If you’re thinking of taking a trip to Bermuda you’ll be researching what to do, planning flights, comparing different hotels and vacation rentals, and considering whether you want to rent a car or not. You might also be deciding on the best beaches to go to, figuring out the best diving spots and dive shops, thinking about where you want to fish, and what water sports to book.
After all, Bermuda is an island vacation and cruise line destination with beautiful pink sand beaches, great scuba diving opportunities, terrific fishing, and an all-around fun place for water sports. In fact, Bermuda is such a popular tourist destination that almost 30% of its economy’s gross domestic product (GDP) comes from the tourism industry.
You will also want to figure out the local customs. One important local custom that every visitor should understand is the tipping culture in Bermuda.
So, do you tip in Bermuda? It depends on the situation and is always a hot-button subject. In this Bermuda Tipping Guide, we will cover travel information including whether you should tip Bermudians at restaurants, hotels, in a taxi, at a spa, on a tour, or at the hairdresser or barber.
Do You Tip At Restaurants In Bermuda?
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In most restaurants in Bermuda, you don’t need to leave your waiter a tip. This is because there is normally an automatic service charge of 15% to 17% added as part of the check. In this case, the tip is already included in the price of the food at the restaurant.
There is, however, an important exception to this rule. There are a few restaurants in Bermuda that don’t add on a service charge so if you’re dining at one of these restaurants, you will need to leave a tip.
How Much Should I Tip At Restaurants In Bermuda?
If you’ve already checked that an automatic gratuity is not included in the cost of food at the restaurant, you should tip your waiter 15% of your total bill. You can leave extra cash for exceptionally good service. Your tips will be appreciated as they top up otherwise low wages.
Only leave a tip if you had attentive waitstaff since gratuities should only reward good service.
Are you headed to a bar? Find a place with a good vibe, check out the drink specials, get to know your bartender, and strike up some conversations with your fellow bar patrons. Before you go, think about whether you need to tip the bartender in Bermuda or not. Do you know the answer?
Do You Tip At Bars In Bermuda?
If your bar includes a service charge in the bill, you don’t need to leave an additional tip. That’s because the tip is already included in the cost of the beers!
If, however, your bar doesn’t already include a service charge you do need to tip. So before deciding what to leave for a tip, check if you need to leave a tip in the first place.
How Much Should You Tip At Bars in Bermuda?
You should leave a tip of 10% of the total bill only if a service charge is not already included. Do check about this first because a service charge is often included at bars in Bermuda.
Unless you’re staying at an Airbnb, another vacation rental, with friends and family, or on a boat, you’ll probably be staying in a hotel while you’re in Bermuda.
If you’re staying at a hotel, you’ll want to know if you’re supposed to tip at all and if you are, who to tip and how much. Do you tip the bellhop? How about the concierge? Do you tip the hotel maid or not?
Do You Tip At Hotels In Bermuda
There is no need to tip hotel staff with the sole exception of the bellhop/luggage porter. If the bellhop takes your luggage to your hotel room, it is customary to leave them a tip.
While you don’t have to tip the other hotel staff, you can leave your hotel maid, room service, and the concierge tips at your own discretion. If you’re tipping your hotel maid, leave the tip in your room each morning since maids don’t always clean the same room each day. You’ll want to reward the person actually cleaning your room that day.
How Much Should You Tip At Hotels In Bermuda
If your hotel’s bellhop/luggage porter helped you bring your bags to your room, you should give them one Bermuda Dollar for every bag.
If you’d like to leave your housekeeper a tip (remember you don’t have to!), you can leave 2 Bermuda dollars each morning before you leave your hotel room. Be sure to use the hotel’s housekeeping tip envelope or leave the tip on the bed with a note. Otherwise, your hotel maid might not be able to take your tip due to hotel security rules.
While the concierge doesn’t need to be tipped, feel free to give them a tip of a few Bermuda dollars for booking a hard to deal with reservation or tour.
Will you be taking a tour at some point while you’re in Bermuda? If so, you’ll want to know if you should tip your tour guide at the end of the tour.
Do You Tip Tour Guides In Bermuda?
Yes, you should tip your tour guide in Bermuda as tipping is expected. If you received a bad tour, though, feel free to tip nothing as tips should always be for good service only.
How Much Should You Tip Your Tour Guides In Bermuda?
You should tip 10% to 15% of the cost of the tour to your guide, depending on how the tour turns out. If it was a great tour, tip 15% while if it was an average tour tip 10%.
If the tour guide was not good at all, don’t feel obliged to leave a tip.
Taxis are a way to get an easy way to get around Bermuda so if you’ll be taking one, you’ll want to know whether you need to leave the taxi driver a tip or not. If you are supposed to give your taxi driver a tip, how much should you leave?
Do You Tip Taxi Drivers In Bermuda
Yes, you need to tip your taxi driver in Bermuda. While you might not have to tip a taxi driver in your own country, taxi drivers expect to be tipped in Bermuda.
How Much Should You Tip Your Taxi Driver In Bermuda
Tip your taxi driver 10% to 15% of the taxi fare depending on how your ride was and whether your taxi driver helped you with your luggage. Other tipping sites out there suggest leaving 15% to 20% but that range is a bit too high. 10-15% of the taxi fare is appropriate.
If you’re going to Bermuda, you’re probably thinking about how you’ll get around the island. One of the best ways to get around in many countries is using Uber. If you use Uber or an Uber equivalent in Bermuda, do you need to tip the driver? If so, how much of a tip should you leave?
Is There Uber In Bermuda?
Unfortunately, Uber is not available in Bermuda. Thankfully, though, there is an Uber alternative!
What Is The Alternative To Uber In Bermuda?
The Hitch app is a tool you can use on your phone to arrange transportation in Bermuda. Click here to visit their website to learn more about their service. You can download Hitch’s app from your iPhone’s Apple Appstore or your Android’s Google Play Store.
Hitch will send you a metered taxi so while your ride will be the same price as a regular taxi, you don’t have to try to hail one or have to call the taxi company. You can also often skip to the head of the line of the other people who are physically waiting for a taxi.
Do You Need to Tip A Hitch Driver in Bermuda?
Yes, you should tip your Hitch driver in Bermuda. Just like taxi drivers in Bermuda (which all Hitch drivers are), Hitch drivers also expect tips from their passengers.
How Much Should You Tip Your Hitch Driver?
You should tip your Hitch driver 10% to 15%.
Tip 15% for a safe, friendly driver who helped you with your bags and 10% for an average ride. If you didn’t have a good ride, you don’t have to tip anything.
Getting your hair cut or styled? You’ll want to know if you need to tip your hairdresser or barber. If you do need to tip, how much of a tip should you leave?
Do You Tip Your Hairdresser?
Yes, you should tip your hairdresser in Bermuda.
How Much Should You Tip Your Hairdresser In Bermuda?
You should tip 15% of the cost of the haircut or styling if you received a good haircut or styling.
Need help calculating the tip? Use our easy-to-use hairdresser tip calculator.
Do You Tip Your Barber?
If you are pleased with your haircut or beard trim, you should leave a tip.
How Much Should You Tip Your Barber In Bermuda?
You should leave your barber a tip of 15% of the cost of your haircut or beard trim.
If you need help figuring out the tip, use our free barber tip calculator.
Are you planning on going to the spa while you’re in Bermuda? It can be a great way to relax and treat yourself while you’re on vacation.
Do You Tip At Spas?
Yes, it is customary to tip at spas in Bermuda for spa treatments and massages.
How Much Should You Tip At Spas In Bermuda
You should tip 15% of the cost of your spa treatments or massage if you received good service.
While 15% is a standard tip rate in Bermuda, feel free to leave a smaller tip or none at all for subpar or bad service.
Are you going scuba diving, taking a boat ride, or going fishing while in Bermuda? If you are, you’ll want to know if you need to leave a tip and if so, how much of a tip to leave.
Do You Tip Boat Staff?
Yes, tipping the boat staff in Bermuda is customary. Whether you’re going scuba diving, snorkeling, taking a boat ride, or going fishing, it’s common courtesy to be generous with the staff.
How Much Should You Tip Boat Staff In Bermuda?
If you are taking a boat ride, you can tip the crew 5 to 10 Bermuda dollars for the trip to be shared among all the crew members.
For scuba diving trips, you can tip 5 to 10 Bermuda dollars per dive per tank or you can tip 10% to 15% of the cost of your dive package. It’s up to you.
For fishing charters, you should tip 10% to 15% of the cost of the fishing charter cost. Only leave a tip if the crew was good, though, since tips should always be given to reward good service. There’s no reason to reward poor service.
Frequently Asked Bermuda Questions
People often have specific questions about travel to Bermuda. Here are some of the most common questions people ask.
What is a service charge in Bermuda?
Service charges are commonly included in the cost of food at restaurants, the cost of drinks at bars, and are often added to hotel bills. They are designed to take the place of tipping so that workers in these service industries can be paid decent wages. If there is a service charge on your bill, you don’t have to leave a tip.
What is the best way to get around Bermuda?
The best ways to get around Bermuda are scooter rentals, public buses, taxis, ferry services, and mini-car rentals. If you’re renting a scooter, keep in mind that you drive on the left side of the road in Bermuda.
Are taxis expensive in Bermuda?
While taxis are not cheap, the fares are set by the government and are not particularly expensive. The metered fares consist of a base rate, a mileage charge, $1 per bag, and a surcharge at certain times.
Can tourists rent cars in Bermuda?
No, tourists cannot rent cars in Bermuda. While that’s unfortunate, you can rent a scooter to get around.
The reason for this rule is to ease traffic congestion and account for the lack of parking spaces. This might sound like an odd rule until you learn that Bermuda has the highest density of vehicles per square mile in the entire world! Adding extra cars could bring traffic to a standstill.
If you’re looking for a loophole to this rule, you would need to move to Bermuda and then obtain a Bermudian driving license. Luckily, scooter rentals are an option and the public transportation system is good.
Do you need a car to get around Bermuda?
No, you don’t need a car to get around Bermuda since public transportation is convenient and affordable. In any case, tourists are not allowed to rent cars.
If you do want your own set of wheels, tourists are allowed to rent scooters.
Is it expensive to eat in Bermuda?
If you plan on eating at restaurants while in Bermuda, budget $50 per day per person as this is what the average tourist spends.