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Budgeting for Tipping

When you are devising a vacation budget items like airfare, hotel rooms and rental cars are typically at the top of the list. However, what about the extra cash you need to tip cab drivers, concierges, skycaps, and hotel housekeepers? Often, travelers forget about padding their wallets to for gratuities. Tipping is an important factor to consider whether you are planning a monthly business trip or a 3-year-in-the-making European vacation. When saving up for a holiday getaway, don’t forget to consider the money you will need to tip appropriately. Tipping is generally not mandatory, unless duly noted on a bill; … Continue reading →

Texting Orders in Restaurants

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Recently I wrote about the topic of tipping. I’ve never worked as a server relying on tips to make a decent wage. I worked as a hostess in a number of restaurants, but we were paid better than the servers because we didn’t get tips. The server at a restaurant can make or break the entire dining experience. We’ve had servers that have done an adequate job and rightfully earned their 20-percent tip. We’ve had servers who were fun, friendly, and helpful and earned a better tip. I’m sure there are servers that see two small children and would rather … Continue reading →

Restaurant Tipping

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Before I was married I didn’t cook much for myself. I fixed things. I fixed fast and easy things. I wanted to cook, but just didn’t. After I got married I was delighted to cook for my husband. I had subscriptions to a number of cooking magazines and cooked almost everything in them until the new editions arrived. We didn’t go out much because staying home was so much fun. When we started going out we loved to walk to nearby sit-down and takeout restaurants. I still loved and wanted to know more about cooking. I decided to take culinary … Continue reading →

International Tipping

How much did you tip the valet during your last stay at an upscale hotel? If the hotel was in the United States you should have shelled out at least 5 to 10 percent of the valet charge, according to gratuity experts. However, if you were given the same service in Europe, experts say you wouldn’t be expected to tip more than 3 percent, if at all. According to a new poll, nobody tips better than Americans. In fact, many of us are “overtippers” and that generosity doesn’t stop when we travel overseas. Interestingly, in some countries, leaving a wad … Continue reading →

Travel Tips: Holiday Tipping

Tis the season for giving… So how do your tipping skills measure up? With the holiday travel season in full swing I’ve noticed the subject of tipping has become a hot topic in several Internet travel forums. Some people headed out of town for the holidays are overwhelmed by the prospect of doling out extra dollars to everyone from taxi drivers to hotel valets, skycaps to concierges. So what is the rule when it comes to tipping? According to experts, the rule is there is no rule. Tipping is voluntary (unless so stated in a company’s policy; for example some … Continue reading →

Save on Spring Break Escapes

  Old Man Winter has been walloping the nation with blizzards, brutal cold and blistering winds.  Consequently, it’s no surprise that so many people are looking to escape to warmer climates.  If you are in search of sun-kissed shores and sizzling hot temperatures, but are worried a beach vacation will blow your budget, consider the following tips: Book early:  If you want to save money on spring break travel, don’t procrastinate.  Many of the best deals are available for a limited time only.  Waiting for deeply discounted last-minute deals may cost you.  Remember, as planes and hotels fill up super … Continue reading →

Not Buying It

After nearly two decades working in television news, I’ve learned to be a bit more judicious when perusing headlines. In other words, I don’t believe half of what I see published these days, especially viral items that sweep the globe and become water cooler fodder, despite there being very little fact checking prior to their circulation. But, hey, sensationalism sells, so why mess up the money-making process by letting a little thing like the truth get in the way? It’s a question single moms around the world are left to ponder yet again thanks to an anonymous server who claims … Continue reading →

Monetary Appreciation

In college, my roommate and I would rarely eat at sit-down restaurants (even the cheaper ones) because we didn’t want to spend extra to tip the server. I didn’t wait tables during college, but if I did I would certainly hope that patrons would be generous (or, at the very least, fair) when it came time to dole out a tip. But what is “fair” these days? Unless the service truly stinks, I don’t tip less than 15-20 percent at restaurants. Is that fair? And who deserves a tip anyway? Should I be tipping the woman who washes my hair, … Continue reading →

To Tip or Not To Tip

When you go out to a full service restaurant do you always tip? Do you tip at least ten percent? If you say no to either one of these questions, you are potentially hurting another person who works hard for her money. Many people sit back at restaurants wondering, why exactly should I tip the waiter? I don’t get tipped for my job! But, many of these people may not realize exactly how the wages of a waitress actually work. Like it or not, the tradition in the United States is to tip at full service restaurants. Because of this … Continue reading →

Celebrity Cheapskates

I’m sure you are familiar with the phrase: “To Whom Much is Given, Much is Expected.” Apparently, either some of Hollywood’s biggest names are not as familiar with the saying or they simply choose to ignore it. Case in point, online forums are buzzing with the low down on the latest list of celebrity cheapskates. Topping the list… two names that shocked me: Katie Holmes and new BFF Victoria Beckham. It appears that Mrs. Moneybanks, pardon me, Mrs. Tom “Moneybanks” Cruise, is only generous to people she works with… forget about the people who simply work for a living. According … Continue reading →