aggiemom

Ok, I was reading somewhere and now I'm confused about the tipping in Germany or maybe it's all of EU now. Is "service" included (and, therefore tip a little extra) or do I tip the "full" amount. Also, I'm worried about my German, or lack of it. I speak a few words, and surely I will try, but this is the first time I've gone to a country without being fluent. Any insight?

m_kingdom2

My dear, I was in Hamburg last December, and I can just about greet and thank someone in German. The people all speak passable English, and even with those that don't it's fairly simple to get your message across to them.

As for tipping, unless it's specifically included as a separate item on the bill, you are expected to tip. I always tip around 10-12 per cent in Europe, you don't need any ridiculously large American-style ones, however, I'm sure the staff wouldn't turn it away.

cmeyer54

If you know please (Bitta) and thank you (Danka) - I'm using phoenetic spelling. You should be fine. People just appreciate any attempt to speak the language. And, as mentioned above, most Germans have a reasonable knowledge of English unless you're going to be in very small villages. Tipping....look for a mention on the menu as to whether or not service is included. 10% is the norm if not or if you've gotten unusally good service (like going out of their way to help a child or get a child's/half portion) you could leave 10% even if the service is included.

Musicteacher

Tipping in a German restaurant usually involves rounding up the amount of the bill so that the waitress doesn't have to give you small change. So, if the total is 19.20 Euro, as you hand the waitress the payment say "twenty."

RufusTFirefly

aggiemom--how many languages are you fluent in? Just curious.

Maybe this will help you with some German language skills:

http://www.bdsnett.no/klaus/twain/

logos999

A 10% tip is expected, you dont need to tip if you didnt like the service. Service is always included, but not considered a tip.

bavariaben

Service IS included and is and should be considered a TIP. Paying an additional 10 to 15 percent is uncalled for unless you just enjoy giving your money away. Round-up or round-up and add a Euro or two - but tipping like you would in the states is too much. If you knew a service gratuity was included in the bill at your local restaurants - would you add an additional 10%?

celticdreams

Aggiemom -

Don't worry about the language. The more you know, the better off you are, of course, but you'll be fine. I still carry a tiny dictionary with me, just in case I come across something I want to be able to read, but not to speak. In all but the smallest towns, most people will speak some English - certainly more that I speak German.

Intrepid1

And don't worry about "tipping too much" either...tip as you feel the service warrants, no more, no less. Nobody here, or anywhere else is going to know how much you did or did not tip.

walkinaround

Perhaps the advice for tipping 10% is ok for most of the continent but in germany, i side with the poster who said to "round up". this often means just a few cents. and yes, you give the total you wish to pay when settling the bill with the waiter rather than to leave it on the table. Usually the waiter will settle individually with each person at the table as separate bills are assumed unless you indicate that everyone is together. This is how germans do it so it is what is expected for the tip amount.

For language, I disagree that everyone speaks english. Even in large cities like munich, you will find many people in stores and restaurants that do not speak any english - usually the older people.

logos999

10% is expected in Germany. There is no need to leave a tip, but most people do. (most americans dont ;-)
If food and service were bad dont tip.

Roundup is done as well if you feel food has been to expensive and/or service bad!!

aggiemom

Many thanks to all who replied. I think I can handle it now. To RufusTFirefly - I'm only fluent in French and Spanish. I have a smattering of Italian, Portuguese and German. I reread my post and it sounded like I was this linguist-world traveler! Actually, this is my fourth trip to Europe but have been to only 5 countries plus many in the Caribbean but was able to use French and Spanish in many places. And Port. and Ital. are so similar to Fr. and Span. it's easy to communicate. I studied German in high school many years ago but have not retained very much. I am a sort of perfectionist though when it comes to speaking another language. I'll keep listening to my German CD's!

RufusTFirefly

Hi, aggiemom.

Yes, I was wondering whether you were fluent in a lot of languages.

Don't worry about Germany too much, unless you get off the beaten tourist trails you'll have no trouble finding folks who speak English well enough to get by.

I was surprised at how much of my high school and college German from 30+ years ago came back to me on our trip to Bavaria a couple of years ago.

Patrick

Several years ago we stayed in a small old inn in Miltenberg. I had to use a friend at home who was fluent in German to translate the fax I got from them about reservations as it came totally in German, and then correspond in German with them to send my deposit. When we arrived this older couple -- the only ones at the hotel-- spoke not a word of English, and my German is limited to a very bad "guten tag" and "morgan". During our one night stay we managed to do the following, despite not having a single word of common language. (Charades was a big help):

1) they communicated that we had a choice of two rooms. One was larger than the other, (both were grand) but one had a real shower while the other was a huge tub. We liked the shower and chose that room.

2) It seems the deposit we had made (we were only staying one night) was more than the cost of this less expensive room, so we worked out a refund in cash of our overpayment.

3) They sent us to a great place for dinner and somehow explained how to get there. We found it.

4) At breakfast she cooked eggs to order, and we somehow communicated how we wanted them (one scrambled, the other over easy) and they were perfect.
Charades for scrambled and over easy is a riot, by the way.

5) They were able to send us to the right place to park the car and somehow communicated that we could drive back up to the hotel (on a pedestrian street) to unload and to retrieve our luggage, which we did.

The bottom line is we did great, despite the language barrier. This was an extreme example. I don't know where else in Germany we've run into people who didn't know some English or didn't have someone there who did. We were really winging it there and we loved it.

aggiemom

Patrick - thanks for the description of your travels with the German language. I'll probably be doing a lot of gesturing too! (As I sit here, I imagine how to pantomime my favorite foods.....) And to Mr. Fly - That Twain thing is amazing - I'm only partly through it but I agree heartily that German is complex. It's nice to see it's not only me having difficulties.

cmeyer54

the best is watching old star trek episodes in German. Somehow, the Klingons don't sound all that unusual!

hsv

I don't know a single restaurant or bar or café where service is not included.

However and contrary to what bavariaben suggested, I find it customary to tip the waiters who are increasingly dependent on tips as their wages are on the low side.
However, tipping up to American standards would be stretching it a bit. In a café or less expensive restaurant, tip around 5 percent and round up to the next 50 cents as a rule of thumb.
In more expensive restaurants a tip of less than 10 percent might make you look a bit cheap IMO. It should not be much more either, though.

ira

If the service is not up to par, a one-cent tip is a good way to indicate displeasure.

321sister

B Ben has it correct. We have many friends sisters brothers etc in all parts of germany. They tip like Ben Follow his advise and you will be ok.

logos999

This is the german governments info site for migrants:
http://www.handbuch-deutschland.de/b...5_015_008.html

Quote:
"Although service is included in the price in Germany, it is also normal to give a tip."..." "10 per cent of the total bill is considered to be sufficient."