right in that it is best to carry the small bills… making change can be hard! Sometimes I’ve had to tip $5 as I’ve had no $1 bills. Now that irritates me! Thanks for… Read more »