How Much to Tip?

One of the most common questions I’m asked is how much should I leave for a tip in Estonia? It’s a good question, as tipping is different form culture to culture. You don’t want to look like a stupid rich foreigner, but you don’t want to look like a cheapskate either!

In Estonia tipping isn’t considered mandatory. Some people say 10% if the service is good, others say round up the bill. Given that Estonia has more notes than coins, many people usually throw in their unwanted two, five and maybe even ten crown notes,whatever that adds up to. As a tourist I suggest you work on around 10%, as long as your loose change covers such an amount. Give more if the service is really good, we need to encourage great customer service. Americans please note: we don’t like your culture of compulsory tipping. If you get bad service, please don’t leave a tip. We don’t want hopeless waiters expecting tips from us because American tourists all give them something out of habit. In summary, 10% is for satisfactory service, give more if it was better than expected and give nothing if it was bad.

We highly recommend you read this very humorous article about tipping in Estonia before you visit us. It was this article that inspired us to write this post.

Oh, remember that tour guides should be tipped at least 500%!!!!!